Acceleration sensor.

摘要

An acceleration sensor, incorporating a gas-filled closed space in which are disposed resistor elements for heating and/or sensing temperature, is fabricated on a semiconductor or insulating substrate through photoengraving to provide a small, accurate and reliable sensor. Various arrangements of heaters, temperature-sensing resistors and heating and temperature-sensing resistors are described, which detect acceleration direction as well as strength, and are advantageously but not necessarily fabricated using semiconductor technology. In the shown arrangement, heater (12) heats gas in a space (4). An acceleration leftwards causes gas to move to the right, so that resistor (14) heats up and increases its resistance, whilst resistor (13) cools and reduces its resistance. Thus, detection of resistance changes gives acceleration amount and direction. One of the temperature-sensing elements (13,14) may be removed. All three elements (12-14) may be replaced by two elements which both heat the gas and sense temperature.