Apparatus and method for assisting with fluid pressure measurement

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-9631998-B2
Application number	US-201514701014-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Apr 30, 2015
Priority date	May 29, 2014
Publication date	Apr 25, 2017
Grant date	Apr 25, 2017

Abstract

An apparatus for assisting with measurement of a fluid pressure includes a cover layer having a leading cover edge and upper and lower cover surfaces. A cover aperture fluidly connects the upper and lower cover surfaces. A spacer layer has oppositely facing upper and lower spacer surfaces. A cavity has an upper cavity surface, defined by the lower cover surface, which includes the leading cover edge and the cover aperture. A measuring tube is located adjacent to the upper cover surface. The measuring tube includes a tube lumen. When the lower spacer surface is connected to the substrate, the substrate defines a lower cavity surface and extant fluid is present within the cavity. Variable fluid flowing toward the cavity exerts pressure on the extant fluid to generate an extant fluid pressure level which is physically transmitted through the apparatus and made available for measurement as an extant fluid pressure level.

First claim

We claim:

1. An apparatus for assisting with measurement of the pressure of a variable fluid flowing past a substantially planar, constant-surface substrate in a substantially linear and longitudinal local fluid flow direction, the apparatus comprising:
a substantially planar cover layer having longitudinally spaced leading and trailing cover edges, laterally spaced first and second cover side edges, and oppositely facing upper and lower cover surfaces transversely separated by a cover layer thickness, at least the lower cover surface defining a cover layer footprint in a longitudinal-lateral plane, and a cover aperture extending through the cover layer thickness to fluidly connect the upper and lower cover surfaces;
a substantially planar spacer layer having longitudinally spaced leading and trailing spacer edges, laterally spaced first and second spacer side edges, and oppositely facing upper and lower spacer surfaces transversely separated by a spacer layer thickness, at least the lower spacer surface defining a spacer layer footprint in the longitudinal-lateral plane, the spacer layer footprint having a smaller area than the area of the cover layer footprint, and the spacer layer footprint being bounded in the longitudinal-lateral plane by a spacer layer perimeter;
a cavity having an upper cavity surface defined by the lower cover surface, the upper cavity surface including the leading cover edge and the cover aperture, and the cavity having a side cavity perimeter in the longitudinal-lateral plane at least partially defined by the spacer layer perimeter; and
a measuring tube having leading and trailing tube ends longitudinally separated by a tube body, the measuring tube being located adjacent to the upper cover surface, the leading tube end having a length which is a superminority of the length of the tube body, the measuring tube including a tube lumen extending longitudinally through the tube body between a leading lumen aperture at the leading tube end and a trailing lumen aperture longitudinally spaced from the leading lumen aperture, the leading lumen aperture being in fluid communication with the cavity via the cover aperture, and the trailing lumen aperture being in fluid communication with a pressure measuring device;
wherein, when the lower spacer surface is connected to the substrate, the substrate defines a lower cavity surface, extant fluid being at least partially contained within the cavity, and variable fluid flowing in the substantially linear and longitudinal local fluid flow direction interacts with the extant fluid within the cavity at least adjacent the leading cover edge, and at least a portion of the variable fluid flowing in the substantially linear and longitudinal local fluid flow direction exerting pressure upon the extant fluid to generate an extant fluid pressure level which is physically transmitted from the cavity through the cover aperture, into the tube lumen through the leading lumen aperture, and is made available for measurement, as an extant fluid pressure value, through at least a portion of the tube lumen.

2. The apparatus of claim 1 , wherein the leading lumen aperture is at a longitudinally forward tip of the leading tube end.

3. The apparatus of claim 1 , wherein the leading lumen aperture is located at the leading tube end and is longitudinally spaced back from a longitudinally forward tip of the leading tube end.

4. The apparatus of claim 1 , wherein a pressure measuring device measures the extant fluid pressure level, to generate the extent fluid pressure value, by fluid communication with the extant fluid through the trailing lumen aperture.

5. The apparatus of claim 1 , wherein at least a portion of the lower spacer surface includes an adhesive configured to selectively adhere the apparatus to the substrate.

6. The apparatus of claim 1 , wherein at least a portion of the leading tube end extends through at least a portion of the cover aperture.

7. The apparatus of claim 6 , wherein at least a portion of the tube body extends through the cover layer thickness to place at least a portion of the leading tube end into the cavity.

8. The apparatus of claim 1 , wherein the cavity has a substantially constant lateral cavity width and has a cavity depth extending from the leading cover edge to a longitudinally spaced cavity trailing wall defined by at least a portion of the side cavity perimeter, the cover aperture being adjacent to the cavity trailing wall.

9. An apparatus for assisting with measurement of a boundary layer pressure of a variable fluid flowing through an ambient space past a substantially planar, constant-surface substrate in a substantially linear and longitudinal local fluid flow direction, the apparatus comprising:
a substantially planar cover layer having longitudinally spaced leading and trailing cover edges, laterally spaced first and second cover side edges, and oppositely facing upper and lower cover surfaces transversely separated by a cover layer thickness, and a cover aperture extending through the cover layer thickness to fluidly connect the upper and lower cover surfaces;
a substantially planar spacer layer having longitudinally spaced leading and trailing spacer edges, laterally spaced first and second spacer side edges, and oppositely facing upper and lower spacer surfaces transversely separated by a spacer body having a spacer layer thickness, the spacer layer defining a spacer layer perimeter in a longitudinal-lateral plane, the spacer layer perimeter defining a concave extension into the spacer body which bifurcates the leading spacer edge but is longitudinally spaced from the trailing spacer edge;
a cavity having an upper cavity surface defined by the lower cover surface, the upper cavity surface including a cover aperture, and the cavity having a side cavity perimeter in the longitudinal-lateral plane at least partially defined by concave extension of the spacer layer perimeter, the cavity being in fluid communication with the ambient space at the leading spacer edge; and
a measuring tube having leading and trailing tube ends longitudinally separated by a tube body, the measuring tube being located adjacent to the upper cover surface, the leading tube end having a length which is a superminority of the length of the tube body, the measuring tube including a tube lumen extending longitudinally through the tube body between a leading lumen aperture at the leading tube end and a trailing lumen aperture longitudinally spaced from the leading lumen aperture, the leading lumen aperture being in fluid communication with the cavity via the cover aperture, and the trailing lumen aperture being in fluid communication with a pressure measuring device;
wherein, when the lower spacer surface is connected to the substrate, the substrate defines a lower cavity surface, extant fluid being at least partially contained within the cavity, and variable fluid flowing in the substantially linear and longitudinal local fluid flow direction interacts with the extant fluid within the cavity at least adjacent the leading cover edge, and at least a portion of the variable fluid flowing in the substantially linear and longitudinal local fluid flow direction exerting pressure upon the extant fluid to generate an extant fluid pressure level which is physically transmitted from the cavity through the cover aperture, into the tube lumen through the leading lumen aperture, and is made available for measurement, as an extant fluid pressure value, through at least a portion of the tube lumen.

10. The apparatus of claim 9 , wherein the leading lumen aperture is at a longitudinally forward tip of the leading tube end.

11. The apparatus of claim 9 , wherein the lead

Assignees

• Sullivan Anne M
• Westhphal Russell V
• Kinkade Brittany Reanne
• Gerhardt James Alan
• Northrop Grumman Systems Corp

Inventors

• Sullivan Anne M
• Westhphal Russell V
• Kinkade Brittany Reanne
• Gerhardt James Alan

Classifications

• G01M9/065

  dealing with flow · CPC title

• G01L19/0038

  being part of the housing (other details about the housing G01L19/14) · CPC title

• G01L19/147 Primary

  Details about the mounting of the sensor to support or covering means · CPC title

• G01L7/024

  with mechanical transmitting or indicating means (G01L7/043, G01L7/063, G01L7/084, G01L7/104, G01L7/166, G01L7/185 take precedence) · CPC title

• G01L19/149

  of immersion sensor, e.g. where the sensor is immersed in the measuring medium or for in vivo measurements, e.g. by using catheter tips · CPC title