Patent ID: 7132642

Claim:
An anti-entrapment system for preventing an object from being entrapped by a translating device, the system comprising: a capacitance sensor positioned adjacent to a translating device, the capacitance sensor having first and second electrical conductors separated by a separation distance, a compressible dielectric element interposed between the conductors, and an electrically non-conductive elastomer outer jacket encasing the conductors and the dielectric element, the capacitance sensor having a capacitance dependent upon the separation distance between the conductors; wherein the capacitance changes in response to the separation distance between the conductors decreasing as a result of the dielectric element compressing in response to a first object touching the outer jacket; wherein the capacitance changes in response to a second electrically conductive object coming into proximity with at least one of the conductors; and a controller for controlling the translating device as a function of the capacitance in order to prevent the translating device from entrapping either object.