Sensor device

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-10018684-B2
Application number	US-201514683893-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Apr 10, 2015
Priority date	Apr 10, 2014
Publication date	Jul 10, 2018
Grant date	Jul 10, 2018

Abstract

A sensor device for suppressing a magnetic stray field, having a semiconductor body with a surface, formed in an x-y plane, and a back surface. Each circle half of a disk-shaped magnet has two magnetic poles and the magnet is rotatable relative to the IC housing around a z-direction. An imaginary lengthening of the axis penetrates the magnet in the center of gravity of the main extension surface of the magnet. A first pixel cell and a second pixel cell are integrated into the surface of the semiconductor body together with a circuit arrangement, and each pixel cell has a first magnetic field sensor and a second magnetic field sensor. The first pixel cell is spaced apart from the second pixel cell along a connecting line, and the first pixel cell in a projection along an imaginary lengthening of the axis is arranged within the two inner circle segments.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1. A sensor device for suppressing a magnetic stray field, the sensor device comprising:
a semiconductor body with a surface formed in an x-y plane and a back surface, an x-direction and a y-direction are formed orthogonal to one another, the semiconductor body being arranged on a substrate;
an axis formed in a z-direction, the z-direction being formed orthogonal to the x-y plane;
a magnet that has a planar main extension surface in a direction of the x-y plane, an integrated circuit (IC) housing spaced apart from the main extension surface of the magnet such that the surface of the semiconductor body is oriented substantially parallel to the main extension surface of the magnet, the magnet having a magnetization with four magnetic poles in the direction of the x-y plane and two magnetic poles as outer circle segments surround the two inner magnetic poles as circle segments, so that each circle half of the magnet has two magnetic poles, the magnet being rotatable around the z-direction relative to the IC housing and an imaginary lengthening of an axis penetrates the magnet in a center of gravity of the main extension surface of the magnet;
a first pixel cell; and
a second pixel cell, the first and second pixel cells being formed in the surface of the semiconductor body together with a circuit arrangement,
wherein each of the first and second pixel cells has a first magnetic field sensor and a second magnetic field sensor,
wherein the first magnetic field sensor detects a magnetic field in the x-direction and the second magnetic field sensor detects a magnetic field in the y-direction,
wherein the first pixel cell is spaced apart from the second pixel cell along a connecting line, and
wherein the first pixel cell in a projection along the imaginary lengthening of the axis is arranged within the two inner magnetic poles as circle segments.

2. The sensor device according to claim 1 , wherein in a projection the axis penetrates the semiconductor body.

3. The sensor device according to claim 1 , wherein in a projection along the imaginary lengthening of the axis, the axis penetrates the first pixel cell or wherein the second pixel cell is arranged between the two inner magnetic poles as circle segments and the two magnetic poles as outer circle segments.

4. The sensor device according to claim 1 , wherein each of the first and second pixel cells comprises a third magnetic field sensor, wherein the third magnetic field sensor detects a magnetic field in the z-direction and the z-direction is formed orthogonal to the x-direction and orthogonal to the y-direction, so that each pixel cell is made as a 3-dimensional magnetic field sensor.

5. The sensor device according to claim 1 , wherein each of the two pixel cells is formed near an outer edge of the semiconductor body in order to create a large distance to one another.

6. The sensor device according to claim 1 , wherein an integrated circuit is formed on the semiconductor body between and/or next to the two pixel cells, and wherein the integrated circuit has an electrical connection to the first and second pixel cells.

7. The sensor device according to claim 1 , wherein the magnetic field sensors in the first pixel cell and the magnetic field sensors in the second pixel cell have a common center of gravity in order to determine a magnetic flux at a same point of each of the first and second pixel cell.

8. The sensor device according to claim 1 , wherein the magnetic field sensors each have a main extension surface, and wherein the main extension surfaces of the magnetic field sensors are formed in pairs at substantially right angles to one another.

9. The sensor device according to claim 1 , wherein the magnetic field sensors are formed as Hall sensors, and wherein two of the Hall sensors are formed as vertical Hall sensors and a main extension surface of each of the two vertical Hall sensors is formed substantially perpendicular to the surface of the semiconductor body.

10. The sensor device according to claim 4 , wherein the third magnetic field sensor of each of the first and second pixel cells is configured as a Hall plate.

11. The sensor device according to claim 1 , wherein the magnet is configured as a circle in the x-y plane, and wherein a radius of the circle is greater than half a length of the connecting line or wherein the magnet is configured as a square and half of a diagonal of the square is greater than half the length of the connecting line.

12. The sensor device according to claim 1 , wherein the two magnetic poles as outer circle segments are each made equal in size and the inner magnetic poles as circle segments are each made equal in size.

13. The sensor device according to claim 1 , wherein the sensor device detects a rotation angle of the magnet connected to the axis or to a shaft.

14. The sensor device according to claim 1 , wherein the sensor device determines a rotation angle of the magnet connected to a stationary axis or to a shaft.

15. The sensor device according to claim 1 , wherein the sensor device detects a rotation angle of the axis that penetrates the magnet in a center of gravity of the main extension surface of the magnet and a shaft for a differential operation.

Assignees

• Tdk Micronas Gmbh

Inventors

• Kaufmann Timo
• Franke Joerg

Classifications

• F02N2200/021

  Engine crank angle · CPC title

• G01D5/145 Primary

  influenced by the relative movement between the Hall device and magnetic fields (see G01R33/06) · CPC title

• F02N11/0814

  comprising means for controlling automatic idle-start-stop · CPC title

• G01D5/24485

  using other sensors · CPC title

• G01D3/0365

  the undesired influence being measured using a separate sensor, which produces an influence related signal · CPC title