A nonvolatile, absolute multi-turn rotation sensor employs a magnetic particle that is indexed around a serpentine channel with successive passes of a magnet caused by rotation of the rotation sensor shaft. Sensors at regular locations around the track allow determination of the position of the magnetic particle and thus the total number of revolutions of the shaft.

A safety system for an object having a transmitter that comprises a microcontroller to generate an identification signal having a given frequency and a resonant circuit to amplify the signal. The transmitter is suitable to be placed in the vicinity of the body of a person to capacitively couple the identification signal to it. The safety system also comprises a receiver suitable to be capacitively coupled to the body in order to receive the first identification signal and to recognize based on the identification signal if a user is an authorized user. The safety system estimates the actual resonant frequency of the resonant circuit when the circuit is amplifying the signal and the microcontroller is adapted to choose as frequency for the identification signal the closest frequency to the estimated actual resonant circuit it can generate so that the amplification of the identification signal is maximized.

Provided is a capacitive sensor in which fluctuation in the measured value of capacitance caused by the use environment is small. Disclosed is a capacitive sensor which includes a sensor sheet and a measuring instrument, the sensor sheet including a central electrode layer; a first dielectric layer laminated on the upper surface of the central electrode layer; a second dielectric layer laminated on the lower surface of the central electrode layer; a first outer electrode layer formed on the surface of the first dielectric layer on the opposite side of the central electrode layer side; and a second outer electrode layer formed on the surface of the second dielectric layer on the opposite side of the central electrode layer side, in which the first dielectric layer and the second dielectric layer are formed from elastomers, the part where the central electrode layer and the first outer electrode layer face each other is designated as a first detection portion, while the part where the central electrode layer and the second outer electrode layer face each other is designated as a second detection portion, the sensor sheet is reversibly deformable, and the capacitances of the first detection portion and the second detection portion change with deformation. The state of deformation of the sensor sheet is measured on the basis of the total capacitance by adding the capacitance of the first detection portion and the capacitance of the second detection potion.

Where: the resonance frequency of an LCR resonance circuit 20 is f1 and the determination voltage signal is V1, when an object is not in the proximity of a sensor electrode 22; the resonance frequency of the LCR resonance circuit 20 is f2 and the determination voltage signal is V2, when a human body is in proximity of the sensor electrode 22; and the resonance frequency of the LCR resonance circuit 20 is f3 and the determination voltage signal is V3, when water is in the proximity of the sensor electrode 22, having the relationship

f1>f2>f3, a control unit 42 controls a high-frequency signal S0 so as to satisfy the relationship V2>V1>V3, and a human body or water being in the proximity of the sensor electrode 22 is distinguished.

A multi-layer electrode for a capacitive pressure sensor is manufactured according to a method including co-extruding a conductive polymer layer and a dielectric foam layer and forming coextruded layers of the capacitive pressure sensor and pressure rolling an XY layer and the coextruded layers together and forming the multi-layer electrode.

A capacitive detection device comprising: a capacitive detector comprising a ribbon made of a dielectric material, a pair of electrodes formed on a first face of said ribbon and comprising a first electrode and a second electrode in the form of combs whose branches are arranged alternately between one another; and a third electrode in the form of a layer formed on the other face of said ribbon; and further comprising a containment electrode arranged at least partly facing and at a distance from said pair of electrodes, this containment electrode being electrically connected to said third electrode. Measurement devices including this capacitive detection device are also disclosed.

A direct current electric arc furnace (1) for metallurgical plant comprises an electrode (3) having a base (4) and a plurality of metal bars (5) fixed to the base (4); each of said metal bars (5) comprises at least a first portion (12) and at least a second portion (13) which is axially adjacent to said first portion (12), said first portion (12) being restrained to said base (4) and having greater thermal conductivity with respect to said second portion (13).

A sensing device comprising a first array of electrodes encapsulated in a first elastomeric layer; a second array of electrodes encapsulated in a second elastomeric layer; a third elastomeric layer intermediate the first and second elastomeric layer and comprising an array of micro-structures, wherein said electrodes and elastomeric layers are configured such that a displacement of said micro-structures, in response to one or more forces and/or pressures applied to said device, causes a capacitance of said device to vary as a function of said forces and/or pressure applied.

Embodiments are provided for intelligently activating an amplifier in a playback device based on proximity detection. The playback device may be in a quasi-idle state when the playback device is not rendering media content. The quasi-idle state of the playback device may involve an amplifier in the playback device being inactive, while some other components or modules of the playback devices remain active. The playback device may include a proximity sensor configured to detect movement relative to the playback device. If movement is detected indicating that a user input to cause the playback device to render media content is anticipated, the amplifier may be pre-emptively activated such that the playback device enters an active state from the quasi-idle state. In some cases, the playback device may send a message to one or more other playback devices to cause the other playback devices to enter an active state.

A self-capacitance-system electrostatic-capacitance detection sensor includes: a first electrode and a second electrode, one of the first and second electrodes being set as a sense electrode, and the other of the first and second electrodes being set as a drive electrode; a sense-signal generating unit that generates a sense signal to be applied to the sense electrode; a detecting unit that detects, as a detection value, an amount of charge movement corresponding to an electrostatic capacitance of the sense electrode; and a determining unit that determines whether or not a detection target is in close proximity to both the first and second electrodes, based on a subtraction difference between detection values detected by the detecting unit when a first drive signal is applied to the drive electrode and when a second drive signal having the same frequency and a different phase is applied to the drive electrode.