Source: http://www.google.com/patents/US7437928?dq=5631832
Timestamp: 2017-01-21 22:30:51
Document Index: 485942184

Matched Legal Cases: ['arts 2', 'art 3', 'art 2', 'art 2', 'art 3', 'art 2', 'arts 2', 'arts 2', 'arts 2', 'art 3', 'art 2', 'arts 2']

Patent US7437928 - Flow sensor of the thermal type - Google PatentsSearch Images Maps Play YouTube News Gmail Drive More »Sign inPatentsA flow sensor of the thermal type having a U-shaped sensor tube with two legs and a connecting limb with two adjoining electrical resistance elements, and with a housing. The sensor tube has an inlet side and an outlet side. The housing has a first and a second housing part of a thermally well-conducting...http://www.google.com/patents/US7437928?utm_source=gb-gplus-sharePatent US7437928 - Flow sensor of the thermal typeAdvanced Patent SearchTry the new Google Patents, with machine-classified Google Scholar results, and Japanese and South Korean patents.Publication numberUS7437928 B2Publication typeGrantApplication numberUS 11/798,983Publication dateOct 21, 2008Filing dateMay 18, 2007Priority dateJun 14, 2006Fee statusPaidAlso published asDE602007005306D1, EP1867962A1, EP1867962B1, US20070295079Publication number11798983, 798983, US 7437928 B2, US 7437928B2, US-B2-7437928, US7437928 B2, US7437928B2InventorsJeroen Wouter Bos, Ronald Wilhelmus Johannes Hoitink, Johannes Henricus Besseling, Joost Conrad LöttersOriginal AssigneeBerkin B.V.Export CitationBiBTeX, EndNote, RefManPatent Citations (7), Classifications (8), Legal Events (3) External Links: USPTO, USPTO Assignment, EspacenetFlow sensor of the thermal type
The sensor tube 6 is brought into thermal contact with the housing parts 2, 3, i.e. is thermally clamped in, at the areas of its bends when the second housing part 3, which preferably has a pattern of channels corresponding to the pattern of channels of the first housing part 2, is placed on the first housing part 2 during final assembly. The housing parts are for this purpose fastened to one another by means of bolts (not shown) which are turned through the housing part 3 into tapped holes in the housing part 2. During clamping, the bends of the U-shaped tube 6 may become slightly deformed (flattened). The ends 19, 20 of the U-shaped tube 6 will project slightly from the assembled housing parts 2, 3 after assembly. Being guided by the channels 21, 22 in combination with the channels 21A, 22A, they have a fixed mutual distance at the exterior of the housing, so that the sensor 1 can be readily mounted on a base unit of a mass flow controller. The lower portions 30, 30′ of the housing parts 2, 3 may be regarded as integrated base portions. They comprise fastening elements 31 and 31′ provided with respective bores by means of which the housing parts 2, 3 can be mounted on a base of a mass flow controller. In FIG. 1, the channels in the inner surface 5 of the housing part 3 that correspond to the channels 12, 13, 16, 21, and 22 in the inner surface of the housing part 2 (the “counter-channels”) have been given the reference numerals 12A, 13A, 16A, 21A, and 22A.
The housing parts 2, 3 each comprise, besides the pattern of channels for accommodating the U-shaped sensor tube, also a central cavity 25, 25A. These cavities offer space for providing a connection component such as a connection foil or a connection (printed circuit) board. Said connection component is visible in the construction of FIG. 2. At one side connection wires with the electrical windings are connected thereto, and at the other side thicker wires 27, 28, 29 provide the connection to external circuitry. The printed circuit board may be fastened to the legs. In case the sensor tube is comparatively thick, it may be thermally clamped in the housing ‘below’ (adjacent the outer side of) the printed circuit board.
The expression “U-shaped tube” denotes any configuration of two legs interconnected by a connecting limb, for example also configurations in which the legs are closer together adjacent their ends than at the connecting limb.
The expression “local clamping in” herein denotes clamping in over a portion of the relevant available path, for example over a portion of the path between the inlet side of the sensor tube and the upstream resistance element or over a portion of the path between the outlet side of the sensor tube and the downstream resistance element.
Patent CitationsCited PatentFiling datePublication dateApplicantTitleUS4517838Nov 10, 1983May 21, 1985Ohkura Electric Co., Ltd.Thermal mass flow meterUS4815280May 13, 1987Mar 28, 1989Stec Inc.Thermal flow meterUS5191793 *Jul 10, 1992Mar 9, 1993Tylan CorporationFluid mass flow meter device with reduced attitude sensitivityUS5279154 *Sep 18, 1992Jan 18, 1994Unit Instruments, Inc.Thermal mass flow sensorUS5309762 *Nov 19, 1990May 10, 1994Stec Inc.Mass flowmeter with hermetically sealed housingEP0809090A1May 16, 1997Nov 26, 1997Varian Associates, Inc.Fluid thermal mass flow sensorWO2003058180A1Nov 20, 2002Jul 17, 2003Mks Instruments, Inc.Apparatus and method for thermal management of a mass flow controller* Cited by examinerClassifications U.S. Classification73/204.22International ClassificationG01F1/68Cooperative ClassificationG01F15/18, G01F15/14, G01F1/6847European ClassificationG01F15/14, G01F15/18, G01F1/684NLegal EventsDateCodeEventDescriptionMay 18, 2007ASAssignmentOwner name: BERKIN B.V., NETHERLANDSFree format text: ASSIGNMENT OF ASSIGNORS INTEREST;ASSIGNORS:BOS, JEROEN WOUTER;HOITINK, RONALD WILHELMUS JOHANNES;BESSELING, JOHANNES HENRICUS;AND OTHERS;REEL/FRAME:019383/0426Effective date: 20070508Nov 18, 2011FPAYFee paymentYear of fee payment: 4Apr 21, 2016FPAYFee paymentYear of fee payment: 8RotateOriginal ImageGoogle Home - Sitemap - USPTO Bulk Downloads - Privacy Policy - Terms of Service - About Google Patents - Send FeedbackData provided by IFI CLAIMS Patent Services