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Mini tunnel magneto-resistance effect sensors

Littelfuse has released its highly anticipated 54100 and 54140 mini Tunnel Magneto-Resistance (TMR) effect sensors, offering unmatched sensitivity and power efficiency. The key differentiator is their remarkable sensitivity and 100x improvement in power efficiency compared to Hall Effect sensors. They are well suited for applications in position and limit sensing, RPM measurement, brushless DC motor commutation, and more in various markets including appliances, home and building automation, and the industrial sectors.
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Real-world applications: FUTEK 100 sensor examples

Get inspired. FUTEK has more than 100 real-world application examples for their load cells, force transducers, torque sensors, pressure sensors, and multi-axis sensors. From a cryogenic load cell on the Mars Curiosity rover to fly-by-wire multi-axis force and torque sensors for aircraft, learn about sensor systems, their specs, and design. Automotive, manufacturing, medical, robotics, and automation are covered too. Fascinating and highly practical.
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Rugged sensor measures surface temperatures

TDK's tiny new T850 SMT NTC sensor measures surface temperatures for applications such as heat sinks of power modules and monitoring of industrial processes. It combines high humidity resistance with fast response time due to excellent thermal coupling to the target. The sensor is suitable for harsh environments with temps from -40 C to 150 C and is waterproof to 500 hrs.
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Position sensor real-world applications: Automotive and mobile equipment

From firetruck nozzle positioning and race car steering to accelerator control and wheel vector sensing, learn how position sensors from Novotechnik are used in real-world applications. Sensor types include non-contacting rotary sensors, angle sensors, and magnetic encoders. We love when manufacturers provide examples of their products in action.
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Detecting part errors: Automotive resistance welding machines

NewTek Sensor Solutions has designed a custom linear variable differential transformer (LVDT) position sensor for resistance spot welding machines used in automotive plants to detect missing or misaligned parts in nut and stud welding. Cars contain hundreds of welded nuts and studs that hold them together. Properly securing the right nut and stud to different car components is critical to safe operations.
Read the full article.

What can you do with touchless magnetic angle sensors?

Novotechnik has put together a really informative video highlighting real-world applications for their RFC, RFE, and RSA Series touchless magnetic angle sensors. You may be surprised at the variety of off-highway, marine, material handling, and industrial uses. You'll learn how they work (using a Hall effect microprocessor to detect position) and their key advantages, including eliminated wear and tear on these non-mechanical components. We love when manufacturers provide such useful examples.
View the video.

Ultrasonic sensors for packaging and automotive

The new, compact ultrasonic sensors of the HTU200 and DMU200 series from Leuze are particularly suitable for applications in the packaging and automotive industries. They reliably perform difficult detection and measuring tasks by themselves, detecting objects regardless of their surface structure using a reflected acoustic pulse -- even glossy, transparent, or dark surfaces, as well as liquids or granular products. Available in a variety of sizes with operating ranges from 0.1 to 6 m; some models have an IO-Link interface. Leuze has an appropriate solution for every requirement.
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Gyroscope for non-safety automotive applications

TDK has just released its new InvenSense IAM-20380HT high-temp automotive monolithic 3-axis MotionTracking sensor platform solution for non-safety automotive applications, which includes the IAM-20380HT 3-axis MEMS gyroscope and the DK-20380HT developer kit. The standalone gyroscope delivers reliable and highly accurate measurement data for a variety of automotive non-safety applications including, but not limited to, navigation and dead reckoning, vehicle tracking, telematics, door control, and vision systems.
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Think machine vision is too complex or expensive?

Are you under the impression that machine vision is too complex and/or too expensive for your application? Not anymore. Today's smart vision sensors incorporate on-board machine learning, empowering users to deploy them in common applications without the cost and complexity of traditional products. Learn how smart vision sensors can provide pass/fail indication for common detection applications for basic machines.
Read this informative AutomationDirect article.

Real-World Sensor Applications: Aircraft control-column torque measurement

Flight controls require extreme auditing prior to in-flight use. FUTEK's MBA500 Torque and Thrust Biaxial Sensor provides quality-assurance engineers with the appropriate tools to monitor the torque applied to an aircraft's control column (yoke).
See how engineers design this test setup.

Machine vision: Check part orientation and more

Automation-Direct has entered the industrial vision market with the addition of the Datalogic Smart Vision sensor. This sensor is an intelligent self-contained system that can capture an object's image as it passes by and make decisions based on the details of that image. Built around a powerful multiprocessor platform featuring embedded artificial intelligence tech, the Smart-VS sensor is highly advanced but remains simple to configure. Applications include part orientation for pick-and-place systems, verifying proper application of tamper-proof seals, and checking solder connections in circuit board production.
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Battery-powered wireless multi-sensor module for machine monitoring

TDK has collaborated with Texas Instruments on the new i3 Micro Module, the world's first sensor module with built-in edge AI and wireless mesh connectivity. The i3 Micro Module's ultracompact battery-powered wireless sensor allows users to achieve sensing at almost any desired position without physical constraints like wiring. This dramatically expedites the prediction of anomalies in machinery and equipment, enabling an ideal Condition-based Monitoring implementation for an enhanced smart factory environment.
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Pull-type solenoids in a range to meet tons of applications

Magnetic Sensor Systems (MSS) has released their S-20-100X model of high-efficiency, low-cost Pull Type Tubular Solenoids (1 in. diameter x 2 in. long). Their S-20-100X series features 18 different solenoids to select from based on the voltage, duty cycle, force, and stroke requirement of the user. MSS solenoid coils typically use Class F 23- to 40-AWG windings with Class A insulation for better protection of the solenoid during longer duty cycles. Applications include: vending machines, medical dispensing, mixing, valve control, farm machinery, disconnects, transmission shifting, fire suppression systems, cabinet locks, door controls, and sorting equipment.
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Industrial imaging at warp speed

When fast-moving scenes need to be captured in all their details, a high-performance transmission interface is essential in addition to the right sensor. With uEye Warp10, IDS Imaging Development Systems GmbH is launching a new camera family that, thanks to 10GigE, transmits data in the Gigabit Ethernet-based network at a very high frame rate and virtually without delay. The first models with the IMX250 (5 MP), IMX253 (12 MP), and IMX255 (8.9 MP) sensors from the Sony Pregius series are now available.
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New compact touchless linear position sensors

The TFD Series of touchless linear position sensors from Novotechnik provides wear-free operation in tight spaces. The TFD-4000 Series uses a magnetic position marker to provide a touchless measurement range of 0 to 14, 24, or 50 mm -- depending on model. These sensors make measurements through air and non-magnetic materials. Sensing direction can be either parallel or perpendicular to mounting holes. Applications include textile, packaging, and sheet metal machinery; medical applications; marine; mobile engine management; and construction, agricultural, and forestry machinery.
Learn more.

Tiny levers make big moves in piezoelectric sensors

A team of university researchers, aided by scientists at the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST), have succeeded in integrating a new, highly efficient piezoelectric material into a silicon microelectromechanical system (MEMS).* This development could lead to significant advances in sensing, imaging, and energy harvesting.

A piezoelectric material, such as quartz, expands slightly when fed electricity and, conversely, generates an electric charge when squeezed. Quartz watches take advantage of this property to keep time: electricity from the watch's battery causes a piece of quartz to expand and contract inside a small chamber at a specific frequency that circuitry in the watch translates into time.

Piezoelectric materials are also in sensors in sonar and ultrasound systems, which use the same principle in reverse to translate sound waves into images of, among other things, fetuses in utero and fish under the water. Although conventional piezoelectric materials work fairly well for many applications, researchers have long sought to find or invent new ones that expand more and more forcefully and produce stronger electrical signals. More reactive materials would make for better sensors and could enable new technologies such as "energy harvesting," which would transform the energy of walking and other mechanical motions into electrical power.

Enter a material named PMN-PT.**

A large team led by scientists from the University of Wisconsin-Madison developed a way to incorporate PMN-PT into tiny, diving-board like cantilevers on a silicon base, a typical material for MEMS construction, and demonstrated that PMN-PT could deliver two to four times more movement with stronger force—while using only 3 volts—than most rival materials studied to date. It also generates a similarly strong electric charge when compressed, which is good news for those in the sensing and energy harvesting businesses.

To confirm that the experimental observations were due to the piezoelectric's performance, NIST researcher Vladimir Aksyuk developed engineering models of the cantilevers to estimate how much they would bend and at what voltage. Aksyuk also made other performance measures in comparison to silicon systems that achieve similar effects using electrostatic attraction.

"Silicon is good for these systems, but it is passive and can only move if heated or using electrostatics, which requires high voltage or large dissipated power," says Aksyuk. "Our work shows definitively that the addition of PMN-PT to MEMS designed for sensing or as energy harvesters will provide a tremendous boost to their sensitivity and efficiency. A much bigger 'bend for your buck,' I guess you could say."

Other participants included researchers from Penn State University; the University of California, Berkeley; the University of Michigan; Cornell University; and Argonne National Laboratory.

* S.H. Baek, J.Park, D.M. Kim, V.A. Aksyuk, R.R. Das, S.D. Bu, D.A. Felker, J. Lettieri, V. Vaithyanathan, S.S.N. Bharadwaja, N. Bassiri-Gharb, Y.B. Chen, H.P. Sun, C.M. Folkman, H.W. Jang, D.J. Kreft, S.K. Streiffer, R. Ramesh, X.Q. Pan, S. Trolier-McKinstry, D.G. Schlom, M.S. Rzchowski, R.H. Blick and C.B. Eom. Giant piezoelectricity on Si for hyperactive MEMS. Science. Published Nov. 18, 2011. Vol. 334 no. 6058 pp. 958-961. DOI: 10.1126/science.1207186.

** A crystalline alloy of lead, magnesium niobate, and lead titanate.

Source: NIST

Published February 2012

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