Sensor Board with Variable Thickness for Optical Sensing
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing sensor boards require significant space and sample volume due to separate, self-contained optical sensors, which is problematic for applications requiring minimal sample usage, especially in critically ill patients and neonates, and also poses manufacturing challenges like leakage.
Innovation Solution
A compact sensor board design integrating optical and non-optical sensors with a reduced thickness area for optical sensors, maintaining strength and allowing for minimal sample analysis, eliminating the need for sealing and reducing leakage risks.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If separate self-contained optical sensors are used, then sensor functionality is reliable, but space requirements and sample volume increase
Solution Approach 1:
The patent combines multiple sensor types (optical and non-optical sensors) onto a single integrated sensor board platform. The optical sensor is integrated with the board structure rather than being a separate self-contained unit, allowing multiple sensing functions to coexist in a compact arrangement that reduces overall space requirements while maintaining functional reliability of each sensor type.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent transitions from three-dimensional self-contained optical sensor units to a two-dimensional integrated sensor board layout. By flattening the sensor architecture onto a planar board structure, the design reduces vertical space occupation and allows for more efficient packing of multiple sensors in a compact footprint.
2Reliability
If separate self-contained optical sensors are used, then sensor functionality is reliable, but sample volume requirements increase
Solution Approach 1:
The integration of optical and non-optical sensors on a single board enables simultaneous multi-parameter analysis of the same small sample volume. This eliminates the need for separate sampling paths and reduces the total sample quantity required while maintaining reliable optical sensing functionality through the integrated design.
3Ease of manufacture
If uniform thickness sensor board is used, then manufacturing is simple, but optical sensor performance is compromised
Solution Approach 1:
The sensor board features variable thickness with a thinner region specifically at the optical sensor location to optimize optical transmission and sensing performance. This local modification of thickness does not significantly complicate manufacturing while dramatically improving optical sensor function, as the reduced thickness enhances light transmission through the board material at the critical sensing area.
4Measurement precision
If reduced thickness area is created for optical sensor, then optical transmission is improved, but structural strength is reduced
Solution Approach 1:
The reduced thickness is applied locally only at the optical sensor area where optical transmission is critical, while the rest of the sensor board maintains its full thickness to preserve overall structural strength. This localized thinning strategy optimizes optical performance at the sensing interface without compromising the mechanical integrity of the entire board structure.
Solution Approach 2:
The sensor board is effectively segmented into regions of different thickness: a thinner region at the optical sensor location for optimal optical transmission, and a thicker region elsewhere for structural support. This segmentation allows each region to be optimized for its specific function while working together as an integrated structure.
Applied Scientific Principles
This section explains which scientific principles are used to turn an abstract innovation direction into a practical engineering solution.
Function Achieved in This Case
The solution enables reliable analysis with minimal sample volume, reduces space requirements, and minimizes leakage and contamination risks by integrating sensors on a single, translucent area of the sensor board, ensuring efficient and accurate measurements.
Implementation Method 1
it is possible to make an opaque sensor board translucent in at least a limited area by reducing the thickness of the sensor board in that area to a thickness D2
Data Source
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AI summary
The invention relates to a sensor board comprising a plate-like body comprising a body material and having two surfaces substantially parallel to each other, and at least one optical sensor and at least one non-optical sensor, the sensors being positioned at the same surface of the body, wherein the body includes a first area having a thickness D1 of the body material and a second area having a thickness D2 of the body material, where D1>D2>0, the at least one optical sensor being positioned at the second area.