Transducer is a device that converts energy from one form to another.

It can be mechanical, electrical, magnetic, optical, chemical, acoustic, thermal, nuclear or their combinations.

The basic requirements of a transducer are ruggedness, linearity, repeatability, good dynamic response, high output signal
quality, high reliability, high stability and hysteresis-free.

Mechanical transducers are rugged, accurate, cheap and simple to manufacture, and operate without external power
supply.

However, they are not suitable for modern scientific experiments and process control due to their poor frequency response.
They are also incompatible for remote control and indication, and require large force to overcome mechanical friction.
Its disadvantages are overcome by electrical transducer.

Electrical transducer converts the measured quantity into electrical signal through electrical effects such as resistive,
inductive and capacitive effects.

Quantities such as temperature, pressure, speed etc cannot be measured directly, hence need to be sensed and converted
into non-electrical quantities. The non-electrical quantities are converted into electrical quantities such as current, voltage,
resistance, inductance and capacitance because they can be conveniently measured.

In electrical transducers, friction effect and mass-inertia effect are reduced to minimum. Besides, only small power is
required to operate the electrical or electronic system. They are also compatible with remote control and indication,
and the electrical output can be amplified to any desired level. They can also be miniaturised by utilising
microprocessors and integrated circuits.

However, they have lower reliability compared to mechanical transducers due to the ageing and drift of the active
components. Electrical transducers and their associated signal conditioners are also more expensive to manufacture.
Sometimes, the accuracy and resolution attainable are not as high as that of mechanical transducers.

Analogue transducer produces output that varies continuously in value.

Digital transducer produces output that varies in discrete steps in value.

Digital signal is more repeatable, reliable and easier to transmit.

Inverse transducer converts an electrical quantity into a non-electrical quantity.

Example: An ammeter or voltmeter converts electric current into mechanical movement.

Transducer converts a non-electrical quantity into an electrical quantity.

Example: Normally, a transducer and its associated circuit (sensor) have a non-electrical input and an electrical output, for
example, thermocouple, pressure gauge, strain gauge, etc.

Active transducer is self generating, that is, do not require an external power source to give a voltage or current output
signal.

Passive transducers such as resistive, capacitive and inductive elements require an external power supply in order to give a
voltage or current output signal.

Primary transducer converts the physical quantity to be measured into a measureable non-electrical quantity.

Secondary transducer converts the measureable non-electrical quantity into an electrical signal.

For example, in a Bourdon gauge, the Bourdon tube is the primary transducer that converts pressure into a displacement
(measureable non-electrical quantity), the displacement is then converted into an output voltage (electrical signal) by an
LVDT, the secondary transducer.
Pressure sensitive primary sensing elements
When pressure is applied to one side of the diaphragm which is fastened and stretched at its periphery, the centre of the diaphragm will
be displaced and this displacement is measured by a displacement transducer.

A diaphragm can be:

> Flat or corrugated (to increase deflection range)
> Capsule, consists of two diaphragms welded or soldered together (to increase deflection range)

Diaphragms can be made of elastic metal alloy (such as bronze, phosphor bronze, beryllium copper, ferrous nickel alloy etc.), ceramic,
plastic and stainless steel. Plastic diaphragm is the cheapest, metal diaphragm gives better accuracy, stainless steel diaphragm is usually
used in high temperature & corrosive environment, ceramic diaphragm is even resistant to strong alkali and acid, thus is used in
particularly harsh environment.

Material selection depends on chemical nature of the fluid that contacts with the diaphragm, temperature range and frequency response
requirement.

Diaphragms are rugged devices, having good stability, good reliability, high accuracy, good dynamic response, good linearity,
good over-range characteristics, low hysteresis, low creep, wide pressure range and can be made of corrosion-resistant materials.
However, they are difficult to repair and prone to shock and vibration.

Bellows is usually in cylindrical shape and contains many folds. It can be made by fastening several individual diaphragms together
or fabricated as a seamless tube, commonly using brass, phosphor bronze, hardened stainless steel, nickel alloy, beryllium copper etc.

It produces translational motion of the end of the bellows that can be measured by capacitive, inductive (LVDT) or potentiometric
transducers.

Bellows have high manufacturing cost and prone to failure. Its attribute of having greater measurement sensitivity compared to
diaphragm fades as advances in electronics make measurement sensitivity of diaphragm satisfactory. Thus, its usage is falling.

One side of the bellows is fixed and pressure is

applied inside the bellows against another side.

The bellows expands or compresses depending

on the pressure and moves the wiper of the
potentiometer (secondary transducer) to give
an electrical output signal.

The pressure is applied inside of the bellows forcing

it to expand against the pull of the tension spring.

The expansion of the bellows actuates a mechanical

linkage which moves the wiper of the potentiometer
to give an electrical output signal.
 Pressure is applied outside of the bellows
forcing it to contract against the push of the
compression spring.

The contraction of the bellows actuates a

mechanical linkage which moves the core
of an LVDT to give an electrical output
signal.

Bourdon tubes consists of a specially shaped piece of oval-section, flexible, metal tube that is fixed at one end and free to move at the
other end. When pressure is applied at the open fixed end of the tube, the oval cross-section becomes more circular. In consequence,
the free end of the tube displaces. This displacement is measured by displacement transducer, which is commonly a potentiometer or
LVDT. Capacitive and optical sensors are also sometimes used to measure the displacement. The common shapes of Bourdon tube are:

Spiral and helical tubes have greater measurement sensitivity and resolution. They give a much greater deflection at the free end for a
given applied pressure. However, this increased measurement performance is gained at the expense of increase in manufacturing
difficulty and cost, decrease in the maximum pressure that can be measured.

Bourdon tubes are cheap and simple to manufacture, easily adapted to obtain electrical output, having wide pressure range, high
sensitivity, good repeatability and good accuracy except at low pressure. However, they are prone to shock and vibration and having low
spring gradient limiting their use for precision measurement up to a pressure of 3Mpa. Bourdon tubes only have guaranteed accuracy
limits when measuring gaseous pressures. Their use for accurate measurement of liquid pressures poses great difficulty unless the gauge
can be totally filled with liquid (no bubbles) during both calibration and measurement. For best accuracy, Bourdon tube should be
calibrated with the fluid to be measured to avoid non-zero deflection.

The wall thickness (typically 0.25mm – 1.25 mm) and material determine the maximum pressure to which the tube can be subjected.
Selection of material depends on the fluid and pressure for which the tube is designed to handle, but elasticity is a must for adequate
reliability. Common materials are phosphor bronze, beryllium copper, stainless steel, alloy steel, brass and Monel metal.

Mechanical spring primary sensing elements

A cantilever of length L meter subjected to a

force of F newtons at its free end will have a
deflection of y meter at the free end.

Where E is the modulus of elasticity in N/m2

and I is the moment of inertia in m4, of the
cantilever.
 A close-coiled helical spring subjected to a
compressive force of F newtons will have a
displacement of y meter.

Where D is the diameter of the spring coil in meter,

d is the diameter of the spring wire in meter,
n is the number of coils and G is the modulus
of rigidity in N/m2.

A flat spiral spring subjected to a torque of T Nm will

have a deflection of Ѳ radian. Where L is the length of
the spiral strip in meter, E is the modulus of elasticity
in N/m2 and I is the moment of inertia in m4.

The deflection or twist of the torsion bar is

proportional to the applied torque and thus
used as a measure of the torque.

A bar subjected to a torque of T Nm will have

an angle of twist of Ѳ radian. Where D is the
diameter of the bar and G is the modulus of
rigidity in N/m2.

The proving ring is a device used to

measure compressive or tensile force and
is made of steel alloy. It consists of an
elastic ring of known diameter with a
diameter-measuring device located in
the centre of the ring. Forces are applied
to the ring through the external bosses.
The resulting change in diameter,
referred to as the deflection of the ring,
is measured with an electrical transducer
(micrometer screw) mounted
diametrically within the ring.

A load cell is a transducer that is used to convert a

force into electrical signal. Through an elastic
component (primary transducer), the force being
sensed deforms a strain gauge (secondary
transducer). The strain gauge converts the
deformation (strain) to electrical signals. The strain
can then be computed to obtain stress and load.
There are many designs such as s-beam, bending
beam, shear beam, column type and ring type.