Optical sensing techniques offer a solution due to their inherent immunity to EMI. Rosemount Inc.'s Aerospace Division has been developing an optical temperature sensor designed for aircraft and engine environments based on the fluorescent time rate of decay (TRD) principle. The TRD technique uses light from a source to excite fluorescence in an optical material. This fluorescence decays exponentially with a time constant which is a function of the temperature of the material. The key to this technique in aerospace applications is the choice of the fluorescent material. The material properties must lend to aerospace temperature ranges, the use of aerospace quality optical components, and high accuracy measurements. The fluorescent material chosen for the sensor allows the use of aerospace quality light sources and detectors and covers the temperature measurement range of -70 to 350 Cel. The use of a small diameter fiber allows for easy installation and handling in aircraft. The sensing element is designed to be comparable in size with the PTR sensing elements such that we can replace the PRT element with the TRD element in many existing military-qualified sensor housings. The prototype system using 200 micron fiber and an LED light source is accurate to +/- 1 Cel over the sensor temperature range of -70 to 260 Cel. The electro-optics and signal processing circuit size is small, fitting on a 3'x5' circuit card. Significant testing of the sensors has been completed with additional environmental and flight testing yet to be performed.
A fluorescence-based fiber optic temperature sensor for aerospace applications
Ein faseroptischer Temperaturmeßaufnehmer aus fluoreszierendem Werkstoff zur Temperaturmessung an Luftfahrzeugen
1991
6 Seiten, 3 Bilder, 1 Tabelle, 6 Quellen
Conference paper
English
Fiber-Optic Sensor Systems For Aerospace Applications
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