Patent ID: 8384399

Claim:
A system comprising: a first electrode; a second electrode situated a first distance from the first electrode and capacitively coupled to the first electrode; a third electrode situated a second distance from the first electrode and capacitively coupled to the first electrode and situated a third distance from the second electrode and capacitively coupled to the second electrode; a first circuit configured to receive data via a network and transmit a first signal via the first electrode, wherein the first circuit is configured to transmit based on the data; a second circuit configured to receive the data via the network and directly coupled to the second electrode to receive a first current from the second electrode and to transmit a second signal via the second electrode, wherein the first current corresponds to the first signal and the second circuit is configured to receive and transmit based on the data; a third circuit configured to receive the data via the network and directly coupled to the third electrode to receive a second current from the third electrode and to receive a third current from the third electrode, wherein the second current corresponds to the first signal and the third current corresponds to the second signal and the third circuit is configured to receive based on the data; and an electronic control unit configured to communicate with the first circuit and the second circuit and the third circuit via the network and detect changes in the distance between the first electrode and the second electrode and between the first electrode and the third electrode and between the second electrode and the third electrode.