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Learning Outcomes:

List the salient features of transducers.

Differentiate between sensors and actuators.

Characterize sensors and distinguish between types of sensors.

Characterize actuators and distinguish between types of actuators.

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Introduction:
Sensing as the Foundation of IoT.

 Sensors collect critical data from the environment, which becomes

the basis for decision-making and real-time insights.

Actuation as the Operational Endpoint.

 After data processing, actuation serves as the final step, allowing

IoT systems to respond to conditions automatically or remotely.

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Introduction to
TRANSDUCER:

The basic science of sensing and actuation is based on the process of

transduction.
Transduction is the process of energy conversion from one form to
another.
A transducer is a physical means of enabling transduction.

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Example for
Transducer:

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The basic outline of the differences between transducers, sensors, and actuators

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The basic outline of the differences between transducers, sensors, and actuators

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SENSORS:
“Sensors are devices that can measure, or quantify, or respond to the ambient changes
in their environment or within the intended zone of their deployment.”

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SENSORS:
 They generate responses to external stimuli or physical phenomena through the
characterization of the input functions (which are these external stimuli) and their
conversion into typically electrical signals.
Example:

• Heat is converted to electrical signals in a temperature sensor.

• Atmospheric pressure is converted to electrical signals in a barometer.

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SENSORS:
 A sensor is only sensitive to the measured property.
Example:
• A temperature sensor only senses the ambient temperature of a room.
 It is insensitive to any other property besides what it is designed to detect.
Example:
• A temperature sensor does not bother about light or pressure while sensing the
temperature.
 Finally, a sensor does not influence the measured property (e.g., measuring the
temperature does not reduce or increase the temperature).
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SENSORS:
The outline of a simple sensing operation

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SENSORS:
The outline of a simple sensing operation

1. Here, a temperature sensor keeps on checking an environment for

changes.
2. In the event of a fire, the temperature of the environment goes up.
3. The temperature sensor notices this change in the temperature of the
room and promptly communicates this information to a remote
monitor via the processor.
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SENSORS:
Classification of IoT Sensors

1)Power Requirements,

2)Sensor Output, and

3)Measured Property.

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Power
Requirements
 The way sensors operate decides the power requirements that must be provided for an IoT

implementation.

 Some sensors need to be provided with separate power sources for them to function,

whereas some sensors do not require any power sources.

 Depending on the requirements of power, sensors can be of two types.
1. Active Sensors
2. Passive Sensors
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Power
Requirements
Active Sensors:

 Do not require an external power source to operate.

 Respond directly to environmental stimuli, converting them into an output signal.

Example:
• A photodiode, which converts light into electrical impulses.
• Smoke Detector (Ionization Type): Uses radioactive material to detect smoke
particles and triggers an alarm when smoke is present.
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Power
Requirements
Passive Sensors

 Require an external power source or circuitry to function.

 Sensed properties are modulated with the sensor's inherent characteristics to produce

output patterns.
Example:
• A thermistor is where resistance is measured by applying a voltage or current.
• Touchscreen (Capacitive Touch Sensor): Found in smartphones and tablets, requiring
power to sense and respond to touch.
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Sensor
Output
 The output of a sensor helps in deciding the additional components to be integrated with an
IoT node or system.
 Typically, almost all modern-day processors are digital; digital sensors can be directly
integrated into the processors.
 Sensors are broadly divided into two types, depending on the type of output generated
from these sensors, as follows:
1. Analog Sensors
2. Digital Sensors
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Sensor
Output
Analog Sensors:

 It requires Analog-to-Digital Converters (ADCs) for compatibility.

 Analog sensors are designed to measure real-world, continuous physical quantities—

things like temperature, pressure, speed, or displacement.

 These measurements change continuously over time and don’t have distinct, separate

steps, unlike digital data, which consists of discrete values.

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Sensor
Output
Analog Sensors:

Example:

 A thermometer or a thermocouple can be used for measuring the temperature of a liquid

(e.g., in household water heaters).

 These sensors continuously respond to changes in the temperature of the liquid.

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Sensor
Output
Digital Sensors:
 Digital Representation: Digital sensors provide discrete-time signals, representing
measurements in binary form (logic 1 for ON and logic 0 for OFF).
 Binary Output: Signals are output as single bits in serial transmission or as bytes (8 bits)
in parallel transmission.
 Non-Continuous Values: Digital sensors produce discrete, non-continuous values,
allowing straightforward integration with digital systems.

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Sensor
Output
Digital Sensors:

Example: Digital Temperature Sensor

Application: Used in smart thermostats to monitor room temperature.

Functionality: Measures temperature and sends discrete, digital signals to the

system.

Data Usage: The thermostat adjusts heating or cooling based on received data.

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Sensor
Output

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Measured
Property:
 The property of the environment being measured by the sensors can be crucial in

deciding the number of sensors in an IoT implementation.

 Spatial Variation captures how a property differs in different locations at the same

time, while Temporal Variation focuses on how that property changes over time at a

specific location.

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Measured
Property:
Example: Temperature:

 In a large building, the temperature can vary from one room to another due to factors

like sunlight exposure, ventilation, and occupancy.

 This means that the temperature has spatial variation across different areas of the

building.

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Measured
Property:
Example: Traffic Flow:

 The number of vehicles on a road can vary throughout the day (more cars during rush

hours and fewer at night), representing temporal variation.

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Measured
Property:
 Depending on the properties to be measured, sensors can be of two types.

1. Scalar Sensors

2. Vector Sensors

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Measured
Property:
Scalar Sensors:
 Scalar sensors produce an output signal that is directly proportional to the magnitude of
the measured quantity.
 This means that as the quantity increases or decreases, the output signal (often a voltage
or current) changes accordingly.
Example:
• A pressure sensor measures the pressure of a gas or liquid.
• As the pressure increases, the output voltage from the sensor increases
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Measured
Property:
Scalar Sensors:
 Scalar sensors are designed to measure physical quantities where only the magnitude of
the measurement is significant, without regard to direction or orientation.
 Scalar sensors provide readings based on the intensity or strength of a physical
phenomenon.
Temperature Sensors:
 A thermometer measures temperature in degrees Celsius or Fahrenheit.
 The reading indicates how hot or cold something is, without any need to know the
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Measured
Property:
Vector Sensors:
 Vector sensors measure physical quantities that require both magnitude and direction
for a complete understanding of the phenomenon.
 This dual dependence means that changes in either aspect will affect the sensor's output.
Example:
 A velocity sensor measures the speed of an object in a specific direction.
 For instance, a GPS sensor provides velocity data as a speed (magnitude) and a
heading (direction), indicating how fast and in which direction an object is moving.
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POINTS TO PONDER

 A sensor node is made up of a combination of sensor/sensors, a processor unit, a radio

unit, and a power unit.
 The nodes are capable of sensing the environment they are set to measure and
communicate the information to other sensor nodes or a remote server.
 Typically, a sensor node should have low-power requirements and be wireless.
 This enables them to be deployed in a vast range of scenarios and environments without
the constant need for changing their power sources or managing wires.
 The wireless nature of sensor nodes would also allow them to be freely relocatable and
deployed in large numbers without bothering about managing wires.
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Sensor Characteristics

 All sensors can be defined by their ability to measure or capture a certain phenomenon

and report them as output signals to various other systems.

 However, even within the same sensor type and class, sensors can be characterized by

their ability to sense the phenomenon based on the following three fundamental

properties:

Sensor Resolution Sensor Accuracy Sensor

Precision
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Sensor Resolution

 Resolution is about the smallest change the sensor can detect.

 The more the resolution of a sensor, the more accurate is the precision.

 A sensor’s accuracy does not depend upon its resolution.

Example:

 A temperature sensor A can detect up to 0:5°C changes in temperature;

 Whereas another sensor B, can detect up to 0:25 °C changes in temperature.
 Therefore, the resolution of sensor B is higher than the resolution of sensor A.
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Sensor Accuracy

 The ability of a sensor to measure a value as close as possible to the true or actual
value.
 High accuracy ensures reliable and trustworthy measurements.
 To minimize errors in measurements.
Example:
 A temperature sensor showing 25.1°C when the actual temperature is 25°C is
accurate.

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Sensor Accuracy

Example:

• A weight sensor measuring a 100 kg object shows 99.98 kg.

• Accuracy Calculation: 99.98 kg / 100 kg = 99.98% accuracy.

• Error Rate: The difference from the true value is 0.02%.

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Sensor Precision

 Precision refers to the consistency of a sensor's readings over multiple measurements

under the same conditions.

 Based on repeatability—a sensor is precise if it gives similar results each time it's

used, even if these aren’t exactly accurate.

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Sensor Precision
Example:
For a 100 kg weight, a sensor reports:
• First reading: 98.28 kg
• Second reading: 100.34 kg
• Third reading: 101.11 kg

The wide variation (98.28 kg to 101.11 kg) shows low precision, as the readings aren’t
close to each other.

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POINTS TO PONDER

 Resolution: The smallest change it can detect.

 Accuracy: How close it is to the real value.

 Precision: How consistently it gives the same

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Sensorial Deviations

 The sensorial deviations in sensors, which are errors that can occur.
 Most of the sensing in IoT is non-critical, where minor deviations in
sensorial outputs seldom(rarely) change the nature of the undertaken
tasks.
 However, some critical applications of IoT, such as healthcare, industrial
process monitoring, and others, do require sensors with high-quality
measurement capabilities.

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Agricultural Sensors
Soil moisture sensors. Minor inaccuracies
may only slightly affect irrigation
decisions.

Environmental Monitoring
Air quality sensors. Misleading data can hinder
effective responses to pollution or hazardous
conditions.
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 In the event of a sensor’s output signal going beyond its designed maximum and
minimum capacity for measurement, the sensor output is truncated to its maximum or
minimum value, which is also the sensor’s limit.
 The measurement range between a sensor’s characterized minimum and maximum values
is also referred to as the full-scale range of that sensor.
 Under real conditions, the sensitivity of a sensor may differ from the value specified for
that sensor leading to sensitivity error.
 This deviation is mostly attributed to sensor fabrication errors and its calibration.

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maximum and minimum capacity for

measurement

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Sensitivity Error
 refers to the difference between the actual output of a sensor and the expected
output based on its specified sensitivity.
Example:
If a temperature sensor is supposed to output 1 volt for every degree Celsius increase
but outputs only 0.9 volts per degree, it has a sensitivity error.

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 If the output of a sensor differs from the actual value to be measured by a constant, the

sensor is said to have an offset error or bias.

Example:

• While measuring an actual temperature of 0 degrees C, a temperature sensor outputs 1.1

degrees C every time.

• In this case, the sensor is said to have an offset error or bias of 1.1 degrees C.

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 In real life, SENSORS aren't always perfect, and their output might vary in a few ways.

 Let's imagine a Temperature Sensor that is supposed to measure from 0°C to 100°C and

ideally give a corresponding output from 0 to 10 volts.

 A perfect sensor would give a consistent output like this:

 0°C → 0 volts

 50°C → 5 volts

 100°C → 10 volts
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Non-linearity:

 If the sensor's output isn't a perfectly straight line between 0 and 10 volts, we say it's

"non-linear."

 So, if at 50°C the sensor gives 5.2 volts instead of 5 volts, that slight deviation is an

example of non-linearity.

 We measure this deviation over the whole range to understand how non-linear it is.

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Non-linearity:
 Here are some common reasons:
 Material Properties: The materials used in the sensor might not have a perfectly linear response to changes
in the measured property (like temperature, pressure, or light). For example, metals used in temperature
sensors change resistance with temperature, but not always at a constant rate.
 Design and Construction: Some sensors are designed with an internal structure or mechanism that has
inherent limitations. For instance, in optical sensors, the response of the photodiodes to light intensity can
be non-linear at certain levels of brightness.
 Saturation Effects: At the high or low ends of the sensor’s range, it might start to "saturate," meaning it
can’t respond proportionally anymore. For example, a pressure sensor might read pressure linearly up to a
certain point, but then its response starts to curve off as it nears its maximum capacity.
 Temperature and Environmental Factors: Many sensors are influenced by external factors such as
temperature, humidity, or electromagnetic interference, which can distort their output. For instance, a
pressure sensor might be linear in a controlled environment but becomes non-linear in extreme
temperatures.
 Manufacturing Variations: Small inconsistencies in the manufacturing process can lead to slight
differences in each sensor’s behavior, causing non-linearity even if the design is intended to be linear.
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Drift:
 Imagine if, over time, the sensor starts to "drift."
Example:
Today at 50°C, it might read 5 volts, but after a year, it might start reading 5.1 volts at
50°C without any actual change in temperature.
 Drift is often a slow, long-term change in the sensor’s readings due to physical changes
in the sensor material.
 Drift is the gradual change in the sensor output over time due to ageing, temperature,
humidity, or other environmental factors.
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Noise:

 Noise is random, short-term fluctuations in the sensor’s output.

 So, at a constant temperature of 50°C, the sensor might give outputs like 5.01, 5.02, 4.98,

and so on, due to noise.

 Noise is usually short-term and can make the signal "jitter" around the actual value.

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Noise:
Some common causes include:
 Electrical Interference: If the sensor is in an environment with other electronic devices, it
might pick up electromagnetic interference (EMI), which can cause small fluctuations in its
readings.
 Thermal Noise: Every electronic component generates a bit of random electrical noise due
to the movement of electrons. This is an unavoidable property of electronics and results in
slight jitter in readings.
 Environmental Factors: Even tiny air currents or minor vibrations can introduce noise,
causing the sensor to pick up slight, irrelevant changes in the surrounding environment.
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Hysteresis

 Hysteresis error means that a sensor’s output doesn’t just depend on its current input,

but also on the previous inputs it has received.

 Hysteresis shows that past inputs can slightly affect current measurements.

 Hysteresis means the sensor’s output can change depending on the history of input

values.

 It’s a kind of “memory effect” where past inputs influence the current reading.
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Hysteresis

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Quantization Error:

 Quantization error is simply the tiny difference between the actual value
and the rounded digital approximation.
 It’s caused by the sensor’s limited resolution.
 In digital sensors, an analog signal (like temperature) is converted to a
digital value. However, since digital sensors can only measure in steps (like
0.1°C increments), they approximate the actual value.

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Quantization Error:

Example:

Imagine a sensor measuring temperature, but it can only read in 1°C steps.

• If the real temperature is 25.6°C:

• The sensor might round it to the nearest step, say 26°C.

The difference, 25.6 - 26 = -0.4°C, is the quantization error.

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Aliasing:

 Aliasing is like capturing only part of a signal, leading to misinterpretation.

 Aliasing is a type of error that happens when a sensor takes measurements (samples) of

a signal at a rate that’s too slow.

Example: High Blinking Rate (10 blinks per second)

 The light blinks 10 times per second, but your camera only captures 1 frame per second.
 So, if the light blinks 10 times per second, you’d need at least 20 samples per second to
capture the true pattern.
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Environmental Factors:

 Environmental factors can have a big impact on sensor readings because they introduce

unintended changes that aren’t related to what the sensor is supposed to measure.

Example: Temperature Effects on a Pressure Sensor

 Imagine a Pressure Sensor installed in an outdoor setting, such as a weather station.

 This sensor is designed to measure atmospheric pressure accurately.

 However, because it’s semiconductor-based, it’s also sensitive to changes in

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Environmental Factors:
 Stable Temperature and Accurate Readings: When the temperature is stable, the sensor gives an

accurate pressure reading, say 1013 millibars (typical atmospheric pressure).

 Rising Temperature Causes Drift: On a hot day, as the temperature increases, the internal electronics of

the sensor might behave slightly differently. The sensor’s output might drift, even though the actual

pressure hasn’t changed. For example, it might start showing 1015 millibars instead of the correct 1013

millibars, simply because of the heat.

 Deviations Due to Temperature Sensitivity: Here, the pressure sensor’s output has deviated from the

true pressure reading due to an environmental factor (temperature), not a change in actual pressure.
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 Sensing can be broadly divided into four different categories based on the
nature of the environment being sensed and the physical sensors being
used to do so:

1) Scalar Sensing,
2) Multimedia Sensing,
3) Hybrid Sensing, and
4) Virtual Sensing
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Scalar Sensing:
 Scalar sensing is all about measuring quantities that are fully described by a single

value (amplitude or intensity) without any need for direction.

 These scalar values tell us "how much" of something exists, rather than "where" or "in

which direction" it’s acting.

 Scalar sensing refers to the measurement of quantities that only have magnitude (or

size) but no direction.

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Scalar Sensing:
When we measure scalar quantities, we only need to observe how they change over time.
Examples
 Ambient temperature: We only need to know the temperature level over time, like
the hourly change in temperature.
 Atmospheric pressure: Similarly, we measure how pressure rises or falls, not the
direction it’s pushing.
 Rainfall: We measure the amount of rain over a period (like millimeters per hour)
without needing a direction.
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Scalar Sensing:

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Multimedia Sensing
 Multimedia sensing is a type of sensing that captures information that changes over
both space (different locations or angles) and time.
 These sensors are integral to systems where directional data and changes over time
provide valuable insights, making them crucial in fields such as robotics, surveillance,
environmental monitoring, and autonomous vehicles.
 Quantities such as images, direction, flow, speed, acceleration, sound, force, mass,
energy, and momentum have both directions as well as a magnitude.
 Additionally, these quantities follow the vector law of addition and hence are
designated as vector quantities.
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Multimedia Sensing
Example:
Think of a SECURITY CAMERA.
 It’s constantly recording what’s happening in a particular area.
 Spatial Variance (Space): The camera captures different parts of the room or area
depending on where it’s pointed, like seeing someone move across the room from one
side to the other.
 Temporal Variance (Time): It also captures these changes over time. So, if someone
moves, the camera captures them at different points in their movement, showing how the
scene changes from second to second.
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Hybrid Sensing
 The act of using scalar as well as multimedia sensing at the same time is referred to as
hybrid sensing.
 Many a time, there is a need to measure certain vector as well as scalar properties of an
environment at the same time.

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Hybrid Sensing
Example: In an agricultural field, it is required to measure the soil conditions at regular
intervals of time to determine plant health.
 Sensors such as soil moisture and soil temperature are deployed underground to
estimate the soil’s water retention capacity and the moisture being held by the soil at any
instant of time.
 However, this setup only determines whether the plant is getting enough water or not.
 There may be a host of other factors besides water availability, which may affect a
plant’s health.
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Hybrid Sensing

 The additional inclusion of a camera sensor with the plant may be able to determine the

actual condition of a plant by additionally determining the color of leaves.

 The aggregate information from soil moisture, soil temperature, and the camera sensor

will be able to collectively determine a plant’s health at any instant of time.

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Virtual Sensing:
 Many a time, there is a need for very dense and large-scale deployment of sensor nodes
spread over a large area for monitoring of parameters. One such domain is
AGRICULTURE.
 Here, often, the parameters being measured, such as soil moisture, soil temperature, and
water level, do not show significant spatial variations.
 Virtual sensing refers to the process of using existing sensors and data sources to
create new, virtual sensors that can provide information or measure things that might
not have a dedicated physical sensor.
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Virtual Sensing”
 A ’s sensors are being used for actual measurement of parameters
(appropriate watering, fertilizer, and pesticide regimen for his crops) ;
whereas virtual data (which does not have actual physical sensors but
uses extrapolation-based measurements) is being used for advising B. This
is the virtual sensing paradigm.

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 The choice of sensors in an IoT sensor node is critical and can either make
or break the feasibility of an IoT deployment.
 In an IoT deployment, choosing sensors with the right accuracy, power
needs, connectivity, environmental durability, cost, and scalability
determines the success of the project.
 Careful selection ensures that the system collects meaningful data, stays
operational over time, and is economically sustainable.

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Major Factors Influence the Choice of Sensors

1. Sensing Range,

2. Accuracy and Precision,

3. Energy,

4. Device Size.

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Sensing Range:
 The sensing range of a sensor node defines the detection fidelity(faithfulness) of that
node.
 The sensing range of a sensor may also be used to signify the upper and lower bounds
of a sensor’s measurement range.
Example:
 A proximity sensor has a typical sensing range of a couple of meters.

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Accuracy and Precision:

 The accuracy and precision of measurements provided by a sensor are

critical in deciding the operations of specific functional processes.

 “Off-the-shelf consumer” sensors are low on requirements and often very

cheap and their performance is limited to regular application domains

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Accuracy and Precision:

 A basic temperature sensor can be used easily in hobby projects and

everyday tasks, but it’s not suitable for industrial use.
 These regular sensors usually have a limited temperature range and lower
accuracy.
 For industrial applications, where very precise measurements (up to 3-4
decimal places) are needed, these basic sensors won’t work.

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Accuracy and Precision:

 Industrial sensors, on the other hand, are built with high accuracy and can
work in tough conditions.
 They are very precise and reliable but also more expensive because of their
advanced technology and durability.

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Accuracy and Precision:

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Energy

 The energy consumed by a sensing solution is crucial to determine the

lifetime of that solution and the estimated cost of its deployment.
 If the sensor or the sensor node is so energy inefficient that it requires
replenishment(refill) of its energy sources quite frequently, the effort in
maintaining the solution and its cost goes up; whereas its deployment
feasibility goes down.

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Energy

 Consider sensor nodes deployed on glaciers(icebergs) to monitor

environmental changes.
 Due to their inaccessibility, these sensors must operate on minimal energy
to remain functional long-term.

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Device Size:

 Modern-day IoT applications have a wide penetration in all

domains of life.
 Most of the applications of IoT require sensing solutions which
are so small that they do not hinder any of the regular activities
that were possible before the sensor node deployment was carried
out.
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Device Size:

 The larger the size of a sensor node, the larger the obstruction
caused by it, the higher the cost and energy requirements, and
the lesser the demand for the bulk of the IoT applications.

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Device Size: Example

 Consider a simple human activity detector. If the detection unit is

too large to be carried or too bulky to cause hindrance to regular
normal movements, the demand for this solution would be low.
 It is because of this that the onset of wearables took off so
strongly. The wearable sensors are highly energy-efficient, small
in size, and almost part of the wearer’s regular wardrobe.
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