Claims
- 1. An apparatus comprising:
at least two output electrical conductors; at least one input electrical conductor; at least two sensors, the sensors being capable of sensing a parameter and indicating the parameter as an electrical impedance; the sensors being connected with the output electrical conductors and with the input electrical conductor so as to form an array of crosspoint connections; a controller, the controller being connected with the output electrical conductors and with the input electrical conductor, the controller being capable of applying electrical signals to the output electrical conductors, the controller being capable of measuring electrical signals received from the input electrical conductor; the controller being capable of deriving corrections for parasitic sources and calculating the corrected electrical impedance of each of the sensors using an algorithm, information of the electrical signals applied to the output electrical conductors, and measured electrical signals received from the input electrical conductors.
- 2. The apparatus of claim 1 wherein the at least one input electrical conductor comprises a plurality of input electrical conductors.
- 3. The apparatus of claim 1 wherein the algorithm includes equations for summing impedances in series and summing impedances in parallel.
- 4. The apparatus of claim 1 wherein the sensors are capable of indicating the parameter as an electrical impedance that includes at least one of resistance, capacitance, and inductance.
- 5. The apparatus of claim 2 further comprising a substrate for supporting the output electrical conductors, the input electrical conductors, and the sensors.
- 6. The apparatus of claim 1 wherein the sensors comprise a parameter sensitive resistor.
- 7. The apparatus of claim 1 wherein the sensors comprise a thermistor.
- 8. The apparatus of claim 1 wherein the sensors comprise a photoresistor.
- 9. The apparatus of claim 1 wherein the sensors comprise a nonlinear electronic junction.
- 10. The apparatus of claim 1 wherein the sensors comprise a photodiode.
- 11. The apparatus of claim 1 wherein the sensors comprise an active electronic device.
- 12. The apparatus of claim 1 wherein the sensors comprise a MOSFET device.
- 13. The apparatus of claim 12 wherein the sensor impedance is a function of a voltage applied to the gate of the MOSFET device.
- 14. The apparatus of claim 1 wherein the controller comprises a computer.
- 15. The apparatus of claim 1 wherein the controller comprises a microprocessor.
- 16. The apparatus of claim 2 further comprising a plurality of reference elements, the reference elements being connected with the output electrical conductors and with the input electrical conductors so as to form crosspoint connections.
- 17. The apparatus of claim 16 wherein each of the input electrical conductors has at least one reference element connected thereto.
- 18. The apparatus of claim 1 further comprising a substrate, and wherein the sensors, the output electrical conductors, and the input electrical conductors are formed on the substrate.
- 19. The apparatus of claim 1 wherein the plurality of sensors comprise at least two types of sensors.
- 20. The apparatus of claim 1 wherein at least one of the sensors includes circuitry for converting the measured parameter into a corresponding electrical impedance.
- 21. A method for obtaining data from an array of sensors in a crosspoint network, the method being performed using sensors capable of representing parameters as electrical impedance, the method comprising the steps of:
a) applying a pattern of electrical signals to the sensors; b) measuring electrical signals from the sensors; c) measuring corrections for parasitic sources; and d) deriving measurement data for each of the sensors using the measured electrical signals and algorithms.
- 22. The method of claim 21 wherein the individual response of one of the sensors is calculated from measuring electrical signals when the pattern of electrical signals comprises a plurality of electrical source states.
- 23. The method of claim 21 wherein the pattern of electrical signals includes voltages having at least two discrete magnitudes.
- 24. The method of claim 21 wherein the pattern of electrical signals includes currents having at least two discrete magnitudes.
- 25. The method of claim 21 wherein the method is carried out using input electrical conductors and output electrical conductors arranged to form the cross point network.
- 26. The method of claim 21 wherein the pattern of electrical signals includes alternating electrical signals.
- 27. An apparatus comprising:
means for applying electrical signals to an array of sensors; means for measuring electrical signals from the array of sensors; means for correcting the measured electrical signals for parasitic current sources errors; and means for deriving measurement data for each of the sensors.
CROSS-REFERENCE
[0001] The present application claims benefit of U.S. Patent Application No. 60/285,613 filed on Apr. 19, 2001 and U.S. Patent Application 60/285,439 filed on Apr. 19, 2001. The present application is related to U.S. Patent Application No. 60/285,613 filed on Apr. 19, 2001, U.S. Patent Application 60/285,439 filed on Apr. 19, 2001, U.S. Pat. application Ser. No. 09/643,614, filed on Aug. 22, 2000 also published as Patent Corporation Treaty application WO 02/17030, and U.S. patent application Ser. No. 09/816,648, filed on Mar. 22, 2001; all of these applications are incorporated herein, in their entirety, by this reference.
Provisional Applications (2)
|
Number |
Date |
Country |
|
60285613 |
Apr 2001 |
US |
|
60285439 |
Apr 2001 |
US |