EMT 4103 SENSORS AND

TRANSDUCERS ON 17 TH

JUNE 2020
1. Force sensors and transducers
2. Sensors and transducers based on magnetic materials
COURSE EXPECTATIONS
• At the end of the lesson, you should be able to:
• Explain all types of force sensors, theoretically and schematically
• Apply these senors and transducers in any Mechatronic system.
Force sensors and transducers

1. Force sensors can be divided into two classes: quantitative and qualitative
2. A quantitative sensor actually measures the force and represents its value
in terms of an electrical signal. Examples of these sensors are strain gauges and
load cells.
3. The qualitative sensors are the threshold devices which are not concerned
with a good fidelity of representation of the force value. Their function is
merely to indicate whether a sufficiently strong force is applied; that is, the
output signal indicates when the forces magnitude exceeds a predetermined
threshold level. An example of these detectors is a computer keyboard, on which
a key makes a contact only when it is pressed sufficiently hard.
The various methods of sensing force
• By balancing the unknown force against the gravitational force of a
standard mass: F=mg
• By measuring the acceleration of a known mass to which the force is
applied: F= ma
• By balancing the force against an electromagnetically developed
force
• By converting the force to a fluid pressure and measuring that
pressure
• By measuring the strain produced in an elastic member by the
unknown force: F=kx
Types of force sensors and transducers
1. LVDT
2. Strain Gauges
3. Tactile Sensors
4. Piezoelectric Force Sensors
5. Piezoresistive Sensors
6. MEMS Sensors
7. Capacitive Touch Sensors
8. Acoustic Touch Sensors
9. Optical Sensors
Linear variable dierential transformer
(LVDT)

Within the linear range of the spring, the LVDT sensor produces
a voltage which is proportional to the applied force.
 Force sensor with a pressure transducer. 
• The pressure sensor is combined with a fluid-filled bellows which is
subjected to force.
• The fluid-filled bellows function as a force-to-pressure converter by
distributing a localized force at its input over the sensing membrane
of a pressure transducer.
Strain Gauges as force sensors

1. A strain gauge is a resistive elastic sensor whose resistance is a

function of applied strain (unit deformation).
2. Because all materials resist deformation, some force must be
applied to cause deformation. Hence, resistance can be related to
applied force.
3. That relationship is generally called the piezoresistive effect and is
expressed through the gauge factor, GF of the conductor.
 Strain Gauges as force sensors
Load cell: It comprises of cylindrical tube to which
strain gauges are attached. A load applied on the top
collar of the cylinder compress the strain gauge
element which changes its electrical resistance.
Generally strain gauges are used to measure forces up
to 10 MN. The non-linearity and repeatability errors
of this transducer are ±0.03% and ±0.02%
respectively.

Figure: Strain gauge based Load cell

When a bridge circuit is used to measure
the change in the resistance of the strain gauge,
the dummy gauge can be placed in the adjacent
arm of the bridge to compensate for the
temperature changes. This second
strain gauge is positioned adjacent to the first,
so that it is at the same temperature.
It is rotated 90°, so that it is at right angles to
the pressure-sensing strain gauge element, and
therefore will not sense the deformation as
seen by the pressure-sensing element.
This structure is also used in load cells.
Figure: Strain gauge: (a) as a serpentine structure,
and (b) as a load sensor.
Figure: Alternative use of a strain gauge for
measuring the force applied to a cantilever
beam. (a) Top view; (b) side view.

Many metals can be used to fabricate strain gauges. The most common materials
are alloys constantan(55%Cu-45%Ni), nichrome, advance, and karma.
Tactile sensors
• Tactile sensors are a special class of force or pressure transducers,
which are characterized by small thickness. Applied between two
surfaces being in close proximity to one another.
• E.g. robotics, where tactile sensors can be positioned on the
fingertips of a mechanical actuator to provide a feedback upon
developing a contact with an object, very much like tactile sensors
work in human skin.
• For touch screen displays, keyboards, and other devices where a
physical contact has to be sensed. A very broad area of applications
• is in the biomedical field, where tactile sensors can be used in
dentistry etc. artificial knees for the balancing of the prosthesis
Table 1. Relative merits and demerits of
various tactile sensor types.
Table 1. Relative merits and demerits of
various tactile sensor types.
Piezoelectric Force Sensors
1. Piezoelectric effects can be used in both passive and active force
sensors.
2. It can convert a changing force into a changing electrical
signal, whereas a steady-state force produces no electrical response.
Piezoresistive Sensors
1. Another type of a tactile sensor is a piezoresistive sensor.
2. It can be fabricated by using materials whose electrical resistance is
function of strain.
3. The sensor incorporates a force-sensitive resistor (FSR) whose
resistance varies with applied pressure. Such materials are conductive
elastomers or pressure-sensitive links.
Figure: Some piezoelectric materials
MEMS Sensors

• Miniature tactile sensors are especially in high demand in robotics,

where good spatial resolution, high sensitivity, and a wide dynamic
range are required.
• A plastic deformation in silicon can be used for the fabrication of a
threshold tactile sensor with a mechanical hysteresis.
Microelectromechanical systems (MEMS)
• MEMS are microminiature devices consisting of microminiature
• components such as sensors, actuators, and signal processing
integrated and embedded into a single chip while exploiting both
electrical/electronic and mechanical features of them.
• The device size can be in the sub-millimeter scale (0.01–1.0 mm) and
the component size can be as small as a micrometer (micron), in the
range 0.001–0.1 mm.
• Since MEMS exploits the integrated-circuit (IC) technologies in their
fabrication, many components can be integrated into a single device
(e.g., a few to a million).
Advantages of MEMS
1. Microminiature size and weight
2. Large surface area to volume ratio (when compared in the same
measurement units)
3. Large-scale integration (LSI) of components/circuits
4. High performance
5. High speed (20 ns switching speeds)
6. Low power consumption
7. Easy mass-production
8. Low cost (in mass production)
MEMS functions
A typical MEMS device has integrated functions, primarily
• Sensing
• Actuation
• Signal Processing
Why silicon is good material for use in
sensing physical parameters.
• The piezoresistive effect can be used in silicon for making strain
gauges;
• The Hall Effect or transistor structures can be used to measure
magnetic field strength;
• Linear parametric variation with temperature makes it suitable for
temperature measurement;
• Silicon has light-sensitive parameters, making it suitable for light
intensity measurements;
• Silicon does not exhibit fatigue, and has high strength and low
density, making it suitable for micromechanical devices.
Capacitive Touch Sensors
1. A capacitive touch sensor is based on fundamental equations for
the parallel plate and coaxial capacitors (consists of two cylinders).
2. A capacitive touch sensor relies on the applied force that either
changes the distance between the plates or the variable surface
area of the capacitor.
3. In such a sensor, two conductive plates are separated by a dielectric
medium, which is also used as the elastomer to give the sensor its
force-to-capacitance characteristics.
Coaxial versus parallel plate capacitor
• To get a more sensitive capacitor, use a high permittivity dielectric in
a coaxial capacitor design. E.g. highly dielectric polymer such as PVDF
maximizes the change in capacitance.
• Coaxial design is better as its capacitance will give a greater increase
for an applied force than the parallel-plate design; however, the
sensor is more complex and larger.
Acoustic Touch Sensors

1. A touch of an object produces a pattern of sound waves

propagating through the material. This pattern creates an acoustic
signature that is unique to the location of the impact.
2. This property is called Time Reversal Acoustics, which can be
used to precisely identify location of the source of radiated waves.
3. An acoustic sensor picks up the vibration in the material and passes
them to a microcontroller that captures the audio vibrations
within an object, generates, and stores the acoustic signatures.
Acoustic Touch Sensors: surface acoustic
waves (SAW)
• SAW tech uses ultrasonic waves passing over the touch screen
panel. When the panel is touched, a portion of the wave is absorbed.
• This change in the ultrasonic waves registers the position of the
touch event and sends this information to the controller for
processing.
• Surface wave touch screen panels can be damaged by outside
elements.
• Contaminants on the surface such as water or oil droplets can also
interfere with the functionality of the touch screen.
 Optical Sensors
1. An object (such as a
finger or pen) that touches
the screen changes the
reflection
due to a difference between
refractive properties of air
and a finger.
2. This results in a
measured decrease in light
intensity at the
corresponding photo
detector. The measured
photo detector outputs can
be used to locate a touch-
point Coordinate.
Sensors and transducers based on magnetic
materials
1. Magnetic flux is the amount of magnetic field (or the number of
lines of force) produced by a magnetic source. The symbol for magnetic
flux is φ (Greek letter phi).
2. The unit of magnetic flux is the weber, Wb
3. Magnetic flux density is the amount of flux passing through a
defined area that is perpendicular to the direction of the flux:
4. The symbol for magnetic flux density is B. The unit of magnetic
flux density is the tesla, T, where 1T = D 1 Wb/m2.
Magnetic sensors
• Magnetic sensors convert magnetic or magnetically encoded
information into electrical signals for processing by electronic
circuits.
• Solid state devices
• Non-contact wear free operation, their low maintenance, robust
design and as sealed hall effect devices are immune to vibration,
dust and water.
• Sensing position, velocity or directional movement.
Magnetic sensors
• Used in automotive systems for the sensing of position, distance and
speed. E.g. 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).
• They respond to a wide range of positive and negative magnetic
fields in a variety of different applications.
• One type of magnet sensor whose output signal is a function of
magnetic field density around it is called the Hall Effect Sensor.
Magnetic Sensing Technology
There are several types of technologies used to make a magnetic sensor
work.
•Fluxgate,
•Hall Effect,
•magnetoresisitive,
•magnetoinductive,
•proton precession,
•optical pump,
•nuclear precession, and
•SQUID (superconducting quantum interference devices)
Hall effect
• Hall effect describes what happens to current flowing through a
conducting material - a metal, a semiconductor - if it is exposed to a
magnetic field B.
 Magnetic sensors – a survey

Permalloy = brand name

for any of a class of alloys
of high magnetic
permeability, containing
from 30 to 90 % nickel.
Hall effect sensors
•  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.
Hall effect
• Hall effect: Discovered by Edwin Hall in 1879.
• When a current is flowing in a (semi)conductor which is placed in
magnetic field, not
• parallel with the current direction, an electric field will be generated
perpendicular w.r.t. the current and the field direction
• Hall voltage VH in conductors is given by:
 Hall effect in conductors

 Hall coefficient = ratio of

the induced electric field
to the product of the
current density and the
applied magnetic field
Hall-Effect Sensors

Hall-Effect Sensors
•Consider a semiconductor element subject to a DC voltage Vref.
•If a magnetic field is applied perpendicular to the direction of this
voltage, a voltage Vo will be generated in the third
•orthogonal direction, within the semiconductor element.
•This is known as the Hall effect (observed by E.H. Hall in 1879). A
schematic representation of a Hall-effect sensor.
The 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.
The Hall effect sensor Principles
• The output voltage, called the Hall voltage, (VH)  an 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.
• Have either linear or digital outputs.
• 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. 
Hall effect sensor & circuitry
 Hall effect motion sensors

The Hall effect may be used for motion

sensing in many ways, for example, as an
analog proximity sensor, a limit switch
(digital), or a shaft encoder. Because the
output voltage v0 increases as the
distance from the magnetic source to the
semiconductor element decreases, the
output signal v0 can be used as a measure
of proximity. This is the principle behind
an analog proximity sensor.
A Hall-effect shaft encoder or digital
tachometer.
Alternatively, a certain threshold level of
the output voltage vo can be used to
generate a binary output, which
represents the presence/
absence of an object.
This principle is used in a digital limit
switch. Alternatively, a shaft
encoder based on Hall effect can be
constructed by using a toothed
ferromagnetic wheel
(as in a digital tachometer) to alter the
magnetic flux.
Reed switches
• Reed switches are a class of proximity sensor which are used to
detect the presence of a magnetic field.
•  The reed switch consists of a pair of flexible reeds made of a
magnetic material, and sealed in a glass tube filled with inert gas
• The reeds are overlapped but separated by a small gap. The contact
area of each reed is plated with a noble metal, such as Rhodium or
Ruthenium, to provide the switch with stable characteristics and long
life.
 Proximity Switches: Reed Switch

Magnet based Reed switches

are used as proximity
switches. When a magnet
attached to an object is
brought close to the switch, the
magnetic reeds attract each
other and close the switch
contacts.
Reed switches contd’
• Application of a magnetic field, generated by a permanent magnet or
a coil, to the reed switch causes both reeds to be magnetized.
• This produces an N-pole at the contact area of one reed, and an S-
pole at that of the other reed, in a manner shown on the drawing
(left). If the magnetic attracting force overcomes the resistive force
caused by elasticity of the reed, the reeds come in contact i.e., the
circuit is closed. Once the magnetic field is removed, the reeds are
separated again by the effect of elasticity of the reed i.e., the circuit is
opened.
Applications of reed switches
• Position Sensing
• Pulse Counting
• Coil Applications
• Temperature Sensing
 Reed switches for Position sensing
•  When an application requires proximity sensing, end position
sensing, or moving part sensing, a reed switch or a reed sensor fixed
to the stationary surface and a magnet fixed to the moving surface
can do the job.
• When the moving part is away from the stationary part, the reed
sensor remains un-actuated. As the moving part comes near the
stationary part, the reed sensor gets actuated.
• This actuating distance is highly repeatable both while approaching
and while moving away.
Reed switches for pulse counting
• Reed switches have a very high operating frequency and this feature
lends itself to high speed pulse counting applications.
• Mounting a magnet to a rotating wheel or an object which moves
back and forth repeatedly, and a reed sensor to a stationary part will
generate the pulses required.
• The reed sensor used for sensing the pulses can be connected to a
counter.
Reed switches as temp sensor
• Due to their sharp cut in, cut out bandwidth and high reliability,
thermal reed switches are finding applications in place of bimetallic
strips, thermistors and thermostats for over-heat protection or
precise temperature switching.
• The cut in temperature is differentiated from the cut out temperature
by an abrupt and huge change in the resistance of the reed switch
contact resistance of a few milli-ohms to an open circuit resistance of
a few mega-ohms. In other words, a total galvanic separation occurs.
Thermal reed switches can sense subzero temperatures as low as -
30°C.
Advantages of reed switches
• Compact and Lightweight
• Ambient Resistance Contacts of the reed switch are encapsulated in
a glass tube together with inert gas which protects the reed switch
from the effects of the exterior environment, for example, gas, dust,
or moisture in the atmosphere.
• Relatively stable characteristics are ensured from low to high
temperatures. The reed switches are usable over a wide variety of
temperatures.
Limitations of reed switches
• EM Interference: Because the reed switch senses magnetic fields it is
sensitive to electro magnetic interference from any source which
comes in proximity to the sensor.
• Inductive Load: When an inductance load is used a back
electromotive force of several hundred volts arises when the contacts
are opened, which results in considerable decrease in contact life.
• Capacitive: Load If the contacts are load are connected together
thought a long wire or cable, a rush of current flows by means of
stray capacitance when the contacts are closed. This can significantly
influence contact life.
Assignment to be submitted on 1st July 2020
Discuss:
1.Fluxgate,
2.Hall Effect,
3.magnetoresisitive,
4.magnetoinductive,
5.proton precession,
6.optical pump,
7.nuclear precession, and
8.SQUID (superconducting quantum interference devices)