Patent ID: 7159445

Claim:
A sniffing leak detector for detecting whether a unit under test and containing a test gas is leaking, said leak detector comprising: a handpiece, a sniffing tip supported by said handpiece, a supply pump configured for sucking gases into said sniffing tip from a unit under test containing a test gas, a gas sensor that receives said gases from said sniffing tip and determines the presence of a leak in said unit, said gas sensor producing measurement signals indicative of a leak, an acceleration sensor accommodated in relation to said handpiece, said acceleration sensor being sensitive to movements of the handpiece and producing signals based upon the movements of the handpiece, and an electronic circuit that receives signals from the acceleration sensor, wherein the signals of the acceleration sensor are employed by the electronic circuit for the purpose of switching the leak detector to a standby mode after a predefined period of time during which the handpiece is not being utilized and in which any signals received from the acceleration sensor are employed by the electronic circuit for the purpose of automatically switching the leak detector from said standby mode to an operating mode.