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Accelerometer Types

There are three main types of accelerometers: piezoelectric, capacitive MEMS, and piezoresistive. Piezoelectric accelerometers are most widely used for industrial applications due to their high performance, low noise, and suitability for vibration and shock testing. Capacitive MEMS accelerometers are lowest cost but have poorer performance, while piezoresistive types are best for shock testing. The mounting method of the accelerometer affects its resonant frequency and usable bandwidth, with stud mounting providing the best performance and adhesive or magnetic mounting providing acceptable results for many applications.

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270 views12 pages

Accelerometer Types

There are three main types of accelerometers: piezoelectric, capacitive MEMS, and piezoresistive. Piezoelectric accelerometers are most widely used for industrial applications due to their high performance, low noise, and suitability for vibration and shock testing. Capacitive MEMS accelerometers are lowest cost but have poorer performance, while piezoresistive types are best for shock testing. The mounting method of the accelerometer affects its resonant frequency and usable bandwidth, with stud mounting providing the best performance and adhesive or magnetic mounting providing acceptable results for many applications.

Uploaded by

Nitin Mali
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© © All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
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There are three main types of accelerometers:

1) Piezoelectric Accelerometer:

2) Capacitive MEMS Accelerometer

3) Piezoresistive Accelerometer:
Piezoelectric Accelerometer:

• Piezoelectric accelerometers are the most popular and widely used for industrial applications.
• Piezoelectric accelerometers have very low noise and offer superior performance over capacitive MEMS or
piezoresistive accelerometers in all vibration and most shock applications.
• AC coupled

Pros:
Cons:
• Fixed sensitivity regardless of cable length and cable quality.
• Constant current excitation required
• A higher output signal means less noise.
(reduces battery operating hours).
• Longer cables are no problem.
• The upper operating temperature range is
• Requires a less expensive IEPE signal conditioner in the
limited to roughly 120°C.
measurement system.
• It cannot measure static signals.
• Excellent dynamic response.
• Inherent noise source.
• Low-impedance output can be transmitted over long cables.
• Withstands better harsh conditions like dirt and humidity.
• Intrinsic self-test function.
Common Applications:
Automotive testing, Aerospace and Defense testing, High bandwidth applications, Drop Testing, Free Fall Testing
Condition-based monitoring.
Capacitive MEMS Accelerometer:

• MEMS accelerometers more than likely refer to capacitive accelerometers. They are by far the cheapest and
smallest accelerometer options. These accelerometers can be mounted directly to printed circuit boards.
• Their low cost and small size has made them popular but capacitive MEMS accelerometers have much poorer
data quality, especially on the higher frequency and amplitude end.
• They should generally be avoided for industrial applications.
• DC coupled.

Pros: Cons:

• It can measure both AC and DC acceleration. • Lack of high bandwidth of piezoelectric charge
• It can be made very small and inexpensively • and IEPE sensors.
(with somewhat limited accuracy). • Lack of high operating shock and temperature
range of charge sensors in particular.
Common Applications:
Capacitive accelerometers used acrossmany commercial and consumer applications. Some of these
include: Cell phones, for orienting the screen “up” for the user, sudden deceleration or acceleration (crash
detection) Automobiles for the deployment of airbags, Attitude detection of video game controllers,
Drones And many more applications
Piezoresistive Accelerometer:

• Piezoresistive accelerometers are the premier type for shock testing.


• Piezoresistive accelerometers are strain gauge based so they require amplifiers and temperature compensation, but
they have a very wide bandwidth (0 hertz to several thousand hertz) and low noise characteristics.
• They are the premier type for shock testing, but piezoelectric accelerometers are preferred for vibration testing.
• DC coupled.

Pros:
• Well-suited to velocity and displacement applications Cons:
because their DC outputs avoid integration and double • Not well suited for dynamic applications.
integration errors better than AC output sensors. • Limited temperature operating range due to
• It can measure down to 0 Hz). internal electronics.
• It can measure a static angle. • Upper bandwidth limited to low kHz range.
• Differential output.

Common Applications:
Automotive testing, Aerospace and Defense testing, High shock measurements, Non-dynamic shock and
vibration measurements of all kinds
• Mounting types and methods influence the resonant frequency of the
accelerometer.

• If/when the accelerometer’s mounting results in a reduction of its natural


frequency the bandwidth (or useful frequency range) is reduced.

• Accelerometers, piezoelectric in particular, have a very high amplification factor


at resonance, too, so it’s important to avoid using a mounting method that shifts
the resonance into the frequency range of your vibration environment.
The frequency responses for some common mounting methods are compared.
1) Stud Mounting:

• This represents the best mounting method in terms of


accelerometer performance
and will maximize the frequency response of the accelerometer.
• It’s important to torque the accelerometer down to the
manufacturer’s specifications.
• Inadequate mounting torque can reduce the frequency response.
• Perhaps the most important factor when stud mounting is to use a
coupling fluid such as grease, oil, petroleum jelly or beeswax.
• Using a coupling fluid solves a lot of mounting problems including
inadequate mounting torque, surface flatness, and surface
roughness.
2) Adhesive:

• There are several different adhesives to consider when mounting your


accelerometer.
• Surprisingly though, the most important parameter for accelerometer
performance is not the adhesive type, rather it is the thickness of the adhesive that
plays the largest role.
• The adhesive itself has little impact on the performance.
a. Loctite or Epoxy:
Loctite or a two-part epoxy offers a permanent mounting option which improves repeatability and testing time. There
are many different types of Loctite, but 454 is a popular type for accelerometer testing.

b. Wax or Duct Seal Putty:


Wax or duct seal putty are other popular adhesives that aren’t as effective as Loctite or epoxy but still offer surprisingly
good frequency response. The major benefit of using this type of adhesive is that removal of the accelerometer is much
easier. Hi-Test, who does much of the shock and vibration testing for large military systems, recommends using duct seal
putty for shock testing because it can mechanically filter out high frequency (and thus low energy) vibration content that
could risk exciting an accelerometer’s internal resonance.
3) Adhesive Mounting Pad:

• Adhesive mounting pads offer the very high frequency response of


adhesives and stud mounting but allow the engineer to easily swap
out accelerometers.
• Adhesive mounting pads also help prevent epoxy from damaging
expensive accelerometers.
4) Magnetic Mounting Base:

• For ferrous magnetic structures a magnetic mounting base


allows easy and mess-free accelerometer mounting. There
are two types of magnetic bases: flat, and curved.
• Flat offers the best frequency response.
• These are a great solution for short term testing
applications.
• Also can used on irregular and curved surfaces
5) Handheld or Probe Tip:
• Some applications can be difficult to reach for proper mounting
and/or have sensitive coatings or materials that prevent
adhesives or bolting.
• A probe tip can be utilized to press the accelerometer to the
structure by hand.
• This obviously drastically reduces the measurable frequency
range to less than 100 Hz or so. Because humans can’t remain
perfectly still either, they are not recommended for frequency
ranges less than 10 Hz.

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