By

Applied Electronics And Instrumentation

7th Semester,2008
Purushottam Institute of engg. & Technology
 A sensor is a device that measures a
physical quantity and converts it into a
signal which can be read by an observer
or by an instrument.
Sensors and instrument packages that are
microprocessor driven and include
features such as communication capability
and on-board diagnostics that provide
information to a monitoring system and/or
operator to increase operational efficiency
and reduce maintenance costs.
Analog/Digital Converter
Typically 10-14 bits, usually internal
Microcontroller (embedded)
PIC or similar 8-bit micro with appropriate
features
Sensor Identification (serial # etc)
Calibration information
Compensates for sensor variations;
conversion to engineering units
Data logging and real-time clock
(optional)
 Intelligent sensors
Requirements:
 Data
 Accuracy and confidence
 Self diagnostic
 Self calibration

How to do it?
 Uncertainty management
 Learning ability
 Network + database
 Adaptation ability
 Fault detection mechanism

Associated software sensors

System
A combination of two or more elements, subsystems and parts
necessary to carry out one or more functions [PAW91]
To interact with the real world, a system requires

Sensors: inputs devices

Actuators: output devices Processing: signals, information and
knowledge

Sensor
A device that receives and responds to a stimulus [Fdn97]
Stimulus: mechanical, thermal, magnetic, electric, optical,
chemical…
Response: an electrical signal (in most cases)

Intelligence
The ability to combine
A prior knowledge (available before experience) and
Adaptive learning (from experience)
 A "smart sensor" is a transducer (or actuator) that provides
functions beyond what is necessary to generate a correct
representation of a sensed or controlled quantity (e.g.,
temperature, pressure, strain, flow, pH, etc.). The "smart sensor"
functionality will typically simplify the integration of the transducer
into applications in a networked environment. For example, a
measurement from a temperature transducer requires the network
controller to make a voltage-to-temperature conversion to
represent the data in either degrees fahrenheit or degrees celcius.
An intelligent temperature transducer (smart sensor) has a built-in
transducer electronic data sheet (TEDS) to make the measurement
conversion and provide the data in units of temperature to the
network controller. To do this, the smart sensor module also
contains the digital interface to provide a communication channel
between the network control and the smart sensor.
 There are two main components of a functional smart sensor:
1) a transducer interface module (TIM) and
2) a network capable application processor (NCAP)
 Aerospace applications require a range of
chemical sensing technologies to monitor
conditions in both space vehicles and in
aircraft operations.
 Industrial development in harsh
environments or applications where it may
not be safe or feasible for people to work
efficiently - in some underground mining
operations, for example.
Application of intelligent imaging
sensors to image guided and intensity
modulated radiotherapy

Nano technology Enabled Sensors

In almost all fields like transportation,
communications, building, medicine,
safety and security, Nanosensors can play
a vital role (Mainly by reducing the area of
the sensor system).
 Automotive
 aerospace
 defense
 industrial
 intelligent house
 wear
 medical
 homeland security.
The Upstream™
Series of UV
Water
Purification
Systems

Intelligent Sensors

Patented dual-sensor
system monitors both
UV output and water
quality.

Optional solenoid valve

shuts water off in unsafe
conditions.
 Biosensors, designed for the detection of
interesting biological signals. Biosensors usually
yield a digital electronic signal which is
proportional to the concentration of a specific
biological or chemical
 Biosensors have been applied to a wide variety of
analytical problems including in medicine, health
care, environmental monitoring, drug discovery,
the environment, food, process industries,
security, defense, bioprocess monitoring and
control. Personal monitoring devices such as
glucose sensors for diabetics. Biosensors for
Environmental Monitoring.
 To support the requirements of distributed
sensor networks, sensors must possess greater
functionality than simply gathering data and blindly
transmitting the data to a centralized sensor node.
Intelligent sensors are an extension of traditional sensors
to those with advanced learning and adaptation
capabilities. The system must also be re-configurable
and perform the necessary data interpretation, fusion of
data from multiple sensors and the validation of local
and remotely collected data. Intelligent sensors therefore
contain embedded processing functionality that provides
the computational resources to perform complex sensing
and actuating tasks along with high level applications.
http://www.ee.unimelb.edu.au/ISSNIP/resear
Ricardo Gutierrez-Osuna, Intelligent
Sensor Systems, Wright State University
A. Sachenko, V. Kochan and V.
Turchenko. Instrumentation for Data
Gathering. IEEE Instrumentation &
Measurement Magazine , September
2003, pp. 34-41.