Patent Application
20130255564
The field of this invention relates to a gauge with dual indicators.
An operator often looks at a gauge to monitor a parameter of a machine or system. Most gauges have a body with an indicator display for viewing. These gauges may be constructed for sensing and indicating temperature, liquid level, speed, gas pressure or some other parameter.
A problem with indicator displays on many gauges is that the display is accurately readable from a relatively narrow direction. Front facing dials are accurately read only when the operator is in front of the dial. However, there are many situations when the operator is not directly in front of the dial but may be around it or above it but still wants to obtain a quick reading of the gauge.
What is needed is dial that has dual indicator displays that are readable from different directions.
In accordance with one aspect of the invention, an indicator gauge has a housing, a front face and a sensor mounted in the housing. The front face has a first sensor indicator thereon for displaying an amount detected by the sensor. The housing also has a side wall with a second sensor indicator shown thereon for displaying the amount detected by the sensor.
Preferably, the sensor is a pressure sensor. The housing has a mounting stem extending rearwardly. The mounting stem includes a sensor pathway for passing pressure to the pressure sensor.
Desirably, the front face has pressure indicia marked thereon. A hand is moveably mounted with respect to the pressure indicia to indicate a pressure sensed by the pressure sensor.
Preferably, the side wall has a window therein. The sensor is operably connected to a side indicator dial that is arcuate in shape and that rotates with respect to the housing for displaying the amount detected by the sensor through the window.
Preferably, the hand and the side indicator dial are found on a single member such that the hand and side indicator dial pivot together about a common axis.
According to another aspect of the invention, a pressure gauge has a housing with a pressure sensor mounted therein and an inlet for operable connection to a pressure source for delivering pressure from the pressure source to the pressure sensor. The housing has a front dial face. A pivotable hand is connected to the pressure sensor for pivotable movement relative to the front dial face for indicating a pressure from a pressure source. The housing has a side wall generally perpendicular to the front face with a window therein. The pressure sensor is connected to a side indicator dial with pressure indicia thereon that rotates with respect to the body for showing the appropriate pressure indicia through the window.
Preferably, the pressure sensor is in the form of a Bourdon tube connected to one of the end dial face and the hand and also connected to the side indicator dial.
Reference now is made to the accompanying drawings in which:
Referring now to
The first indicator 13 is on a front dial face 16 with appropriate indicia 18 and 20 for example PSI and Bar markings marked thereon. The dial face 16 also has an arcuate shaped transparent window 22. An indicator hand 24 is shown through the arcuate shaped transparent window 22.
As shown more clearly in
Referring now to
In operation, the gauge 10 has its inlet stem section operably mounted to a pressure source (not shown). The Bourdon tube 32 moves in response to pressure exerted therein which in turn pivots the hand and side dial member 36. The Bourdon tube 32 appropriately reacts to move in a predictive fashion to rotate the hand and side dial member 36 along a central axis. In other words, both the hand 26 and the side dial 30 rotate about the common axis. The hand 26 is then positioned to be seen aligned with the appropriate pressure indicia 18 and 20. In addition the side dial has its appropriate indicia 31 and 33 showing through window 28. An indicator line 37 is marked on window 22 for a more accurate reading. As shown, the multiple indicia 18 and 20 and side dial indicia 31 and 33 have multiple measuring units marked therein. For example, indicia 18 and 31 may be in PSI and indicia 20 and 33 may be in BAR units as shown in the preferred embodiment.
In this fashion, an operator may view the indicator pressure reading from either the front end dial face 16 or from cylindrical side wall 26 through window 28. The window 28 is preferably positioned facing upward but it may be positioned about the cylindrical shaped side wall 26 at other positions.
While a pressure gauge is shown, the dual indicator construction with the dial face 16 and side window 28 may be used for other types of gauges. Furthermore, while a cylindrical shaped side wall 26 is preferred, it is foreseen that the housing 11 may have other side wall configurations for example, a plurality of side walls forming a square or rectangle or other polygons or more complex configured shapes. While the preferred embodiment shows the hand mounted to the Bourdon tube and end face dial fixed to the housing, alternate embodiments are foreseen that have the end face dial mounted to the Bourdon tube and the hand affixed to the body. The dial indicia 18, 20, 31, and 33 may also be replaced with LCD or LED type digital displays.
Other variations and modifications are possible without departing from the scope and spirit of the present invention as defined by the appended claims.
