Sensing and monitoring system based on zero-power micro-mechanical switch

Abstract

The invention relates to a sensing and monitoring system, in particular to a sensing and monitoring system based on a zero-power micromechanical switch. The problems that an existing sensor is short in service life and high in deployment cost are solved. The device comprises a substrate, a first contact electrode, a second contact electrode, a first thermosensitive mechanical arm, a second thermosensitive mechanical arm, a first infrared absorber, a second infrared absorber, a first contact probe and a second contact probe, an etching release area is arranged in the middle of the upper surface of the substrate, the first infrared absorber and the second infrared absorber are arranged in the etching release area side by side, the first infrared absorber is connected with the first contact electrode through the first thermosensitive mechanical arm, and the second infrared absorber is connected with the second contact electrode through the second thermosensitive mechanical arm. The first contact probe is arranged on the first infrared absorber, and the second contact probe is arranged on the second infrared absorber. The invention belongs to the technical field of infrared sensing.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The invention relates to a sensing and monitoring system, belonging to the technical field of infrared sensing. Background Art

[0002] As the Internet of Things revolution continues, the development of related smart sensor technologies has led to the creation of billions of smart sensor nodes, which have greatly promoted the development of industry, agriculture and the environment. At the same time, the significant energy consumption of smart sensor nodes has also placed a heavy burden on the energy supply and environmental sustainability of sensors. Sensor nodes working in the field often need to be continuously powered, which makes batteries the main factor limiting the life of sensor nodes. This is especially true when detecting major events that occur at low frequencies, such as forest fires, gas leaks, etc. Since sensor nodes need to consume power continuously, most of the battery energy is consumed before obtaining major event signals. This fundamentally limits the deployment of wireless sensors. Therefore, it is urgent to design a sensor control method with near-zero power consumption to extend the service life of sensors and reduce the deployment and maintenance costs of sensor nodes. Summary of the invention

[0003] In order to solve the problems of short service life and high deployment cost of existing sensors, the present invention further proposes a sensing and monitoring system based on zero-power micromechanical switches.

[0004] The technical solution adopted by the present invention to solve the above problems is: the sensing system of the present invention comprises a substrate, a first contact electrode, a second contact electrode, a first thermosensitive mechanical arm, a second thermosensitive mechanical arm, a first infrared absorber, a second infrared absorber, a first contact probe and a second contact probe;

[0005] An etching release area is provided in the middle of the upper surface of the substrate, a first infrared absorber and a second infrared absorber are arranged side by side in the etching release area, the first infrared absorber is connected to the first contact electrode through a first thermal-sensitive mechanical arm, the second infrared absorber is connected to the second contact electrode through a second thermal-sensitive mechanical arm, a first contact probe is arranged on the first infrared absorber, and a second contact probe is arranged on the second infrared absorber.

[0006] Further, the first contact electrode includes a first ground electrode, a first bias electrode and a first control electrode;

[0007] The first grounding electrode, the first biasing electrode and the first control electrode are sequentially arranged on the substrate from top to bottom, and the first grounding electrode, the first biasing electrode and the first control electrode are all connected to the first thermosensitive mechanical arm.

[0008] Further, the second contact electrode includes a second ground electrode, a second bias electrode and a second control electrode;

[0009] The second grounding electrode, the second biasing electrode and the second control electrode are sequentially arranged on the substrate from top to bottom, and the second grounding electrode, the second biasing electrode and the second control electrode are all connected to the second thermosensitive mechanical arm.

[0010] Further, the first thermosensitive mechanical arm includes a first upper layer of thermosensitive material, a first middle layer of thermosensitive material, a first lower layer of thermosensitive material and a first bottom metal wiring layer;

[0011] The first upper layer of thermosensitive material, the first middle layer of thermosensitive material, the first lower layer of thermosensitive material and the first bottom metal wiring layer are stacked in sequence from top to bottom, and the first bottom metal wiring layer is connected to the first contact motor.

[0012] Further, the second thermosensitive mechanical arm includes a second upper layer of thermosensitive material, a second middle layer of thermosensitive material, a second lower layer of thermosensitive material, and a second bottom metal wiring layer;

[0013] The second upper thermosensitive material, the second middle thermosensitive material, the second lower thermosensitive material and the second bottom metal wiring layer are stacked in sequence from top to bottom, and the second bottom metal wiring layer is connected to the second contact electrode.

[0014] Further, the first infrared absorber includes a first surface three-dimensional absorption metal array, a first intermediate dielectric layer, a first lower continuous metal layer and a first bottom wiring metal layer;

[0015] The first surface three-dimensional absorption metal array, the first intermediate dielectric layer, the first lower continuous metal layer and the first bottom wiring metal layer are stacked in sequence from top to bottom.

[0016] Further, the second infrared absorber includes a second surface three-dimensional absorption metal array, a second intermediate dielectric layer, a second lower continuous metal layer and a second bottom wiring metal layer;

[0017] The second surface three-dimensional absorption metal array, the second intermediate dielectric layer, the second lower continuous metal layer and the second bottom wiring metal layer are stacked in sequence from top to bottom.

[0018] The monitoring system of the present invention comprises an infrared control module and a load function module;

[0019] The infrared control module is used to control the load function module;

[0020] The infrared control module consists of an impedance monitoring and zero-power infrared sensing system;

[0021] The load function module consists of a transmitter, a monitor and a sensor.

[0022] The beneficial effects of the present invention are:

[0023] 1. Compared with the prior art, the zero-power infrared sensor switch structure and manufacturing process adopted by the present invention are simpler and have higher sensitivity and reliability;

[0024] 2. The design of the present invention can adjust the monitoring distance of the target to be measured through the infrared control module according to the requirements of the transmitter, sensor, monitor, etc. for the monitoring target distance and monitoring field of view, thereby improving the monitoring and recognition accuracy;

[0025] 3. The zero-power micromechanical switch sensing and monitoring system provided by the present invention can maintain near-zero power consumption in standby mode, significantly reduce the energy consumption of the monitoring system, extend the service life of the sensing and monitoring system, and maintain deployment and active status for many years without replacing batteries. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0026] Figure 1 is a top view of the near-zero power consumption MEMS infrared detector of the present invention;

[0027] Figure 2 It is a schematic diagram of the membrane structure of the first thermal-sensitive robotic arm;

[0028] Figure 3 It is a schematic diagram of the membrane structure of the second thermal-sensitive robotic arm;

[0029] Figure 4 is a schematic diagram of the film structure of the first infrared absorber;

[0030] Figure 5 is a schematic diagram of the film structure of the second infrared absorber;

[0031] Figure 6 It is a block diagram of the sensing and monitoring system of the zero-power micromechanical switch described in the present invention. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0032] Specific implementation method 1: Figure 1 As shown, a sensing system based on a zero-power micromechanical switch includes a substrate 1, a first contact electrode 3, a second contact electrode 4, a first thermosensitive mechanical arm 5, a second thermosensitive mechanical arm 6, a first infrared absorber 7, a second infrared absorber 8, a first contact probe 9 and a second contact probe 10;

[0033] An etching release area 2 is provided in the middle of the upper surface of the substrate 1, and a first infrared absorber 7 and a second infrared absorber 8 are arranged side by side in the etching release area 2. The first infrared absorber 7 is connected to the first contact electrode 3 through a first thermal-sensitive mechanical arm 5, and the second infrared absorber 8 is connected to the second contact electrode 4 through a second thermal-sensitive mechanical arm 6. A first contact probe 9 is arranged on the first infrared absorber 7, and a second contact probe 10 is arranged on the second infrared absorber 8.

[0034] The first infrared absorber 7 and the second infrared absorber 8 have infrared absorption characteristics of more than 90% of infrared energy in a specific band.

[0035] Specific implementation method 2: Figure 1 As shown, based on the specific implementation mode 1, the first contact electrode 3 includes a first grounding electrode 3-1, a first biasing electrode 3-2 and a first control electrode 3-3;

[0036] The first grounding electrode 3 - 1 , the first biasing electrode 3 - 2 and the first control electrode 3 - 3 are sequentially arranged on the substrate 1 from top to bottom, and the first grounding electrode 3 - 1 , the first biasing electrode 3 - 2 and the first control electrode 3 - 3 are all connected to the first thermosensitive mechanical arm 5 .

[0037] Specific implementation method three: Figure 1 As shown, based on the first specific embodiment, the second contact electrode 4 includes a second grounding electrode 4-1, a second bias electrode 4-2 and a second control electrode 4-3;

[0038] The second ground electrode 4 - 1 , the second bias electrode 4 - 2 and the second control electrode 4 - 3 are sequentially arranged on the substrate 1 from top to bottom, and the second ground electrode 4 - 1 , the second bias electrode 4 - 2 and the second control electrode 4 - 3 are all connected to the second thermosensitive mechanical arm 6 .

[0039] Specific implementation method four: Figure 2 As shown, based on the specific implementation mode 1, the first thermosensitive mechanical arm 5 includes a first upper thermosensitive material 5-1, a first middle thermosensitive material 5-2, a first lower thermosensitive material 5-3 and a first bottom metal wiring layer 5-4;

[0040] The first upper thermosensitive material 5 - 1 , the first middle thermosensitive material 5 - 2 , the first lower thermosensitive material 5 - 3 and the first bottom metal wiring layer 5 - 4 are stacked in sequence from top to bottom, and the first bottom metal wiring layer 5 - 4 is connected to the first contact motor 3 .

[0041] The first upper layer heat-sensitive material 5 - 1 , the first middle layer heat-sensitive material 5 - 2 and the first lower layer heat-sensitive material 5 - 3 are respectively composed of three materials with different thermal conductivities.

[0042] Specific implementation method five: Figure 3 As shown, based on the specific implementation mode 1, the second thermosensitive mechanical arm 6 includes a second upper thermosensitive material 6-1, a second middle thermosensitive material 6-2, a second lower thermosensitive material 6-3 and a second bottom metal wiring layer 6-4;

[0043] The second upper thermosensitive material 6 - 1 , the second middle thermosensitive material 6 - 2 , the second lower thermosensitive material 6 - 3 and the second bottom metal wiring layer 6 - 4 are stacked in sequence from top to bottom, and the second bottom metal wiring layer 6 - 4 is connected to the second contact electrode 4 .

[0044] Among them, the second upper layer thermosensitive material 6-1, the second middle layer thermosensitive material 6-2 and the second lower layer thermosensitive material 6-3 are respectively composed of three materials with different thermal conductivities, and the materials of the second upper layer thermosensitive material 6-1, the second middle layer thermosensitive material 6-2 and the second lower layer thermosensitive material 6-3 correspond one by one to the materials of the first upper layer thermosensitive material 5-1, the first middle layer thermosensitive material 5-2 and the first lower layer thermosensitive material 5-3.

[0045] Specific implementation method six: Figure 4 As shown, based on the specific implementation mode 1, the first infrared absorber 7 includes a first surface three-dimensional absorption metal array 7-1, a first intermediate dielectric layer 7-2, a first lower continuous metal layer 7-3 and a first bottom wiring metal layer 7-4;

[0046] The first surface three-dimensional absorption metal array 7-1, the first intermediate dielectric layer 7-2, the first lower continuous metal layer 7-3 and the first bottom wiring metal layer 7-4 are stacked in sequence from top to bottom.

[0047] Among them, the first surface three-dimensional absorption metal array 7-1 is composed of a periodic three-dimensional metal patterned array, the first intermediate dielectric layer 7-2 is composed of an insulating dielectric continuous flat plate structure, and the first lower continuous metal layer 7-3 is composed of a continuous metal flat plate structure.

[0048] Specific implementation method seven: Figure 5 As shown, based on the specific implementation mode 1, the second infrared absorber 8 includes a second surface three-dimensional absorption metal array 8-1, a second intermediate dielectric layer 8-2, a second lower continuous metal layer 8-3 and a second bottom wiring metal layer 8-4;

[0049] The second surface three-dimensional absorption metal array 8-1, the second intermediate dielectric layer 8-2, the second lower continuous metal layer 8-3 and the second bottom wiring metal layer 8-4 are stacked in sequence from top to bottom.

[0050] Among them, the second surface three-dimensional absorption metal array 8-1 is composed of a periodic three-dimensional metal patterned array different from the first surface three-dimensional absorption metal array 7-1, the second intermediate dielectric layer 8-2 is composed of an insulating dielectric continuous flat plate structure, and the second lower continuous metal layer 8-3 is composed of a continuous metal flat plate structure.

[0051] Specific implementation method eight: Figure 6 As shown, a monitoring system based on a zero-power micromechanical switch includes an infrared control module and a load function module;

[0052] The infrared control module is used to control the load function module;

[0053] The infrared control module consists of an impedance monitoring and zero-power infrared sensing system.

[0054] The load function module consists of a transmitter, a monitor and a sensor.

[0055] The working principle of the sensing and monitoring system based on zero-power micromechanical switches is as follows: first, the infrared trigger band is set in advance through the surface absorption array distribution of the first infrared absorber 7 and the second infrared absorber 8, and the infrared trigger distance is set in advance through the impedance monitoring module. When the system is in standby mode, the zero-power infrared sensor is disconnected, and there is no energy consumption in the system, and the power consumption is zero. When the target is triggered, the infrared sensor switch is closed, and the load function modules such as the rear-end transmitter, monitor and sensor are controlled to open, so as to realize the sensing and monitoring of the target.

[0056] How it works

[0057] The first infrared absorber 7 and the second infrared absorber 8 simultaneously receive infrared energy of different bands. When the received energy range is within the set band range, the infrared absorber can absorb energy of a specific band, the first thermistor arm 5 and the second thermistor arm 6 are heated and bent, the first contact probe 9 and the second contact probe 10 are in contact, and the infrared switch is triggered.

[0058] The working principle of the infrared control module is to adjust the contact gap between the first contact probe 9 and the second contact probe 10 by controlling the voltage difference between the first contact electrode 3-3 and the second contact electrode 4-3 through the impedance monitoring module, so as to adjust the infrared detection distance for different targets. Among them, the impedance detection module determines the contact gap between the first contact probe 9 and the second contact probe 10 by detecting the resistance in the infrared sensor, and adjusts the resistance value in the infrared sensor by applying a voltage difference on the first contact electrode 3-3 and the second contact electrode 4-3, thereby changing the contact gap between the first contact probe 9 and the second contact probe 10. At the same time, this infrared control module also has another set of disconnection protection mechanism. In order to prevent the contact gap between the first contact probe 9 and the second contact probe 10 from exceeding the maximum distance that can be controlled by applying a voltage difference on the first contact electrode 3-3 and the second contact electrode 4-3, the impedance monitor will heat the first bottom wiring module 7-4 and the second bottom wiring module 8-4 of the infrared absorber by biasing the first electrode 3-2 and the second bias point electrode 3-4 when the contact gap between the first contact probe 9 and the second contact probe 10 is too large, thereby realizing the adjustment and control of the contact gap.

[0059] The working principle of the sensing and monitoring system based on zero-power micromechanical switches is as follows: first, the infrared trigger band is set in advance through the surface absorption array distribution of the first infrared absorber 7 and the second infrared absorber 8, and the infrared trigger distance is set in advance through the impedance monitoring module. When the system is in standby mode, the zero-power infrared sensor is disconnected, and there is no energy consumption in the system, and the power consumption is zero. When the target is triggered, the infrared sensor switch is closed, and the load function modules such as the rear-end transmitter, monitor and sensor are controlled to open, so as to realize the sensing and monitoring of the target.

[0060] The above is only a preferred embodiment of the present invention and does not limit the present invention in any form. Although the present invention has been disclosed as a preferred embodiment as above, it is not used to limit the present invention. Any technician familiar with this profession can make some changes or modify the technical contents disclosed above into equivalent embodiments without departing from the scope of the technical solution of the present invention. However, any simple modification, equivalent replacement and improvement made to the above embodiments without departing from the content of the technical solution of the present invention, based on the technical essence of the present invention, within the spirit and principles of the present invention, still fall within the protection scope of the technical solution of the present invention.

Claims

1. A sensing system based on a zero-power micromechanical switch, characterized in that: It comprises a substrate (1), a first contact electrode (3), a second contact electrode (4), a first thermosensitive mechanical arm (5), a second thermosensitive mechanical arm (6), a first infrared absorber (7), a second infrared absorber (8), a first contact probe (9) and a second contact probe (10); An etching release area (2) is provided in the middle of the upper surface of the substrate (1); a first infrared absorber (7) and a second infrared absorber (8) are arranged side by side in the etching release area (2); the first infrared absorber (7) is connected to a first contact electrode (3) via a first thermal-sensitive mechanical arm (5); the second infrared absorber (8) is connected to a second contact electrode (4) via a second thermal-sensitive mechanical arm (6); a first contact probe (9) is arranged on the first infrared absorber (7); and a second contact probe (10) is arranged on the second infrared absorber (8).

2. A zero-power micromechanical switch based sensing system according to claim 1, characterized in that: The first contact electrode (3) comprises a first grounding electrode (3-1), a first biasing electrode (3-2) and a first control electrode (3-3); A first grounding electrode (3-1), a first biasing electrode (3-2) and a first control electrode (3-3) are arranged on a substrate (1) in sequence from top to bottom, and the first grounding electrode (3-1), the first biasing electrode (3-2) and the first control electrode (3-3) are all connected to a first thermosensitive mechanical arm (5).

3. A zero-power micromechanical switch based sensing system according to claim 1, characterized in that: The second contact electrode (4) comprises a second grounding electrode (4-1), a second bias electrode (4-2) and a second control electrode (4-3); The second grounding electrode (4-1), the second biasing electrode (4-2) and the second control electrode (4-3) are arranged on the substrate (1) in sequence from top to bottom, and the second grounding electrode (4-1), the second biasing electrode (4-2) and the second control electrode (4-3) are all connected to the second thermosensitive mechanical arm (6).

4. A zero-power micromechanical switch based sensing system according to claim 1, characterized in that: The first thermosensitive mechanical arm (5) comprises a first upper thermosensitive material (5-1), a first middle thermosensitive material (5-2), a first lower thermosensitive material (5-3) and a first bottom metal wiring layer (5-4); A first upper layer of thermosensitive material (5-1), a first middle layer of thermosensitive material (5-2), a first lower layer of thermosensitive material (5-3) and a first bottom metal wiring layer (5-4) are stacked in sequence from top to bottom, and the first bottom metal wiring layer (5-4) is connected to a first contact motor (3).

5. A zero-power micromechanical switch based sensing system according to claim 1, characterized in that: The second thermosensitive mechanical arm (6) comprises a second upper thermosensitive material (6-1), a second middle thermosensitive material (6-2), a second lower thermosensitive material (6-3) and a second bottom metal wiring layer (6-4); A second upper layer thermosensitive material (6-1), a second middle layer thermosensitive material (6-2), a second lower layer thermosensitive material (6-3) and a second bottom metal wiring layer (6-4) are stacked in sequence from top to bottom, and the second bottom metal wiring layer (6-4) is connected to a second contact electrode (4).

6. A zero-power micromechanical switch based sensing system according to claim 1, characterized in that: The first infrared absorber (7) comprises a first surface three-dimensional absorption metal array (7-1), a first intermediate dielectric layer (7-2), a first lower continuous metal layer (7-3) and a first bottom wiring metal layer (7-4); A first surface three-dimensional absorption metal array (7-1), a first intermediate dielectric layer (7-2), a first lower continuous metal layer (7-3) and a first bottom wiring metal layer (7-4) are sequentially stacked from top to bottom.

7. A zero-power micromechanical switch based sensing system according to claim 1, characterized in that: The second infrared absorber (8) comprises a second surface three-dimensional absorption metal array (8-1), a second intermediate dielectric layer (8-2), a second lower continuous metal layer (8-3) and a second bottom wiring metal layer (8-4); The second surface three-dimensional absorption metal array (8-1), the second intermediate dielectric layer (8-2), the second lower continuous metal layer (8-3) and the second bottom wiring metal layer (8-4) are sequentially stacked from top to bottom.

8. A monitoring system based on zero-power micromechanical switches comprising the sensing system of claims 1-7, characterized in that: Including infrared control module and load function module; The infrared control module is used to control the load function module; The infrared control module consists of an impedance monitoring and zero-power infrared sensing system; The load function module consists of a transmitter, a monitor and a sensor.

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