De-icing system with integrated ice detection and temperature sensing for meteorological devices

We present a de-icing system indented for application with meteorological sensors in harsh environments. The heating unit is implemented as a double-meander structure on a printed circuit board. The double-meander structure allows for measuring capacitance in the differential mode. The presence of ice (and water) leads to an increase of the capacitance and can thus be detected. Additionally, the temperature of the heating unit can be obtained from the temperature dependent variation of the ohmic resistance of the heating structure. With this information the heating unit can be controlled efficiently as excessive heating or heating in the absence of ice can be avoided.