Tag Archives: automotive

A Robust High-Temperature Semiconducting Carbon Monoxide (CO) Sensor

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Summary:

In many combustion-related industries, monitoring CO levels is critical for estimating the efficiency of the combustion process. With the ideal balance of oxygen to fuel, pollution is also minimized. Existing gas sensors based on metal oxide materials typically operate at 200-300 degrees C. Researchers at The Ohio State University have developed a CO sensor for hostile industrial environments (450-800 degrees C) that responds to CO at concentrations approaching one part per million. These sensors can be miniaturized with minimal electrical power requirements, and exhibit stable baseline resistance and good response and recovery times. To the best of our knowledge, we know of no existing solid state sensors that equal the performance of these sensors.

Potential Applications:

  • Combustion control
  • Heat treating
  • Metal processing and casting
  • Glass and ceramics manufacturing
  • Food processing
  • Power plant operations
  • Automotive applications

Advantages:

  • Responds to CO at ppm levels
  • Can be used in high-temperature, hostile environments (450-800 degrees C)
  • Minimal drift
  • Quick recovery times
  • More economical than existing high-temperature sensor technologies

Humidity-Interference Free, High-Temperature CO2 Sensor

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Summary:

Carbon dioxide sensors are becoming increasingly important in many applications including monitoring air quality, CO2 sequestration, measuring metabolic activity in animals, and controlling combustion. While commercial sensors for such applications exist, there is nothing currently on the market designed for reliability and effectiveness in high temperature and high humidity environments. Researchers at The Ohio State University have developed a reliable, high-performance carbon dioxide electrochemical sensor that works across a wide range of temperatures, is insensitive to humidity, and detects CO2 across a wide range of concentrations. These sensors can be manufactured by thin and thick film processing techniques, and can therefore be miniaturized resulting in a sensor with milliwatt power requirements for operation.

Potential Applications:

  • Combustion control
  • Monitoring of metabolic activity
  • CO2 monitoring in harsh environments
  • Power plant and industrial emissions monitoring
  • Automotive and aerospace emissions monitoring
  • CO2 sequestration applications

Advantages:

  • Humidity-interference free
  • Fast response and recovery
  • Long-term sensor stability in humid conditions over a wide range of temperature
  • Solid-state device

Low-Cost, Fast, and Accurate System to Test Wire Pattern Continuity

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Summary:

Dr. Eric Walton of the ElectroScience Laboratory at the Ohio State University has developed a system for testing a conductive pattern that is fast, inexpensive, and accurate. Conductive patterns are found in a wide range of everyday products, from electronics to automobiles. One common application of a conductive pattern is the defroster/defogger on the rear window of an automobile. As the conductive wire patterns in these windows become more complex, methods of testing the continuity and quality of these patterns becomes more difficult and expensive. It is important that the testing system be robust enough to easily handle complex changes in pattern design, accurate enough to meet engineering standards, and inexpensive enough to be cost-effective to the manufacturer. This invention meets and exceeds all of these needs. This invention is just as useful in other applications such as the testing of printed circuit boards, the testing of conductive patterned surfaces used in electroforming, or the testing of any material in which conductive patterns are used for heating.

Potential Applications:

  • Invaluable tool for automotive glass manufacturers who aim to increase efficiency and reduce costs
  • Provides a fast and easy way to test the quality of printed circuit boards
  • A fantastic testing tool for the emerging field of printed electronics using conductive inks, which will find applications in e-readers, RFID tags, and other novel, groundbreaking electronic technologies

Advantages:

  • Reliable as the system is never in direct contact with the material to be tested
  • Inexpensive and easy to modify and/or replace components
  • Extremely accurate
  • Speed limited only by computing power and production capabilities
  • Easily integrated into an automated production line

On-Glass Impedance Matching Antenna Connector

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Summary:

Dr. Eric Walton of the ElectroScience Laboratory at The Ohio State University has developed a way to connect an on-glass antenna to a transmission cable that overcomes impedance matching problems in the AM and FM bands. Impedance matching for on-glass antennas is a challenge since in the FM frequency band coaxial cable impedance is often 50 ohms, and in the much lower AM frequency band the antenna and the receiver input impedance is much closer to 6,000 ohms. This invention results in a wide bandwidth and a transformation from the coaxial cable impedance to the antenna impedance. The matching circuit is especially designed to be imbedded in a small window attachment clip. This invention would be particularly suited for use in automobiles where the rear window heater grid can also function as an antenna, and consequently is essential along with another of Dr. Walton’s inventions which is described in U.S. Patent #5,781,160 (OSU Reference #94048). It should be noted, however, that this method is applicable in other on-glass wideband antenna configurations where impedance matching in the AM and FM bands must be achieved.

Potential Applications:

  • An elegant and cost-effective impedance matching solution in the AM and FM bands for automotive antenna manufacturers
  • When coupled with U.S. Patent #5,781,160, a complete AM/FM on-glass automotive heater grid/antenna system can be realized

Advantages:

  • Allows for easy, convenient impedance matching for printed on-glass AM/FM antennas

Independently Fed AM/FM Heated Window Antenna

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Summary:

Dr. Eric Walton of the ElectroScience Laboratory at The Ohio State University has developed an automotive antenna that is effectively incorporated into the resistive, conductive heating elements found in automotive windows. The automobile industry has long recognized the advantages of forming an antenna in a vehicle window by imbedding conductors in the window glass. Manufacturers have also recognized that such windows can be defogged or defrosted by distributing resistive conductors over a major portion of the window area (the familiar heater grid found on the rear window of automobiles). It has been realized that the same conductors may be used for both heating the window area and as the communications antenna. The challenge lies in that the heater power source must be isolated from radio frequency signals in order to prevent RF currents from being shorted through the vehicle or heater power system. Previous attempts at isolation have been successful but have resulted in the need for heavy, expensive components and the need for separate antennas for different frequency bands. Dr. Walton’s design allows for optimal AM/FM reception (or the reception of other relatively low and high frequency bands found in modern wireless communication) and impedance matching using a single antenna, whereas previous designs required the use of two separate, different antennas. The design further allows for an apparatus with reduced size, weight, and cost as compared to previous methods. When coupled with U.S. Patents #6,320,558 and #6,483,468 (On-Glass Impedance Matching Antenna Connector, Reference #99062), impedance matching in the AM and FM bands can be easily achieved and a complete on-glass automotive AM/FM antenna/heater grid configuration realized.

Potential Applications:

  • A sleek, lightweight, and low-cost antenna solution that is integrated into existing heater grid configurations
  • When coupled with U.S. Patents #6,320,558 and #6,483,468 (On-Glass Impedance Matching Antenna Connector, Reference #99062), impedance matching in the AM and FM bands can be easily achieved and a complete on-glass automotive AM/FM antenna/heater grid configuration realized

Advantages:

  • Effectively incorporates an antenna into a vehicle’s heater grid system
  • Allows for the reception of multiple bands with large frequency separation
  • Provides a smaller, lighter, lower-cost alternative to previous methods

Novel Design For High-Gain Antennas Integrated into the Heater Grid on Autoglass

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Summary:

Researchers at the ElectroScience Laboratory at The Ohio State University, in cooperation with an Italian automotive antenna manufacturer, have developed an improved wire pattern layout for an automotive window antenna. Automobiles traditionally have heating elements printed on the rear window for defrosting/defogging purposes, and such elements usually cover the majority of the window in order to defrost the entire area. This leaves little room for an isolated RF antenna on the window, and as a result the smaller antenna geometry results in relatively poor performance. This invention alleviates this problem by incorporating the RF antenna into the heater grid configuration, while taking into account the effects of the heater grid pattern and the general characteristics of RF current throughout the circuit. The result is a rear window antenna with improved performance that is seamlessly and attractively integrated into the already existing heater grid configuration.

Potential Applications:

  • An attractive and low cost alternative to traditional automotive antennas
  • Heater grid pattern and antenna wire pattern can be deposited on glass together, saving substantial cost and expediting the manufacturing process

Advantages:

  • Enhanced directional gain and impedance characteristics over other window antenna designs
  • Easy to integrate into existing automotive rear window heater element configurations

RF-Transmitting, IR-Blocking Metallic Panel for Windows/Autoglass

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Summary:

Dr. Eric Walton of the ElectroScience Laboratory at The Ohio State University has developed a unique metallic panel aperture design that allows the transmission of radio waves through the panel while blocking infrared radiation. Optically transparent metal panels are often used in automotive or building windows where heating and/or the reflection of infrared radiation is desired. It has been shown that a thin, transparent metallic layer can be deposited on one of the layers of a multi-layer automotive windshield and used for heating/deicing/defogging when powered using bus bars on the top and bottom of the windshield. However, a uniform metallic coating prevents the transmission of radio signals, which is unacceptable given the widespread use of cell phones, GPS receivers, and other electronics commonly used in automobiles and buildings. This invention alleviates these problems; permitting uniform heat distribution and simultaneously allowing the passage of radio waves. The invention is useful in any application where a metallic panel is used to heat a material or to reflect infrared radiation, and where heat uniformity and radio transmission is important.

Potential Applications:

  • Heated windshields are currently an option on a limited number of vehicles, but will eventually become standard equipment. An autoglass maker would do well to adopt this technology quickly
  • The blocking of infrared radiation means a cooler vehicle or building interior on hot summer days
  • Can be used to heat building windows in cold climates or block infrared radiation in warmer ones, improving energy efficiency

Advantages:

  • Simple design that is easy to replicate
  • Provides uniform heat over the metallic panel
  • Allows RF transmission while blocking IR