Uses For A Linear Position Sensor

By Adriana Noton


A linear position sensor provides positioning data to the computer that handles one of many different things in a machine or mechanism. The sensor can work in everything from a machine that manufactures automobile parts to an automobile itself. Though it has many other applications, the sensor works best in a car because it can identify the position of so many things in a car's inner workings.

In a car, there are many parts in the mechanism that require a sensor to send information to the car's computer. This is how the car flashes little lights at you to let you know when certain parts of the car aren't working. These sensors also allow new technologies on luxury cars to work properly. You can't have many of the fancy new features in today's vehicles without them.

Take the example of headlights that turn before you enter a curve. The headlights only know that a curve is coming because of a sensor that tells the car its position on the road and that a turn is coming. The computer can use this information to turn the headlights and anticipate the turn, and it can do that reliably over and over again.

Vehicles with parallel parking features employ this same technology to get the can parked safely. The devices send constant streams of information to the computer to alert it to the position of other cars and the roadside. The vehicle can steer itself while parking of the data that the sensors provide. The process is safe because it receives accurate positioning data.

These same items can tell the computer where the throttle is, how the brake system is doing, the position of the camshaft, and even the state of the transmission. The mechanical components of a car all report back to the computer in this way. This also makes a mechanic's job easier because he can read the diagnostic codes that were likely provided by a sensor. The vehicle can self-regulate at all times without the help of the driver or the driver's technical knowledge.

The safety features also work through the help of these units. They sense when a collision occurs, where it has occurred, and which airbags of safety measures to deploy. The same goes for the locks on the doors, the windows, and the latch on the trunk. Every part is monitored to know what it is doing at all times. Again, this is why the little lights on your dashboard flicker at you from time to time.

New cars on the market almost exclusively use a computer to stay on the road. The machines that makes automobile parts, the parts individually, robot arms, and even surgical devices can use these sensors to function properly. Medical treatments are safer and more efficient because of the use of sensors. Plus, doctors can perform more delicate surgeries with greater accuracy.

These positioning units make many of our modern conveniences a reality, and they most certainly get you from point A to point B on a daily basis. Microelectronics and sensorics make many things we use more functional, more user-friendly, without a large increase in costs to the consumer.




About the Author:



No Response to "Uses For A Linear Position Sensor"

Post a Comment

Powered by Blogger