The Higher Technological Institute (HTI) MTE211 : Sensors and Actuators

Department of Mechanical Engineering Spring 2023

MTE211 : Sensors and Actuators

Lecture (3)
Dr. Islam Mohamed
Dr. Islam Mohamed 1
Lecture Objective:

 Displacement, Position and Proximity sensors

Dr. Islam Mohamed 2

 Sensors

Displacement, Position and Proximity sensors

Pneumatic sensor Potentiometer sensors

Hall effect sensor Strain gauges

Optical Encoders Capacitive element

Linear variable differential transformers
Proximity Inductive Eddy current
switch proximity switch proximity sensor

Dr. Islam Mohamed 3

 Displacement, Position and Proximity sensors

Dr. Islam Mohamed 4

 Displacement, Position and Proximity sensors
Main Considerations when selecting These sensors

Dr. Islam Mohamed 5

 Displacement, Position and Proximity sensors
Main Considerations when selecting These sensors

Dr. Islam Mohamed 6

 1- Potentiometer

Potentiometer sensors

Uniform coil of wire or a film of high resistive material –

carbon, platinum or conductive plastic.

Dr. Islam Mohamed 7

 1- Potentiometer
Industry potentiometer

Rotatory for Angular Motions Translational for Rectilinear Motions

Dr. Islam Mohamed 8

 1- Potentiometer
Industry potentiometer

Translational for Rectilinear Motions Rotatory for Angular Motions

Dr. Islam Mohamed 9

 1- Potentiometer
Working principle of potentiometer
Resistance is proportional to the length of the wire or film.

Slider displacement x is proportional

to the output voltage

𝑉𝑜 = 𝑋 𝑉𝑟𝑒𝑓

Hint : This relationship is valid only if

the o/p terminals are open circuit (no
current)

Dr. Islam Mohamed 10

Dr. Islam Mohamed 11
 R13

R23

R13

Dr. Islam Mohamed 12

 1- Potentiometer

The output voltage drops when a load with a finite

impedance is connected

Because of this loading effect the linear relationship

will no longer be valid.

Dr. Islam Mohamed 13

 1- Potentiometer

Dr. Islam Mohamed 14

 1- Potentiometer

Dr. Islam Mohamed 15

Strain gauges

Dr. Islam Mohamed 16

Dr. Islam Mohamed 17
Dr. Islam Mohamed 18
Strain gauges

Dr. Islam Mohamed 19

Strain gauges
• By using two or four strain gauges in the bridge, the effect of temperature can be avoided.
• strain gauge configuration where one gauge is active (RG + ∆R), and a second gauge is placed
transverse to the applied strain. Therefore, the strain has little effect on the second gauge,
called the dummy gauge.
• However, any changes in temperature will affect both gauges in the same way. Because the
temperature changes are identical in the two gauges, the ratio of their resistance does not
change, the voltage VO does not change, and the effects of the temperature change are
minimized.

Dr. Islam Mohamed 20

 Capacitive Principle

Capacitive element

Dr. Islam Mohamed 21

 Capacitive Principle

Capacitive element
When the separation distance is increased by x
then the capacitance becomes :

Dielectric Move
Variation in area

Dr. Islam Mohamed 22

 Capacitive element
Push-Pull displacement sensor

• From Pervious relation, There is nonlinearity between ∆C and x. So this sensor

is used to overcome this problem.

• The Push pull capacitive sensor is used by placing the capacitor C1 in one arm of
an A.C bridge and placing the capacitor C2 in the other arm.
• When moving the central plate by a distance x, the resulting out of balance
voltage of the bridge is proportional to the displacement x.
• This sensor is typically used for monitoring displacements from a few millimeters
to hundreds of millimeters with a nonlinearity and hysteresis error about ± 0.01 %
of full scale.
Dr. Islam Mohamed 23
 Inductive Principle

Inductive element
 Change into inductance (self inductance or mutual
inductance) due to motion of the core.
 e. g. LVDT

Dr. Islam Mohamed 24

 Linear variable
Inductive differential transformers
Principle
• The central coil is the primary coil and the
other two are identical secondary coils which
are connected in series in such a way that their
outputs oppose each other.
• A magnetic core is moved through the central
tube as a result of the displacement being
monitored.
• When there is an alternating voltage input to
the primary coil, alternating e.m.f.s are induced
in the secondary coils.
• With the magnetic core central, the amount of
magnetic material in each of the secondary
coils is the same. Thus the e.m.f.s induced in
each coil are the same. Since they are so
connected that their outputs oppose each other,
the net result is zero output.
Dr. Islam Mohamed 25
 Linear variable
Inductive differential transformers
Principle
• when the core is displaced from the central
position there is a greater amount of magnetic core
in one coil than the other, e.g. more in secondary
coil 2 than coil 1. The result is that a greater e.m.f.
is induced in one coil than the other. There is then
a net output from the two coils.

• Typically, LVDTs have operating ranges from about ±2 to ±400 mm with

non-linearity errors of about ±0.25%. LVDTs are very widely used as
primary transducers for monitoring displacements.
• The free end of the core may be spring loaded for contact with the surface
being monitored, or threaded for mechanical connection.
Dr. Islam Mohamed 26
Eddy current proximity sensor
• The proximity switches are used to detect the presence of an item
without making contact with it.
• Eddy current proximity switch : this type has a coil supplied with
constant A.C and produces constant magnetic field.
• When a metallic object is close to that coil, an eddy current will be
induced in it.
• Due to the eddy current a back e.m.f will be induced in the original
coil which will affect the amplitude of its voltage.
• The voltage variation is used to activate
an electronic circuit comprising a
transistor, i.e, making that circuit on or off
according to the distance of the metallic
object. This conduction distance ranges
between 0.5 and 20 mm.
Dr. Islam Mohamed 27
Inductive proximity switch
• This type has a coil wound on a ferrous core. When one
end of the core is being near a ferrous object, there will be
a change in the coil inductance .

• The inductance change can be monitored using a resonant

circuit, where the current in that circuit may be used to
activate an electronic switch circuit to give an on/off
device. The range of detecting objects is from 2 to 15 mm.

Dr. Islam Mohamed 28

Optical Encoders
What are Optical Encoders ?
An Optical Rotary Encoder is an electro-mechanical
device that converts the angular position of a shaft to
a digital code.

Dr. Islam Mohamed 29

Optical Encoders
• An encoder is a device that provides a digital output as a result of a
linear or angular displacement. Position encoders can be grouped into
two categories: incremental encoders, which detect changes in
rotation from some datum position; and absolute encoders, which
give the actual angular position.
• The basic form of an incremental
encoder for the measurement of angular
displacement. A beam of light passes
through slots in a disc and is detected by
a suitable light sensor. When the disc is
rotated, a pulsed output is produced by
the sensor with the number of pulses
being proportional to the angle through
which the disc rotates
Dr. Islam Mohamed 30
 Optical Encoders
How do they work?
 Use light and photo detectors to produce a digital code.
 As the encoder shaft rotates, output signals are produced
proportional to the angle of rotation.
 The signal may be a square wave (for an incremental
encoder) or an absolute measure of position (for an absolute
encoder).

Dr. Islam Mohamed 31

 Optical Encoders
Optical Encoder parts
 Housing: protection from the
environment.
 Light source: produces the
light that will “trigger” the
photodetector during motion.
Usually LEDs or IR LEDs
 Shaft: mechanically attached
to the system we want to
measure; usually a motor.
 Code disk: has one or more
tracks with slits (windows) to
allow light to pass through.

Dr. Islam Mohamed 32

 Optical Encoders
Optical Encoder parts
 Mask: let the beams of light
collimated
 Photodetector: electronic sensor
that reacts to light. Usually a
phototransistor or photodiode.
 Electronic board: filters signal
into square wave used by
microcontroller.

Dr. Islam Mohamed 33

 Optical Encoders
Types of Optical Encoders

 Incremental Optical Encoders:

• Single channel

• Dual channel

• Dual channel with Zero index

 Absolute Optical Encoders

Dr. Islam Mohamed 34

 Optical Encoders
Incremental Encoders
 Generate a series of pulses as the shaft moves and provide relative
position information.
 They are typically simpler and cheaper than absolute encoders.
 Need external processing of signals.

Dr. Islam Mohamed 35

 Optical Encoders
Incremental Optical Encoder: Single channel
 Has only one output channel for encoding information.
 Used in unidirectional systems or where you don’t need to know
direction

Voltage Lo Hi Lo Hi Lo

Binary 0 1 0 1 0

Dr. Islam Mohamed 36

 Optical Encoders
Incremental Optical Encoder: Single channel

Dr. Islam Mohamed 37

 Optical Encoders
Incremental Optical Encoder: Dual channel

 The output has two lines of

pulses (“A” and “B” channel)
 They are 90° offset in order
to determine rotation
direction.
 This phasing between the
two signals is called
quadrature.

Dr. Islam Mohamed 38

 Optical Encoders
Incremental Optical Encoder: Dual channel

Dr. Islam Mohamed 39

 Optical Encoders
Incremental Optical Encoder: Dual channel with Z index
 Some quadrature encoders include a third channel (Z or Index)
 It supplies a single pulse per revolution used for precise determination
of a reference position.
 Need to do “homing” for it to work. Doesn’t hold after power down.

Dr. Islam Mohamed 40

 Optical Encoders
Incremental Optical Encoder Resolution

 Resolution essentially depends on the number of

windows on the code disk

Resolution = 360/N

N = number of windows on code disk

Dr. Islam Mohamed 41

 Optical Encoders
E.g.: Incremental Optical Encoder Resolution

 What number of windows are needed on the code

disk of an incremental optical encoder to measure
displacements of 1.5°?

Resolution =360° /N =1.5 ° → N = 240 windows

Dr. Islam Mohamed 42

 Optical Encoders
Example1

Consider an incremental encoder that produces 2500-pulses/revolution.

Assume that the photo detectors in the decoder circuit can handle signals
up to 1 MHz frequency.
Determine the maximum shaft speed (RPM) the encoder and decoder
circuit can handle.

1,000,000 𝑝𝑢𝑙𝑠𝑒/𝑠𝑒𝑐 𝑟𝑒𝑣

𝑤𝑚𝑎𝑥 = = 400 = 24,000 𝑅𝑃𝑀
2,500 𝑝𝑢𝑙𝑠𝑒/𝑟𝑒𝑣 𝑠𝑒𝑐

Dr. Islam Mohamed 43

 Optical Encoders
Example2
An incremental encoder has 360 slots. Starting from the reference point, the
photo sensor counts 100 slots clockwise (CW), 30 slots counterclockwise
(CCW), then 45 slots CW. What is the current position?

Sol.

If the disk has 360 slots, then each slot represents 1° of rotation. Starting
at the reference point, we first rotated 100° CW, then reversed 30° to
70°, and finally reversed again for 45°, bringing us finally to 115° (CW)
from the reference point.

Dr. Islam Mohamed 44

 Optical Encoders
Example3

A position-sensor system uses a 250-slot disk. The current value of the

counter is 00100110. What is the angle of the shaft being measured?

SOL.

For a 250-slot disk, each slot represents 360°/250 = 1.44°, and a count of
00100110 = 38 decimal, so the position is 38 × 1.44° = 54.72°.
Dr. Islam Mohamed 45
 Optical Encoders
Absolute Encoders
 Provides a unique digital output for each shaft position
 The code disk has many tracks. The number determines resolution.
 Upon a loss of power it keeps the correct position value.
 Uses binary or “grey” code.

Dr. Islam Mohamed 46

 Optical Encoders
Absolute encoders: Binary vs. Gray code

010 001

011 000

100 111

101 110

Dr. Islam Mohamed 47

 Optical Encoders
Absolute encoders: Binary vs. Gray code

011 001

010 000

110 100

111 101

Dr. Islam Mohamed 48

 Optical Encoders
Absolute Encoders Resolution

• Depends on the number of tracks on the code disk.

Each track requires an output signal, also known as an
“encoder bit”.

Resolution = 360°/(2N)

N = number of encoder bits (number of tracks)

Dr. Islam Mohamed 49

 Optical Encoders
E.g. Absolute Encoders Resolution

• An absolute encoder has 8 tracks on the disc. What is

its angular resolution in degrees?

Resolution = 360°/(2N) = 360°/(28) = 1.4°

Dr. Islam Mohamed 50

Pneumatic Sensors
• Pneumatic sensors use compressed air in conjunction with a
displacement or proximity of an object to produce a change in the air
pressure, where the absence of the object allows the air to escape and
reduces the pressure in the nearby sensor output port.
• On the other hand, the presence of the object will not allow the air to
escape and increases the pressure in the nearby sensor output port.
• Therefore, the output pressure of the sensor depends on the
proximity of the object.

Dr. Islam Mohamed 51

Proximity switches
• There are a number of forms of switches that can be activated by the
presence of an object in order to give a proximity sensing with an
output as ON or OFF such as :
1. Micro-switches. 2. Limit switches. 3. Magnetic reed switches.
4. Inductive proximity switches. 5. Eddy current proximity switches.
6. Photoelectric proximity switches.

 Micro switch is a small electrical switch which requires physical

contact and a small operating force to close the contacts. For
example, in the case of determining the presence of an item on a
conveyor belt.
 Limit switches : these switches are used to
detect the presence or passage of moving
parts, e.g, in case of lifts.
Dr. Islam Mohamed 52
 End of Lecture

Dr. Islam Mohamed 53