Sensor Tips

NevadaNano announced its Molecular Property Spectrometer (MPS) R-290 Propane sensor. The new device is the most accurate on the market, making it an ideal solution for residential and commercial R-290 propane applications including air conditioning, vending machines, commercial refrigeration racks, and clothes dryers. According to Reports and Data, the Global Natural Refrigerants Market, which includes […]

Within a few months of the COVID-19 outbreak in 2020, researchers started investigating how wastewater-based epidemiology (WBE), extracting data from urine and feces transported through sewers, could be used in the fight to isolate, contain and prevent the virus from spreading. At the first company in the world to commercialize data from sewage, Biobot Analytics, […]

ProSense GWR series liquid level sensors utilize guided wave radar sensing technology to provide accurate, cost-effective liquid level measurement for industrial applications. These units provide continuous and point-level measurements and have a rugged IP68/IP69K rated 316 stainless steel housing that offers uncompromising protection and long life in harsh industrial environments. The GWR-1600-P probe is best […]

AutomationDirect has added a new line of laser sensors. Wenglor dark and shiny object detection photoelectric sensors use blue light technology to detect objects other photoelectric sensors cannot see or see objects that get detected multiple times erroneously. They come in either 50x20x50mm or 32x12x16mm body sizes with an M12 or M8 quick-disconnect. These sensors […]

Posifa Technologies announced the next generation of its mass airflow sensors for use in respiratory care and other medical and instrumentation applications. Designed to provide an extra level of protection for reliable performance in harsh environments with high humidity and trace amounts of corrosive gases, new PMF83000 and PMF86000 series sensors have been enhanced with […]

The first part of this article looked at the challenges of sensing nano-level flow rates such as found in the blood vessels. In contrast, the second part looked at graphene, an allotrope of elemental carbon at the heart of a new sensor used to measure those flows. This third and final part looks at the […]

The previous part of this article looked at the challenges of nanoflow sensors, especially with respect to blood flow. This part looks at graphene, which is the basis for the new sensor. Graphene is a material structure which did not exist until relatively recently. However, its constituent element of graphite – the crystalline form of […]

When it comes to nearly all biological measurements, the ranges of many of the parameters of interest are orders-of-magnitude below those with which many engineers are familiar. Instead of megahertz or even kilohertz, the living-creature world is in the single or double-digit hertz range, such as the roughly 60+ beats per minute (BPM) for a […]

Fingerprint scanners, which were once reserved for biometric logging systems and attendance systems, are now part of regular smartphones and much more. Fingerprints have been a trusted method of personal identity. Combined with face id or other biometric identification systems like retina scanning, fingerprints offer an impeccable way to recognize any person. With a blast […]

Integrating compact, precise displacement measurement into standard control technology reduces complexities The EL5072 EtherCAT Terminal from Beckhoff enables direct connection of up to two inductive displacement sensors, including transducers in LVDT and half-bridge designs or inductive angular position sensors in the RVDT version. Thus, precise position and distance measurements, e.g., in the context of process […]

Common question. New planet. It’s April and in the Gale Crater, where the Curiosity rover is currently exploring, that means early autumn temperatures: highs around 10°F and lows less than -100°F reported from its Rover Environmental Monitoring Station (REMS). In addition to air and ground temperatures around the rover, other measurements include atmospheric pressure, humidity […]

Balluff’s new digital position guide simplifies format change and minimizes errors and downtime. The easy-to-use position indicator was designed to simplify format change to more easily meet the ever-decreasing lot sizes resulting from individualized packaging and special formats. It allows users to quickly configure machinery to adapt to varying materials, weights and package counts while […]

Matrox Imaging is pleased to announce that its MIL-Lite X software development kit is now available as a free download for all interested users. A subset of the powerful Matrox Imaging Library (MIL) X, MIL-Lite X delivers a range of programming functions for performing image capture, annotation, display, and archiving. Licensed for both application development […]

Among the many ways to sense temperature, combinations of advanced optical principles used with optical fibers offer very different approaches, with application advantages and implementation limitations. The previous part of this article looked at two approaches to using optical fibers for temperature sensing based on the fiber Bragg grating (FBG) and the Mach-Zehnder interferometer (MZI). […]

Among the many ways to sense temperature, combinations of advanced optical principles used with optical fibers offer very different approaches, with application advantages but also implementation limitations. The first part of this article discussed general issues of sensing of physical parameters, especially temperature, and total internal reflection in optical fibers. This section will look at […]

Among the many ways to sense temperature, combinations of advanced optical principles used with optical fibers offer very different approaches, with application advantages and implementation limitations. Temperature is the most widely sensed physical parameter; it’s that simple. What’s not simple is the many ways we have of measuring it through the use of sensors such […]

AutomationDirect has added a variety of new ProSense inductive proximity sensors to their portfolio. Added are 8mm triple-sensing inductive proximity sensors in flush and non-flush mounting options, which can detect ferrous metals up to a distance of 6mm. Also new are inductive proximity sensors with a metal face to provide more durable protection, with environmental […]

Superior Sensor Technology announced the HS Series, an advanced family of differential pressure transmitter (DPT) subsystems that offer engineers a flexible, accurate, and easily configurable DPT design solution for HVAC and industrial air handling systems. The HS Series is a DPT subsystem that includes the already popular performance features of the HV Series with additional […]

Strong price pressure combined with high-quality requirements – the beverage and bottle industry faces the classic dilemma of many industries. This is also the case in the quality control department of a French manufacturer of plastic caps. Reliably detecting cracks and micro-cracks on plastic caps in 40 different colors and shades running at high speed […]

One sensing tool that has played an important role since the beginning of COVID-19 is data loggers. Data loggers use a wide variety of sensors to measure everything from temperature to illuminance.  One specific type of data logger equipped with a CO2 sensor has been used since the beginning of the pandemic to monitor and […]

Superior Sensor Technology today announced the HS Series, an advanced family of differential pressure transmitter (DPT) subsystems that offer engineers a flexible, accurate and easily configurable DPT design solution for HVAC and industrial air handling systems. The HS Series is a DPT subsystem which includes the already popular performance features of the HV Series with additional […]

A load cell is a type of force sensor and it has a direct relationship to pressure, since: pressure = force/area                                    Eq. 1 The load cell’s electrical output is proportional to the mechanical force applied to it. The force can be hydraulic or pneumatic and the transducer is normally based on strain gauges. Other types […]

The new photoelectric sensors with condition monitoring from Balluff deliver capabilities not yet seen before in the market. In addition to providing solid photoelectric sensing, they deliver the condition monitoring and advanced IO-Link features of the Smart Automation and Monitoring System (SAMS) portfolio, meant to eliminate downtime by simplifying troubleshooting, changeover, and setup of machines. […]

Large Predator B drones, built by General Atomics Aeronautical Systems and first flown in 2001, are used by the military to perform multi-mission Intelligence, Surveillance and Reconnaissance (ISR) missions over land or sea. Sensing payloads in the MQ-9A Predator B remotely piloted aircraft (RPA), include: Multi-Spectral Targeting System Model B (MTS-B) Electro-optical/Infrared (EO/IR), Lynx multi-mode […]

Utilized as a no-touch method to provide either precise distance measurement to an object or simple “there/not there” logic, proximity sensors span a wide range of technologies, each offering their own set of operating principles, advantages, and drawbacks. Some of the most commonly found technologies in portable or small embedded systems include ultrasonic, photoelectric, laser […]