JP2009250744A - Inertial sensor - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To achieve miniaturization of an inertial sensor. <P>SOLUTION: This inertial sensor comprises a drive circuit section 11A for outputting a drive signal, a detection element 12 for receiving the drive signal from the drive circuit section 11A, a detection circuit section 13A for fetching a response signal from the detection element 12, and an operation circuit section 14A that receives the response signal from the detection circuit section 13A and separates the response signal into a monitor signal and a sense signal. The drive circuit section 11A adjusts an oscillation amplitude of the drive signal in accordance with the monitor signal. The inertial sensor further comprises a failure diagnosis circuit 15 electrically connected to at least one of the drive circuit section 11A, detection circuit section 13A and operation circuit section 14A, and an output circuit section 16 for digitally outputting a failure diagnosis signal from the failure diagnosis circuit 15 and the sense signal from the operation circuit section 14A in a time sharing manner. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2010,JPO&INPIT

Description

  The present invention relates to an inertial sensor used in automobiles and various electronic devices.

  Conventionally, in this type of inertial sensor, first, as shown in FIG. 5, first and second drive circuit units 1A and 1B for outputting drive signals and detection of input of drive signals from the drive circuit units 1A and 1B. The response signal from the element 2, the first and second detection circuit units 3A and 3B for extracting the response signal from the detection element 2, and the first and second detection circuit units 3A and 3B are input and the response signal Is output from the output terminals 7A and 7B to the first and second processing circuit units 4A and 4B and the first and second processing circuit units 4A and 4B. First and second output circuit portions 5A and 5B are provided.

  In addition, at least one of the first and second drive circuit units 1A and 1B, the first and second detection circuit units 3A and 3B, and the first and second processing circuit units 4A and 4B is electrically connected. The configuration is such that failure detection is appropriately performed by the connected failure diagnosis circuit 6 and a failure detection signal is output from the output terminal 8.

As prior art document information relating to this application, for example, Patent Document 1 is known.
JP-A-8-327363

  In such a conventional inertial sensor, it has been a problem that it is difficult to reduce the size.

  That is, in the above conventional configuration, the output terminals 7A and 7B included in the first and second output circuit sections 5A and 5B and the output terminal 8 included in the failure diagnosis circuit 6 exist, and it is difficult to reduce the size. It was.

  Accordingly, an object of the present invention is to realize downsizing of the inertial sensor.

  In order to achieve this object, the present invention is provided with an output circuit unit that digitally outputs a failure detection signal from the failure diagnosis circuit and a sense signal from the processing circuit unit in a time division manner.

  With this configuration, it is possible to output a failure detection signal corresponding to the sense signal on a one-to-one basis from the output circuit unit without providing an output terminal in the failure diagnosis circuit. As a result, the inertial sensor can be downsized. be able to.

(Embodiment 1)
The inertial sensor according to Embodiment 1 of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings. As shown in FIG. 1, the inertial sensor according to the present embodiment includes first and second drive circuit units 11A and 11B that output a drive signal, and the first drive signal from the first drive circuit unit 11A. The input angular velocity detection element 12A, the acceleration detection element 12B to which the second drive signal from the second drive circuit unit 11B is input, and the first detection circuit for extracting the first response signal from the angular velocity detection element 12A 13A, the second detection circuit unit 13B for extracting the second response signal from the acceleration detection element 12B, and the first response signal from the first detection circuit unit 13A are input and the first response The second response signal from the first processing circuit unit 14A for separating the signal into the first monitor signal and the first sense signal and the second response signal from the second detection circuit unit 13B are input and the second response signal. The second monitor And a second processing circuit section 14B that separates the No. and second sense signals.

  Here, the first drive circuit unit 11A adjusts the vibration amplitude of the first drive signal based on the first monitor signal from the first processing circuit unit 14A, and the second drive circuit unit 11B The vibration amplitude of the second drive signal is adjusted based on the second monitor signal from the second processing circuit unit 14B.

  The second drive circuit unit 11B and the second drive circuit unit 11B are electrically connected to at least one of the first drive circuit unit 11A, the first detection circuit unit 13A, and the first processing circuit unit 14A. A failure diagnosis circuit 15 electrically connected to at least one of the detection circuit unit 13B and the second processing circuit unit 14B, a failure detection signal from the failure diagnosis circuit 15 and the first and second processes. An output circuit unit 16 that digitally outputs the first and second sense signals from the circuit units 14A and 14B in a time division manner is provided.

  FIG. 2 is a diagram showing a state of digital output from the output circuit section 16. As shown in FIG. 2, the first and second sense signals output from the first and second processing circuit units 14A and 14B change with time, and are similarly output from the failure diagnosis circuit 15. The failure detection signal also changes with time. When the first and second sense signals and the failure detection signal are input to the output circuit unit 16, the information of the failure detection signal is time-divisionally associated with the information of the first and second sense signals at each timing. Is output digitally.

  Here, as shown in FIG. 2, the determination based on the failure detection signal is “normal” at the time ts1, but is “abnormal” at the time ts2, and is associated with the failure detection signal information determined to be abnormal. The outputs by the first and second sense signals are treated as “results at the time of abnormality”. Therefore, for example, if the inertial sensor shown in the present embodiment is used for controlling the automobile, the first and second sense signals at the time ts2 determined to be the “result at the time of abnormality” are not used for controlling the vehicle. By making this determination, it is possible to suppress the malfunction of the automobile itself due to the automobile controlling based on the first and second sense signals at the time ts2.

  With such a configuration, it is possible to output a failure detection signal corresponding to the sense signal on a one-to-one basis from the output terminal 17 of the output circuit unit 16 without providing an output terminal in the failure diagnosis circuit 15, and as a result, The inertial sensor can be downsized.

  In the present embodiment, the angular velocity detection element 12A and the acceleration detection element 12B are used as the detection element 12, and the first and second drive circuit units 11A, 11B, first, Although the description has been made using the configuration having the second detection circuit units 13A and 13B and the first and second processing circuit units 14A and 14B, the drive circuit unit has a single detection element and the corresponding circuit configuration. Alternatively, only one detection circuit unit and one processing circuit unit may be provided.

  In the present embodiment, the failure diagnosis circuit 15 is electrically connected to at least one of the first drive circuit unit 11A, the first detection circuit unit 13A, and the first processing circuit unit 14A. In addition, the configuration has been described as being configured to be electrically connected to at least one of the second drive circuit unit 11B, the second detection circuit unit 13B, and the second processing circuit unit 14B. Each of the plurality of failure diagnosis circuits includes first and second drive circuit units 11A and 11B, first and second detection circuit units 13A and 13B, and first and second detection circuit units. A plurality of failure detection signals from the plurality of failure diagnosis circuits and sense signals from the first and second processing circuit portions 14A and 14B are electrically connected to at least one of the processing circuit portions 14A and 14B. And output circuit section 16 It is also possible to adopt a configuration for outputting digital data in a time division method.

  Specifically, as shown in FIG. 3, the failure diagnosis circuit 15 includes first and second failure diagnosis circuits 15A and 15B, which are electrically connected to the output circuit unit 16, and the first failure The diagnosis circuit 15A is electrically connected to the first detection circuit unit 13A and the second detection circuit unit 13B, and the second failure diagnosis circuit 15B is connected to the first drive circuit unit 11A and the second drive circuit unit 11B. It is the structure which is electrically connected.

  In the case of such a configuration, the output signal from the output circuit section 16 is as shown in FIG. That is, the first and second sense signals output from the first and second processing circuit units 14A and 14B change with time, and similarly, the first and second detection circuit units 13A, The first failure detection signal output from the first failure diagnosis circuit 15A electrically connected to 13B and the second failure electrically connected to the first and second drive circuit units 11A and 11B The second failure detection signal output from the diagnostic circuit 15B also changes with time. When the first and second sense signals and the first and second failure detection signals are input to the output circuit unit 16, the information of the first and second sense signals at each timing and the corresponding first The information of the first and second failure detection signals is digitally output in a time division manner.

  Here, as shown in FIG. 2, the determination based on the failure detection signal is “normal” at time ts1, but the first failure detection signal is normal but the second failure detection signal is abnormal at time ts2. Therefore, it is judged as “abnormal” as a whole, and the outputs by the first and second sense signals associated with the second failure detection signal information judged as abnormal are “results at the time of abnormality”. Are treated as Therefore, for example, if the inertial sensor shown in the present embodiment is used for controlling the automobile, the first and second sense signals at the time ts2 determined to be the “result at the time of abnormality” are not used for controlling the automobile. By making this determination, it is possible to suppress the malfunction of the automobile caused by the automobile being controlled based on the first and second sense signals at the time ts2.

  With such a configuration, it is possible to output a failure detection signal corresponding to the sense signal on a one-to-one basis from the output terminal 17 of the output circuit unit 16 without providing an output terminal in the failure diagnosis circuit 15, and as a result, The inertial sensor can be downsized.

  Further, even if the failure diagnosis circuit 15 is configured using a plurality of failure diagnosis circuits, the number of output terminals 17 does not increase in proportion to the number of failure diagnosis circuits 15, and the inertial sensor can be further downsized. It can be done.

  The inertial sensor of the present invention has an effect that it can be miniaturized, and is useful in various electronic devices such as a digital camera and a car navigation, and an automobile.

FIG. 2 is an electric circuit diagram showing the inertial sensor according to Embodiment 1 of the present invention. The figure which shows the change of the output signal of the inertial sensor in Embodiment 1 of this invention. Sectional drawing which shows the other Example of the inertial sensor in Embodiment 1 of this invention. The figure which shows the change of the output signal in the other Example of the inertial sensor in Embodiment 1 of this invention. Electrical circuit diagram showing a conventional inertial sensor

Explanation of symbols

11A Drive circuit section (first drive circuit section)
12 detection element 13A detection circuit unit (first detection circuit unit)
14A processing circuit section (first processing circuit section)
15 Fault diagnosis circuit 16 Output circuit section

  The present invention relates to an inertial sensor used in automobiles and various electronic devices.

  Conventionally, in this type of inertial sensor, first, as shown in FIG. 5, first and second drive circuit units 1A and 1B for outputting drive signals and detection of input of drive signals from the drive circuit units 1A and 1B. The response signal from the element 2, the first and second detection circuit units 3A and 3B for extracting the response signal from the detection element 2, and the first and second detection circuit units 3A and 3B are input and the response signal Is output from the output terminals 7A and 7B to the first and second processing circuit units 4A and 4B and the first and second processing circuit units 4A and 4B. First and second output circuit portions 5A and 5B are provided.

  In addition, at least one of the first and second drive circuit units 1A and 1B, the first and second detection circuit units 3A and 3B, and the first and second processing circuit units 4A and 4B is electrically connected. The configuration is such that failure detection is appropriately performed by the connected failure diagnosis circuit 6 and a failure detection signal is output from the output terminal 8.

As prior art document information relating to this application, for example, Patent Document 1 is known.
JP-A-8-327363

  In such a conventional inertial sensor, it has been a problem that it is difficult to reduce the size.

  That is, in the above conventional configuration, the output terminals 7A and 7B included in the first and second output circuit sections 5A and 5B and the output terminal 8 included in the failure diagnosis circuit 6 exist, and it is difficult to reduce the size. It was.

  Accordingly, an object of the present invention is to realize downsizing of the inertial sensor.

In order to achieve this object, the present invention is provided with an output circuit unit that digitally outputs a failure detection signal from the failure diagnosis circuit and a sense signal from the processing circuit unit in a time division manner ,
The failure detection signal and the sense signal are associated with each other and output in time division so that it can be determined whether the sense signal is a normal result or an abnormal result .

  With this configuration, it is possible to output a failure detection signal corresponding to the sense signal on a one-to-one basis from the output circuit unit without providing an output terminal in the failure diagnosis circuit. As a result, the inertial sensor can be downsized. be able to.

(Embodiment 1)
The inertial sensor according to Embodiment 1 of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings. As shown in FIG. 1, the inertial sensor according to the present embodiment includes first and second drive circuit units 11A and 11B that output a drive signal, and the first drive signal from the first drive circuit unit 11A. The input angular velocity detection element 12A, the acceleration detection element 12B to which the second drive signal from the second drive circuit unit 11B is input, and the first detection circuit for extracting the first response signal from the angular velocity detection element 12A 13A, the second detection circuit unit 13B for extracting the second response signal from the acceleration detection element 12B, and the first response signal from the first detection circuit unit 13A are input and the first response The second response signal from the first processing circuit unit 14A for separating the signal into the first monitor signal and the first sense signal and the second response signal from the second detection circuit unit 13B are input and the second response signal. The second monitor And a second processing circuit section 14B that separates the No. and second sense signals.

  Here, the first drive circuit unit 11A adjusts the vibration amplitude of the first drive signal based on the first monitor signal from the first processing circuit unit 14A, and the second drive circuit unit 11B The vibration amplitude of the second drive signal is adjusted based on the second monitor signal from the second processing circuit unit 14B.

  The second drive circuit unit 11B and the second drive circuit unit 11B are electrically connected to at least one of the first drive circuit unit 11A, the first detection circuit unit 13A, and the first processing circuit unit 14A. A failure diagnosis circuit 15 electrically connected to at least one of the detection circuit unit 13B and the second processing circuit unit 14B, a failure detection signal from the failure diagnosis circuit 15 and the first and second processes. An output circuit unit 16 that digitally outputs the first and second sense signals from the circuit units 14A and 14B in a time division manner is provided.

  FIG. 2 is a diagram showing a state of digital output from the output circuit section 16. As shown in FIG. 2, the first and second sense signals output from the first and second processing circuit units 14A and 14B change with time, and are similarly output from the failure diagnosis circuit 15. The failure detection signal also changes with time. When the first and second sense signals and the failure detection signal are input to the output circuit unit 16, the information of the failure detection signal is time-divisionally associated with the information of the first and second sense signals at each timing. Is output digitally.

  Here, as shown in FIG. 2, the determination based on the failure detection signal is “normal” at the time ts1, but is “abnormal” at the time ts2, and is associated with the failure detection signal information determined to be abnormal. The outputs by the first and second sense signals are treated as “results at the time of abnormality”. Therefore, for example, if the inertial sensor shown in the present embodiment is used for controlling the automobile, the first and second sense signals at the time ts2 determined to be the “result at the time of abnormality” are not used for controlling the vehicle. By making this determination, it is possible to suppress the malfunction of the automobile itself due to the automobile controlling based on the first and second sense signals at the time ts2.

  With such a configuration, it is possible to output a failure detection signal corresponding to the sense signal on a one-to-one basis from the output terminal 17 of the output circuit unit 16 without providing an output terminal in the failure diagnosis circuit 15, and as a result, The inertial sensor can be downsized.

  In the present embodiment, the angular velocity detection element 12A and the acceleration detection element 12B are used as the detection element 12, and the first and second drive circuit units 11A, 11B, first, Although the description has been made using the configuration having the second detection circuit units 13A and 13B and the first and second processing circuit units 14A and 14B, the drive circuit unit has a single detection element and the corresponding circuit configuration. Alternatively, only one detection circuit unit and one processing circuit unit may be provided.

  In the present embodiment, the failure diagnosis circuit 15 is electrically connected to at least one of the first drive circuit unit 11A, the first detection circuit unit 13A, and the first processing circuit unit 14A. In addition, the configuration has been described as being configured to be electrically connected to at least one of the second drive circuit unit 11B, the second detection circuit unit 13B, and the second processing circuit unit 14B. Each of the plurality of failure diagnosis circuits includes first and second drive circuit units 11A and 11B, first and second detection circuit units 13A and 13B, and first and second detection circuit units. A plurality of failure detection signals from the plurality of failure diagnosis circuits and sense signals from the first and second processing circuit portions 14A and 14B are electrically connected to at least one of the processing circuit portions 14A and 14B. And output circuit section 16 It is also possible to adopt a configuration for outputting digital data in a time division method.

  Specifically, as shown in FIG. 3, the failure diagnosis circuit 15 includes first and second failure diagnosis circuits 15A and 15B, which are electrically connected to the output circuit unit 16, and the first failure The diagnosis circuit 15A is electrically connected to the first detection circuit unit 13A and the second detection circuit unit 13B, and the second failure diagnosis circuit 15B is connected to the first drive circuit unit 11A and the second drive circuit unit 11B. It is the structure which is electrically connected.

  In the case of such a configuration, the output signal from the output circuit section 16 is as shown in FIG. That is, the first and second sense signals output from the first and second processing circuit units 14A and 14B change with time, and similarly, the first and second detection circuit units 13A, The first failure detection signal output from the first failure diagnosis circuit 15A electrically connected to 13B and the second failure electrically connected to the first and second drive circuit units 11A and 11B The second failure detection signal output from the diagnostic circuit 15B also changes with time. When the first and second sense signals and the first and second failure detection signals are input to the output circuit unit 16, the information of the first and second sense signals at each timing and the corresponding first The information of the first and second failure detection signals is digitally output in a time division manner.

Here, as shown in FIG. 4 , the determination based on the failure detection signal is “normal” at time ts1, but the first failure detection signal is normal but the second failure detection signal becomes abnormal at time ts2. Therefore, it is judged as “abnormal” as a whole, and the outputs by the first and second sense signals associated with the second failure detection signal information judged as abnormal are “results at the time of abnormality”. Are treated as Therefore, for example, if the inertial sensor shown in the present embodiment is used for the control of the automobile, the first and second sense signals at the time ts2 determined as the “result at the time of abnormality” are not used for the control of the automobile. By making this determination, it is possible to suppress the malfunction of the automobile caused by the automobile being controlled based on the first and second sense signals at the time ts2.

  With such a configuration, it is possible to output a failure detection signal corresponding to the sense signal on a one-to-one basis from the output terminal 17 of the output circuit unit 16 without providing an output terminal in the failure diagnosis circuit 15, and as a result, The inertial sensor can be downsized.

  Further, even if the failure diagnosis circuit 15 is configured using a plurality of failure diagnosis circuits, the number of output terminals 17 does not increase in proportion to the number of failure diagnosis circuits 15, and the inertial sensor can be further downsized. It can be done.

  The inertial sensor of the present invention has an effect that it can be miniaturized, and is useful in various electronic devices such as a digital camera and a car navigation, and an automobile.

FIG. 2 is an electric circuit diagram showing the inertial sensor according to Embodiment 1 of the present invention. The figure which shows the change of the output signal of the inertial sensor in Embodiment 1 of this invention. Electric circuit diagram showing another example of the inertial sensor according to the first embodiment of the present invention. The figure which shows the change of the output signal in the other Example of the inertial sensor in Embodiment 1 of this invention. Electrical circuit diagram showing a conventional inertial sensor

Explanation of symbols

11A Drive circuit section (first drive circuit section)
12 detection element 13A detection circuit unit (first detection circuit unit)
14A processing circuit section (first processing circuit section)
15 Fault diagnosis circuit 16 Output circuit section

  The present invention relates to an inertial sensor used in automobiles and various electronic devices.

  Conventionally, in this type of inertial sensor, first, as shown in FIG. 5, first and second drive circuit units 1A and 1B for outputting drive signals and detection of input of drive signals from the drive circuit units 1A and 1B. The response signal from the element 2, the first and second detection circuit units 3A and 3B for extracting the response signal from the detection element 2, and the first and second detection circuit units 3A and 3B are input and the response signal Is output from the output terminals 7A and 7B to the first and second processing circuit units 4A and 4B and the first and second processing circuit units 4A and 4B. First and second output circuit portions 5A and 5B are provided.

  In addition, at least one of the first and second drive circuit units 1A and 1B, the first and second detection circuit units 3A and 3B, and the first and second processing circuit units 4A and 4B is electrically connected. The configuration is such that failure detection is appropriately performed by the connected failure diagnosis circuit 6 and a failure detection signal is output from the output terminal 8.

As prior art document information relating to this application, for example, Patent Document 1 is known.
JP-A-8-327363

  In such a conventional inertial sensor, it has been a problem that it is difficult to reduce the size.

  That is, in the above conventional configuration, the output terminals 7A and 7B included in the first and second output circuit sections 5A and 5B and the output terminal 8 included in the failure diagnosis circuit 6 exist, and it is difficult to reduce the size. It was.

  Accordingly, an object of the present invention is to realize downsizing of the inertial sensor.

In order to achieve this object, the present invention is provided with an output circuit unit for digitally outputting a failure detection signal from the failure diagnosis circuit and a sense signal from the processing circuit unit in a time division manner, and the sense signal The failure detection signal and the failure detection signal and the sense signal at the same time point are associated with each other and output in a time-sharing manner so that it can be determined whether the failure is a normal result or an abnormal result. To do.

  With this configuration, it is possible to output a failure detection signal corresponding to the sense signal on a one-to-one basis from the output circuit unit without providing an output terminal in the failure diagnosis circuit. As a result, the inertial sensor can be downsized. be able to.

(Embodiment 1)
The inertial sensor according to Embodiment 1 of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings. As shown in FIG. 1, the inertial sensor according to the present embodiment includes first and second drive circuit units 11A and 11B that output a drive signal, and the first drive signal from the first drive circuit unit 11A. The input angular velocity detection element 12A, the acceleration detection element 12B to which the second drive signal from the second drive circuit unit 11B is input, and the first detection circuit for extracting the first response signal from the angular velocity detection element 12A 13A, the second detection circuit unit 13B for extracting the second response signal from the acceleration detection element 12B, and the first response signal from the first detection circuit unit 13A are input and the first response The second response signal from the first processing circuit unit 14A for separating the signal into the first monitor signal and the first sense signal and the second response signal from the second detection circuit unit 13B are input and the second response signal. The second monitor And a second processing circuit section 14B that separates the No. and second sense signals.

  Here, the first drive circuit unit 11A adjusts the vibration amplitude of the first drive signal based on the first monitor signal from the first processing circuit unit 14A, and the second drive circuit unit 11B The vibration amplitude of the second drive signal is adjusted based on the second monitor signal from the second processing circuit unit 14B.

  The second drive circuit unit 11B and the second drive circuit unit 11B are electrically connected to at least one of the first drive circuit unit 11A, the first detection circuit unit 13A, and the first processing circuit unit 14A. A failure diagnosis circuit 15 electrically connected to at least one of the detection circuit unit 13B and the second processing circuit unit 14B, a failure detection signal from the failure diagnosis circuit 15 and the first and second processes. An output circuit unit 16 that digitally outputs the first and second sense signals from the circuit units 14A and 14B in a time division manner is provided.

  FIG. 2 is a diagram showing a state of digital output from the output circuit section 16. As shown in FIG. 2, the first and second sense signals output from the first and second processing circuit units 14A and 14B change with time, and are similarly output from the failure diagnosis circuit 15. The failure detection signal also changes with time. When the first and second sense signals and the failure detection signal are input to the output circuit unit 16, the information of the failure detection signal is time-divisionally associated with the information of the first and second sense signals at each timing. Is output digitally.

  Here, as shown in FIG. 2, the determination based on the failure detection signal is “normal” at the time ts1, but is “abnormal” at the time ts2, and is associated with the failure detection signal information determined to be abnormal. The outputs by the first and second sense signals are treated as “results at the time of abnormality”. Therefore, for example, if the inertial sensor shown in the present embodiment is used for controlling the automobile, the first and second sense signals at the time ts2 determined to be the “result at the time of abnormality” are not used for controlling the vehicle. By making this determination, it is possible to suppress the malfunction of the automobile itself due to the automobile controlling based on the first and second sense signals at the time ts2.

  With such a configuration, it is possible to output a failure detection signal corresponding to the sense signal on a one-to-one basis from the output terminal 17 of the output circuit unit 16 without providing an output terminal in the failure diagnosis circuit 15, and as a result, The inertial sensor can be downsized.

  In the present embodiment, the angular velocity detection element 12A and the acceleration detection element 12B are used as the detection element 12, and the first and second drive circuit units 11A, 11B, first, Although the description has been made using the configuration having the second detection circuit units 13A and 13B and the first and second processing circuit units 14A and 14B, the drive circuit unit has a single detection element and the corresponding circuit configuration. Alternatively, only one detection circuit unit and one processing circuit unit may be provided.

  In the present embodiment, the failure diagnosis circuit 15 is electrically connected to at least one of the first drive circuit unit 11A, the first detection circuit unit 13A, and the first processing circuit unit 14A. In addition, the configuration has been described as being configured to be electrically connected to at least one of the second drive circuit unit 11B, the second detection circuit unit 13B, and the second processing circuit unit 14B. Each of the plurality of failure diagnosis circuits includes first and second drive circuit units 11A and 11B, first and second detection circuit units 13A and 13B, and first and second detection circuit units. A plurality of failure detection signals from the plurality of failure diagnosis circuits and sense signals from the first and second processing circuit portions 14A and 14B are electrically connected to at least one of the processing circuit portions 14A and 14B. And output circuit section 16 It is also possible to adopt a configuration for outputting digital data in a time division method.

  Specifically, as shown in FIG. 3, the failure diagnosis circuit 15 includes first and second failure diagnosis circuits 15A and 15B, which are electrically connected to the output circuit unit 16, and the first failure The diagnosis circuit 15A is electrically connected to the first detection circuit unit 13A and the second detection circuit unit 13B, and the second failure diagnosis circuit 15B is connected to the first drive circuit unit 11A and the second drive circuit unit 11B. It is the structure which is electrically connected.

  In the case of such a configuration, the output signal from the output circuit section 16 is as shown in FIG. That is, the first and second sense signals output from the first and second processing circuit units 14A and 14B change with time, and similarly, the first and second detection circuit units 13A, The first failure detection signal output from the first failure diagnosis circuit 15A electrically connected to 13B and the second failure electrically connected to the first and second drive circuit units 11A and 11B The second failure detection signal output from the diagnostic circuit 15B also changes with time. When the first and second sense signals and the first and second failure detection signals are input to the output circuit unit 16, the information of the first and second sense signals at each timing and the corresponding first The information of the first and second failure detection signals is digitally output in a time division manner.

  Here, as shown in FIG. 4, the determination based on the failure detection signal is “normal” at time ts1, but the first failure detection signal is normal but the second failure detection signal is abnormal at time ts2. Therefore, it is judged as “abnormal” as a whole, and the outputs by the first and second sense signals associated with the second failure detection signal information judged as abnormal are “results at the time of abnormality”. Are treated as Therefore, for example, if the inertial sensor shown in the present embodiment is used for controlling the automobile, the first and second sense signals at the time ts2 determined to be the “result at the time of abnormality” are not used for controlling the automobile. By making this determination, it is possible to suppress the malfunction of the automobile caused by the automobile being controlled based on the first and second sense signals at the time ts2.

  With such a configuration, it is possible to output a failure detection signal corresponding to the sense signal on a one-to-one basis from the output terminal 17 of the output circuit unit 16 without providing an output terminal in the failure diagnosis circuit 15, and as a result, The inertial sensor can be downsized.

  Further, even if the failure diagnosis circuit 15 is configured using a plurality of failure diagnosis circuits, the number of output terminals 17 does not increase in proportion to the number of failure diagnosis circuits 15, and the inertial sensor can be further downsized. It can be done.

  The inertial sensor of the present invention has an effect that it can be miniaturized, and is useful in various electronic devices such as a digital camera and a car navigation, and an automobile.

FIG. 2 is an electric circuit diagram showing the inertial sensor according to Embodiment 1 of the present invention. The figure which shows the change of the output signal of the inertial sensor in Embodiment 1 of this invention. Electric circuit diagram showing another example of the inertial sensor according to the first embodiment of the present invention. The figure which shows the change of the output signal in the other Example of the inertial sensor in Embodiment 1 of this invention. Electrical circuit diagram showing a conventional inertial sensor

11A Drive circuit section (first drive circuit section)
12 detection element 13A detection circuit unit (first detection circuit unit)
14A processing circuit section (first processing circuit section)
15 Fault diagnosis circuit 16 Output circuit section

Claims (4)

A drive circuit unit for outputting a drive signal;
A sensing element to which a drive signal from the drive circuit unit is input;
A detection circuit unit that extracts a response signal from the detection element;
A response signal from the detection circuit unit is input and a processing circuit unit that separates the response signal into a monitor signal and a sense signal;
A fault diagnosis circuit electrically connected to at least one of the drive circuit unit, the detection circuit unit, and the processing circuit unit;
An inertial sensor provided with an output circuit unit that digitally outputs a failure detection signal from the failure diagnosis circuit and a sense signal from the processing circuit unit in a time division manner. The failure diagnosis circuit comprises a plurality of failure diagnosis circuits,
Each of the plurality of fault diagnosis circuits is electrically connected to at least one of the drive circuit unit, the detection circuit unit, and the processing circuit unit,
The inertial sensor according to claim 1, wherein the output circuit unit digitally outputs a plurality of failure detection signals from the plurality of failure diagnosis circuits and a sense signal from the processing circuit unit in a time division manner. First and second drive circuit units for outputting drive signals;
An angular velocity sensing element to which a first drive signal from the first drive circuit unit is input;
An acceleration sensing element to which a second drive signal from the second drive circuit section is input;
A first detection circuit unit for extracting a first response signal from the angular velocity detection element;
A second detection circuit unit for extracting a second response signal from the acceleration detection element;
A first processing circuit unit that receives a first response signal from the first detection circuit unit and separates the first response signal into a first monitor signal and a first sense signal;
A second processing circuit unit that receives the second response signal from the second detection circuit unit and separates the second response signal into a second monitor signal and a second sense signal;
While being electrically connected to at least one of the first drive circuit unit, the first detection circuit unit, and the first processing circuit unit,
A fault diagnosis circuit electrically connected to at least one of the second drive circuit unit, the second detection circuit unit, and the second processing circuit unit;
An inertial sensor provided with an output circuit unit for digitally outputting the failure detection signal from the failure diagnosis circuit and the first and second sense signals from the first and second processing circuit units in a time division manner. The failure diagnosis circuit comprises a plurality of failure diagnosis circuits,
Each of the plurality of failure diagnosis circuits may be at least one of the first and second drive circuit units, the first and second detection circuit units, and the first and second processing circuit units. Electrically connected,
4. The inertia according to claim 3, wherein the output circuit unit digitally outputs a plurality of failure detection signals from the plurality of failure diagnosis circuits and sense signals from the first and second processing circuit units in a time division manner. Sensor.

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