Unit-2 Sensing And Actuation

Principles of electromagnetic
Acoustics,
Chemical and mechanical sensing and actuation
Types of sensors and their applications
Their compatibility writer conventional and advanced
materials
Signal processing
Principles and characterization.
 UNIT - 2
SENSING AND ACTUATION
 Sensor: converts a physical parameter to an
electrical output (a type of transducer, e.g. a
microphone)

 Actuator: converts an electrical signal to a physical

output (opposite of a sensor, e.g. a speaker)

 Transducer: Device that converts energy from one

form to another
Essential features of smart components
• Sensors
• Actuators
• Controllers

Smart Materials are able to function as both an actuator

and a sensor
 INTRODUCTION
 Sensors and actuators based on electric/electrostatic principles.

 include MEMS (micro-electro-mechanical sensors), which are most often

based on electrostatic forces
 capacitive sensors (proximity, distance, level, material properties, humidity
and other quantities such as force, acceleration and pressure may be sensed)
and related field sensors.
 Magnetic sensors and actuators based on static and quasi-static magnetic fields.

 motors and valves for actuation,

 magnetic field sensors (hall element sensors, inductive sensors for position,
displacement, proximity and others),
 magnetostrictive sensors and actuators and more.
 A sensor is a converter that measures a physical quantity and converts it into a
signal which can be read by an observer or by an (today mostly electronic)
instrument.

 For example, a mercury-in-glass thermometer converts the measured temperature

into expansion and contraction of a liquid which can be read on a calibrated glass
tube.

 A thermocouple converts temperature to an output voltage which can be read by

a voltmeter. For accuracy, most sensors are calibrated against known standards.

 The use of ‘smart’ materials as sensors, as stated above, has the benefit that these
sensors can function as actuators at the same time, thereby reducing system
A good sensor obeys the following rules:
• Is sensitive to the measured property only
• Is insensitive to any other property likely to be encountered in its
application
• Does not influence the measured property

Type of Sensors
 Displacement Sensors
ex: Resistance, inductance, capacitance, piezoelectric

 Temperature Sensors
ex: Thermistors, thermocouples

 Electromagnetic radiation Sensors

 Displacement Measurements Sensors
 Used to measure directly and indirectly the size, shape, and
position of the organs.
 Displacement measurements can be made using sensors
designed to exhibit a resistive, inductive, capacitive or
piezoelectric change as a function of changes in position.
 Temperature Measurement

Temperature sensors type

- Thermocouples
- Thermistors
- Radiation and fiber-optic detectors
- p-n junction semiconductor (2 mV/oC)
Smart structure classification
Actuator consideration
• Nature of actuation

–optical,magnetic,thermal ,mechanical, chemical etc

• Nature of driving energy

–Thermal , magnetic, electrical, chemical etc

• Environmental considerations

–Corrosion, thermal, magnetic, electrical etc

 Interfacing

– Size ,Geometry ,mechanical properties etc.

 Properties of the actuator

–Displacement ,force generation,hysterisis, response

time, bandwidth etc.
 Type of sensor depend upon number of
considerations
 Nature of measurand(measuring parameter)

–Radiation ,magnetic, thermal, mechanical, chemical etc.

 Sensor Output

–Thermal ,magnetic,electrical,optical,mechanical etc

 Environment

– Corrosive,thermal,magnetic,electrical etc
 Interfacing

– Size ,Geometry ,mechanical properties etc.

 Operational Properties

–sensitivity ,Band width ,linearity , gauge length ,

operational range etc.
 Smart control system

 Smart control system will provide feedback control

for the sensors and actuators.

 The Smart control system will include the interfaces

necessary for the operation of the subsystem modules.
The Smart control system consist of the following:

• Analogue to digital and digital to analogue converters

• Input signal amplification and filtering

• Control system

• Digital signal processor

• Output power supply

 Actuator materials
 Actuator materials are one of the principal ingredients
of several important classes of smart materials and
structures.
 These are typically employed to dynamically tune the
global mechanical properties of the structure.
Current generation actuator materials

 Electro –rheological fluids

 Shape memory alloys

 Piezoelectric materials

 Magnetostrictive materials

 Electrostrictive materials

 Thermal materials
 Electro –rheological fluids

a) Before b) After
These are typically suspensions of micron sized hydrophilic
particles(corn starch) suspended in suitable hydrophobic carrier
liquids(silicon oil).

 Undergo significant instantaneous reversible changes in their

mechanical properties such as mass distribution, energy dissipation
when subjected to electric field.
 When these fluids are embedded in voids in structural
materials ,the imposition of an appropriate electrical field on
each voidal domain permits the mechanical properties of the
embedded fluid to be actively controlled.

 It enables the total properties of the structure containing the

ER fluid domains to be controlled.

 Viscous properties are modified by electric fields.

 The voltages required to activate the phase-change in ER

fluids are typically in the order of 1-4kV/mm of fluid

thickness.

 Current densities are in the order of 10mA/cm2

 Response time of ER fluids to an electrical stimulus is

typically less than one millisecond.

 Shape memory materials
 These materials plastically deformed at one temperature ,will
completely recover their original undeformed state upon raising their
temperature above an alloy –specific transformation temperature.
 The transformation temperature of these materials can be selectively-
tuned over a broad temperature range to suit each application.
 Plastic strains as high as 6% can be completely recovered by
subjecting them to heat.
 SMAs have been employed to both actuators and sensors in smart
materials and structure applications.
Crystal transformation
Piezoelectric materials
 Piezoelectric materials are solids which generate a charge in

response to a mechanical deformation or they develop

mechanical deformation when subjected to an electric field.

 They are employed as both actuators and sensors.

 Piezoelectric ceramics typically employed as actuators.

 Piezoelectric polymers typically employed as sensors for

temperature ,strain sensing.

 Magnetostrictive materials

 These are solids which typically develop large mechanical

deformations when subjected to an external magnetic field.

 This phenomenon attributed to the rotations of small magnetic domains

in the material, which are randomly oriented when the material is not

exposed to magnetic field.

 Orienting of these small domains by the imposition of magnetic field

results in the developments of strain field.

Orientation of small domains
 As the intensity of magnetic field increases more and more magnetic

domains orientate themselves .

 Terbium-iron alloys are typical Magnetostrictive materials.

 Terfenol-D is a commercially available magnetostrictive material (It

is rare earth element).

 The material offers strains up to 0.002,which is an order of

magnitude superior to the current generation piezoceramic materials.

 Electrostrictive materials
 Electrostrictive materials are similar to magnetostrictive materials

sine these materials develop mechanical deformations when they are

subjected to the external electric field.

 Electrostrictive phenomenon is attributed to the rotation of small

electrical domains in the material when imposition of external

electric field results in the developments of strain field.

 The ceramic compound lead-magnesium–niobate exhibits a thermo-

Electrostrictive effect is dependent upon ambient temperature.

 Thermal materials

 These are semiconductors act as heat pumps when a voltage is applied

to them.

 This excitation is responsible for the development of a temperature

gradient and hence deformation of the material.

 There are no of environmentally – responsive polymers that are

commercially available and some of the materials generate a

mechanical deformation in response to a thermal excitation.

 Sensing technologies
Leading candidates for strain measurement
 Fiber optic and shape memory alloy sensors generally provide an

integrated or average global measure of the deformation field

between two discrete domains.

 Piezoelectric and strain gauge sensors provide local domain

information.

 The measurement of strain by electrical strain gauges have employed

several diverse principles including resistive, piezoresistive ,

capacitive, inductive ,piezoelectric and photoelectric phenomena.

 Foil strain gauges operate on the principle of the change in electrical

resistance of the gauge when it is subjected to mechanical

deformation.

 This change in resistance is typically measured using a Wheatstone

bridge arrangement.
 Signal processing

Signal processing function reduces the data from the sensor array to useful

information while the control function given its knowledge of the structure

and the necessary “idealized ”structural response.

Signal-processing function reduces to two physical phases:

• Representing the input data in an appropriate format.

• Processing this reconfigured data to arrive at appropriate decisions that in

turn influence the display (for the sensing structure) or the control algorithm.
 Acoustic wave sensors
 Acoustic wave sensors are so named because their detection

mechanism is a acoustic wave. As the acoustic wave propagates

through or on the surface of the material, any changes to the

characteristics of the propagation path affect the velocity and/or

amplitude of the wave.

 Changes in velocity can be monitored by measuring the frequency or

phase characteristics of the sensor and can then be correlated to the

corresponding physical quantity being measured.

 Virtually all acoustic wave devices and sensors use a piezoelectric
material to generate the acoustic wave.

 Piezoelectric acoustic wave sensors apply an oscillating electric field

to create a mechanical wave, which propagates through the substrate
and is then converted back to an electric field for measurement.

 Among the piezoelectic substrate materials that can be used for

acoustic wave sensors and devices, the most common are quartz
(SiO2), lithium tantalate (LiTaO3), and, to a lesser degree, lithium

niobate (LiNbO3).
 The advantage of using acoustic waves (vs electromagnetic waves) is

the slow speed of propagation (5 orders of magnitude slower). For

the same frequency, therefore, the wavelength of the elastic wave is

100,000 times shorter than the corresponding electromagnetic

shortwave.

 This allows for the fabrication of very small sensors with frequencies

into the gigahertz range with very fast response times.

Influence on SAW
sensors
 Chemical and biochemical sensing

 Chemical and biochemical sensing is probably the most

fragmented of all measurement technologies.

 The diversity of chemical systems may be appreciated from

the observation that they cover everything from the
measurement of toxins in effluent to corrosion in steel and
gas monitoring in the atmosphere to blood gas assessment.
 Applications
 Toxic gases (carbon monoxide) can be typically detected using

doped tin oxide films.

 These are inexpensive ,well-established and easily understood

technology that is widely used in point sensors.

 Inflammable gases are usually detected by exploiting selective

catalysis based upon palladium or platinum electrodes.

 These are typically ionize the concerned gas ,producing ignition,

enhancing its chemical activity and changing local electrical

properties.
 Advanced materials
Advanced Materials has been bringing you the latest
progress in materials science for nearly 25 years.
Field of advanced material:
Materials science, nanotechnology, liquid crystals,
semiconductors, superconductors, optics, lasers, sensors,
porous materials, light emitting materials, photonics,
biological materials, magnetic materials, thin films.
 Light-emitting diode
 A light-emitting diode (LED) is a semiconductor light source.
LEDs are used as indicator lamps in many devices and are
increasingly used for general lighting. Appearing as practical
electronic components in 1962.

 Early LEDs emitted low-intensity red light, but modern

versions are available across the visible, ultraviolet, and
infrared wavelengths, with very high brightness.
 The first commercial LEDs were commonly used as

replacements for incandescent and neon indicator lamps,

and in seven-segment displays, first in expensive equipment

such as laboratory and electronics test equipment, then later

in such appliances as TVs, radios, telephones, calculators,

and even watches.

 Photonics
 The science of photonics includes the generation, emission,
transmission, modulation, signal processing, switching, amplification,
and detection/sensing of light.

 The term photonics thereby emphasizes that photons are neither

particles nor waves — they have both particle and wave nature.

 It covers all technical applications of light over the whole spectrum

from ultraviolet over the visible to the near-, mid- and far-infrared.
Most applications, however, are in the range of the visible and near
infrared light.
 APPLICATIONS
 Applications of photonics are everywhere. Included are all areas from

everyday life to the most advanced science, e.g. light detection,

telecommunications, information processing, lighting, metrology,

spectroscopy, holography, medicine.

 Consumer equipment: barcode scanner, printer, CD/DVD/Blu-ray

devices, remote control devices.

 Telecommunications: optical fiber communications, optical down

converter to microwave.

 Medicine: correction of poor eyesight, laser surgery, surgical

endoscopy, tattoo removal.

 Industrial manufacturing: The use of lasers for welding, drilling,