| US 7,466,236 B2 | ||
| Device for judging types of liquid in container and control method therefor | ||
| Takeshi Abe, Tokyo (Japan); Yasuhiko Shinozawa, Tokyo (Japan); Tomohide Machida, Tokyo (Japan); and Kouichiro Yamada, Tokyo (Japan) | ||
| Assigned to Tokyo Gas Co., Ltd., Tokyo (Japan) | ||
| Appl. No. 10/564,472 PCT Filed Jul. 14, 2004, PCT No. PCT/JP2004/010379 § 371(c)(1), (2), (4) Date Jan. 13, 2006, PCT Pub. No. WO2005/008230, PCT Pub. Date Jan. 27, 2005. |
||
| Claims priority of application No. 2003-198046 (JP), filed on Jul. 16, 2003; and application No. 2003-385627 (JP), filed on Nov. 14, 2003. | ||
| Prior Publication US 2006/0201234 A1, Sep. 14, 2006 | ||
| Int. Cl. G08B 21/00 (2006.01) | ||
| U.S. Cl. 340—620 [340/592; 340/693.9; 73/53.01; 73/53.04; 73/54.02; 73/64.56; 73/335.04] | 22 Claims |
| 22. A method for controlling a device for judging the type of liquid inside a container, said device comprising:
a plate capacitor comprising two plate electrodes disposed opposite to each other;
a container supporting means for holding, in a region other than the region sandwiched by said two plate electrodes, a non-conductive
container that can contain a liquid;
a third electrode other than said two plate electrodes, of which said capacitor is comprised, wherein said third electrode
is an electrode outside said container and that is disposed along a portion of said container at which said liquid inside
said container is retained due to gravity;
means for detecting the capacitance of said capacitor or the oscillation frequency of an oscillation circuit containing said
capacitor; and
a sensor for detecting whether or not said container is disposed on said container supporting means,
wherein said device has either a first arrangement wherein the voltage of said third electrode differs in absolute value and/or
phase from the voltage of a first plate electrode of said capacitor that is disposed on the side of said container, or a second
arrangement wherein the voltage of said third electrode is equal to the voltage of the second plate electrode of said capacitor
that is opposite said first plate electrode, said method comprising:
a first detection step of detecting that said container is not disposed on said container supporting means;
a first measurement step of measuring the capacitance of said capacitor or the oscillation frequency of said oscillation circuit
upon detection in said first detection step;
a second detection step of detecting that said container is disposed on said container supporting means;
a second measurement step of measuring the capacitance of said capacitor or the oscillation frequency of said oscillation
circuit upon detection in said second detection step; and
a step of giving notification as to whether or not the difference between the capacitance or oscillation frequency measured
in said first measurement step and the capacitance or oscillation frequency measured in said second measurement step is greater
than a predetermined threshold value.
|