阅读说明：本技术 电化学传感器外壳和用于测量化学特性的相应系统 (Electrochemical sensor housing and corresponding system for measuring chemical properties ) 是由 科里·斯科特·米勒 于 2020-05-29 设计创作，主要内容包括：一个实施方案提供了电化学传感器,其包括：传感器外壳(201)；电极(203),其中所述电极位于所述传感器外壳内并且位于在所述传感器外壳端部处的孔口内,由此使所述电极暴露于所述传感器外壳外部并且保持在所述传感器外壳内；和耦合至电连接器(205)的杆(202),所述杆至少部分地容纳在所述传感器外壳内,其中所述电连接器接触所述电极。还要求保护用于测量化学特性的相应系统。(One embodiment provides an electrochemical sensor comprising: a sensor housing (201); an electrode (203), wherein the electrode is located within the sensor housing and within an aperture at an end of the sensor housing, thereby exposing the electrode to outside the sensor housing and retained within the sensor housing; and a stem (202) coupled to an electrical connector (205), the stem at least partially housed within the sensor housing, wherein the electrical connector contacts the electrode. A corresponding system for measuring chemical properties is also claimed.)

1. An electrochemical sensor, comprising:

a sensor housing;

an electrode, wherein the electrode is located within the sensor housing and within an aperture at an end of the sensor housing, thereby exposing the electrode to outside the sensor housing and retained within the sensor housing; and

a stem coupled to an electrical connector, the stem at least partially housed within the sensor housing, wherein the electrical connector contacts the electrode.

2. The electrochemical sensor of claim 1, wherein the rod comprises a threaded rod that is threaded into threads of the sensor housing.

3. The electrochemical sensor of claim 1, wherein the stem comprises a conductive material.

4. The electrochemical sensor of claim 1, wherein the electrode is press fit into the sensor housing, thereby retaining the electrode within the sensor housing.

5. The electrochemical sensor of claim 1, wherein the electrode comprises a cylindrical shape with tapered sides.

6. The electrochemical sensor of claim 5, wherein the aperture comprises a conical opening that substantially matches a cylindrical shape of the electrode and wherein the electrode is located within the conical opening.

7. The electrochemical sensor of claim 1, wherein the electrode comprises boron doped diamond crystals.

8. The electrochemical sensor of claim 1, wherein the electrical connector comprises a pogo pin.

9. The electrochemical sensor of claim 1, wherein the electrical connector directs conduction of the electrode into the threaded rod.

10. The electrochemical sensor of claim 1, wherein the sensor housing comprises a low conductivity material to reduce stray conduction of the electrode.

11. A system for measuring a chemical property, the system comprising:

a measurement chamber;

a sensor housing located in the measurement chamber;

an electrode, wherein the electrode is located within the sensor housing and within an aperture at an end of the sensor housing, thereby exposing the electrode to outside the sensor housing and retained within the sensor housing; and

a stem coupled to an electrical connector, the stem at least partially housed within the sensor housing, wherein the electrical connector contacts the electrode.

12. The system for measuring a chemical property of claim 1, wherein the rod comprises a threaded rod that is threaded into threads of the sensor housing.

13. The system for measuring a chemical property of claim 1, wherein the rod comprises a conductive material.

14. The system for measuring chemical properties of claim 1, wherein the electrode is press fit into the sensor housing, thereby retaining the electrode within the sensor housing.

15. The system for measuring a chemical property of claim 1, wherein the electrode comprises a cylindrical shape with tapered sides.

16. The system for measuring a chemical property of claim 5, wherein the orifice includes a conical opening that substantially matches a cylindrical shape of the electrode and wherein the electrode is located within the conical opening.

17. The system for measuring chemical properties of claim 1, wherein the electrode comprises a boron doped diamond crystal.

18. The system for measuring chemical properties of claim 1, wherein the electrical connector comprises a pogo pin.

19. The system for measuring a chemical property of claim 1, wherein the electrical connector directs conduction of the electrode into the threaded rod.

20. An electrochemical sensor, comprising:

a sensor housing, wherein the sensor housing comprises a low-conductivity material to reduce stray conduction forms of the electrode;

an electrode, wherein the electrode is located within the sensor housing and within an aperture at an end of the sensor housing, thereby exposing the electrode to an exterior of the sensor housing and retained within the sensor housing, wherein the electrode is press-fit into the sensor housing, thereby retaining the electrode within the sensor housing; and

a rod coupled to an electrical connector, the rod at least partially housed within the sensor housing, wherein the electrical connector contacts the electrode, wherein the rod comprises a threaded rod that is threaded into threads of the sensor housing, wherein the rod comprises a conductive material, wherein the electrical connector comprises a pogo pin.

Technical Field

The present application relates generally to housings for electrochemical sensors and, more particularly, to successfully utilizing electrochemical sensors in systems.

Background

Proper containment of the sensors within the housing is critical to accurately generating the information collected by the sensors in the system. The sensors may be used in the system in a variety of ways. For example, the information may be received by a sensor that may determine whether to initiate a task or issue an alert when a task is completed. The sensor may receive information about whether a problem has occurred in the system, or the sensor may receive information for determining that the system is operating smoothly. Improperly cased sensors may result in poor translation of the information, ultimately leading to inaccurate end results by the system. An improper sensor housing may cause sensor failure. Therefore, a properly sheathed sensor is critical to accurately providing information from a system utilizing at least one sensor.

Disclosure of Invention

In view of the foregoing, one embodiment provides an electrochemical sensor comprising: a sensor housing; an electrode, wherein the electrode is located within the sensor housing and within an aperture at an end of the sensor housing, thereby being exposed outside of the sensor housing and retained within the sensor housing; and a stem coupled to an electrical connector, the stem at least partially housed within the sensor housing, wherein the electrical connector contacts the electrode.

Another embodiment provides a system for measuring a chemical property, comprising: a measurement chamber; a sensor housing located in the measurement chamber; an electrode, wherein the electrode is located within the sensor housing and within an aperture at an end of the sensor housing, thereby being exposed outside of the sensor housing and retained within the sensor housing; and a stem coupled to an electrical connector, the stem at least partially housed within the sensor housing, wherein the electrical connector contacts the electrode.

Another embodiment provides an electrochemical sensor, comprising: a sensor housing, wherein the sensor housing comprises a low conductivity material that eliminates stray conduction from the electrode; an electrode, wherein the electrode is located within the sensor housing and within an aperture at an end of the sensor housing, thereby being exposed outside of the sensor housing and retained within the sensor housing, wherein the electrode is press-fit into the sensor housing, thereby retaining the electrode within the sensor housing; and a stem coupled to an electrical connector, the stem at least partially housed within the sensor housing, wherein the electrical connector contacts the electrode, wherein the stem comprises a threaded stem that is threaded into threads of the sensor housing, wherein the stem comprises a conductive material, wherein the electrical connector comprises a pogo-pin (pogo-pin).

The foregoing is a summary and thus may contain simplifications, generalizations, and omissions of detail; consequently, those skilled in the art will appreciate that the summary is illustrative only and is not intended to be in any way limiting.

For a better understanding of the embodiments, together with other and further features and advantages thereof, reference is made to the following description, taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings. The scope of the invention is indicated in the appended claims.

Drawings

FIG. 1 illustrates one example of computer circuitry.

FIG. 2 illustrates an exemplary internal cross-sectional view of an electrochemical housing sensor.

Detailed Description

It will be readily understood that the components of the embodiments, as generally described and illustrated in the figures herein, could be arranged and designed in a wide variety of different configurations in addition to the exemplary embodiments described. Thus, the following more detailed description of the exemplary embodiments, as represented in the figures, is not intended to limit the scope of the claimed embodiments, but is merely representative of the exemplary embodiments.

Reference throughout this specification to "one embodiment" or "an embodiment" (or the like) means that a particular feature, structure, or characteristic described in connection with the embodiment is included in at least one embodiment. Thus, the appearances of the phrases "in one embodiment" or "in an embodiment" or the like appearing in various places throughout the specification are not necessarily all referring to the same embodiment.

Furthermore, the described features, structures, or characteristics may be combined in any suitable manner in one or more embodiments. In the following description, numerous specific details are provided to give a thorough understanding of embodiments. One skilled in the relevant art will recognize, however, that embodiments may be practiced without one or more of the specific details, or with other methods, components, materials, and so forth. In other instances, well-known structures, materials, or operations are not shown or described in detail. The following description is intended only by way of example, and simply illustrates certain exemplary embodiments.

Conventional methods of forming a housing for a sensor used in a system include soldering the crystal sensor to a circuit board and then overmolding (over mold) the body of the sensor around the assembly, or using an extruded glass seal, which is placing the sensor in a glass tube, which is then heated and simultaneously stretched around the sensor. Both forms of conventional methods for constructing sensor housings often encounter leaks when placed in aqueous solutions. Soldering the crystal sensor to the circuit board and overmolding the sensor, as well as extruding a glass seal, are time consuming processes that are unreliable.

Soldering a crystal sensor to a circuit board and then overmolding the sensor on the circuit board is a complex task that often encounters problems. Overmolding directly on the circuit board after the crystal sensor has been soldered does not provide a hermetic seal around the sensor. The difference in thermal expansion coefficients between the different elements of the sensor prevents the plastic overmold used in the system from sealing the crystal sensor. These differences result in bubbles and weak areas in the overmold, and then gaps. These gaps allow substances to penetrate the housing, which can alter the information collected by the sensor or completely deactivate the sensor or destroy it.

Extruded glass seals have been used as a technique for encased sensors for some time. This manual process uses a glass tube containing the sensor and stretches the glass tube while heating it until the glass is pulled tightly against the crystal sensor, thereby forming a seal. The glass tube is then carefully cut to expose the active portion of the crystal sensor. This method has been used over time because it can successfully produce a housing for the sensor; however, this method produces a usable housing with very low reliability. There is a need for a reliable method of housing a sensor in a repeatable manner that improves the life and usability of the sensor.

Accordingly, one embodiment provides a system and method for housing a crystal sensor using a press-fit approach. The press-fit method may provide an improvement over the heated and drawn glass method. In one embodiment, a crystal sensor or any type of electrochemical sensor may comprise a cylindrical molded housing including an opening at each side. One of the two openings may be a conically shaped aperture (which may include an electrode). The other of the two openings of the cylindrical molded shell may be wider than the aperture that receives the electrode. This opening may include a threaded rod operatively coupled to an electrical connector, wherein an end of the rod including the electrical connector is within the molded housing. In one embodiment, the threaded rod has an outer diameter that is complementary to at least a portion of the inner diameter of the threaded tube. In one embodiment, the electrical connector contacts the electrode. In one embodiment, the electrodes may be press fit into apertures of the molded housing, which may result in a proper seal separating the active portion of the crystal sensor from the rest of the sensor housing. In all embodiments there must be a separation between the exterior of the electrodes and the electrical connections to ensure that the system produces accurate information.

The exemplary embodiments shown will be best understood by reference to the drawings. The following description is intended by way of example only, and only shows certain exemplary embodiments.

Although various other circuits, circuitry, or components may be used in an information processing device with respect to a sensor housing for use in accordance with any of the various embodiments described herein, one example is shown in fig. 1. The device circuitry 100 may include a measurement system on a chip design of, for example, a particular computing platform (e.g., mobile computing, desktop computing, etc.). The software and the one or more processors are combined in a single chip 101. The processor includes internal arithmetic units, registers, cache, buses, I/O ports, etc., as is well known in the art. Although the internal buses and the like depend on different vendors, substantially all peripheral devices (102) may be attached to a single chip 101. Circuitry 100 combines the processor, memory control, and I/O controller hub all into a single chip 110. Also, this type of system 100 typically does not use SATA or PCI or LPC. For example, common interfaces include SDIO and I2C.

There are one or more power management chips 103, e.g. battery management units BMU, which manage the power supplied, for example, via a rechargeable battery 104, which can be charged by a connection to a power source (not shown). In at least one design, a single chip (such as 101) is used to supply BIOS-like functionality and DRAM storage.

The system 100 typically includes one or more of a WWAN transceiver 105 and a WLAN transceiver 106 for connecting to various networks, such as telecommunications networks and wireless internet devices, e.g., access points. In addition, means 102 are typically included, such as transmit and receive antennas, oscillators, PLLs, and the like. The system 100 includes an input/output device 107 for data input and display/rendering (e.g., located remotely from a computing location of the single beam system that is easily accessible to a user). The system 100 also typically includes various storage devices such as flash memory 108 and SDRAM 109.

As can be appreciated from the foregoing, the electronic components of one or more systems or devices may include, but are not limited to, at least one processing unit, memory, and a communication bus or communication device that couples various components including the memory for the one or more processing units. The system or apparatus may include or have access to a variety of device-readable media. The system memory may include device-readable storage media in the form of volatile and/or nonvolatile memory such as Read Only Memory (ROM) and/or Random Access Memory (RAM). By way of example, and not limitation, system memory may also include an operating system, application programs, other program modules, and program data. The disclosed system may be used in embodiments to house a variety of electrodes, and thus form an electrochemical sensor.

Referring now to fig. 2, an exemplary apparatus for encasing electrode 200A is presented. In fig. 2, 200B is an enlarged portion of the sensor end of 200A; therefore, a formation portion of the amplifying portion 200B exists in 200A. In one embodiment, the device 200A may include a molded housing 201. The molded housing 201 may be made of a low conductivity material to eliminate any stray conduction emitted by the electrodes. For example, the molded housing may be made of silicone, non-conductive materials, and the like. In one embodiment, the molded shell 201 may be created by pouring a liquid material into a preformed mold that includes the shape of the molded shell. In one embodiment, the housing may be machined from a larger piece of material. The molded housing 201 may include openings at each end that may vary in size. An orifice may be present at one end of the molded housing 201, which may comprise a particular shape. In one embodiment, the orifice of the molded housing may be conical in shape, with the widest portion of the cone facing the molded housing 201 and the narrower end of the cone exposed to the exterior of the molded housing 201. The aperture of the molded housing 201 may include electrodes for the sensor.

The wider end of the molded housing 201 may be wide enough to receive a rod 202 made of conductive material that is also operatively coupled to the electrical connector 205. The rod 202 may be much larger than the electrode that fits into the aperture of the molded housing 201, and therefore, the opening opposite the aperture must be large enough to receive the conductive rod 202. In one embodiment, the rod 202 may be made of brass, conductive material, or the like. In one embodiment, the thread pattern may begin and extend through the entire hollow molded housing 201 at the wider opening of the molded housing 201. The molded housing 201 may include a thread pattern throughout as a way to receive the stem 202 while forming a seal between the two portions of the electrochemical sensor. In one embodiment, the seal formed by screwing the stem 202 into the molded housing 201 may provide the system with the ability to withstand external influences (e.g., aqueous solutions, airborne materials, contaminants, etc.). Only a certain amount of the rod 202 may be received into the molded housing 201, leaving a portion of the rod 202 protruding from the molded housing 201.

In one embodiment, the electrodes 203 may be press fit into apertures present on the molded housing 201. The smaller opening at the end of the molded housing 201 may comprise a shape other than a similarly cylindrical bore. In one embodiment, the orifice at the end of the molded housing 201 may be designed to be conical in shape. The conical orifice may be oriented in such a way that the wider portion of the conical shape faces inward, toward the hollow body of the molded housing 201, while the narrower end of the conical orifice may face outward. In one embodiment, outward facing may refer to an environment in which the sensor receives measurements.

In one embodiment, the electrodes 203 may also comprise different shapes. In one embodiment, electrode 203 is Boron Doped Diamond (BDD) having a cylindrical shape with tapered sides, resembling the shape of a cone. The shape of the BDD electrode may allow the electrode to fit into the aperture with a near perfect fit.

The electrode 203 may be press fit into the molded housing 201 using a machine press fixture until the front of the electrode is flush with the front/outside of the orifice. In one embodiment, the front portion of the electrode may be recessed or protruding. In one embodiment, the BDD electrodes 203 may be press fit into the molded housing 201. When a BDD electrode comprising a cylindrical shape with tapered sides is press fit into an aperture comprising a conical shape, a seal is formed between the electrode 203 and the molded housing 201. Press fitting the electrode 203 into the orifice forms a seal because the force acting on the electrode 203 at the time of press fitting causes the molded housing 201 to stretch and completely surround the electrode 203 until the electrode is flush with the end of the molded housing 201. The press-fit seal 204 keeps the molded housing 201 flush with the entire circumference of the electrode 203, thereby protecting the internal workings of the sensor 200A from external influences.

Press fitting the electrodes 203 into the molded housing 201 also supports separation between the active electrodes and signal conduction. In one embodiment, the BDD electrode 203 is an active electrode, meaning that the electrode is continuously exposed to the reaction. BDD electrode 203 may be active on one side and provide signal conduction on the opposite side of the electrode. In one embodiment, the active electrode portion of the BDD electrode 203 faces the outside of the molded housing 201, through a smaller portion of the aperture and is flush with the molded housing 201. While the signal conducting portion of BDD electrode 203 faces the molded housing, passing through the wider portion of the aperture. The molded housing 201 acts as a separation between the two portions of the electrode 203. Without separation between the two portions of electrode 203, signal conduction may be inaccurate due to stray conduction that may be generated by electrode 203.

In one embodiment, after press fitting the BDD electrode 203 into an aperture within the molded housing 201, the threaded rod 202 operably coupled to the pogo pin 205 may be screwed into the molded housing 201 until the pogo pin 205 is in contact with the BDD electrode 203. The pogo pins are electrical connectors that act as bridges for conduction, allowing conduction generated at the BDD electrodes 203 to move to the threaded rods 202. In one embodiment, the resistance produced by the system may drop by about 20-40 ohms when the pogo pins 205, operatively coupled to the brass threaded rods 202, are in contact with the BDD electrodes 203. Additionally or alternatively, the user may determine that pogo pin 205 has made electrical contact with electrode 203 by measuring the resistance between conductor 202 and electrode 203. The pogo pin 205 may contact only the conductor (threaded rod) 202 and the electrode 203. The pogo pin may not contact the molded housing 201 even though it is located within the molded housing 201. Furthermore, when the pogo pin 205 is in contact with the electrode 203 in the system, the pogo pin 205 should rest completely against the electrode 203 to produce an accurate value.

To date, the production of electrochemical sensor housings has been a largely time consuming and inconsistent process. One embodiment describes a process of how a molded housing 201 that houses an electrode 203 in an aperture can be assembled to overcome the time limitations and inconsistencies of conventional systems for housing electrochemical sensors, the molded housing 201 including a press-fit seal 204 at one end of the molded housing 201 and a threaded conductive rod 202 operably coupled to an electrical contact 205. One embodiment also provides information with greater accuracy than conventional methods due to the design of the system and the ability to separate the active electrode from signal conduction.

As will be appreciated by one skilled in the art, various aspects may be embodied as a system, method or device program product. Accordingly, aspects may take the form of an entirely hardware embodiment or an embodiment containing software that may all generally be referred to herein as a "circuit," module "or" system. Furthermore, aspects may take the form of an apparatus program product embodied in one or more apparatus-readable media having apparatus-readable program code embodied therewith.

It should be noted that the various functions described herein may be implemented using instructions stored on a device readable storage medium, such as a non-signal storage device, where the instructions are executed by a processor. In the context of this document, a storage device is not a signal, and "non-transitory" includes all media except signal media.

Program code for performing operations may be written in any combination of one or more programming languages. The program code may execute entirely on a single device, partly on a single device as a stand-alone software package, partly on a single device and partly on another device or entirely on another device. In some cases, the devices may be connected by any type of connection or any type of network, including a Local Area Network (LAN) or a Wide Area Network (WAN), or the connection may be made by other devices (e.g., through the internet using an internet service provider), by a wireless connection, e.g., near field communication, or by a hard-wired connection, such as through a USB connection.

Exemplary embodiments are described herein with reference to the accompanying drawings, which illustrate exemplary methods, apparatus, and products according to various exemplary embodiments. It will be understood that the acts and functions may be implemented, at least in part, by program instructions. These program instructions may be provided to a processor of a device (e.g., a measurement device such as that shown in fig. 1), or other programmable data processing apparatus, to produce a machine, such that the instructions, which execute via the processor of the device, implement the specified functions/acts.

Note that the values provided herein should be construed to include equivalent values as indicated by the use of the term "about". Equivalent values will be apparent to those of ordinary skill in the art, but include at least the values obtained by conventional rounding of the last significant digit.

This disclosure, while presented for purposes of illustration and description, is not intended to be exhaustive or limiting. Many modifications and variations will be apparent to those of ordinary skill in the art. The exemplary embodiments were chosen and described in order to explain the principles and the practical application, and to enable others of ordinary skill in the art to understand the disclosure for various embodiments with various modifications as are suited to the particular use contemplated.

Thus, although the illustrative embodiments have been described herein with reference to the accompanying drawings, it is to be understood that the description is not limiting, and that various other changes and modifications may be affected therein by one skilled in the art without departing from the scope or spirit of the invention.