Capacitive touch sensor assembly for use in a wet environment

摘要

A controller for use in a wet environment, such as a controller for a pool or spa, includes a sensor element that generates an electric field having an active region. For the controller, at least one flexible layer is positioned to overlay the sensor element and surround the active region. With this arrangement, a pocket is established between the flexible layer and sensor element. A control circuit that is responsive to the capacitance between the sensor element and the flexible layer is provided. When the flexible layer is deformed, the capacitance changes and the control circuit generates an output signal that corresponds to a particular switch state for a connected device (e.g. pump or heater). For the controller, the control circuit is designed and/or calibrated to maintain a current switch state output in response to the presence of water on the controller and near the active region.

主权项

1. A controller for use in a wet environment comprising:
a ground pad; a sensor element generating an electric field having an active region; a flexible layer having a conductive portion overlaying the sensor element to surround the active region with the conductive portion capacitively coupled to the ground pad without direct conductive contact between the ground pad and conductive portion; and a control circuit responsive to a capacitance between the sensor element and the conductive portion to generate an output corresponding to a switch state.