The paper reports a capacitive multisection sensor for measuring level of various liquids. Presented sensor was fully fabricated with the inkjet printing technology on thin Kapton substrate. The measurement of liquids level based on capacitive sensing is already well known technique, however the novelty of presented sensor is the technology of fabrication that was used, approach to the pattern design which combines analog and digital capacitive section and obtained self-calibration feature of whole system independently on measured liquid type.
Fabricated sensor structure has dimension of 210 mm x 12 mm and the thickness approximately of 27 μm. It contains 8 digital-like sections along the sensor and one analog section which allows to fine measurements. The sensor was tested in a vessel during filling and emptying with various liquids. Performed tests exhibited the linearity of the sensor characteristic and the lack of hysteresis. Obtained sensitivity of the sensor prototype was approximately 6.8 pF/mm, but it could be easily modify on the design stage due to the fast prototyping feature of inkjet printing technology. Thanks to the flexibility of the substrate, the sensor structure can be applied to any shape of vessel. Furthermore, the sensor construction is fairly simple and costs in mass production could be extremely low. This type of sensor was design especially for autonomous cleaning and washing robots for large areas operation.
The paper reports a recognizing method base on ultrasonic transducers utilized for the surface types detection. Ultra-sonic signal is transmitted toward the examined substrate, then reflected and scattered signal goes back to another ultra-sonic receiver. Thee measuring signal is generated by a piezo-electric transducer located at specified distance from the tested substrate. The detector is a second piezo-electric transducer located next to the transmitter. Depending on thee type of substrate which is exposed by an ultrasonic wave, the signal is partially absorbed inn the material, diffused and reflected towards the receiver. To measure the level of received signal, the dedicated electronic circuit was design and implemented in the presented systems. Such system was designed too recognize two types of floor surface: solid (like concrete, ceramic stiles, wood) and soft (carpets, floor coverings). The method will be applied in electronic detection system dedicated to autonomous cleaning robots due to selection of appropriate cleaning method. This work presents the concept of ultrasonic signals utilization, the design of both the measurement system and the measuring stand and as well number of wide tests results which validates correctness of applied ultrasonic method.
KEYWORDS: Microelectromechanical systems, Sensors, Signal processing, Signal detection, Control systems, Data acquisition, Prototyping, Statistical analysis, Microcontrollers, Human-machine interfaces
The paper reports an application of the accelerometer for the sensing of rugged surface detection. MEMS accelerometers were investigated for steering control of the autonomous floor-cleaning robot to perform cleaning. Accelerometer signals were used to support signals from other ultrasound and vision sensors to detect the type of the floor and distinguish between rough and smooth floor. The main aim of the developed control system for an autonomous robot was to improve the detection of the floor type and investigate the use of the accelerometer for solving this problem. The test results have shown that the proposed system can be equipped with accelerometer sensor and reduce the error detection for floor type during cleaning.
The paper reports system for water level measurement, which is designed to be used for measuring liquid levels in the tanks of an autonomous industrial cleaning robot. The selected method of measurement utilized by the designed system is based on pressure measurement. Such system is insensitive on vibrations, foams presence and liquid impurities. The influences of variable pressure on the measurements were eliminated by utilizing the differential method and as well as the system design. The system is capable of measuring water level in tanks up to 400 mm of height with accuracy of about 2,5%. The system was tested in a container during filling and emptying with various liquids. Performed tests exhibited the linearity of the sensor characteristic and the lack of hysteresis. Obtained sensitivity of the sensor prototype was approximately 6,2 mV/mm H2O.
The paper presents description of concept of hardware and software architecture which can be easy implemented in autonomous cleaning robots. The requirement for such system is its reliability but still offering free and simple expansions and modifications. The paper describes considerations of the control and communication system, the date frame configuration and the software architecture. To show results of presented control and development system the specialised measurement stand was also proposed and described. All performed tests passed successfully and as a consequence the system architecture was implemented on dedicated cleaning robots.
This paper describes design, manufacturing and testing of novelty humidity sensors manufactured in inkjet printing technology. Two types of sensors were produced - sensor for dew point hygrometer, along with heater and thermistor, and a relative humidity sensor. Both were tested and proven to be functional, with both advantages and disadvantages described further in the article.
This paper presents a review of ideas and implementations of measurement methods utilized for capacity measurements in tactile sensors. The paper describes technical method, charge amplification method, generation and as well integration method. Three selected methods were implemented in dedicated measurement system and utilised for capacitance measurements of ourselves made tactile sensors. The tactile sensors tested in this work were fully fabricated with the inkjet printing technology. The tests result were presented and summarised. The charge amplification method (CDC) was selected as the best method for the measurement of the tactile sensors.
Inertial navigation is widely used by the military, in logistics and sailing. In mobile devices, inertial sensors are mostly used as a support for GPS and Wi-Fi-based navigation systems. Inertial-based navigation might prove useful on mobile devices running Android OS. At present, in spite of the accelerometer sensor's precision having been greatly improved, as well as the devices’ computing power continuously rising, inertial navigation's precision still suffers. For smartphones, the key solution seems to be the usage of sensor fusion and signal smart filtering, both discussed in this paper. The paper also describes implementation of inertial navigation in Android devices, their analysis as well as test results.
The aim of this work was to perform a set of RFID antennas on flexible plastic substrates designed for range of HF and UHF band. The samples was fabricated using inkjet printing technology and conductive material base on silver nanopartilces ink. Fabricated antennas have been characterized, and the results were compared with the parameters of antennas made with usage of classical PCB technology on FR4 laminate with copper metallization. The paper presents studies on the impact of elastic substrates and conductive materials on antennas electrical parameters, as well as the communication range of the resulting RFID tags. During the experiment two patterns of HF and three patterns of UHF antennas was examined and the antennas was realized on different types of substrates, such as PET, Kapton® and FR4.
The ink-jet printing technology becomes especially promising for wide volume of production of cheap sensors, consumable electronics and other dedicated applications of everyday life like smart packaging, smart textiles, smart labels, etc. To achieve this goal new materials compatible with ink-jet printing should be developed. Currently on the market there is a growing number of inks with different properties, but their use requires many tests related to its printability and their interaction with other materials. The paper presents technological problems that are encountered by people associated with fabrication of various devices with using of inkjet printing techniques. Results presented in the paper show the influence of surface preparation techniques on the quality of achieved shapes, the impact of other materials already deposited and the impact of another external factors. During carried out experiments the printer Dimatix DMP 2831 and several inks base on nanosilver or dielectric UV curable was used.
In this paper the application of the ink-jet printing technology to microstrip line fabrication on tunable ferroelectric
ceramic-polymer composites for devices operating at sub-terahertz range have been presented. Measurement results
shown that the designed material is usable for creating structures able to tune some their electromagnetic characteristics.
Relatively low temperature technology process (ink-jet printing technology) is able to deposit conductive lines on the
ceramic polymer. The ink-jet printed silver microstrip lines can operate at sub-terahertz range.
KEYWORDS: Skin, Sensors, Humidity, Microcontrollers, Temperature metrology, Analog electronics, Power supplies, Data processing, Visualization, Human-machine interfaces
This paper describes design and construction of device for TransEpidermal Water Loss (TEWL) factor measurement. Principle of operation is based on humidity measurement of air flowing through the chamber applied to human's skin surface. Measured data is stored in an EEPROM memory and after finishing, the results can be transferred via RS-232 bus to computer. Special software was designed for data processing, visualization and saving on the PC computer. The goal of constructed device is to develop presented idea of TEWL measurement and compare with other well known methods.
KEYWORDS: Computing systems, Data analysis, Databases, Data acquisition, Diagnostics, Directed energy weapons, Skin, Human-machine interfaces, Humidity, Head
This article describing analyzing measurement data using a database based computer application. First some information is given on the data acquisition issues. There were some problems with synchronising the begining of the measurement and with disturbances during measurement. Then the parametrisation of the graphs is described. A brief information on what are the parameters and how are they calculated. And finally the statistical module of our computer application is presented. Some information is given on how the data is grouped and how the statistical parameters are calculated.
KEYWORDS: Humidity, Sensors, Data analysis, Microcontrollers, Data acquisition, Temperature metrology, Head, Analytical research, Particles, Time metrology
The paper describes construction of a new specialized hygrometer and dedicated applications for data acquisition and analyzing that can be used for seeds moisture measurements. To find the correlation between seeds water content and measurements results obtained from the device the weight method was applied. This paper shows preliminary results from tests of fully functional system allowing estimation in a very easy end fast way of the water content in germinating seeds without seeds destruction.
KEYWORDS: Skin, Sensors, Humidity, Directed energy weapons, Head, Semiconductors, Temperature metrology, Molecules, Measurement devices, Control systems
A modified idea of moisture content in human skin measurement method with use of fast dew point hygrometer sensor is presented in the report. Dry skin is a common complained both in healthy individuals and those individuals with various skin diseases. Dry skin ethiopathogenesis is complex and related to its aging, external environmental factors influence and other disorders. The goal of constructed device is to help dermatology doctor to evaluate human skin condition.
This article describes the design and construction of a diagnostic system for laryngological and dermatological disorders. Searching for both solutions based on a dew point hygrometer with a semiconductor structure introduced. Some constructional solutions like the framework of a computer application for both systems are similar but the measurement approach is different. The major emphasis is put on the database applications dedicated for medical doctors. The database application which is a common part in both systems and also measurement devices together, create a diagnostic system which has been designed and constructed. Both systems have been tested in a hospital with the assistance of doctors specialized in this subjects. In the near future, the system will enable the analysis between
achieved data and different disorders.
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