SENSOR CONTROLLER

• Main Authors: MATSUOKA MIKIYASU, SAKAMOTO YUKI, MATSUMOTO YUZO
• Format: Patent
• Language: English
• Published: 23.02.2012
• Subjects: BLASTING; COMBUSTION ENGINES; CONTROLLING COMBUSTION ENGINES; HEATING; HOT-GAS OR COMBUSTION-PRODUCT ENGINE PLANTS; INVESTIGATING OR ANALYSING MATERIALS BY DETERMINING THEIRCHEMICAL OR PHYSICAL PROPERTIES; LIGHTING; MEASURING; MECHANICAL ENGINEERING; PHYSICS; TESTING; WEAPONS

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a sensor controller capable of reducing detection errors of a particulate matters detection sensor and capable of obtaining the amount of particulate matters with a high degree of accuracy.SOLUTION: A PM sensor 17, having an object part to be attached where PMs (conductive particulate matters) contained in a gas are attached, and a pair of counter electrodes disposed on the object part to be attached at a separated state, outputs a detection signal according to the value of resistance between the pair of counter electrodes. The PM sensor 17 has a heater unit 35 for applying heat to the object part to be attached for the purpose of burning and removing PMs attached to the object part to be attached. A microcomputer 44 obtains a sensor detection value while PMs are being burned by the heat applied by the heater unit 35, calculates a sensor reference value, which is a sensor detection value in the state where the resistance between the pair of counter electrodes is reduced, on the basis of the obtained sensor detection value, stores the sensor reference value as a learned value, and performs correction on the sensor detection value on the basis of the sensor reference value that is stored.