Chapter-two

sensors for Measurement and

control
 2

Sensors and
Transducers
 Objectives
3

At the end of this chapter, the students should be able to:

describe the principle of operation of various sensors and

transducers, namely:

Resistive Position Transducers.

Capacitive Transducers

Inductive Transducers
4
 Introduction
5

A dictionary definition of 'sensor' is

a device that detects a change in a physical
stimulus and turns it into a signal which can
be measured or recorded
The corresponding definition of 'transducer'
is
a device that transfers energy from one
system to another in the same or in the
different form'.
form
 Why we need to study about sensors?
6

 The study of sensors is important so as to:

A. Understand the basic principle operation of measuring

instruments

B. analyze, design and identify measuring instruments

 Classification of sensors
7

Sensors can be classified based on:

 The physical effect employed:
Resistive, inductive and capacitive
 The source of energy they use to provide an output:
Active and passive sensors
 The physical quantity they convert:
Displacement sensor, Temperature sensor, speed
sensor, pressure sensor, etc.
 Based on the physical effect
employed…
8

 When a physical effect employed on the sensing element, it

causes a change in any of the physical parameter(quantity)

that describes the sensing element.

Example:

A strain gauge is a sensor that when subjected to

force or pressure its resistance changes
 Based on the physical effect
employed…
9

 The common variations of electrical quantities from

sensing elements when subjected to physical effects are :

 Variation in resistance

 Variation in inductance

 Variation in capacitance
 Variation in resistance
10

 The resistance of an element is given by the ff

formula:

 As is shown in the above formula, mathematically

the resistance is described as a function of the
different parameters( like temperature)
 Variation in resistance…
11

 Some of the common sensors which work

based up on this principle are :
 Potentiometer; for linear and angular
displacement measurement
 Resistance thermometer(resistance
temperature detectors(RTD), thermistors, for
temperature measurement
 Strain gauge; for stress
measurement(pressure, force and torque)
 Photoresistor( photoconductor); for light
intensity measurement
 Potentiometer
12
The output voltage depends on the wiper position and
therefore is a function of the shaft position.
In figure below, the output voltage Eout is a fraction
of ET, depending on the position of the wiper.
The element is considered perfectly linear if
the resistance of the transducer is distributed uniformly
along the length of travel of wiper.
Eout R2

ET R1  R2
 Potentiometer (example-1)
13

Example 1
A potentio meter with a shaft stroke(total length) of 5.5
inches is applied in the circuit as below. The total resistance
of the potentiometer is 4.7kΩ. The applied voltage is
ET= 3V.
When the wiper is 0.9 in. from B, what is Eout? And calculate
the value of R2
Ans: Eout =0.49V

R2= 0.767 kΩ
Potentiometer(example-2)
14
 Potentiometer sensitivity
15

 The sensitivity is the rate of output voltage

per input displacement and is give by:
Exercise
16
Solution
17
 (RTDs) and Thermistor
18

 Resistance temperature detectors (RTDs)

and thermistor are the most common
transducers that vary their resistance when
subjected to temperature variation.
 They are passive transducers requiring an
excitation source.
 Resistance-temperature detector (RTD)
Resistance-temperature detector is a
temperature sensing device whose resistance
increases with temperature, Mathematically:
 RTD
19

 Real picture of RTD

(Temperature sensor PT-100)
 Properties of RTDs
20

 Common properties of RTDs are:

 Accuracy of RTD
21

Accuracy of RTD can be affected by the ff

factors:
 The input current :- it leads to heat the
RTD internally and hence cause to
measurement error
 Lead wire resistance: three-wire and four-
wire connection of RTD is better in avoiding
lead resistance effects than two –wire
connection
 Mechanical strain
 RTD Connections
22

 RTD Lead wire connections

 Advantage and limitation of RTDs
23

 Advantage:
 Linear over a wide operating range
 Wide operating range
 Better stability at high temperature
 Limitation:
 low sensitivity
 it can be affected by contact resistance, shock
and vibration
 High cost, it requires 3 or 4 wire to minimize
error
 Not good for fast response applications
 Limitations of (RTDs)
24

 RTDs in industrial applications are rarely

used above 660 °C because it is difficult to
prevent the platinum from becoming
contaminated by impurities from the metal
sheath of the thermometer
 Compared to thermistors platinum RTDs are
less sensitive to small temperature changes
and have a slower response time.
 Thermistors
25

 Thermistor means thermally sensitive resistor

 it is a type of resistor whose resistance varies
significantly with temperature
 are widely used as inrush current limiters,
temperature sensors, self-resetting over current
protectors, and self-regulating heating elements.
 Thermistors differ from resistance temperature
detectors(RTD) in that the material used in a
thermistor is generally a ceramic or polymer,
while RTDs use pure metals, platinum, nickel &
copper.
 Properties of thermistors
26

 Most common properties

 Thermistors
27

 The resistance RT of a thermistor at a temperature

(T) can be expressed by the equation:

 If the resistance of the thermistor increases with

increasing temperature, and the device is called a
positive temperature coefficient(PTC) thermistor
and if the resistance decreases with increasing
temperature then the device is called a negative
temperature coefficient(NTC) thermistor.
 PTC and NTC
28

 PTC : Almost all metals have a positive

temperature coefficient, but some metals like
carbon, and germanium have negative
temperature coefficient
 High value of alpha is required in a
temperature sensing elements(RTDs and
Thermistors) to get sufficient change in
resistance will be found
 Application of thermistors
29

 PTC thermistors can be used as current-limiting

devices for circuit protection, as replacements
for fuses.
 PTC thermistors are used as timers in the
degaussing coil circuit of CRT displays and
televisions.
 NTC thermistors can be used as inrush-current
limiting devices in power supply circuits
 NTC thermistors are regularly used in
automotive applications. For example, they
monitor things like coolant temperature
 Advantage and limitation of
thermistor
30

 Advantage:
 Small size and low cost
 Fast response over narrow temperature
 Limitation:
 Nonlinearity in resistance with temperature
 Unsuitable for wide temperature range
 Strain gauge
31

 A device whose electrical resistance varies in

proportion to the amount of strain in the
device. The most widely used gauge is the
bonded metallic strain gauge.
 Strain gauge
32

 Strain gauge is a passive transducer that uses “electrical resistance

variation” in wires to sense the strain produced by a force on the wires.

 It is used to indicate torque, force, pressure, and other variables. Output is

changed in resistance due to strain, which can be converted into voltage

 Measurement for

 Weight
 Pressure , Mechanical force
 Displacement, etc
Strain gauge
33

Stress & Strain

 Strain gauge
This changes its resistance (R) in proportion to the strain
sensitivity of the wire's resistance. When a strain is
introduced, the strain sensitivity, which is also called the
gauge factor (GF),
(GF) is given by:
34

GF 
R R 

L 
GF is a measure of sensitivity L
GF = gauge factor

R = the initial resistance in ohms (without strain)

R = the change in initial resistance in ohms

L = the initial length in meters (without strain)

L = the change in initial length in meters

 Strain gauge
The constant of proportionality between stress
and strain for linear stress-strain curve is known
as the modulus of elasticity of the material, E, or
Young’s modulus.

E

E  Young’s modulus in newton per-square meter

  The stress in newton per square meter

  The strain (no units)

35
 Strain gauge
Example:
A steel bar of rectangular cross-section 2cm*1cm is subjected to a
tensile force of 20KN.
A strain gauge is placed on the steel bar as shown in the following
figure. Find the change of resistance of the strain gauge if it has a
gauge factor of 2 and the resistance of 120 Ω in absence of axial
load .The Young’s modulus of elasticity of steel is equal to 2x10 8
KN/m2

36
 Example 2
37

 A resistant strain gauge with a gauge factor

of 2 is fastened to a steel member, which is
subjected to strain of 1x10-6. If the original
resistance value of the gauge is 130Ω,
calculate the change in resistance.
Solution
R0*G.F*ε = ∆R
 Variation in Capacitance
38

 Capacitance is the ability of an element to store

electric charges in its electric field.
 Basically there are two capacitor models; the
parallel plate and coaxial cable
 The capacitance value is given by

Where: a is inner radius, b is outer radius and l

is the length of the cable
Example
39
 Variation in capacitance

Plate 1
th
wi d 40
Consist of two parallel
plates separated by an air
d space or by dielectric
Plate 2
(insulating material)
Length

k = dielectric constant of the material in the gap

kA o
C εo = the permittivity of free space
d = 8.854 x 10-12 farad/meter
A = Plate area (m2)
d = the separation between plate (m)
 Variation in capacitance
Variation in Capacitance

kA o
C 41
d

x
Displacement

x=0

ΔA Δk Δd
 Variation in capacitance
Variation in Capacitance
Changing
Changing Changing the

ΔA the surface
area Δk42
dielectric
constant Δd the
spacing
btwn plate
C C C

A k d
The affective area of Value of C will Value of C will
the plates will change increased when decreased when
proportionally to the the dielectric the spacing
value of capacitance constant between plate
increased increased
 Capacitive sensors
43

Capacitive proximity sensor

 How capacitive sensor works?
44

 The working principle of capacitive sensor shown

above
Variation in Inductance
45
 Variation in Inductance
46
The following figure shows some of the inductance sensors which
appear in different form to sense displacement or force.
 Magnetic ckt parameters
47

 Formulas and symbols for magnetic ckt

 Inductive sensors
48

Inductive proximity sensors

 How Inductive sensors work?
49

Working principle of inductive sensors

 (LVDT)
50

 Linear variable differential transformer

(LVDT)
 LVDT is the most commonly used sensor for
displacement measurement applications.
 It is a transformer consisting a single primary
winding and two secondary windings
 The output voltage and the
displacement(due to the core movement)
have a linear relationship as shown in figure
1.7c.
 (LVDT)
51

 When the core is in the center, the voltage

induced in the two secondary winding is
equal. When the core is moved in one
direction from center, the voltage induced in
one winding increase and that in the other is
decreased. Movement in the opposite
direction reverses this effect.
 Applications of (LVDT)
52

 LVDT are commonly used for position

feedback in servomechanisms, and for
automated measurement in machine tools
and many other industrial and scientific
applications.
 LVDT
53

Properties of LVDT
 Based on the energy they used to
provide 54
an output
 Sensors or transducers are classified as active
and passive sensors based on the energy they
use.
 Passive sensors: require energy to provide an
output
example: Change in resistance, inductance or
capacitance, etc
 Active sensors: don’t consume, but provide
electrical energy corresponding to the input.
Examples: Thermoelectric(thermocouple) &
Solar cells(photovoltaic cells)
 Active sensors
55

Types of active sensors

 Based on the energy they used to
provide 56
an output
 principle of Thermoelectric(thermocouple)
sensors : It works by the following principles:
 Change in temp lead to voltage generation
 Application of voltage leads to change in
temp
 when any conductor is subjected to a thermal
gradient, it will generate a voltage. This is
now known as the thermoelectric effect or
seebeck effect.
 Applications of
Thermoelectric(thermocouple)
Sensors
57

 Some of their application are:

 in industries, such as furnace, measuring
temperature of liquid metals and even in
nuclear reactors,
 in medical applications such as monitoring
internal temperature during operation,
 To monitor or record temperature with data
acquisition systems or data loggers
 Measuring temperature with
thermocouples
58

To measure a thermocouple seebeck voltage,

you cannot simply connect the thermocouple to
a voltmeter or other measurement system,
 because connecting the thermocouple wires to
the measurement system creates additional
thermoelectric circuits
Thermocouples have some special signal
conditioning requirements, including cold-
junction compensation, amplification,
linearization, filtering, and even isolating
because thermocouples generate a very low-
level of output voltages.
Thermocouple laws
59
 Law of homogeneous material
60

The thermal emf of a thermocouple with

junctions at T1 and T2 is totally unaffected by
temperature elsewhere in the circuit if the two
metals used are each homogeneous (Fig a)
If a third homogeneous metal, C, is inserted
into the circuit in either leg, the net emf is
unchanged if the junctions to link C are held
at the same temperature. This is true
regardless of the temperature environment of
link C (Fig b)
 Law of intermediate materials
61

If a metal, C, is inserted at one of the

junctions between A and B, the net effect on
the emf unchanged, if the junctions AB and
AC are held at the same temperature. This is
true regardless of the temperature
environment along link C (Fig c).
If the thermal emf between metals A and C is
EAC, and that between metals B and C is ECB,
then the thermal emf between metals A and B
is EAC + ECB (Fig d).
Law of intermediate temperatures
62

If a thermocouple produces emf E1 when its

junctions are at T1 and T2, and produces E2
with junctions at T2 and T3, then it will
produce E1 + E2 when the junctions are at T1
and T3 (Fig e) (Law of Intermediate
Temperatures).
 Using Thermocouples
63

 When using thermocouples, you should be

aware of several measurement issues such as
the following:
 Cold-junction compensation
 Nonlinear data (i.e induced voltage is
nonlinear)
 Low-voltage signals(it is in mili volt)
 Noisy signals
 Cold-junction compensation
64

To measure a single temperature one of the

junctions normally the cold junction is
maintained at a known reference
temperature, and the other junction is at the
temperature to be sensed and this is known
as Cold-junction compensation
 Cold-junction compensation
65

 The measured voltage depends on the

difference in temperatures T1 and Tref; in this
case, T ref is 0oC.
if the measurement temperature is above 0oC, a
thermocouple has a positive output;
 if below 0oC, the output is negative.
When the reference junction and the
measurement junction are the same
temperature, the net voltage is zero.
Although an ice bath reference is accurate, it is
not always practical
 Cold-junction compensation
66

A more practical approach is to measure the

temperature of the reference junction with a
direct-reading temperature sensor
Semiconductor sensors, thermistors, or RTDs
are commonly used to measure the reference-
junction temperature.
 Hardware Compensation
67

It uses variable voltage source in the circuit to

cancel the parasitic thermoelectric
voltages(unwanted thermoelectric signals)
When these parasitic signals are canceled, the
only signal that is measured is the voltage from
the thermocouple junction
The major disadvantage of hardware
compensation is that each thermocouple type
must have a separate compensation circuit that
can add the correct compensation voltage,
which makes the circuit fairly expensive
Based on the quantity they convert
68

 Examples: displacement sensor, torque

sensors, force sensors, optical sensor,
proximity sensors, temperature sensors, speed
sensors, level/flow sensors,
acceleration/vibration sensors e.t.c
Optical sensors: uses the effect of light (visible or
infrared) for sensing or detection of various physical
parameters
 they consist of light sources((LED’s) and
detectors (semiconductor device)
 Optical Sensors application
69
 optical sensors produce information in digital form
This is useful because a digital output is compatible
with computers and other digital electronic systems
 Their application in sensing various physical
parameters being measured such as; proximity
sensing of object, alarm systems, control
application such as hand dryer and water control in
toilet.
 And they used for angular displacement
measurement in which linear or angular
displacement varies the transmission of light from a
source to detector
 Object detection by optical sensors
70

Optical sensors for industrial application

 Encoders
71

 An optical shaft encodes the angular

displacement in to digital form.
 Optical sensors use two types of encoders:
 Incremental encoder:
Its output signal showing that some
displacement of a shaft and further output
signals are counted and from these the
angular displacement of a shaft can be
measured
 Encoders
72

 Incremental encoder:
 The output of incremental encoder is pulsed light
 the phase difference between the pulse trains from
the detectors shows the direction of rotation
 The number of pulses detected is proportional to the
angle through which the shaft and disc travel
 The resolution depends on how may windows the
disc contains that is with the no of windows
 Therefore resolution= 360/no of windows
 Encoders
73

 Absolute encoders:
 Its output signal shows the total displacement
of a shaft from a null position
 Encoders
74

 Absolute encoder:
 It differs from the incremental encoder in that
its output signal is in binary or coded form. This
provides an absolute(total) displacement of the
shaft
 An “open” window represents a binary “1”
 A “closed” window represents binary “o”
 The combinations of open and closed windows
follow a binary sequence from 0 to 2n-l, where n
is the number of tracks
 No of positions detected = 2n ; n= no of tracks
 Encoders
75

 Absolute encoder:
 in Figure 2.17b has four tracks and
consequently there are four bits in each
binary number( 0000, 0100,0011, etc having
four figures)
 Resolution=360/16 (Number of windows in
the disc are (16))
 Disadvantage of absolute encoder
76

 major disadvantage of the binary absolute

encoder is that on many occasions more than
one window will change condition for one
increment
 This is because of the nature of the binary
number system(there are more bit changes from
one no to next no transition)
 if it misreads one window, it can lead to serious
errors in position measurements
 To avoid it the gray code is used. This is done by
a code converter. Gray code is a one step code,
i.e. only one single bit changes from one
position to the next .
 Binary and Gray codes
77

 Another advantage of the gray code is the

easy reversibility. The counting direction can
easily be changed by inverting the most
significant bit. Therefore it is possible to
change the counter direction just by using
the complement-entry
 Proximity sensors
78

Proximity measurement refers indicating the presence

of an object close to the sensor
Is used to measure angular or linear displacement, speed
and velocity, acceleration , to count products, for
example items on a conveyor belt
 Some of the types of proximity sensors are Micro
switches, Variable reluctance proximity sensor, and
Reed switch
 Proximity sensors
79

 Variable resistance proximity sensor:

 The figure shows a variable resistance
proximately sensor detecting the immediate
presence of a gear tooth.
 Proximity sensors
80

 When the gear passes close by the pick up coil,

an output voltage is produced caused by
variations in its magnetic field. The output is a
pulse and may be displayed on a voltage or
current meter
 Application area of this sensor: in disk drives
in computers, speed sensing in motors, etc
 Advantages: they can be made very small and
can be applied where other sensors may not fit
 Disadvantage: they suffer from unwanted
signals or noise because these devices have to be
close to the physical parameter to be measured,
 Hall Effect Sensor
81
 A Hall Effect sensor is a transducer that varies
its output voltage in response to changes in
magnetic field

 Application areas: for proximity sensing,

positioning, speed detection, and current sensing
 Hall effect sensor
82

 Hall effect sensor additional example

 Reed Switch Sensor
83
 Reed switch consists of two small
ferromagnetic reeds hermetically sealed(air
tight)
 These thin contacts are ferromagnetic and
become magnetized in the presence of a
magnetic field
 That is they becomes Normally closed as soon
as they are magnetized, initially they are
Normally open
 Pressure Sensors
84
 The force acting by flowing air or fluid
pressure
 A force acting on a solid object is stress
 Therefore, pressure is a measure of force
acting on an area and sensors used for
measurement of pressure are:
 Liquid manometer
 barometer
 elastic pressure sensor
 capacitive sensors,
piezoelectric sensors, strain gauge
 Different Pressure Sensors
85

Manometer Elastic
pressure sensors
 Photocell Sensors
86

 Photo resisters(photocells)
 Temperature measurement
87
 Mercury in glass thermometer: the
volume of the liquid mercury inside it will
change when it is subjected to
temperature(heat)

 Bimetallic strip: The expansion property of

materials when subjected to temperature is
used to measure temperature.
 Speed Measurement
88

 D.C Tachometric generator:

 It produces small dc output voltage and the
output signal can then be displayed on a
voltmeter calibrated in terms of speed or
displacement
 Working principle of DC
Tachogenerator
89
The armature of the D.C Tachogenerator is kept in the
permanent magnetic field.
 The armature of the tachogenerator is coupled to the
machine whose speed is to be measured.
When the shaft of the machine revolves, the armature of
the tachogenerator revolves in the magnetic field
producing e.m.f. which is proportional to the product of
the flux and speed to be measured.
 As the field of the permanent field is fixed, the e.m.f
generated is proportional to the speed directly
 AC Tachogenerator
90
 As its name implies the AC tachogenerator is an
electrical generator that produces an AC output.
 The output, V0 is an alternating signal, the
amplitude and frequency of which are both
proportional to the speed of rotation.
 Using suitable signal processing circuits, either
amplitude or frequency may be used to give an
indication of speed.
 The AC tachometer compared with the D.C
tachometer, has the disadvantage of requiring
more involved signal conditioning.
 Speed measurement by using AC
tachogenerator
91

 . Both A.C and D.C tachometric generators are

widely used in automated production systems,
machine tools, and for monitoring large electricity
generators.

Speed measurement usning AC Tachogenerator

Thermocouple working principle
92
Thermocouple working principle
93
 CHAPTER-III
94

SIGNAL CONDITIONING AND INTERFACING

CIRCUITS
 SIGNAL CONDITIONING AND INTERFACING
CIRCUITS
95

Objectives:
 To make students familiar with signal
conditioning devices
 To be familiar with signal interfacing and
converting devices
 To understand how to design and analysis
these devices
 CONTINUED…
96

Introduction:
 The output of sensors/transducers are
usually small or not suitable to directly
process or present it
 These out puts are usually current, voltage
or frequency
Therefore ;
SC ckts takes the output of a
sensor/transducer and converts it into a
form more suitable for further processing
 97

 The common types of signal conditioning and

interfacing ckts are the following
Signal conditioning ckts:
 Deflection Bridge
 Instrumentation Amplifier
 Filters
 V/I, I/V, V/F, F/V
Interfacing ckts:
ADC and DAC
 Deflection Bridge
98

 we use it if the output of sensors is in

variation of
resistance, inductance and capacitance
At balanced condition Vo = 0

At Imbalance condition

R1 R2
Vo Vi (  )
R1  R 4 R 2  R3
 Operation of deflection bridge
99

Mathematically: I1 R1 = I2 R2
I3 R3 = I4 R4
But I1= I4 and I2= I3
Therefore; I1 R1 = I2 R2 &
I1 R4 = I2 R3

R1 R2
 r r = arm ratio
R4 R3
At Imbalance condition

Vo = I1 R1 - I2 R2
R1 R2
Vo Vi (  )
R1  R 4 R 2  R3
 100

 To understand the operation of the bridge the

ckt analysis is important to get the following
information:
 the relationship among the impedance
when the bridge is at balanced condition
The sensitivity of the bridge
Loading effect
 Types of Deflection Bridge
101

Deflection bridges are classified depending up

on
 Energy sources : DC/AC bridges
 Impedances : Resistive or
reactive( inductive ,capacitive bridges
 Number of sensors present on the bridge
arms: quarter bridge, half and full deflection
bridges
 DC Bridges
102

Example : Wheatstone bridge

- It is the means of measuring resistance
based on resistance variations over wide range
- It is usually used to measure resistance
values ranging from 1 ohm to 1 Mega ohm with
accuracy of 0.02 percent
- for very low resistance variation
measurement Kelvin double bridge( modified
Wheatstone bridge) is used because it can
reduce the uncertainty
 Detectors used in DC bridges
103

 Detectors commonly used in dc bridges are

vibration galvanometers with sensitivities of :
 50 Hz to 1KHz
 earphones up to 250 Hz
 Tunable amplifier detectors from 10 Hz to 100
KHz
 AC Bridges
104

 Are used on the conditions where relatively high

sensitivity and wider bandwidth is required in the
measurement
 These bridges are either inductive or capacitive
types
Example : Wien bridge (capacitive type) is used in
measurement of frequencies in audio ranges
( from 1nf to 100 micro farad with accuracy of 0.1
percent)
Maxwell and Owen bridges (Inductive type)
are used to measure inductances from 0.1mH to
10 Henry)