A sensor is a device that receives and responds to a signal.

This signal must be some type of energy,

such as heat, light, motion, electrical, or chemical reaction. Once a sensor detects one or more of these
signals (an input), it converts it into an analog or digital representation of the input signal.

Human beings are equipped with 5 different types of sensors- Eyes detect light energy, ears detect
acoustic energy, a tongue and a nose detect certain chemicals, and skin detects pressures and
temperatures. The eyes, ears, tongue, nose, and skin receive these signals then send messages to the
brain that outputs a response. For example, when you touch a hot plate, it is your brain that tells you it
is hot, not your skin.

Different Types of Sensors

The following is a list of different types of sensors that are commonly
used in various applications. All these sensors are used for measuring
one of the physical properties like Temperature, Resistance,
Capacitance, Conduction, Heat Transfer etc.

Different types of sensors-

1. Temperature Sensor
2. Proximity Sensor
3. Accelerometer
4. IR Sensor (Infrared Sensor)
5. Pressure Sensor
6. Light Sensor
7. Ultrasonic Sensor
8. Smoke, Gas and Alcohol Sensor
9. Touch Sensor
10. Color Sensor
11. Humidity Sensor
12. Position Sensor
13. Magnetic Sensor (Hall Effect Sensor)
14. Microphone (Sound Sensor)
15. Tilt Sensor
16. Flow and Level Sensor
17. PIR Sensor
18. Touch Sensor
 19. Strain and Weight Sensor

Temperature Sensor
One of the most common and most popular sensors is the Temperature
Sensor. A Temperature Sensor, as the name suggests, senses the
temperature i.e., it measures the changes in the temperature. There are
different types of Temperature Sensors like Temperature Sensor ICs
(like LM35, DS18B20), Thermistors, Thermocouples, RTD (Resistive
Temperature Devices), etc. Temperature Sensors can be analog or
digital. In an Analog Temperature Sensor, the changes in the
Temperature correspond to change in its physical property like
resistance or voltage. LM35 is a classic Analog Temperature Sensor.
Temperature Sensors are used everywhere like computers, mobile
phones, automobiles, air conditioning systems, industries etc.

Proximity Sensors
A Proximity Sensor is a non-contact type sensor that detects the
presence of an object. Proximity Sensors can be implemented using
different techniques like Optical (like Infrared or Laser), Sound
(Ultrasonic), Magnetic (Hall Effect), Capacitive, etc. Some of the
applications of Proximity Sensors are Mobile Phones, Cars (Parking
Sensors), industries (object alignment), Ground Proximity in Aircrafts,
etc.Proximity Sensor in Reverse Parking is implemented in this
Project: REVERSE PARKING SENSOR CIRCUIT.

Infrared Sensor (IR Sensor)

IR Sensors or Infrared Sensor are light based sensor that are used in
various applications like Proximity and Object Detection. IR Sensors are
used as proximity sensors in almost all mobile phones. There are two
types of Infrared or IR Sensors: Transmissive Type and Reflective Type.
In Transmissive Type IR Sensor, the IR Transmitter (usually an IR LED)
and the IR Detector (usually a Photo Diode) are positioned facing each
other so that when an object passes between them, the sensor detects
the object.
The other type of IR Sensor is a Reflective Type IR Sensor. In this, the
transmitter and the detector are positioned adjacent to each other facing
the object. When an object comes in front of the sensor, the infrared light
from the IR Transmitter is reflected from the object and is detected by
the IR Receiver and thus the sensor detects the object.

Different applications where IR Sensor is implemented are Mobile

Phones, Robots, Industrial assembly, automobiles etc.

A small project, where IR Sensors are used to turn on street

lights: STREET LIGHTS USING IR SENSORS.

Ultrasonic Sensor
An Ultrasonic Sensor is a non-contact type device that can be used to
measure distance as well as velocity of an object. An Ultrasonic Sensor
works based on the properties of the sound waves with frequency
greater than that of the human audible range. Using the time of flight of
the sound wave, an Ultrasonic Sensor can measure the distance of the
object (similar to SONAR). The Doppler Shift property of the sound wave
is used to measure the velocity of an object.

Arduino based Range Finder is a simple project using Ultrasonic

Sensor: PORTABLE ULTRASONIC RANGE METER.

Light Sensor
Sometimes also known as Photo Sensors, Light Sensors are one of the
important sensors. A simple Light Sensor available today is the Light
Dependent Resistor or LDR. The property of LDR is that its resistance is
inversely proportional to the intensity of the ambient light i.e., when the
intensity of light increases, its resistance decreases and vise-versa.

By using LDR is a circuit, we can calibrate the changes in its resistance

to measure the intensity of Light. There are two other Light Sensors (or
Photo Sensors) which are often used in complex electronic system
design. They are Photo Diode and Photo Transistor. All these are
Analog Sensors

Smoke and Gas Sensors

One of the very useful sensors in safety related applications are Smoke
and Gas Sensors. Almost all offices and industries are equipped with
several smoke detectors, which detect any smoke (due to fire) and
sound an alarm.

Gas Sensors are more common in laboratories, large scale kitchens and
industries. They can detect different gases like LPG, Propane, Butane,
Methane (CH4), etc. Now-a-days, smoke sensors (which often can
detect smoke as well gas) are also installed in most homes as a safety
measure.The “MQ” series of sensors are a bunch of cheap sensors for
detecting CO, CO2, CH4, Alcohol, Propane, Butane, LPG etc. You can
use these sensors to build your own Smoke Sensor Application.Check
out this SMOKE DETECTOR ALARM CIRCUIT without using Arduino.

Alcohol Sensor
As the name suggests, an Alcohol Sensor detects alcohol. Usually,
alcohol sensors are used in breathalyzer devices, which determine
whether a person is drunk or not. Law enforcement personnel uses
breathalyzers to catch drunk-and-drive culprits

Touch Sensor
We do not give much importance to touch sensors but they became an
integral part of our life. Whether you know or not, all touch screen
devices (Mobile Phones, Tablets, Laptops, etc.) have touch sensors in
them. Another common application of touch sensor is trackpads in our
laptops.
Touch Sensors, as the name suggests, detect touch of a finger or a
stylus. Often touch sensors are classified into Resistive and Capacitive
type. Almost all modern touch sensors are of Capacitive Types as they
are more accurate and have better signal to noise ratio.

Color Sensor
A Color Sensor is an useful device in building color sensing applications
in the field of image processing, color identification, industrial object
tracking etc. The TCS3200 is a simple Color Sensor, which can detect
any color and output a square wave proportional to the wavelength of
the detected color.

Humidity Sensor
If you see Weather Monitoring Systems, they often provide temperature
as well as humidity data. So, measuring humidity is an important task in
many applications and Humidity Sensors help us in achieving this.

Often all humidity sensors measure relative humidity (a ratio of water

content in air to maximum potential of air to hold water). Since relative
humidity is dependent on temperature of air, almost all Humidity Sensors
can also measure Temperature. Humidity Sensors are classified into
Capacitive Type, Resistive Type and Thermal Conductive Type. DHT11
and DHT22 are two of the frequently used Humidity Sensors in DIY
Community (the former is a resistive type while the latter is capacitive
type).

Tilt Sensor
Often used to detect inclination or orientation, Tilt Sensors are one of the
simplest and inexpensive sensors out there. Previously, tilt sensors are
made up of Mercury (and hence they are sometimes called as Mercury
Switches) but most modern tilt sensors contain a roller ball.
Hall Effect Sensor
The hall effect sensor is a type of magnetic sensor which can be used
for detecting the strength and direction of a magnetic field produced
from a permanent magnet or an electromagnet with its output varying
in proportion to the strength of the magnetic field being detected.
Magnetic sensors convert magnetic or magnetically encoded
information into electrical signals for processing by electronic circuits,
and in the Sensors and Transducers tutorials we looked at inductive
proximity sensors and the LDVT as well as solenoid and relay output
actuators.
Magnetic sensors are solid state devices that are becoming more and
more popular because they can be used in many different types of
application such as sensing position, velocity or directional movement.
They are also a popular choice of sensor for the electronics designer
due to their non-contact wear free operation, their low maintenance,
robust design and as sealed hall effect devices are immune to
vibration, dust and water.
One of the main uses of magnetic sensors is in automotive systems
for the sensing of position, distance and speed. For example, the
angular position of the crank shaft for the firing angle of the spark
plugs, the position of the car seats and seat belts for air-bag control or
wheel speed detection for the anti-lock braking system, (ABS).
Magnetic sensors are designed to respond to a wide range of positive
and negative magnetic fields in a variety of different applications and
one type of magnet sensor whose output signal is a function of
magnetic field density around it is called the Hall Effect Sensor.
Hall Effect Sensors are devices which are activated by an external
magnetic field. We know that a magnetic field has two important
characteristics flux density, (B) and polarity (North and South Poles).
The output signal from a Hall effect sensor is the function of magnetic
field density around the device. When the magnetic flux density
around the sensor exceeds a certain pre-set threshold, the sensor
detects it and generates an output voltage called the Hall Voltage, VH.
Consider the diagram below.

Hall Effect Sensor Principles

Hall Effect Sensors consist basically of a thin piece of rectangular p-

type semiconductor material such as gallium arsenide (GaAs), indium
antimonide (InSb) or indium arsenide (InAs) passing a continuous
current through itself.
When the device is placed within a magnetic field, the magnetic flux
lines exert a force on the semiconductor material which deflects the
charge carriers, electrons and holes, to either side of the
semiconductor slab. This movement of charge carriers is a result of
the magnetic force they experience passing through the
semiconductor material.
As these electrons and holes move side wards a potential difference is
produced between the two sides of the semiconductor material by the
build-up of these charge carriers. Then the movement of electrons
through the semiconductor material is affected by the presence of an
external magnetic field which is at right angles to it and this effect is
greater in a flat rectangular shaped material.
The effect of generating a measurable voltage by using a magnetic
field is called the Hall Effect after Edwin Hall who discovered it back
in the 1870’s with the basic physical principle underlying the Hall effect
being Lorentz force. To generate a potential difference across the
device the magnetic flux lines must be perpendicular, (90o) to the flow
of current and be of the correct polarity, generally a south pole.
The Hall effect provides information regarding the type of magnetic
pole and magnitude of the magnetic field. For example, a south pole
would cause the device to produce a voltage output while a north pole
would have no effect. Generally, Hall Effect sensors and switches are
designed to be in the “OFF”, (open circuit condition) when there is no
magnetic field present. They only turn “ON”, (closed circuit condition)
when subjected to a magnetic field of sufficient strength and polarity.

Hall Effect Magnetic Sensor

The output voltage, called the Hall voltage, (VH) of the basic Hall

passing through the semiconductor material (output ∝ H).

Element is directly proportional to the strength of the magnetic field

This output voltage can be quite small, only a few microvolts even
when subjected to strong magnetic fields so most commercially
available Hall effect devices are manufactured with built-in DC
amplifiers, logic switching circuits and voltage regulators to improve
the sensors sensitivity, hysteresis and output voltage.
This also allows the Hall effect sensor to operate over a wider range of
power supplies and magnetic field conditions.
The Hall Effect Sensor

Hall Effect Sensors are available with either linear or digital outputs.
The output signal for linear (analogue) sensors is taken directly from
the output of the operational amplifier with the output voltage being
directly proportional to the magnetic field passing through the Hall
sensor. This output Hall voltage is given as:

 Where:
 VH is the Hall Voltage in volts
 RH is the Hall Effect co-efficient
 I is the current flow through the
sensor in amps
 t is the thickness of the sensor in mm
 B is the Magnetic Flux density in
Teslas

Linear or analogue sensors give a continuous voltage output that

increases with a strong magnetic field and decreases with a weak
magnetic field. In linear output Hall effect sensors, as the strength of
the magnetic field increases the output signal from the amplifier will
also increase until it begins to saturate by the limits imposed on it by
the power supply. Any additional increase in the magnetic field will
have no effect on the output but drive it more into saturation.
Digital output sensors on the other hand have a Schmitt-trigger with
built in hysteresis connected to the op-amp. When the magnetic flux
passing through the Hall sensor exceeds a pre-set value the output
from the device switches quickly between its “OFF” condition to an
“ON” condition without any type of contact bounce.
This built-in hysteresis eliminates any oscillation of the output signal
as the sensor moves in and out of the magnetic field. Then digital
output sensors have just two states, “ON” and “OFF”.
There are two basic types of digital Hall effect
sensor, Bipolar and Unipolar. Bipolar sensors require a positive
magnetic field (south pole) to operate them and a negative field (north
pole) to release them while unipolar sensors require only a single
magnetic south pole to both operate and release them as they move
in and out of the magnetic field.
Most Hall effect devices can not directly switch large electrical loads
as their output drive capabilities are very small around 10 to 20mA.
For large current loads an open-collector (current sinking) NPN
Transistor is added to the output.
This transistor operates in its saturated region as a NPN sink switch
which shorts the output terminal to ground whenever the applied flux
density is higher than that of the “ON” pre-set point.
The output switching transistor can be either an open emitter
transistor, open collector transistor configuration or both providing a
push-pull output type configuration that can sink enough current to
directly drive many loads, including relays, motors, LEDs, and lamps.

Hall Effect Applications

Hall effect sensors are activated by a magnetic field and in many
applications the device can be operated by a single permanent
magnet attached to a moving shaft or device. There are many different
types of magnet movements, such as “Head-on”, “Sideways”, “Push-
pull” or “Push-push” etc sensing movements.
Which every type of configuration is used, to ensure maximum
sensitivity the magnetic lines of flux must always be perpendicular to
the sensing area of the device and must be of the correct polarity.
Also to ensure linearity, high field strength magnets are required that
produce a large change in field strength for the required movement.
There are several possible paths of motion for detecting a magnetic
field, and below are two of the more common sensing configurations
using a single magnet: Head-on Detection and Sideways Detection.
Capacitive Sensors
A capacitive proximity sensor senses the presence of an object
(usually called the target) without physical contact.

They can detect both metallic and nonmetallic targets. They are
ideally suited for liquid level control and for sensing powdered or
granulated materials.
Capacitive Sensor Working Principle

The capacitive proximity sensor consists of a high-frequency oscillator

along with a sensing surface formed by two metal electrodes. When
an object comes near the sensing surface, it enters the electrostatic
field of the electrodes and changes the capacitance of the oscillator.

As a result, the oscillator circuit starts oscillating and changes the output state of
the sensor when it reaches up to a certain amplitude. As the object moves away
from the sensor, the oscillator’s amplitude decreases, switching the sensor back
to its initial state.

The larger the dielectric constant of a target, the easier it is for the
capacitive proximity sensor to detect. This constant makes possible
the detection of materials inside nonmetallic containers because the
liquid has a much higher dielectric constant than the vessel, which
gives the sensor the ability to see through the vessel and detect the
fluid.

They typically have a short sensing range of about 1 inch, regardless

of the type of material being sensed. While dealing with non-
conductive targets, sensing distance increases with an increase in

 the sensing surface size of the sensor.

 the surface area of the target.
 the dielectric constant of the target.
For best operation, we should use them in an environment with
relatively constant temperature and humidity.

The point at which the proximity sensor recognizes an incoming target

is known as the operating point. The point at which an outgoing target
causes the device to switch back to its normal state is known as the
release point. The area between operating and release points is called
the hysteresis zone.
The sensitivity adjustment can be made by adjusting a potentiometer
provided on the sensor. If the sensor does not have an adjustment
potentiometer, then the sensor must physically be moved to get the
optimum installation position.

Optimum sensitivity provides a longer operating distance. However,

the operation of the oversensitive sensor is very much affected by
temperature, humidity, and dirt, etc. and may cause false triggering of
the sensor.

Most proximity sensors are equipped with an LED status indicator to

verify the output switching action. Capacitive proximity sensors are
available in various sizes and configurations to meet different
application requirements.

One of the most common shapes is the barrel type, which houses the
sensor in a metal or polymer barrel with threads on the outside of the
housing. Due to the threaded housing, we can easily adjust the sensor
on a mounting frame.

Characteristics of Capacitive Proximity

Sensor
The major characteristics of capacitive proximity sensors are as
under:
 They can detect nonmetallic targets.
 They can detect lightweight or small objects that
cannot be detected by mechanical limit switches.
 They provide a high switching rate for rapid response
in object counting applications.
 They can detect liquid targets through nonmetallic
barriers (glass, plastic, etc.).
 They have a long operational life with a virtually
unlimited number of operating cycles.
  The solid-state output provides a bounce-free contact
signal.
Typical Applications of Capacitive Proximity
Sensors
 High/low liquid level.
 Dry tank.
 Material present/absent.
 Product present.
 Product count.
1) What is instrument?
It is a device for determining the value or magnitude
of a quantity or variable.

Define Instrumental error.

These are the errors inherent in measuring instrument
because of their mechanical structure.

List three sources of possible errors

in instruments.
1. Gross Error
2. Systematic
3. Random errors.
Mention the purpose of the
measurement.
 To understand an event or an operation.
 To monitor an event or an operation.
 To control an event or an operation.
  To collect data for future analysis
 To validate an engineer design.
Define transducer and give an
example.
Transducer is a device which converts one form of
energy into electrical energy.

A thermocouple converts heat energy into electrical

voltage.

Give one property of piezo-electric

crystal.
When a force is applied to piezo-electric crystals, they
produce an output voltage.

List the factors responsible in

selection of a transducer.
1. Operating principle
2. Sensitivity
3. Operating range.
4. Accuracy.
Define static characteristics.
Static characteristics of a measurement system are, in
general, those that must be considered when the
system or instrument is used to measure a condition
not varying with time.
Mention different types of static
characteristics.
1. Accuracy
2. Sensitivity
3. Reproducibility
4. Drift
5. Static error and
6. Dead zone.
What are dynamic characteristics?
Many measurements are concerned with rapidly
varying quantities and, therefore, for such cases we
must examine the dynamic relations which exist
between the output and the input .

This is normally done with the help of differential

equations. Performance criteria based upon dynamic
relations constitute the Dynamic Characteristics.

Compare accuracy and precision.

Accuracy is the closeness to true value whereas
precision is the closeness amongst the readings.

Precision is the degree of closeness with which a

given value may be repeatedly measured.