9/7/2017 Types of Sensors and Their Applications

Types of Sensors and Their Applications

There are a number of ways in which sensing devices may be classified:

a. By their type of operation - analog or digital.

b. Whether the quantity is sensed directly or indirectly.
c. By the medium by which they operate - optical, electrical etc.
d. By their application.

1. Proximity Sensing

Proximity sensing normally means detecting:

a. Presence or absence of an object.
b. The size or simple shape of an object.

Proximity sensors can be further classified as contact or non - contact, and as analog or digital in
operation. The choice of sensor is determined by the physical, environmental and control
conditions. They include the following:

Mechanical -
Any suitable mechanical / electrical switch may be adopted but because a certain amount
of force is required to operate a mechanical switch it is common to use microswitches.

Pneumatic -
These proximity sensors operate by breaking or disturbing an air flow. The pneumatic
proximity sensor is an example of a contact type sensor. These cannot be used where light
components may be blown away.

Optical -
In there simplest form, optical proximity sensors operate by breaking a light beam which
falls onto a light sensitive device such as a photocell. These are examples of non contact
sensors. Care must be exercised with the lighting environment of these sensors for
example optical sensors can be blinded by flashes from arc welding processes, airborne
dust and smoke clouds may impede light transmission etc.

Electrical -
Electrical proximity sensors may be contact or non - contact. Simple contact sensors
operate by making the sensor and the component complete an electrical circuit. Non -
contact electrical proximity sensors rely on the electrical principles of either induction for
detecting metals or capacitance for detecting non metals as well.

Range Sensing -
Range sensing concerns detecting how near or far a component is from the sensing
position, although they can also be used as proximity sensors. Distance or range sensors
use non - contact analog techniques. Short range sensing, between a few millimetres and
a few hundred millimetres is carried out using electrical capacitance, inductance and
magnetic technique. Longer range sensing is carried out using transmitted energy waves
of various types eg radio waves, sound waves and lasers.

2. Force Sensing
http://thnet.co.uk/thnet/robots/12.htm 1/5
9/7/2017 Types of Sensors and Their Applications

There are six types of force that may require sensing. In each case the application of the force
may be static ( Stationary ) or dynamic t Moving ). Force is a vector quantity in that it must be
specified in both magnitude and direction. Force sensors are therefore analog an operation and
sensitive to the direction in which they act. The six types of forces are:-

1. Tensile Force
2. Compressive Force
3. Shear force
4. Torsional Force
5. Bending Force
6. Frictional Force

A number of techniques exist for sensing force, some direct and some indirect.

Tensile Forces: -
Can be determined by Strain Gauges, these show a change in their" electrical resistance
when their length is increased. These gauges measure change in electrical resistance
which can be translated into force and are therefore indirect devices.

Compressive Forces: -
Can be determined by devices known as Load Cells, these operate" by detecting either a
change in dimension of the cell under compressive load or by detecting an increase in the
pressure within the cell under load or by exhibiting a change in electrical resistance under
a compressive load.

Torsional and Bending Forces: -

Can be regarded as a combination of tensile and compressive forces so a combination of
the above technique are employed.

Frictional Forces: -
These relate to situations where movement is to be restrained, so" friction force is detected
indirectly using a combination of force and movement sensors. eg:

3. Tactile Sensing

Tactile sensing means sensing through touch. The simplest types of tactile sensors use an array
of simple touch sensors arranged in rows and columns. These are commonly called matrix
sensors. Each individual sensor is activated when brought into contact with the object. By
detecting which sensors are active ( digital ) or the magnitude of the output signal ( analog ) an
imprint of the component can be determined. The imprint is then compared to previously stored
imprint information o determine the size or shape of the component. Mechanical, optical and
electrical tactile sensors are available.
http://thnet.co.uk/thnet/robots/12.htm 2/5
9/7/2017 Types of Sensors and Their Applications

A tactile matrix sensor:

4. Heat Sensing

Heat sensing may be required as part of process control or as a means of safety control. A
number of methods are available the choice of which depends for the most part on the
temperature to be sensed. Some of the common methods are, Bi - metallic strips,
thermocouples, electrical resistance thermometers, or thermistors. For more sophisticated
systems involving low level heat sources an infra red camera can be employed.

5. Acoustic Sensing ( Hearing )

Acoustic sensors can detect and sometimes discriminate between different sounds. They can be
employed in speech recognition for giving verbal commands or for recognising abnormal sounds
such as explosions. The most common acoustic sensor is the microphone . The obvious
problem with acoustic sensors in an industrial environment is the large amount of background
noise. Acoustic sensors can fairly easily be tuned to respond only to certain frequencies thus
enabling them to discriminate between different noises.

6. Gas Sensing ( Smell )

Gas or smoke sensors which are sensitive to particular gases rely on chemical changes in
materials which are contained in the sensor, chemical changes produce physical expansion or
sufficient heat to trigger a switching device.

7. Robot Vision ( Sight )

Vision is probably the most active field of current research into Robot sensory feedback. Robot
vision means capturing an image in real time via a camera of some sort and converting this
image into a form which can be analysed by a computer system. This conversion usually means
converting the image into a digital field which can be understood by the computer. The entire
process of image capture, digitising and data analysis should be quick enough to enable the
Robot system to respond to the analysed image and take appropriate action during the
performance of the task set. The perfection of Robot vision will allow the full potential of artificial
intelligence to be bestowed on industrial Robots. Its uses include the detection of presence,
position and movement, recognition and identification of different components, patterns and
features, complex scene analysis and identification applications.
However even the most simple vision techniques require vast amounts of computer memory and
can take quite long process times.

SENSING DEVICES
PROXIMITY SENSORS

http://thnet.co.uk/thnet/robots/12.htm 3/5
9/7/2017
Capacitive
A range of proximity detectors
with built in amplifiers and solid
state output stages making
them extremely versatile
electronic switches These
sense the presence of non-
conducting materials such as
wood, PVC, glass etc. as well
as ferrous and non-ferrous
metals. All types have built in
potentiometers for sensitivity
adjustment and LED indicators.
Applications include batch
counting alarm systems limit
switching etc.
GAS SENSOR
A platinum wire (pellistor)
flammable gas sensor that is
designed to sense such gases
as propane, butane, methane,
isobutane, liquefied petroleum
gas, natural gas, and town gas.
The performance of the sensor
is stable against change of
ambient temperature and
humidity. Bridge supply voltage
3V dc 10%.
http://thnet.co.uk/thnet/robots/12.htm
Types of Sensors and Their Applications
Inductive
A miniature inductive proximity
detector housed in a threaded
anodised aluminium cylindrical
case with integral 3-core PVC
sheathed cable. Environmental
protection to IP 67. The device
incorporates electrical
protection against reverse
polarity, supply line and load
transients and has a current
limiting PTC resistor in the load
output.
ULTRASONIC TRANSDUCER
An ultrasonic transmitter and
high sensitivity receiver
designed for sending and
receiving continuous or
modulated waves in the 40kHz
region through air. Applications
include remote-control systems,
batch counting data
transmissions etc. Typical
operating distance 5m. Note:
These units are not watertight.
Optical
A high quality proximity switch
operating on the principle of the
emission detection of modulated
infra-red light. This mechanically
and electrically rugged unit is
housed in a threaded aluminium
case with a glass end-window
and has many applications
where any material is required
to be detected at a range far
exceeding that associated with
conventional proximity devices.
STRAIN GAUGE
General Purpose foil type
polyester-backed strain gauges.
Available with temperature
compensation for steel or
aluminium.
4/5
9/7/2017
SLOTTED OPTO SWITCH
A slotted opto switch comprising
an infra-red source and
integrated photo-detector The
i.c photo-detector consists of a
photo-diode, amplifier, voltage
regulator, schmitt trigger and
output stage. An important
feature is its' wide supply
voltage range 4.5V to 16V,
which allows the output to
interface directly to TTL,
LS/TTL, and C-MOS. The
detector can sink 10 TTL loads
when the infra-red beam is
interrupted. The outtput rise and
fall times are independant of
object speed and the integrated
voltage regulator ensures high
noise immunity. Applications
include position detection, paper
sensing, counting, optical
encoding and level sensing.
Operating temperature range:
-40 C to +100 C.
http://thnet.co.uk/thnet/robots/12.htm
Types of Sensors and Their Applications
REFLECTIVE OPTO SWITCH
An infra-red emitting LED and
photo-transistor sensor housed
in a moulded package. The
photo-transistor responds to
radiation from the diode when a
reflective object is placed within
the field of view. The device is
ideal for counting shaft
revolutions, line counting on
paper tapes etc.. The moulded
case incorporates a dust cover
and infra-red filter to prevent the
ingress of dust and ambient
illumination problems. A slotted
mounting hole alllows for
adjustment to the sensing
distance.
5/5