2227results about "Weighing by absorbing component" patented technology

A moisture sensor for skin is disclosed. With the moisture sensor, a user can determine that her skin is too dry, and can conveniently apply a skin-care product. In addition, in one embodiment, the sensor can assist in identifying different types of skin-care products to apply. As one example, a skin-care product is a type of lotion. As another example, a skin-care product is a type of shampoo.

A mass sensor including: a connecting plate having one or more slit(s) and/or opening portion(s) formed therein and/or having a thin-walled portion and a thick-walled portion formed therein; a diaphragm joined with the connecting plate at respective side surfaces; a piezoelectric element; a sensing plate with the piezoelectric element being provided at least at one part on at least one surface of the sensing plate, which has its side surface joined with a side surface of the connecting plate in the direction perpendicular to the joining direction of the diaphragm and the connecting plate; and a sensor substrate with which at least a part of side surfaces of the connecting plate as well as the sensing plate are joined, and the diaphragm, the connecting plate, the sensing plate, and the piezoelectric element form a resonating portion. The mass sensor can conveniently be used for determining the mass of a substance to be sensed by measuring changes in resonant frequencies caused by changes in the mass of the diaphragm on which a catching substance for catching a substance to be sensed by reacting only with the object of sensing is applied.

A device for detecting at least one substance of a fluid includes at least one piezo-acoustic resonator with at least one piezo layer, an electrode arranged on the piezo-electric layer, at least one other electrode arranged on the piezo-electric layer and a surface section used for sorption of the substance of the fluid. The piezo-electric layer, the electrodes and the surface section are disposed in such a way that electric control of the electrodes leads to an oscillation of the resonator at a resonance frequency which depends upon the amount of the substance which is sorbed on the surface section. The thickness of the pioelectric layer is in the region of 0.5 to 20 μm and the resonance frequency of the oscillation ranges from 500 MHz to 2 GHz. The device is a mass sensor with a piezo-acoustic high-frequency thin film resonator.

A single chip wireless sensor (1) comprises a microcontroller (2) connected to a transmit/receive interface (3), which is coupled to a wireless antenna (4) by an L-C matching circuit. The sensor (1) senses gas or humidity and temperature. The device (1) is an integrated chip manufactured in a single process in which both the electronics and sensor components are manufactured using standard CMOS processing techniques, applied to achieve both electronic and sensing components in an integrated process. A Low-K material (57) with an organic polymer component is spun onto the wafer to form a top layer incorporating also sensing electrodes (60). This material is cured at 300° C., which is much lower than CVD temperatures. The polyimide when cured becomes thermoset, and the lower mass-to-volume ratio resulting in K, its dielectric constant, reducing to 2.9. The thermoset dielectric, while not regarded as porous in the conventional sense, has sufficient free space volume to admit enough gas or humidity for sensing.

The present invention is related to a composite sheet material, a method of producing this material, and the application of this material as a sensor for monitoring and measuring shear forces (or lateral translation). In one embodiment, the present invention includes a composite sheet material having an upper and a lower surface comprising an elastomeric matrix, which is essentially non-conductive, and discrete electrically conductive elements within the matrix wherein the electrically conductive elements in a region of the composite sheet material are arranged into columns, and the orientation of these columns are in an essentially organized, non-random pattern with a majority of these columns oriented at angles less than about 90° and greater than about 15° to the lower surface of the composite sheet material. In another embodiment, the present invention provides for a method of forming the sensors.

A piezoelectric cantilever with a non-piezoelectric, or piezoelectric tip useful as mass and viscosity sensors. The change in the cantilever mass can be accurately quantified by monitoring a resonance frequency shift of the cantilever. For bio-detection, antibodies or other specific receptors of target antigens may be immobilized on the cantilever surface, preferably on the non-piezoelectric tip. For chemical detection, high surface-area selective absorbent materials are coated on the cantilever tip. Binding of the target antigens or analytes to the cantilever surface increases the cantilever mass. Detection of target antigens or analytes is achieved by monitoring the cantilever's resonance frequency and determining the resonance frequency shift that is due to the mass of the adsorbed target antigens on the cantilever surface. The use of a piezoelectric unimorph cantilever allows both electrical actuation and electrical sensing. Incorporating a non-piezoelectric tip (14) enhances the sensitivity of the sensor. In addition, the piezoelectric cantilever can withstand damping in highly viscous liquids and can be used as a viscosity sensor in wide viscosity range.

A method of evaluating the absorbency of an absorbent article comprises the steps of: (i) providing an absorbent article comprising a topsheet and having a longitudinal axis, a transverse axis, a first longitudinal end and a second longitudinal end; (ii) disposing the absorbent article in a flat configuration in a plane defined by the longitudinal axis and the transverse axis of the absorbent article; (iii) twisting the longitudinal ends in opposite directions in planes perpendicular to the longitudinal axis; (iv) twisting the longitudinal ends in directions opposite that of step (iii); (v) applying artificial bodily fluid to the topsheet of said absorbent article during steps (iii) and/or (iv); and (vi) repeating steps (iii) and (iv) after the artificial bodily fluid is applied to the topsheet.

The present invention relates to methods and devices for determining the weight of small particles, typically being nano-sized particles by use of resonating fibers in the form of elongate members being driven into resonance by an actuator or e.g. thermal noise/fluctuation. The frequency shift in resonance frequency due to depositing of nano-sized particles is correlated with the mass deposited on the elongate member and the vibration frequency of the elongate member is determined by a detector. The read-out from the detector is transformed into a mass deposited on the elongate member. Particles are deposited by letting a fluid with the particles flow past the elongate member.

A dew condensation sensor is described, including a nano-composite for generating local surface plasmon resonance, a light reflecting member disposed on one side of the nano-composite, a protection layer laminated on the light reflecting member, a light source/light receiver disposed facing the nano-composite, a spectroscope (or photo-detector) for detecting the light reflected by the light source/light receiver, a controller connected to the light source/light receiver and the spectroscope (or photo-detector) and used for overall control thereof, and a display unit connected to the controller. The dew condensation sensor detects occurrence of dew condensation based on the variation in the absorption spectrum, the absorption intensity or the reflected-light intensity of the local surface plasmon resonance of the nano-composite.

A mass sensor includes a diaphragm, a sensing plate having a piezoelectric element arranged on at least a part of at least one surface joining respective sides, a connecting plate sandwiched by the diaphragm and the sensing plate, wherein the diaphragm, the sensing plate, the piezoelectric element, and the connecting plate form a resonating portion. The connecting plate is bridged across the side surfaces of a concave portion formed in a sensor substrate, and the sensing plate is joined to at least the bottom portion of the concave portion. Change in the mass of the diaphragm is measured by measuring change in the resonant frequencies of the resonating portion accompanying the change in the mass of the diaphragm. The mass sensor enables the easy and accurate measurement of a minute mass of a nanogram order including microorganisms such as bacteria and viruses, or chemical substances, or the thickness of vapor-deposited films.

The invention is a method of measuring an apparent weight of a substance, while concurrently measuring a surface temperature of the substance and an ambient air temperature surrounding the substance, then predicting buoyancy forces acting upon the substance based on these temperature measurements. Thereafter, the true weight of the substance can be determined by correcting the apparent weight by the predicted buoyancy forces acting upon the substance.

A solar umbrella and table apparatus with attached chairs features stand-alone AC power, generated from solar energy. The apparatus features an umbrella having solar collection devices and a table with attached seating chairs. The electrical system of the apparatus converts collected solar energy to an electrical voltage. Batteries store the energy provided by the solar panels. Inverters convert the DC voltage output from the storage batteries to 120 volts AC. Power outlet terminals are located on the umbrella and table apparatus allow 120 volts AC powered devices to access the output of the sine wave power inverters.

A method and apparatus for detecting moisture. An oscillatory electrical signal S₁ generated by an oscillator is propagated into a body that includes an electrically insulative material. A signal due to S₁ emerges from the body as an oscillatory electrical signal S₂. The signals S₁ and S₂ differ in phase by Δφ, wherein Δφ is indicative of moisture along a path traversed by S₁ within the insulative material, and wherein the conductance σ of the insulative material is also indicative of the moisture along the path traversed by S₁ within the insulative material. S₂ is received at a sensing surface of a sensing part (e.g., probe, sensing antenna, etc.) and then transmitted to a moisture detecting device. The moisture detecting device determines from S₁ and S₂ a measure M of the moisture as a function of Δφ or as a function of σ.

An irreversible humidity indicator card comprising an intermediate carrier member containing one or more holes, a clear, water vapor permeable first outer layer secured to the first side of the carrier member, a deliquescent material contained within the holes in the carrier member, a dark colored, absorbent sheet material secured to the back side of the carrier member to cover the holes in the carrier member and a second outer layer which covers the colored absorbent sheet material and a portion or all of the back side of the intermediate carrier member.

A chemical sensor having a transducer element and a layer of composite material including a polymer matrix and a solid particulate filler disposed in the polymer matrix provides chemical sensors exhibiting improved properties. In particular, the device allows polymer matrix materials to be selected based primarily on diffusion properties, strength, stability and other physical characteristics substantially independent of limitations and compromises that arise when attempting to synthesize polymers having specific types of sensory groups chemically bound to the polymer. The invention also allows greater ability to modify sensor response characteristics by appropriate modification of the particulate filler, whereby a diverse sensor array may be fabricated more easily and at a lower cost.

Irrigation systems, moisture sensors and related methods having a sensor imbedded in the ground to sense moisture and help control watering. The sensor is responsive to capacitance changes from ground moisture variations. The sensor uses spaced insulated electrodes which are mounted within a granular filled chamber within a water-permeable shell. The sensor is mounted as part of a ground unit that also includes a high frequency driver that excites the sensor. The ground unit further has a detector circuit which produces a moisture indicating signal based on the capacitance which varies with ground moisture. Also disclosed are controllers that electrically isolate the ground units so that reliable moisture signals can be obtained and used to control irrigation. The controllers can be configured to provide multiple zone operation using a shared controller having shared or independent moisture adjusters.