Instrumentation and Experimental

Design
1.Charachteristics of Sensors
1.1 Generalized Measurement System
1.2 Calibration
1.3 Standards
1.4 Specifications of sensors
1.5 Types of sensors
Engi 7930 Spring 2015

Introduction
Instrumentation engineering is the practice related to the
use of measuring instruments to monitor or control a
process.
Related to many disciplines:

Avionics

Ocean Instrumentation

Medical Instrumentation

Introduction
Instrumentation engineering is the practice related to the
use of measuring instruments to monitor or control a
process.
Instrumentation for Mechanical
Engineers
Proximity, level sensing
Temperature, pressure and flow
Motion sensing
Force, torque sensing
Vibration analysis

Underlying concepts and general

theory applies across domains

Introduction

Sensor

= ()

A sensor is a device which provides measurements.

A measurement assigns a specific value to a physical
variable (measurand). E.g. Temperature, Force, etc.
Components of a basic sensor/measurement system can
be divided as follows:

Physical Sensing
World

Element

Signal
Manipulation

Indicator

Or recorder

Introduction
Physical Sensing
World

Element

Signal
Manipulation

Indicator

Or recorder

The sensing element has a physical characteristic which

significantly changes in response to the measurand.
Signal manipulation performs the task of converting the
output of the sensing element to make it suitable for
indication.
The indicator provides a scale for reading the measurement.

Introduction
Physical Sensing
World

Element

Signal
Manipulation

Indicator

Or recorder

Example: Common bulb thermometer

Measurand
Sensing element
Physical phenomenon
Signal manipulation
Indication

: temperature of the
environment
: mercury bulb
: thermal expansion of
mercury
: capillary tube to
amplify expansion
: visual scale

Generalized Measurement system

Modern measurement systems mostly operate using
electrical signals. This allows to exploit digital storage,
communication, and control functionalities.
The generalized measurement model given below
summarizes components of a typical measurement system.

Generalized Measurement system

Sensor stage: Uses a natural phenomenon to extract

information of a physical variable.
Transducer stage: converts the sensed information to a
measurable (electrical) signal.
Signal conditioning: Performs amplification and filtering of
signal to desired levels and specifications.
Sampling : Performs analog to digital conversion of the
signal.

Generalized Measurement system

Estimation: Performs statistical estimation of the

measurand, using a set of measurements from one or
many sensors.
Communicate: establishes standard protocols for
communication with other devices to ultimately perform
indicating, storing, or controlling functions.

Generalized Measurement system

Example: Load cell (Lab1)

1
6
=

2
2

1. Sensing element: A cantilevered beam which

changes the resistance of an attached strain gauge.
2. Transducer stage: A Wheatstone bridge converts the
change in resistance to a measurable voltage signal
3. Signal conditioning: An instrumentation amplifier
performs the necessary amplification of the signal

Generalized Measurement system

Example: Weighing scale (Lab1)

4. Sampling : An NI USB 6008 DAQ performs the analog to

digital conversion.
5. Estimation: The mean of the measured value is taken to
reduce noise. Voltage is used to estimate the load
6. Indicate: A graphical indicator is used to show the
estimated measurand

Generalized Measurement system

Parameters and variables

1
6
=

2
2

Independent variable: variables of the system that

can be changed independently of other variables ().
Dependant variables: variables which are affected by
changes in one or more other variables (, )
Parameters : defines a functional relationship
between variables (, , , , , ).
Controlled variable : variables that can be held
constant during a measurement ().

Generalized Measurement system

Parameters and variables
Extraneous variable : variables that cannot be held
constant but affects the measurand. (Temperature
affects , )
o Noise: Random variation of
the value of the measured
Interference+ Noise
signal (thermal noise)
o Interference: Produces
undesirable deterministic
trends on the measured
Noise
value, because of
extraneous variables
(Temperature drift)

Calibration
Calibration is the process of establishing the
relationship between the measured physical variable
() and the output value of the sensor ().
Static calibration: the input is held constant and the
output is measured after it converges to a value. I.e.
The dynamic behaviour is not considered.
Performed by applying known values of the
measurand and recording the output in order to
identify a functional relationship = (). The value
denotes the expected value of the measurement
for a given measurand ().

Calibration
A Static calibration curve:

Calibration:
find
= ()

Calibration
Dynamics Calibration: The dynamic behaviour of the
system is established using time varying input
signals. E.g. Finding the transfer function of a sensor
which is presumably a linear time invariant system.
Dynamic calibration plot of ADXL001 accelerometer :

Calibration
Types of tests
Sequential test applies a sequential variation in input
value over the desired input range. This allows to
capture any trends in the measurement such as
hysteresis, temperature drifts etc.
Random tests use a measurement matrix that sets a
random order in the value of the independent
variable applied. Random tests allow to break trends
in the measurement occurring due to extraneous
variables.

Calibration
Types of tests
Repetitions are repeated measurements made in a
single test run. Repetitions allows to better estimate
a quantity which is corrupted by noise.
Replications are measurements made in different
test runs under same operating conditions.
Replication permits to asses how well a set of
conditions can be duplicated. (captures more
extraneous effects than repetitions)
Dynamic tests are performed to asses the dynamic
response of a system. I.e, step test, frequency tests

Sensor Specifications
1. Static sensitivity (K): The slope of a static
calibration curve. may or may not be constant
over the range of input values.

= ()

=1

2. Range: The minimum and maximum limits of both

the input ( , ) and the output
( , ) that the sensor is intended to
operate.
3. Span : input span
=
output span (FS) =

Sensor Specifications
4. Resolution (): smallest increment in the
measurand that can be measured.
5. Bias: The shift of the static calibration curve from
zero.
Caliberation plot - Lab 1
7

Vout (V)

Vo= 0.00612W + 0.33596

Sensitivity
Bias
Range
Span

0
0

100

200

300

400

500
600
Load (g)

700

800

900

1000

:0.00612 V/g
:0.33596 V
:0.33 to 6.45V
:6.12 V

Sensor Specifications
6.Error (): The difference between the measured
value and the true value of the measurement. Since
true value is not known the expected value is used.
Error (e)= measured value - true value =

7. Accuracy (): The accuracy is the maximum error

expected from a measurement system when calibrated
and used in a specified manner. Consists systematic
errors (interference) and random errors (Noise).
shown as absolute error bounds =
shown as a percentage

||

shown as statistical bounds (using variance 2) =

100
2

100

Sensor Specifications
Accuracy in F.S (abs)
Accuracy in F.S (stat)
Bias error
Nonlinearity error
Hysteresis
Precision
Sensitivity error

Deviation plot - Lab 1

0.01
0.008
0.006

Output error(V)

0.004
0.002
0
-0.002
-0.004
-0.006
-0.008
-0.01

100

200

300

400

500
600
Load (g)

700

800

900

1000

: 0.11534 %
: 0.13752 %
:-0.00000
:<0.2%
: no data
: no data
: no data

Sensor Specifications
Component Errors
Bias error: This is the constant shift of the measured
value from the expected value. Minimized in calibration.
8. Hysteresis errors ( ): The
difference in values found in going
up scale and down scale in a
sequential application of the input
values.

Sensor Specifications
i.

For each level of , defined as ( ), find the

average error of all replications going up the scale
and down the scale. i.e, ,

ii. Define individual hysteresis errors for each .

( ) = .
iii. Hysteresis error is the maximum among all `s
expressed as a percentage of full scale.
| |
% =
100

Sensor Specifications
9. Nonlinearity ( ): The error between the output and
the linear approximation of the sensor. Different
calculations exist. The Terminal based linearity is
measured as follows:
i Average the error for each level of
. . , ( )
ii Draw a line going through the
terminal points of the deviation plot.
iii | | is the maximum deviation
of from the line.
Linearity error: % = | | 100

Sensor Specifications
10. Precision( ): Measure of random variation of
errors. This is termed as repeatability, when the sensor
is tested for a relatively short term experiment. Termed
reproducibility when tested for replications considering
many extraneous factors. I.e, different labs, different
batches, different operators.
Precision as absolute bounds:
i. For each level of , find the span of error. =
max

ii. Precision error is the maximum of these spans

among different s, expressed in %FSO.
| |
% =
100

Sensor Specifications
Precision- As statistical bounds
i. For each level of , find the sample standard
deviation of the errors.. . , ( )
ii. Take the maximum of these standard deviations.
= max( ( ))
iii. The 95% confidence level of precision expressed in
%FSO is reported.
( + )
( 2 + 2)
( 3 + 3)

0.6827
0.9545
0.9973

2
% =
100

Sensor Specifications
11. Bias, sensitivity errors: The bias and sensitivity of
the sensor can change due to temperature, aging etc.
The expected error bounds of bias ( ) and sensitivity
( ) are reported as part of sensor specifications.

Sensor Specifications
12. Loading errors: The sensing element undergoes an
energy transfer with the physical world. This causes the
measured physical quantity to change from its initial
value.
This phenomenon occurs between each connecting
stages of a measurement system.

Sensor Specifications
Dynamic characteristics
1. Bandwidth: specifies the minimum and maximum
frequency that the sensor produces constant
sensitivity (flat amplitude ratio). Usually a 3dB
specification is used. (~70% sensitivity change).
2. Transient response: Transient response
characteristics of the sensor (time constant, rise
time, settling time, overshoot )

Formally introduced in Topic 2: Dynamic response and frequency analysis

Sensor Specifications
Dynamic characteristics
3. Power spectral density: method of determining
the frequency content of a random signal. While
the mean and variance are measures of magnitude
of a random signal, in order to measure how rapidly
changing a random signal is, PSD spectrum is found.

Formally introduced in Topic 2: Dynamic response and frequency analysis

Sensor Specifications
Datasheet of ADXL 335 accelerometer

Standards
Standards
Static calibration used known values of the input
variables which are presumably known to be accurate.
These known values are referred to as standards.
Standards are related to dimensions and units.
Dimensions define some aspect of a physical variable.
Units defines a quantitative measure of a dimension. SI
standard defines 7 basic dimensions and units.

Standards

Standards
For each basic unit a primary standard is defined which
exactly quantifies the unit. (with zero error)
Dimension

SI Units

Primary Standard

Mass

(kilogram) kg

Mass of Platinum Irradium bar maintained

at IBWM Severs, France

Time

(second) s

Time elapsed during 9,192,631,770 periods

of the radiation emitted between two
excitation levels of the fundamental state of
cesium-133

Length

(meter) m

Length traveled by light in 3.335641

109

Temperature

(Kelvin) K

Different standards are used depending on

the scale. E.g. triple point of hydrogen
13.81 K

Current

(Ampere) A

The current that produces 2 107

between two parallel conductor

Standards
The primary standards are difficult to obtain for
calibration. Therefore secondary derived standards
can be used. The accuracy of the standard
deteriorates down the hierarchy.
Therefore the error of the standard used for
calibration ( ) also deteriorates the accuracy of a
sensor.

Total Error
A conservative estimate of the overall instrument
error is the 2-norm of all component errors.
=

(2 + 2 + 2 + 2 + 2 + 2 )

All component errors should be expressed in the

same manner before applying the equation. I.e.,
accuracy bounds, percentage accuracy, or statistical
bounds.

Discussed further in Topic 4: Uncertainty propagation

Questions
1. Select the type of test best suited to establish each
specification shown below.
Hysteresis:
Accuracy:
Bandwidth:
Time constant:
Select your answer from the following options:
Random test, Step test, Sequential test, Frequency test

Questions
2. Classify the following component errors to
systematic errors (interference) and random errors.
Precision:
Bias drift:
Sensitivity drift:
Nonlinearity:
Hysteresis:
Loading:
Resolution:
Repeatability:
Reproducibility:

Questions
3. Find the sensitivity, bias, range, accuracy,
repeatability, and nonlinearity, of the sensor using the
data set given in table.
x

Load(N)

Cycle 1

Cycle 2

Cycle 3

Cycle 4

Cycle 5

20

7.84

7.93

7.96

7.83

7.89

80

32.33

32.38

32.42

32.3

32.44

40

15.96

16

15.91

15.85

15.93

100

40.79

40.82

40.86

40.72

40.83

0.01

-0.02

0.08

0.05

-0.07

60

24.07

24.04

24.16

24.17

24.04

Questions
Calibration plot

x
y
y_pred
e
|e|
Load(N) Voltage(V) Kx+b
y-y_pred abs(e)
20
7.84
7.9449 -0.1049 0.1049
80
32.33
32.4249 -0.0949 0.0949
40
15.96
16.1049 -0.1449 0.1449
100
40.79
40.5849 0.2051 0.2051
0
0.01
-0.2151 0.2251 0.2251
60
24.07
24.2649 -0.1949 0.1949
20
7.93
7.9449 -0.0149 0.0149
80
32.38
32.4249 -0.0449 0.0449
40
16
16.1049 -0.1049 0.1049
100
40.82
40.5849 0.2351 0.2351

45
y = 0.408x - 0.2151
R = 0.9998

40
35
30
25
20

15
10
5
0
-5

20

40

60

80

100

Deviation plot
0.4
0.3
0.2
0.1
0
0
-0.1
-0.2
-0.3

20

40

60

80

100

120

120

Questions
Specifications
Output range
Output span
Sensitivity
Bias
Accuracy %FSO

-0.07

Component errors
Nonlinearity error %eL
Precision error %eR
Total of components %eT
x
Load(N)
20

0.977278%
0.366479%
1.043734%

y
Cycle 1 Cycle 2 Cycle 3 Cycle 4 Cycle 5
7.84 7.93 7.96 7.83
7.89

80

32.33 32.38 32.42

40

15.96

32.3

32.44

15.91 15.85

15.93

100

40.79 40.82 40.86 40.72

40.83

0.01

0.05

-0.07

60

24.07 24.04 24.16 24.17

24.04

16

-0.02

0.08

40.86V
40.93V
0.408V/N
-0.2151V
0.720987%

y_max y_min
y_avg y_pred e_repeat e_avg |e_avg|
max(y_ro min(y_ro average(y_r
y_max- y_avgabs(e_av
w)
w)
ow)
K*x+b y_min
y_pred
g)
7.96
7.83
7.89 7.9449
0.13 -0.0549 0.0549
32.424
32.44
32.3
32.374
9
0.14 -0.0509 0.0509
16.104
16
15.85
15.93
9
0.15 -0.1749 0.1749
40.584
40.86
40.72
40.804
9
0.14
0.2191 0.2191
0.08
-0.07
0.01 0.2151
0.15
0.2251 0.2251
24.264
24.17
24.04
24.096
9
0.13 -0.1689 0.1689