EE/EC5103 Embedded Systems

Sensors and Signal Conditioning

Instructor
Dr. Bharghava Rajaram

12/15/2024 [email protected] 1
Outline
• Basics of Sensors
• Sensor Characteristics and Classification
• Sensing Principles
• Automotive Sensors
• Actuators
• Electromechanical Actuators
• Electro-Hydraulic Actuators
• Non-mechanical actuators

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What is a Sensor?
• "A device which provides a usable output in response to a specified
measure" - American National Standards Institute (ANSI)
• Acquires a physical quantity/stimulus and converts into a usable signal
– mostly electrical

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Physical Quantities/Stimuli

• Motion, position, displacement • Sound

• Velocity and acceleration • Moisture
• Force, strain • Light
• Pressure • Radiation
• Flow • Temperature
• Chemical presence

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Electrical Response
• When we say electrical we mean a signal which can be channeled,
amplified, and modified by electronic devices:
• Voltage
• Current
• Charge
• Frequency
• Period / Pulse Width
• Resistance / Capacitance / Inductance

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Sensors as Energy Converters

• This conversion can be direct or it may require transducers

• Example:
• A chemical sensor may have a part which converts the energy of a chemical
reaction into heat (transducer) and another part, a thermopile, which
converts heat into an electrical signal

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Characteristics of Sensors
• Range
• Accuracy
• Precision / Reproducability / Repeatability
• Sensitivity
• Linearity
• Hysterisis
• Resolution
• Response Time
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Fields of applications of Sensors

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Computer Process Control System

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Signal Conditioning
• Filter for expected frequency regime
• Subtract DC offset (“zeroing”)
• Amplify or attenuate signal (“scaling”)
• "Linearize" relationship between measured and observed electrical
parameter
• Analog-to-Digital (and Digital-to-Analog) conversion

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Analog-to-Digital Conversion
• Sampling – converts the continuous signal into a series of discrete
analog signals at periodic intervals
• Quantization – each discrete analog is converted into one of a finite
number of (previously defined) discrete amplitude levels
• Encoding – discrete amplitude levels are converted into digital code

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Features of an ADC
• Sampling rate – rate at which continuous analog signal is polled
(e.g., 1000 samples/sec)
• Quantization – divide analog signal into discrete levels
• Resolution – depends on number of quantization levels
• Conversion time – how long it takes to convert the sampled signal
to digital code
• Conversion method – means by which analog signal is encoded
into digital equivalent
• Example: Flash ADC, Dual Slope, Successive approximation

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Successive Approximation Method
• A series of trial voltages are successively compared to the
input signal whose value is unknown
• Number of trial voltages = number of bits used to encode
the signal
• First trial voltage is 1/2 the full scale range of the ADC
• If the remainder of the input voltage exceeds the trial
voltage, then a bit value of 1 is entered, if less than trial
voltage then a bit value of zero is entered
• The successive bit values, multiplied by their respective trial
voltages and added, becomes the encoded value of the input
signal
Example
• Analogue signal is 6.8 volts. Encode, using SAM, the signal for a 6
bit register with a full scale range of 10 volts.
Example

• Q = resolution in volts per step

• M = resolution in bits
• N = Number of intervals (steps, quantization levels)
• EFSR = Full scale voltage range
• Quantization error = ½ of interval

• Voltage range 0 – 10V; M = 12 bits

• N = 4096 intervals (steps)
• Q = 2.44 mV/code
Example
• Using an analogue-to-digital converter, a continuous
voltage signal is to be converted into its digital
counterpart. The ADC has a 16-bit capacity, and full scale
range of 60 V. Determine:
– number of quantization levels
– resolution
– quantization error
Solution
(1) Number of quantization levels:
= 216 = 65,536

(2) Resolution:
= 60 / 65,536 = ~ 0.00092 Volts

(3) Quantization error:

= 0.00092/2 = 0.00046 Volts
Digital-to-Analog Conversion
• Convert digital values into continuous analogue signal
– Decoding digital value to an analogue value at discrete moments
in time based on value within register


E0 Eref 0.5 B1  0.25 B2    2  
n 1
Bn 
Where E0 is output voltage; Eref is reference voltage; Bn is status of successive
bits in the binary register
Example
• A DAC has a reference voltage of 100 V and has 6-bit
precision. Three successive sampling instances 0.5 sec
apart have the following data in the data register:
Instant Binary Data
1 101000
2 101010
• Output Values: 3 101101

E01 = 100{0.5(1)+0.25(0)+0.125(1)+0.0625(0)+0.03125(0)+0.015625(0)}
E01 = 62.50V
E02 = 100{0.5(1)+0.25(0)+0.125(1)+0.0625(0)+0.03125(0)+0.015625(0)}
E02 = 65.63V
E03 = 100{0.5(1)+0.25(0)+0.125(1)+0.0625(0)+0.03125(0)+0.015625(0)}
Circuits for DAC – Weighted Resistor
Circuits for DAC – R-2R Ladder
Circuits for DAC – Filtered PWM

https://www.edn.com/cancel-pwm-dac-ripple-with-analog-subtraction/
Sensor Classification

• By characteristic curve
• Continuous linear
• Continuous non-linear
• Discontinous multi-step
• Discontinous two-step

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Sensor Classification
• Analog signals
• Current/voltage, or a corresponding amplitude
• Frequency/period duration
• Pulse duration/pulse duty factor
• Discrete output signal
• Two-step (binary coded).
• Multi-step, with irregular steps (analog coded).
• Multi-step equidistant (analog or digital coded).

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Errors in Sensors
• Correctable errors

Zero Error Gradient Error Linearity Error

• Non-correctable errors
• Drift
• Aging
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Reliability Issues

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Integrated/Smart Sensors
• Associated local electronics to increase accuracy

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Physical Principles of Sensors

• Charges, fields, & potentials • Seebeck and Peltier effects

• Capacitance • Thermal properties of materials
• Magnetism • Heat transfer
• Induction • Light
• Resistance
• Piezoelectric effect

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Capacitor

• Two isolated conductive objects of arbitrary shape, which can hold an

electric charge, are called a capacitor
• An electric field is developed between the two conductors

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Capacitor as Displacement Sensor
• If the inner conductor can be moved in and out, the
measured capacitance will be a function of l

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Capacitance in an Accelerometer

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Magnetism
• There are two methods of generating a magnetic field:
• permanent magnets (magnetic materials)
• magnetic field generated by a current

Force is generated A compass needle

on a test magnet in will respond to the
the field of magnetic field
magnetic materials. generated by a
current.

Magnetic field, B
“flux” is the field density, B

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Magnetic fields

Electric current sets a circular

magnetic field around a conductor.

Moving electron sets a

field, superposition of
field vectors results in a
combined magnetic field
of a permanent magnet.

Magnets are useful for fabricating magnetic sensors for the detection of motion,
displacement, and position.
[email protected]

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Induction
• A phenomenon related to magnetism is induction, the generation of voltage from
a changing magnetic field
• If the coil has no magnetic core, the flux is proportional to current and the voltage
proportional to di/dt

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Resistance
• If we apply a battery across two points of a piece of material, an electric
field will be set up where E=V/l

The tendency of the material to

resist the flow of electrons is called
its resistivity, , and we say that the
material has a particular electrical
resistance, R.

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Temperature measurement

• To Temperature:
Specific resistivity of tungsten
as a function of temperature.

 is the temperature coefficient

of resistivity.

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Piezoelectric Sensor

Because a crystal with deposited

electrodes forms a capacitor the voltage
developed can be expressed as:

Where dx is the piezoelectric coefficient in

the x direction and Fx is the applied force in
the x direction.

Piezoelectric crystals are direct

converters of mechanical
energy into electrical energy.

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Signal Conditioning
• Basic Sensor Signal Chain
• Sensing element outputs can be either voltage, current, or frequency-based
• Basic signal path consists of the sensing element, signal conditioning
circuitry, and a processor
Why signal conditioning?
• Analog signal conditioning needs vary by sensor
• signals must be clean and band-limited
• Anti-Aliasing Filter needed
• Sensor signals are often weak in amplitude
• Some conditioning may be needed for interfacing with ADC
• Amplification needed
• Level-shifter may be needed
• ADC power supply and voltage reference considerations
• All components are mostly OPAMP-based.
 Operational Amplfier
Operational Amplifiers take small voltages and make
them MUCH larger.

Golden Rules (Op amp with negative feedback):

(1) No-current flows into either (+) or (-) inputs.
(2) The (+) and (-) inputs are at the same voltage.
OPAMP characteristics
• Infinite open-loop gain G = vout / vin
• Infinite input impedance Rin, and so zero input current
• Zero input offset voltage
• Infinite output voltage range
• Infinite bandwidth with zero phase shift and infinite slew rate
• Zero output impedance Rout, and so infinite output current range
• Zero noise
• Infinite common-mode rejection ratio (CMRR)
• Infinite power supply rejection ratio (PSRR).
Anti-Aliasing Filters
• Anti-Aliasing Filter is an analog filter that band-limits the sensor
output signal to satisfy the Nyquist-Shannon Sampling Theorem
• sampling rate used to convert an analog signal to digital must be greater
than twice the highest frequency of the input signal in order to be able to
reconstruct the original perfectly from the sampled version
• Filter cut-off frequency should be chosen based on useful signal
content of sensor output signal
• Anti-Aliasing Filters prevent irreversible signal corruption
Anti-Aliasing Filters
Anti-aliasing filters

• An ordinary analog low-pass filter

• Most popular filter implementation used is Sallen-Key
• Designed using traditional analog design methods
• Much easier or to use filter design tools
Key filter design parameters

• passband cut-off frequency (Hz)

• ADC sampling frequency (Hz)
• desired Signal-to-Noise Ratio (dB)
Amplifiers
• Sensor outputs are often weak and must be amplified to occupy as
much of the ADC’s dynamic range as possible
• Proper Op-Amp selection is critical to sensor data accuracy
• Gain-Bandwidth Product (GBWP)
• Input Offset Voltage and Input Bias Current
• Gain Linearity
• Op-amp Noise
• Common Mode Rejection Ratio (CMRR)
• Power Supply Rejection Ratio (PSRR)
Single-ended Amplifiers
• When signal conditioning and processing
blocks are located close to actual sensor,
system is less susceptible to noise
• Classic single-ended Gain Amplifiers are
used
• Minimal discrete components used
• Key requirements: rail-to-rail voltages, high
• GBWP
• Example systems: PIR Detectors, Hall Effect
Sensors, Thermistors, Smoke Detectors,
Humidity Sensors
Inverting Gain Amplifier

Gain = - R2 / R1
Non-Inverting Gain Amplifier

Gain = (1 + R2 / R1)
Summing Amplfier
Differential Amplifier
• When signal conditioning and processing blocks are remotely located, or
placed in a noisy environment, single-ended amps are not so accurate
• Differential Amplifiers are used
• Also used for Wheatstone Bridge sensors
• More discrete components used
• Key requirements: large CMRR, small offset
• Example systems: Pressure sensors, Thermocouples
Difference Amplfier
Instrumentation Amplifier
• Type of differential amplifier with desired characteristics for
measurement systems
• Can be designed using op amps, or specialized Instrumentation
Amplifier ICs can be used
• Very low offset, drift and noise
• Very high gain, input impedance
• High CMRR across frequency, to reject supply noise
• Several possible configurations
• Two op-amp or three op-amp
• Single power-supply or dual power-supply
Two Op-Amp Instrumentation Amplifiers
Three Op-Amp Instrumentation Amplifiers
Examples – Dual Power Supply Thermocouple
Interface
Examples – Single Power Supply
Thermocouple Interface
Programmable Gain Amplifiers
• A specialized amplifier IC with multiplexed multiple inputs and
programmable gain
• Ideal for interfacing with multiple sensors
• Ideal for non-linear sensors, e.g. thermistor
• Gain can be adjusted for non-linearities
• Example: MCP6SX2
• Digital control of gain (1x - 32x) using SPI
• Up to 8 inputs, multiplexed using SPI
• External V REF pin centers amplified signal
Thermistor interfacing using PGA
Other Amplifier Types
• Transimpedance Amplifier
• Converts current to voltage
• Used for high-impedance sensors that generate current outputs,
• e.g. Photodiode or CCD
• Constant voltage bias due to “virtual short”
• Isolation Amplifier
• Avoids direct electrical connection between a high-voltage sensor and rest
of the system
• Avoids high voltages in rest of the system from entering sensor, e.g. in an
ECG or EEG
Example: Photodiode Interface
• the sensor element, in this case a
Photodiode D1, is connected across
the two inputs of the op-amp,
• the resultant output voltage, labeled
Vout, is directly proportional to the
current through D1, which is in turn
proportional to the light intensity
being measured
ADC Interfacing Considerations
• Proper decoupling of voltage rails using capacitors improves accuracy
• Amplified sensor output might contain offset that must be subtracted
from ADC conversions in software
• Using external voltage references often yields higher conversion
accuracy
• Reference identical to supply provides best results
• If ADC is unipolar, level of signal must be shifted up to be all-positive
• e.g. from [-1.65V, +1.65V] range to [0V, 3.3V] range
• Current output may not be enough for ADC input
• Need buffer amplifier to increase dive strength
Level Shifter and Buffer Amplifier

Level Shifter Buffer Amplifier

More Specs of Sensors
• Dynamic Range: the ratio of maximum recordable input
amplitude to minimum input amplitude, i.e. D.R. = 20 log
(Max. Input Ampl./Min. Input Ampl.) dB
• Linearity: the deviation of the output from a best-fit straight
line for a given range of the sensor
• Transfer Function (Frequency Response): The relationship
between physical input signal and electrical output signal,
which may constitute a complete description of the sensor
characteristics.
• Bandwidth: the frequency range between the lower and
upper cutoff frequencies, within which the sensor transfer
function is constant gain or linear.
• Noise: random fluctuation in the value of input that causes
random fluctuation in the output value
Attributes of Sensors
• Operating Principle: Embedded technologies that make sensors
function, such as electro-optics, electromagnetic, piezoelectricity,
active and passive ultraviolet.
• Dimension of Variables: The number of dimensions of physical
variables.
• Size: The physical volume of sensors.
• Data Format: The measuring feature of data in time; continuous or
discrete/analog or digital.
• Intelligence: Capabilities of on-board data processing and decision-
making.
• Active versus Passive Sensors: Capability of generating vs. just
receiving signals.
• Physical Contact: The way sensors observe the disturbance in
environment.
• Environmental durability: will the sensor robust enough for its
operation conditions
Voltage Sensor
• Voltage Sensor
 Mostly DC voltage to be
sensed
• Two Types
 Resistive
Vout = R1/(R1 + R2) * Vin

Voltage Divider or Bridge
Circuit used
 Capacitive

Advantage – negligible
current drawn
Vout = C1/(C1 + C2) * Vin

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Current Sensor
• Current Sensor
 Converted to Voltage to be measured
 Sensing element is a resistor or inductor
• Simple Resistive sensing
 insert a resistor in the path of current to be sensed
 Placed in series with voltage measuring circuit
 Power loss to be minimized (low R, low Temp. Coeff)
 Pros: Low cost, for AC/DC currents, low current can be measured
 Cons: Adds a resistance (loading effect), loss of power

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Resistive Current Sensor
• Methods of Sensing
 Direct

voltage is generated across the shunt resistor that is proportional to the system
load current (Ohm’s Law)
 shunt resistor value is less than 50 mΩ, and in a number of cases it can fall
below 1 mΩ

measured by differential amplifiers, for example, current shunt amplifiers,
operational amplifiers or difference amplifiers

Less than 100A
 Indirect

Uses Faraday or Ampere’s Law

puts a loop around a current-carrying conductor, a voltage is induced over the
loop that is proportional to the current

Used for high currents, large footprint (magnetic elements)
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Resistive Current Sensor
• Low Side Sensing
 connects the sensing resistor between
the load and ground
 Single Supply, Rail-Rail opamps.
 Common Mode voltage near ground
 Sense amplifier should consider the
common mode voltage vs supply
voltage
 Issues: disturbances to the system
load’s ground potential and the
inability to detect load shorts.
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Resistive Current Sensor
• High Side Sensing
 sensing resistor between the power
supply and load
 directly monitors the current delivered
by the supply, which considers the
identification of load shorts

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Resistive Current Sensor
• OPAMP
 Discrete, Lower accuracy
 Only low side as single ended
 Parasitic resistances are an issue
• DiffAmp
 eliminate parasitic impedance errors
 Low gain, used as buffer
• Instrumentation Amp
 combine a difference amplifier with two buffers, one on each input
 large input impedance, making it possible to measure very small
currents
 common-mode voltage should fall within the supply voltage range.
• Current Sense Amp
 high-precision, low-drift gain network that maximizes measurement
accuracy
 can be exposed to common-mode voltages that are significantly
higher than the supply voltage
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• Will the measurement be on the high or low side?

• What is the common-mode voltage to be measured?

• What is the current range to be measured?

• Is the current bidirectional or unidirectional?

• How will the current value be used?

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 Indirect Current Sensing

Current Transformers 
Magnetoresistance
  Resistance varies with applied magnetic
High current to low current
field
 Only AC


Hall Effect
High cost, hysterisis etc.
 senses the magnetic field produced by

Rogowski Coil the magnetic system
 voltage is induced across the coil that  requires signal conditioning to make the
is proportional to the current output usable
 Low sensitivity (no magnetic core) 
Fluxgate
  Similar to Hall effect
Can increase turns but increases L
and C  Detects inductance change

73
Strain Gauges
• Foil strain gauge
• Least expensive
• Widely used
• Not suitable for long distance
• Electromagnetic Interference
• Sensitive to moisture & humidity

• Vibration wire strain gauge

• Determine strain from freq. of AC signal
• Bulky

• Fiber optic gauge

• Immune to EM and electrostatic noise
• Compact size
• High cost
• Fragile
Temperature
• Thermistors - Commonly used for temperature measurement on vehicles.
• made out of semiconductor materials such as cobalt or nickel oxides.
• Change in temperature causes change in change in resistance.
• negative temperature coefficient (NTC) type
• Resistance range – Several Kilo Ohms at 0 deg C to to a few hundred Ohms
at 100 deg C.
• Typical Specs
 Temperature range: -40°C...+150°C
 Time constant: 5 s...44 s (depending on type)
 Accuracy: ± 0.8 K at 100°C ±1.5 K at 20°C

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Temperature
• Used in potential divider or wheatstone
configuration
• Supply current must be constant
• Current through thermistor should be
negligible
• used as sensors for - Air intake, Battery,
Engine and transmission temperature, Air
conditioning and internal/external,
environmental temperature, Oil and gas
temperatures.

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Wheatstone Bridge to measure unknown
resistance

When the bridge is balanced

For strain gauges
The 100kg load cell only provides a voltage change of 50μV per kilogram.
Buffering the voltages
Using Instrumentation Amplifier
Temperature
• Thermocouple - When two dissimilar metals two
dissimilar metals are joined together, a
thermocouple junction is formed (Seebeck’s
Effect)
• Among the two junctions used, one of the
junctions is kept at a constant known temperature
whereas the other at the temperature to be
measured.
• Ex: 70% platinum & 30% rhodium alloy known as
B Type
 Has a range of 0 15000C.
• Used for measuring Exhaust Gas Exhaust Gas
and turbocharger turbocharger
temperatures in a vehicle.
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Proximity Sensor
• photodiode/LED pair
 consists of an LED that’s ON, a photodiode, a
transimpedance amplifier
 When the position of the LED causes light to shine on the
photodiode (through the light shield), the photodiode
generates current through the amplifier’s feedback resistor
 suffer from LED reliability and unclean environmental
issues.
• capacitor
 detect and measure a different dielectric or conductive
material between the plates.
 changes with oil, moisture exposure, and dust-laden
environments.
 Sensitive to delta changes
 sensor is sensitive to magnetic changes.
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Proximity Sensor
• Inductive
 detects absolute rotary or linear motion
 provides an ac signal that determines
the presence of metal objects, while
providing absolute position information
 utilizes induction in a wire loop and
eddy currents to detect the position of
a metallic target that’s sliding or
rotating above a set of printed-circuit-
board (PCB) coils
ZMID520x

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Position Sensor
• The positions sensors are generally speed sensors
of different working principle used for detecting
the position of different parameters.
• Parameters Measured,
• Crankshaft Position Sensor
• Camshaft Position Sensor
• ABS Wheel Sensors
• Vehicle Speed Sensor
• Working Principles used: 1. Magnetic Reluctance
(Variable Reluctance) type 2. Hall Effect type 3.
Optical Type

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Crankshaft / Camshaft Sensor

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Throttle Position Sensor

Newer automobiles also use Hall

Effect or Magnetoresistance
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Resolver vs Encoder

Both used to obtain operating
characteristics of AC & DC motors

Encoders
 rotary or linear
 can provide absolute or incremental
values
 can make use of sensing technologies like
optical, inductive, capacitive, or magnetic
 Two tracks to be used to sense direction
as well – tracks use different light sources rotary encoder using an optical sensor
and are staggered. Direction determined
with the leading track
 Linear encoders use unique cutouts along
the linear actuator
 Used more widely, have higher accuracy
and precision than resolvers, cost less,
purely digital signal
Resolver vs Encoder

Resolvers
 has two parts: a stator and a rotor which rotates with the motor being controlled.
 The rotor and stator not connected and energy exchange between them happens via
induction. The stator has two sets of windings — sine and cosine —which are positioned with
a 90° separation.
 stator is energized with electric power at a certain frequency which induces a current in the
rotor.
 rotor is coupled with the shaft of the motor to be measured
 two signals are generated in the cosine and sine windings on the stator

image and circuit diagram of resolver

Resolver vs Encoder

Resolvers
 used for speed control and motor commutation for permanent
magnet (PM) motors and AC and DC servo motors.
 do not use any electronic components, they are suited for
operation in harsh environments
 they need to be used with a converter to obtain a digital output.

image and circuit diagram of resolver

Strain Sensing

• Resistive Foil Strain Gage

• Technology well developed; Low cost
• High response speed & broad frequency
bandwidth
• A wide assortment of foil strain gages
commercially available
• Subject to electromagnetic (EM) noise,
interference, offset drift in signal.
• Long-term performance of adhesives used for
bonding strain gages is questionable
• Vibrating wire strain gages can NOT be
used for dynamic application because of
their low response speed.
• Optical fiber strain sensor
Strain Sensing

• Piezoelectric Strain Sensor

• Piezoelectric ceramic-based or Piezoelectric polymer-based (e.g., PVDF)
• Very high resolution (able to measure nanostrain)
• Excellent performance in ultrasonic frequency range, very high frequency
bandwidth; therefore very popular in ultrasonic applications, such as
measuring signals due to surface wave propagation
• When used for measuring plane strain, can not distinguish the strain in X,
Y direction
• Piezoelectric ceramic is a brittle material (can not measure large
deformation)

Courtesy of PCB Piezotronics

Acceleration Sensing
• Piezoelectric accelerometer
• Nonzero lower cutoff frequency (0.1 – 1 Hz for 5%)
• Light, compact size (miniature accelerometer weighing
0.7 g is available)
• Measurement range up to +/- 500 g
• Less expensive than capacitive accelerometer
• Sensitivity typically from 5 – 100 mv/g
• Broad frequency bandwidth (typically 0.2 – 5 kHz)
• Operating temperature: -70 – 150 C

Photo courtesy of PCB Piezotronics

Acceleration Sensing

• Capacitive accelerometer
• Good performance over low frequency range, can measure
gravity!
• Heavier (~ 100 g) and bigger size than piezoelectric
accelerometer
• Measurement range up to +/- 200 g
• More expensive than piezoelectric accelerometer
• Sensitivity typically from 10 – 1000 mV/g
• Frequency bandwidth typically from 0 to 800 Hz
• Operating temperature: -65 – 120 C

Photo courtesy of PCB Piezotronics

Accelerometer
Force Sensing

• Metal foil strain-gage based (load cell)

• Good in low frequency response
• High load rating
• Resolution lower than piezoelectricity-based
• Rugged, typically big size, heavy weight

Courtesy of Davidson Measurement

Force Sensing

• Piezoelectricity based (force sensor)

• lower cutoff frequency at 0.01 Hz
• can NOT be used for static load measurement
• Good in high frequency
• High resolution
• Limited operating temperature (can not be used for high
temperature applications)
• Compact size, light

Courtesy of PCB Piezotronics

Displacement Sensing

• LVDT (Linear Variable Differential

Transformer):
• Inductance-based ctromechanical sensor
• “Infinite” resolution
• limited by external electronics
• Limited frequency bandwidth (250 Hz typical
for DC-LVDT, 500 Hz for AC-LVDT)
• No contact between the moving core and coil
structure Photo courtesy of MSI
• no friction, no wear, very long operating
lifetime
• Accuracy limited mostly by linearity
• 0.1%-1% typical
• Models with strokes from mm’s to 1 m
available
Displacement Sensing

• Linear Potentiometer
• Resolution (infinite), depends on?
• High frequency bandwidth (> 10 kHz)
• Fast response speed
• Velocity (up to 2.5 m/s)
• Low cost Photo courtesy of Duncan Electronics

• Finite operating life (2 million cycles) due to contact wear

• Accuracy: +/- 0.01 % - 3 % FSO
• Operating temperature: -55 ~ 125 C
Displacement Transducer

• Magnetostrictive Linear Displacement Transducer

• Exceptional performance for long stroke position measurement up
to 3 m
• Operation is based on accurately measuring the distance from a
predetermined point to a magnetic field produced by a movable
permanent magnet.
• Repeatability up to 0.002% of the measurement range.
• Resolution up to 0.002% of full scale range (FSR)
• Relatively low frequency bandwidth (-3dB at 100 Hz)
• Very expensive
• Operating temperature: 0 – 70 C

Photo courtesy of Schaevitz

Displacement Sensing

• Differential Variable Reluctance Transducers

• Relatively short stroke
• High resolution
• Non-contact between the measured object and sensor

Standard
Type of Construction
tubular
by 8mm
Fixing Mode
diameter
Total Measuring Range 2(+/-1)mm
Pneumatic Retraction No
Repeatability 0.1um
Operating -10 to +65 Courtesy of Microstrain, Inc.

Temperature Limits degrees C

Velocity Sensing

• Scanning Laser Vibrometry

• No physical contact with the test object; facilitate remote, mass-
loading-free vibration measurements on targets
• measuring velocity (translational or angular)
• automated scanning measurements with fast scanning speed
• However, very expensive (> $120K)

Photo courtesy of Bruel & Kjaer

Photo courtesy of Polytec

Shock (high-G) Sensing

• Shock Pressure Sensor

• Measurement range up to 69 MPa (10 ksi)
• High response speed (rise time < 2  sec.)
• High frequency bandwidth (resonant
frequency up to > 500 kHz)
• Operating temperature: -70 to 130 C
• Light (typically weighs ~ 10 g)
Photo courtesy of PCB Piezotronics

• Shock Accelerometer
• Measurement range up to +/- 70,000 g
• Frequency bandwidth typically from 0.5 – 30
kHz at -3 dB
• Operating temperature: -40 to 80 C
• Light (weighs ~ 5 g)
Angular Motion Sensing (Tilt Meter)

• Inertial Gyroscope (e.g., http://www.xbow.com)

• used to measure angular rates and X, Y, and Z acceleration.

• Tilt Sensor/Inclinometer (e.g., http://www.microstrain.com)

• Tilt sensors and inclinometers generate an artificial horizon and
measure angular tilt with respect to this horizon.

• Rotary Position Sensor (e.g., http://www.msiusa.com)

• includes potentiometers and a variety of magnetic and capacitive
technologies. Sensors are designed for angular displacement less than
one turn
Photo or offor
courtesy MSImulti-turn
and Crossbow displacement.
Ultrasound Sensors
• Ultrasound sensors detect
obstacles on parking and will
even allow automatic parking
in the foreseeable future,
perhaps in combination with
other sensors.
• Near-range radar scans the
area around the vehicle to
detect objects that
probably could cause a
collision, to gain time and to
prime safety systems before
a collision occurs (precrash
sensors).
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Radar/LIDAR...
• Long-range radar sensors observe the carriageway for 150 m in front
of the vehicle, even in poor visibility, to adapt the driving speed to
vehicles ahead and, in the longer term, also to support
automatic driving.

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