Vibration causes havoc in many applications.

From machine shafts and bearings to hard disk performance, vibration

causes machine damage, early replacement, low performance, and inflicts a major hit on accuracy.
Using vibration analysis as a tool to determine the specific cause and location of machinery problems can expedite
repairs and minimize costs. Vibration sensors can measure and analyze displacement, linear velocity, and
acceleration. These parameters are mathematically related and can be derived from a variety of sensors. Selection of
a sensor proportional to displacement, velocity, or acceleration depends on the frequencies of interest and the signal
levels involved.
Three major factors differentiate vibration sensors: the natural frequency, damping coefficient, and scale factor. The
scale factor relates the output to an acceleration input and is linked to sensitivity. Together, the natural frequency and
damping coefficient determine the accuracy level of a vibration sensor. In a system consisting of a spring and
attached mass, if you were to pull the mass back away from equilibrium and release the mass, the mass would
vibrate forward (past the equilibrium) and backward until it came to rest. The friction that brings the mass to rest is
defined by the damping coefficient, and the rate at which the mass vibrates forward and backward is its natural
frequency.
The two basic piezoelectric materials used in vibration sensors today are synthetic piezoelectric ceramics and quartz.
In a piezoelectric sensor or accelerometer, the sensing element is a crystal that emits a charge when subjected to
compression. The crystal is bonded to a mass so that when it is subjected to a g force, the mass compresses the
crystal and a signal is emitted. The signal value is relative to the force imposed.
The crystals are attached between a center post and a seismic mass. A compression ring or stud applies a pre-load
force to the element assembly to ensure a rigid structure and linear behavior. Under acceleration, the mass causes
shear stress to the sensing crystals, resulting in a proportional electrical output by the piezoelectric material. The
output is collected by electrodes and transmitted by lightweight lead wires to other circuitry or directly to connectors.
This small acceleration signal can be amplified for acceleration measurements or converted within the sensor into a
velocity or displacement signal. Most piezoelectric sensors used in vibration monitoring today contain internal
amplifiers. An op amp can be used to interface these sensors to an A/D converter, either discrete or on a
microcontroller. Be careful to choose a high-input-impedance op amp to minimize current.
Once recorded, vibration data can be analyzed for an immediate diagnosis or saved for later or deeper evaluation, for
example, to record trends and history involved in a machines health, for asset protection in financial and retail
environments, or to differentiate between ambient vibration and real attacks in such applications as ATMs, vending,
and ticket machines.
The sensing element can be housed to withstand whatever environmental conditions exist. The rugged, solid-state
construction of industrial piezoelectric sensors enables them to operate under most harsh environmental conditions.
They are unaffected by dirt, oil, and most chemical atmospheres. They perform well over a wide temperature range
and resist damage due to severe shocks.
Piezoceramics
While both quartz and ceramics are adequate for successful vibration sensor design, differences in their properties
allow for design flexibility. For example, natural piezoelectric quartz has lower charge sensitivity and exhibits a higher
noise floor when compared to the modern "tailored" piezoceramic materials. Nevertheless, most vibration sensor
manufacturers now use piezoceramic materials developed specifically for sensor applications. Special formulations
yield optimized characteristics to provide accurate data in extreme operating environments. The exceptionally high
output sensitivity of piezoceramic material allows the design of sensors with increased frequency response when
compared to quartz.
Piezoceramic vibration sensors can be used in shock measurements (explosions and failure tests), high-frequency
measurements, and slower low-frequency vibration measurements. This is shown by their higher than average
natural frequency. However, this sensor typically has outputs in the millivolt range and requires a high-inputimpedance, low-noise detector to interpret voltages from its piezoelectric crystal.
Another important application is vibration energy harvesting. This converts otherwise wasted energy from mechanical
vibrations into useable electrical energy. The Mid Volture vibration energy harvester (Figure 1), for example, uses
normally brittle piezoelectric materials and incorporates a piezoelectric transducer packaging technology. The Volture
packages piezoelectric materials in a protective skin with pre-attached electrical leads and no soldered wires. It
features a low profile, can be used in harsh environments, is available in multiple sizes to match numerous

applications, and integrates directly with COTS products. Applications include health monitoring network sensors,
condition-based maintenance sensors, wireless HVAC sensors, mobile asset tracking, tire pressure and oil and gas
sensors, air, land and sea vehicle sensors, and battery and hard wired power replacements.

Figure 1: A typical application of the Volture energy harvester.

The performance of accelerometers for these applications is increasing dramatically. For example,
the ADXL001 by Analog Devices, Inc.(Figure 2) provides high performance and wide bandwidth for industrial
monitoring, medical instrumentation, sports diagnostic equipment, and military applications where wide bandwidth,
small form factor, low power, and high performance are critical.

Figure 2: Sensor frequency response ADXL001 by Analog Devices. (Courtesy of Analog Devices.)
Features of the ADXL001 include 70 g, 250 g, and 500 g wideband range availability, 22 kHz resonant frequency
structure, high linearity at 0.2% of full scale, low noise at 4 mg/Hz, sensitive axis in the plane of the chip, frequency
response down to DC, full differential signal processing, and a high resistance to EMI/RFI. It also features low power
consumption (2.5 mA typical), and is housed in an 8-terminal, hermetic ceramic, LCC package.
Another interesting part is the Measurement Specialties 0-1002794-0 cantilever piezo film sensor. This sensor can be

hard mounted to a surface, floating in an axis of inertia, or mass loaded to pre-bias and calibrate. The output voltage
swings can directly trip a FET or CMOS input, and a multiaxis response can be obtained by offsetting the mass
center. As the piezo film is displaced from the mechanical neutral axis, bending creates very high strain within the
piezopolymer and therefore high voltages are generated. When the assembly is deflected by direct contact, the
device acts as a flexible "switch", and the generated output is sufficient to trigger MOSFET or CMOS stages directly.
If the assembly is supported by its contacts and left to vibrate "in free space" (with the inertia of the clamped/free
beam creating bending stress), the device will behave as an accelerometer or vibration sensor. Adding mass, or
altering the free length of the element by clamping, can change the resonant frequency and sensitivity of the sensor
to suit specific applications.
Future uses of vibration sensors may well run far afield of todays applications. At NASAs Ames research facility, for
example, engineers are studying fiber optic pressure and vibration sensors. In this research, sensors use the phase
modulation of light traveling through an optical fiber exposed to external fields. The phase modulation is retrieved and
processed to determine a specific field characteristic, relaying data at high speeds through the fiber. External
disturbances such as strain, pressure, temperature, acoustics and vibration cause measureable phase changes in
the light signal that are measured by the fibers electrical unit. Potential commercial uses include a medical
application such as an artificial voice box, where a fiber optic acoustic sensor is implanted to amplify the vibrations in
a patients throat, eliminating a handheld throat device.
Summary
Global competition and pressure on corporate performance makes productivity a primary concern for any business. A
good means, then, of reducing the overall operating cost of industrial plants by acting as an indicator of machinery
health is a machinery vibration monitoring program. Used to spot imbalances in rotating components, alignment
problems of machine shafts, worn components, or loose bearings, vibration analysis can reveal all of these telltale
factors of impending machinery breakdown.
With todays vibration sensors, data acquisition and analysis technologies, vibration analysis is less expensive and
much more mainstream than in the past. And at the heart of the vibration monitoring system is a piezoceramic
sensor. This article has examined the basic features and benefits of this sensor and presented a representative
sampling of currently available parts. For more information on the products discussed use the links provided to
access product information pages on the Digi-Key website.