Electronic Sensor Design - Term Paper Example

School of Electrical and Electronic Engineering Third Year Sensors Course Assignment …. Title: Electronic Sensor Design AUTHOR, S NAME: Supervisor: A report submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements of the degree of …… Dated: April 28, 2011 CONTENTS 1 Executive Summary 3 2 Idea: 2.1 Who are the customers? 2.2 What are the important specifications? 2.3 Quantitative cost estimate 4 3 Review 6 4 Preferred Design 7 5 Proposed Implementation 8 6 Prototype Delivery 9 Appendix Analog Sensors Simplify Machine Control Design References 1. Executive Summary: The basic objective of electronic sensor designs for robots is to deduce what is happening in the outside environment and to be able to react accordingly for the delivery of services as are associated with the roboboard as selected for the electronic sensor designs. The report will examine a variety of electronic sensor designs along with their practical application in the electrical appliances. An electronic sensor measures some features of the world like sound, pressure, light and convert that measurement in the form of an electrical signal usually into current or voltage. Typical sensors respond to the stimuli by changing their resistance like photocells, changing their current flow or changing their voltage output through their designs. There are two basic types of sensors in the market as analog and digital sensors which fulfill the demands of the customers in satisfactory manner. Both of these types of sensors fulfill the needs of the customers through their specific utilities like continually varying output of analog sensor and with two states of digital sensor. These two sensor designs have an edge in the market in terms of their reliability, availability and performance. Connector plug standard is the selected design and internal configuration is selected for explaining the concept of electronic sensor design which illustrates available implementation mechanism in the devices where the sensors are hosted. Digital or air pressure sensors work with the use of force for its perfect functioning. The customers are recommended to adopt the electronic sensor design which has its economic advantage as compared to that of all other alternatives which are available in the contemporary market at an affordable price. 2. Idea and Market: The idea for the study involves exploring the electronic sensor designs for different machines like robots and other similar apparatus. For simplicity and ease, only the cases of analog and digital sensors along with sensor inputs on RoboBoard will be discussed. The knowledge of analog and digital sensors will illustrate the concepts of the electronic sensor designs for making solutions relating to the electronic equipment. 2.1 Who are the customers? The customers for the designs and the resultant equipment will be the vendors in the electronic industry. The price of the HD2RX receiver relay board for example is $ 24.95 with a configuration as shown below: Analog sensors with the resistance range of 1k in the light and a resistance of 300k in the dark will be utilized in the products. These Analog inductive sensors can be of advantageous in their design of machine control systems. For the digital sensors, measurement of the sensor will range between the 0 volt states to the 5 volt state like Sharp modulated infrared detector. 2.2 What are important specifications? Since electronic sensor design and the sensors are useful for measuring some important features like light, sound or pressure and to convert the measurements into an electrical signal, therefore, specifications for the sensors will serve as a positive factor for selection and utilization of the sensor designs. For example, 2 CHANNEL REMOTE RF RELAY (BOARD & TRANSMITTER) will have the following specifications: Type of the equipment as final product: Two channel RF Remote Control Relay Board as improved version of the original CK1617 unit. Number of relays channels: 2, each set has a reset connection with the details as: 1. The range of the board is over 250 feet. 2. Transmits on 433.9 MHz which includes battery. 3. Receiver Power 12 VDC 4. Circuit draws 9mA in idle state, 1 relay energized 40mA and 2 relays energized draws 70mA. 2.3 Quantitative cost estimation: The cost of the sensor should be in the proportion to the cost of the equipment in which these sensors are used. The cost of sensors range from $ 24 to $ 173 depending on the type of the sensor design, however, the cost should not exceed 20% of the cost of the equipment. The total estimated cost will include cost of all the components of the equipment including that of sensor design. 3. Review and Current State-of-the-art: This segment presents the past and present work that preceded the development of electronic sensor designs and their utilization in the equipment for their further utilization. Sound radiated inside structures such as cars and airplanes is controlled through the use of the damping materials on the inner panels. This mechanism finds its limitation because of weight and the poor performance at low frequencies. Lueg (1936) first proposed an active control technique to reduce the noise using destructive interference of sound waves1. His invention became commercially practical 50 years later through the development of signal processors (DSP) through the compilation of active control of sound theory by Nelson and Elliot in 19922. Charette in 1993 has presented a plate model actuated through asymmetric piezoelectric actuators. Analog and digital sensors are two basic types of sensors, although quite different in their function but have wide utility in their respective equipment. Some of the sensors that produce digital output are complicated; these produce pulse trains of transitions between 0 volt state and the 5 volt state. Many devices which use digital sensors are wired as active low meaning that these generate 0 volts when they are active. Connector plug standard are applied in the sensors as in geometric shape with sensor plug, volt as + 5 and other inputs and on the other end as sensor device. Both these ends are connected through wire for the completion of the circuit in the equipment. Sensor wiring is the key component in the whole structure through a pull up resistor and a sensor connecting plug at the mother board. The working has been designed for achieving maximum output in the shape of signals through optimum utilization of resources as input component of the whole equipment with the digital sensors or analog sensors as in accordance with the requirement of the equipment. 4. Preferred Design and its Implementation: Electronic Sensor designs are selected for their application in the sensors on the basis of their configuration, arrangements and the levels of simplicity/complexity. Generally, a sensor is linked to the plug with three wires. Two of these wires “supply 5 volt power” and the third wire are labeled as “signal” is the voltage output of the sensor is applied through a pull-up resistor. The resistor is used because of the two reasons; first it gives a default value for the sensor input that is a value when no sensor is plugged in and the second reason for the use of pull-up resistor as component of the voltage divider circuit as a requirement for some of the analog sensors. Most of the sensors used in the kits make use of the voltage divider circuit for making the system viable and workable for the delivery of the output in efficient manner. Tactile sensors in their kits are used to detect tactile contact as simple push button or lever actuated switchers. The Microswitch is the brand name for a variety of switches as in the form of generic name due to its wide acceptance and performance in the market. A Microswitch is housed in a rectangular body with very small button as the external switching point as shown in the following figure3 which demonstrates the structural arrangements of the switches in the tactile sensor with a switch nub and activation force as: 5. Prototype Delivery: The Hall Effect sensor could be constructed as prototype sensor as included in the ELEC 201 kit as a digital device that operates from a 5 volts power supply for its working. Standard operation of the sensor requires 6 m A of current and can sink 250 m A of the current as in the form of output for a logical low. Hall Effect Sensor Test results can be summarized in the following table4: Distance( mm) Voltage (V) Roboboard reading 0 0.7 35 1 1.55 79 2 1.83 93 3 1.92 98 4 2.03 104 5 2.11 108 The above figures have been drawn on the basis of relationship between the distance in millimeters and voltage of the Rhoboboard and can be illustrated with the help of the following graph as: 6. Conclusions and Recommendations: Electronic Sensors Designs are of significant importance for the determination of the structures and the configuration of the equipment in which these sensors are used as component of the whole instrument/machine. Sensors help in the deduction of the facts that what is happening in the world, therefore, their selection is of great importance for the working of the equipment in which these sensors are applied as a part of the machine. It is recommended that a choice may be made between the analog and the digital sensors depending upon the type and the nature of the equipment in which these sensors are applied while also considering the internal wiring arrangement of the equipment as selected for the electronic sensor designs. Appendix Analog Sensors Simplify Machine Control Design: Complete news is available at the following address: http://www.designnews.com/article/517469-Analog_Sensors_Simplify_Machine_Control_Design.php References: 1. Holler, F. James; Skoog, Douglas A; Crouch, Stanley R (2007). "Chapter 1". Principles of Instrumental Analysis (6th ed.). Cengage Learning. p. 9. ISBN 9780495012016. 2. Leica (2008). "Leica S2 with 56% larger sensor than full frame". Press release. http://www.dpreview.com/news/0809/08092301_leica_s2.asp. Retrieved 2010-06-07. 3. Pogue, David (2010-12-22). "Small Cameras With Big Sensors, and How to Compare Them". The New York Times. http://www.nytimes.com/2010/12/23/technology/personaltech/23pogue.html?ref=technology 4. http://www.designnews.com/article/517469-Analog_Sensors_Simplify_Machine_Control_Design.php 5. Ray, Sidney F. 2000. The geometry of image formation. In The Manual of Photography: Photographic and Digital Imaging, 9th ed. Ed. Ralph E. Jacobson, Sidney F. Ray, Geoffrey G. Atteridge, and Norman R. Axford. Oxford: Focal Press. ISBN 0-240-51574-9 Read More