1 Position, Level, and Displacement Sensors: Theory, Design, and Application Marek Trawicki and Kevin Indrebo Marquette

University Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering P.O. Box 1881 Milwaukee, WI 53201-1881 {marek.trawicki, kevin.indrebo}@marquette.edu ABSTRACT This paper presents the theory, design, and application of position, level, and displacement sensors. There is a short history of sensors and explanation of the differences and similarities between position, level, and displacement sensors presently used today. Potentiometers, capacitors, LVDT and RVDT, and fiber-optic sensors are studied for the position and displacement sensors, and resistive, capacitive, fiber-optic, float-type, and pressure / weight sensors are examined for level sensors. The principle of operation for each of the current technologies is detailed with equations and diagrams. Design considerations are given for the three different sensors along with a specific design example of a position sensor. Current applications are stated for the sensors with an application for level sensors implemented in industry today. The paper finishes summarizing the value of position, level, and displacement sensors for industrial and society life.

2 1. INTRODUCTION For over fifty-years, sensors have become a critical part of industrial and societal life [1]. The rich history of sensors involves individuals having a strong background in a wide variety of disciplines such as chemistry, biology, physics, mathematics, materials, and engineering. Table 1 shows the four primary phases of sensor development that ranges from 1947 until the present time [2]. Phase Discovery Years 1947-1960 Accomplishments Bipolar transistor (1947) Piezoresistive effect in Si and Ge (1954) First industrial applications of piezoresistive effect (1958) Strain gauges milled directly on silicon Batch processing of silicon strain gauges First high production sensor at National Semiconductor (1974) Ion implantation to make gauges Electrostatic bonding to glass Micron-sized features Complex structures Integration with electronics

Basic Technology Batch Process

1960-1970 1970-1980

Micromachining

1980-Present

Table 1: History of Sensors Sensors have been employed quite extensively in consumer products such as automobiles, appliances, electronics, and alarm systems, and they have been implemented by the government for pollution control of noise and vibration and detecting radiation from nuclear attacks by potential terrorists. In fact, sensors are normally combined together to form very complex systems. As an example, there are more than 50 sensors implemented for the proper operation of cars today [3]. Overall, sensors comprise a $12 billion industry in the United States [4]. Fundamentally, sensor devices receive a stimulus, signal, or measurand and respond with an electrical signal. Sensors are essentially then translators of a generally non-electrical value into an electrical value [4]. The sensors output signal may be in the form of voltage, current, or charge. Typically, sensors are implemented along with other

3 circuitry and components to construct systems for modern measurement instrumentation and controls. Table 2 lists the most common field of applications for sensors [4]. Agriculture Automotive Civil engineering, construction Domestic, appliances Distribution, commerce, finance Environment, meteorology, security Energy, power Information, telecommunication Health, medicine Marine Manufacturing Recreation, toys Military Space Scientific measurement Other Transportation (excluding automotive) Table 2: Field of Applications The measurement of position, displacement, and level of physical targets is basic for many of these applications: process feedback control, performance evaluation, transportation traffic control, robotics, and security systems [4]. For each of the three different sensors, they have their own specific characteristics. Position sensors measure the distance between a reference point and the present location of a target (object). The targets position is located in space using distance and direction (angle) information for regular (Cartesian) or polar coordinates. Level sensing refers to the measurement of the amount of gas, liquid, or solid. There are essentially two categories of level sensing: continuous level sensing and discrete (point) level sensing. While continuous level sensing deals with smooth, step-less sensing over a specified height range, discrete (point) level sensing involves the discrete sensing of the presence or absence of a gas, liquid, or solid at a given height or location. Displacement sensors measure the change in position of a body or point with respect to a reference point. There are two main types of displacement sensors: linear displacement and angular displacement. Whereas linear displacement deals with displacement whose instantaneous direction remains fixed in nature, angular displacement involves the angle between two coplanar vectors determining a displacement. Due to displacement being a change in position, it is only natural to discuss both of those sensors together with level sensors being completely unique from them. To provide a comprehensive analysis into position, displacement, and level sensors, this paper is organized into the following sections: Principles of Operation (Section 2), Design Considerations (Section 3), Applications (Section 4), Conclusion (Section 5), and References (Section 6). 2. PRINCIPLES OF OPERATION When a sensor is designed to meet a specification, there are often many choices for implementation. The operating principles of the sensor, those which determine the method of transduction from stimulus to signal, impact the specifications and limitations of the sensor system. The sensor can be designed to use simple electrical concepts such as resistance, capacitance, or inductance, or can make use of more complex mediums such

4 as optical and acoustic phenomena. In this section, many of the principles of operation available for position, displacement, and level sensors are discussed. 2.1. Position and Displacement Sensors 2.1.1. Potentiometers As position and displacement sensors are found in many common systems, some of the most popular types of position and displacement sensors operate on simple electrical principles. One of the simplest types of linear position sensors is based on a device known as a potentiometer [4]. A potentiometer is a variable resistor, and in the context of linear position and displacement sensors, is composed of a resistive wire that is connected to a dc voltage source, with a contact that can be caused to move mechanically. The contact is built to move according to the object of which the position is being measured, and so the placement of the contact on the resistive wire determines the total resistance, indicating the position of the desired object. This system is depicted in Figure 2.1. As the contact moves, the displacement length, l, increases or decreases, changing Vout. The relationship is expressed as l Vout = Vin , L Where L is the full scale output, Vin is the supply voltage, and Vout is the measured voltage.

Figure 2.1: Potentiometer circuit diagram.

2.1.2. Capacitors Another simple position or displacement sensing principle is based on capacitance [4]. Capacitors are easy to design and manufacture, and work with many types of dielectric materials, making them desirable in many applications. A capacitive position sensor works by detecting a change in geometry of one or more capacitive elements. In most cases, the geometry can be changed by varying the distance between the capacitive plates, or the common area between the two plates. The capacitance of a single capacitor can be expressed by

C=

A
d

where is the dielectric constant, A is the area of the capacitor plates, and d is the distance between the two plates. One of the plates can be connected to the desired object, and can move horizontally, changing A, or vertically, changing d. The measured capacitance will then describe the position of the object. If it is the area that changes, such as is depicted in Figure 2.2.a, the sensor response is linear. If it is d that changes, however, as in Figure 2.2.b, the response is nonlinear. Since this is undesirable, a figuration such as that seen in Figure 2.2.c can be used to create a linear sensitivity.

Figure 2.2: Circuit diagram for three different capacitance position sensors.

2.1.3. LVDT and RVDT One of the most popular position or displacement sensors is based on inductive principles. Linear variable differential transformers (LVDT), and Rotary variable differential transformers (RVDT), are useful because there is not physical contact between inductors, ensuring long life and repeatability of the sensor, and the sensor gives great accuracy and resolution. In an LVDT [5], there is a primary coil, two secondary coils, and a movable ferritic armature between them, as shown in Figure 2.3. The position of the armature determines the mutual inductance between the primary and each secondary. If the armature is in the central position, the mutual inductance is equal between the primary and each secondary coil, causing no voltage difference between e1 and e2. When the armature moves, though, the amplitude of the difference in voltages between e1 and e2 can accurately describe its position. One must be careful, however, because the amplitude of the output is based on the distance of the armature from its center position, and does not tell which direction it has moved. Therefore, an alternating

6 current is used as excitation, and the phase of the output will determine which direction the armature has moved [5].

Figure 2.3: Circuit diagram for an LVDT with a primary coil and two secondary coils.

While an LVDT can measure linear displacements, an RVDT [6] must be used if the displacement to be measured is angular. The setup of the RVDT is similar to the LVDT, except that the parallel iron core is replaced by a ferromagnetic rod that rotates, with the pivot point in the center position between the primary and secondary coils. This configuration is depicted in Figure 2.4.

Figure 2.4: Circuit diagram for an RVDT

2.1.4. Fiber-Optic Sensors Interferometers based on fiber optic technology provide extremely precise position or displacement measurements. Multiple types of interferometers have been developed, including the Michelson and Fabry Perot interferometers [7]. In the Fabry

7 Perot interferometer, two partially silvered mirrors placed close together are used. As a light wave is sent through the cable, some of the light energy is reflected of the second mirror, bouncing back to the first mirror, and reflecting back again. This process causes an interference pattern, which can be viewed by focusing the light that is passes through the second partial mirror onto a screen. The particular interference pattern can is dependent on the distance between the two mirrors and the wavelength of the light. One of the mirrors can be movable, allowing detection of position by observing the interference pattern. The number of interference fringes determines the distance, d, between the two mirrors. The distance can be calculated by
2d cos = m ,

where is the angle of light projected into the mirrors, m is the order of interference, and is the wavelength of the light. A relatively new sensor, which is useful for aircraft and spacecraft, is the ring laser gyro (RLG) [8]. This sensor can measure the attitude or orientation of the craft very precisely. In this sensor, a beam of light, the input to the sensor, is split into two beams that travel around a circular coil in opposing directions. The coil is allowed to rotate, and the degree of rotation will affect the output of the sensor, which is the recombination of the two light beams. If the coil has not rotated, the two beams will be in phase, and provide complete constructive interference. Any rotation however, will cause some deconstructive interference, and the amplitude of he output light beam will be attenuated. The rate of rotation can then be found using the equation
V cos 1 out c 2 Vin , = 4 2 r 2l where is the rate of rotation in radians per second, Vout and Vin are the output and input voltages, c is the speed of light, r is the radius of the coil, and l is the path length. 2.1.5. Other Position and Displacement Sensor Technologies The position and displacement sensors already described are some of the more useful sensor types, but there are several other ways to implement position and displacement sensors. Among the operating principles that are available are Hall-effect sensors, piezoresistive sensors, and magnetoresistive sensors, and rotosyns. For more information regarding these sensor types, see, for example [1,4].
2.2. Level Sensors

While discrete-level sensors are well-suited for many applications, continuouslevel sensors are necessary in other applications [9]. In continuous-level sensing applications, the device measures the output level of all points between the extremes of full and empty on a continuous basis. By studying the level sensor output, it is possible to

8 determine the exact level of the liquid rather than knowing whether the liquid is above or below certain critical threshold levels. There are several types of (continuous) level sensors that include resistive, capacitive, fiber-optic, float-type, and pressure / weight. 2.2.1. Resistive Level Sensors The resistive level sensor consists of a resistive wire element or chain of seriesconnected resistors immersed in conductive liquid along with a low-resistance connection element. Figure 2.5 illustrates the basic resistive level sensor [1].

Figure 2.5: Resistive Level Sensor

Since the resistance connection element has a resistance that is much smaller than the resistance of the resistive element, the total resistance Rt measured between points A and B is not affected by this low-resistance connection element. The operation of the resistive level sensor depends on change in resistance. If the liquid provides a conductive path between the two wire elements, then it will short out the portion of the resistance wire that is immersed in the liquid. Hence, the total resistance Rt will be reduced by an amount of RL that is directly proportional to the liquid level L. The total resistance when the tank still has liquid (i.e., not empty) is defined as

Rt' = Rt R L . Due to the liquid level L being proportional to the term RL, Rt' can be also used to measure L. The circuit for making this measurement can be as simple as an ohmmeter or the combination of a voltage source V and calibration resistor R1. Through basic voltagedivision, the output voltage V0 can be calculated by

9 VRt' V0 = . R1 + Rt' Unfortunately, resistive level sensors have the limitation that the change in resistance of any resistor is a function of temperature. Because the resistance is proportional to the length of the conductor and inversely proportional to its cross-sectional area, these factors change with temperature according to the relationship
Rt '' = R0 (1 + T ), where R0 is the resistance measured at 0C in , is the temperature coefficient of resistance in /C, and T is the temperature in C. If the range of temperature variation in small in size or if the temperature coefficient for the resistive material is small enough to be neglected for the application, there will not be any need for a correction factor. On the other hand, if the temperature of resistance is great enough to cause some alarm, then the tank temperature must be measured with a correction factored into it. In some instances, a thermistor laced in the tank can be connected either in series of parallel with Rt' to compensate for the change in temperature. 2.2.2. Capacitive Level Sensors From basic circuits, capacitors store energy in an electrostatic field between two conductive plates. While many capacitors are based on parallel plates, it is also possible to make a cylindrical capacitor, where the two conductive cylinders are coaxial. Figure 2.6 (left) shows a typical cylindrical capacitor [1].

Figure 2.6: Capacitance Level Sensor

In this case, the capacitance of a coaxial cylindrical capacitor is found by

10

C=

0.2416 K , log 10 (r2 / r1 )

where C is the capacitance per unit length in picofarads per centimeter, K is the dielectric constant relative to the vacuum, r1 is the inner cylinder radius, and r2 is the outer cylinder radius. If a coaxial cylindrical capacitor has an air dielectric, then the value of K is approximately 1.006. Conversely when a non-conductive liquid fills the space between the two cylinders, the capacitance increases dramatically in nature because the value of K for the liquid is significantly greater than of air. Figure 2.6 (right) displays the capacitor configuration [1]. Due to the coaxial cylindrical capacitor being partially immersed in the liquid, the dielectric is composed of both air and liquid. As a result, the capacitance will be somewhere between the capacitance for a totally all-air or all-liquid dielectric. Even though the method of capacitance level sensing works well in many situations, it fails when the dielectric parameters of the liquid change and the space above the liquid contains varying amounts of vapor from the liquid below, which happens under temperature variations [1]. In order to alleviate such a challenge, reference capacitor systems are used as liquid level sensors. Figure 2.7 shows a common reference capacitor [1].

11

Figure 2.7: Reference Capacitor System

With this system, the small coaxial cylindrical reference capacitor Cref is mounted at the bottom of the tank. It always stays fully submerged in the liquid. If the level of the liquid needed to cover the reference capacitor is Lref with Cmeas serving as the capacitance of the measured capacitor, then
C L = . L ref C ref

Based on this relationship, level of the liquid is determined by solving for the variable L with the other parameters already as known values. 2.2.3. Fiber-Optic Level Sensors Fiber-optic sensors can be very useful as level detectors [4]. Figure 2.8 illustrates a typical example of one with two fibers and a prism [4].

12

Figure 2.8: Optical Level Detector

The level detector makes use of the difference between the refractive indices of air and the measurand liquid. When the sensor is above the liquid level, the transmitting fiber (left) sends most of its light to the receiving fiber (right) because of a total internal reflection (TIR) in the prism. If some of the light rays approach the prisms reflective surface at angles smaller than the angle of TIR, then they are simply lost to the surroundings. After the prism reaches the liquid level, the angle of TIR changes to a new value due to the refractive index of the liquid being higher than the refractive index of air. The ultimate result is a much larger loss in the light intensity that is detected at the other end of the receiving fiber with the light intensity being converted into an electrical signal by any photodetector. 2.2.4. Float-Type Level Sensors Float-type level sensors are one of the oldest forms of level sensors [1]. Typically, these sensors are used most often in motor vehicles for the fuel gauge sender unit. Figure xx shows the type of float sensor implemented in vehicle fuel tank systems [1].

Figure 2.9: Float-Type Level Sensor

Figure 2.9 (left) uses a float-type sensor with a level arm. For this case, there is a sensor arm that is connected to the float and also to a pivot point. When the float begins its rise upward, it causes the other end of the sense arm to rotate and move the actuator of a position or displacement sensor. The output of the sensor is a current or voltage that is

13 proportional to the liquid level. Figure 2.9 (right) also shows a variation of the float-type level sensor. In this situation, the float rises on a pipe using a float ball. Whereas a discrete-level system uses a permanent magnet embedded in the float to actuate a magnetic reed switch located at the critical level, continuous-level systems use a position or displacement sensor actuated by a float to produce an output voltage or current proportional to the liquid level. In either case, the float generally does not move more than a few millimeters from its non-actuating to actuating position. 2.2.5. Pressure / Weight Level Sensors Assuming that the weight of the liquid in a vessel is known ahead of time, load cells or other electronic weight sensors can be used to determine the level of liquid inside the tank [1]. Figure 2.10 illustrates a common load-cell level sensor [1].

Figure 2.10: Load-Cell Level Sensor

Specifically, the load cell produces a signal that represents the total weight W that consists of the sum of the liquid weight WL and the empty tank weight Wt. The actual weight of the liquid is defined through the relationship WL = W Wt , where Wt is also known as the tare. Since the tare is known for each individual tank, it can be entered into a differential amplifiers negative port as a constant. Conversely, the total weight signal W from the load cell is entered into the positive port of the different amplifier. Figure 2.11 shows a pressure system [1].

14

Figure 2.11: Pressure Level Sensor

It uses a pressure sensor at the base of the vessel P1 and a second pressure sensor at the top to measure the ullage pressure P2. Thus, this system depends on the specific weight w of the liquid inside the tank and is defined as
L= P1 P2 . w

3. DESIGN CONSIDERATIONS 3.1. Position and Displacement Sensor Design Factors

Many factors such as scale, desired precision, and choice between angular or linear displacement must be considered when designing a system that senses position or displacement. Some sensor types, such as those based on induction, are not appropriate for large scales, as the environment can affect the inductance of the sensor device. However, on very small scales, inductive sensors are very useful because of their resolution. For linear position sensing, capacitors are a good choice because of their simplicity, but for angular position sensing, the response is nonlinear, and so may not be the best choice. Another important factor to be considered when designing a position sensor is durability. Some sensor types, such as variable differential transformers are non-contact sensors, so there is no friction to cause wear on the sensor, thus allowing these sensor types to remain accurate and repeatable for a long time. Potentiometers, on the other hand, can wear down and the characteristics can change over time, as the conductive head rubs against the resistive wire. The RLG discussed in section 2.1.4 is especially useful for critical systems such as those found in aircraft and spacecraft because it has no moving parts, and is both reliable and durable. Environmental effects must also be considered. Temperature and humidity, among other variables, can affect the sensor function, and if these are not the characteristics to be sensed, can cause problems. Inductive sensors are not very sensitive to humidity, so can be used when the humidity is variable. However, external magnetic fields can interfere with inductive sensors, so they must sometimes be shielded. Unlike

15 inductors, capacitors are often quite sensitive to humidity, and so are not useful in environments with variable humidity. Varying external temperature can affect many sensor types, especially potentiometer sensors, since resistance is a function strongly related to temperature.
3.2. Level Sensor Design Factors

Some design considerations relevant to level sensor systems include liquid characteristics, container or tank size, and the choice between continuous measurement and binary indicator sensing. A very critical design factor concerns the type of liquid. For flammable liquids such as oil and gasoline, which are common liquids that must be monitored in a tank, any sensor that may ignite the liquid is unusable. Many sensor types, such as potentiometers, have conducting parts which cannot reside inside the tank. This is one factor which makes certain fiber optic devices desirable for level sensing, as the fibers are dialectric materials. However, one must still be careful not to allow a significant amount of light intensity to come into contact with the flammable liquid, or it may still ignite. The tank size and shape can effect the choice of level sensor as well. Capacitive sensors are not ideal choices if the tank is irregular in shape, as the relationship between capacitance and geometry is not easily modeled. Also, if the tank is quite large, not all sensors will prove to be efficient. Capacitive sensors, for example, will require more energy to give high precision. If the level must be measured continuously, as opposed to discrete, above/below sensing, certain sensor types may be more appropriate. The photoelectric sensor discussed in section 2.2.3 is only designed for a binary decision, and cannot sense the actual liquid level. Photoelectric sensors can be used to make a continuous measurement of the level, but are more complex, and often simpler sensor types such as potentiometers and capacitors are sufficient.
3.3. Example Design of a Position Sensor for Speaker Tracking

A scenario where an angular position sensor can be quite useful involves a speech recognition application in a somewhat noisy room. This particular task is difficult, as the background noise, which can be generated by many sources, such as electronic devices, contaminates the speech signal received by the recognition system. Microphone arrays, which usually consist of two to a dozen microphones, and typically situated in a linear formation, can be used to spatially filter the ambient noise. If the speakers position in relation to the microphone array is known, noise that is received by the array from different approaching angles can be attenuated, thereby improving the recognition systems performance. If the speaker moves around, however, the filtering system will not work unless it can adaptively track the speakers position. In order to solve this problem, a sensor to determine the speakers angular position with respect to the microphone array is designed. Here, it is assumed that the room is empty except for the person, and all of the walls more than 3 meters away from the microphone array. Therefore, if the sensor can find a significant object within 3 meters, and can determine its angle, the persons position will be determined

16 successfully. Note that the speaker must stay within a 3 meter radius of the microphone array and sensor. Because of the large distances and open space, an ultrasonic sensor is chosen. It will operate in conjunction with a rotary motor, sweeping an angle of nearly 180 and recording the level of echo return at each angle. This setup is depicted in Figure 3.1. The angle with the largest sensed echo energy is then chosen as the approximate position of the speaker.

Figure 3.1: Basic diagram of angular speaker sensor in an empty room.

The additional assumptions that will be made include a temperature range of 20 25 C, and a sensor maximum sensitivity of 60 dB attenuation of the ultrasonic transmitter signal. A requirement for the sensor is that it must provide a resolution of no worse than 13, which is chosen because the microphone array spatial filter is unlikely to provide better than a 3-dB attenuation for a 13 angle. The frequency of the ultrasonic signal, and the diameter of the ultrasound transmitter must be determined. To determine the minimum and maximum sound speeds, we use the equation
C (T ) = 331.3 + .0254 1 + T , 273

where C is the speed of sound in m/s, and T is the room temperature in C. The minimum speed is then 331.26 m/s, and the maximum is 331.32 m/s. Since these numbers are approximately equal, it is assumed that the difference in temperature is negligible, and 20 C is used for further calculation. To find the attenuation factor, we use the approximation

17

( f ) = .032 f ,
where is the attenuation of the ultrasonic waves in dB/m, and f is the frequency of the sound waves in kHz [10]. We want the sensor to ignore any echoes that are returned from obstructions more than 3 meters away, so we must calculate the attenuation sensitivity threshold in decibels using the maximum sensitivity of the sensor of 60 dB attenuation by

= 2(3 ( f )),
where is the max sensitivity, and the multiplicative factor of 2 is present because the ultrasonic waves must travel 3 meters twice, to the object and back. Using the parameters given above, we find a frequency of 30.67 kHz, which is acceptable, as it is well outside of the range of human hearing. As state previously, the main lobe width (3 dB) must be less than or equal to 13. To find the diameter of the ultrasonic wave transmitter, we use the approximation [11]

3dB
where

70 , d

= C (T ) / f .
Solving these equations gives a wavelength of 10.8 millimeters, and a transmitter diameter of approximately 5.3 cm, which is a fairly large, but presumably acceptable, transmitter.
4. APPLICATIONS 4.1. Position and Displacement Sensor Applications

Position and displacement sensors are implemented in numerous applications [9]. They are employed to measure linear or angular motion and verify or establish dimensions. The range of measured dimensions and displacement extend from micrometers (e.g., laser interferometers) to millimeters (e.g., some non-contacting types of sensors) to centimeters (e.g., most types of displacement sensors) to meters (e.g., few types of displacement sensors) to anywhere between a few meters and hundreds of millions of kilometers (e.g., pulsed or CW electromagnetic-energy remote sensors). Presently, there are many applications in materials, mechanical engineering, manufacturing, and inspection that use these sensors. For instance, position and displacement sensors are used in dimensional gauging to measure flatness, thickness, and size; shaft run-out, concentricity, and eccentricity; and axial motion of rotating objects. While many designs for position and displacement sensors exist for room conditions, there are applications for the operation of these sensors underwater, in nuclear reactor systems and vacuum of space, and at extremely high temperatures of over 500C. Besides

18 the in manufacturing and inspection, position and displacement sensors are implemented in ships and aircrafts. In this case, the sensors monitor the position of control surfaces by sensing either the extension of a linear position or direct angular measurement. With most of the cited measurements, position and displacement sensors are used not only for monitoring but also open-loop or closed-loop control.
4.2. Level Sensor Applications

Level sensors are used in virtually all industries today for monitoring and also automatic control applications [9]. The most typical applications of level sensors involve tank measuring, high- and low-level warning, liquid leak detection, filling and emptying of tanks, hoppers, silos, ship containers, and railway cars, and propellant utilization in automobiles and spacecrafts. Between continuous-level and discrete-level sensors, continuous-level sensors are the most widely used in industry. They are mostly used in storage vessels like tanks and monitoring and information. On the other hand, discretelevel sensors are used in storage vessels and for level indications and warnings along with many automatic control systems. In addition, they are used in pipe and open ducts, hoppers and filling nozzles, and in vessels for carrying out process operations like agitation, blending, and centrifuging. There are numerous examples of liquids whose levels are sensed by the level-sensors. For instance, beverages (alcoholic and nonalcoholic), syrups, soups, fresh and salt water, wastewater, petroleum and refinery products, chemicals, pharmaceuticals, liquefied gases, wood pulp, solid suspensions, and slurries are very common measured and monitored liquids. Level sensors can also be used to measure the level of powdered and granular solids such as grains, granular food products, sand and gravel, ceramic, and other mineral powders, plastic and wood chips, tobacco, coal, ore, and solid waste. The selection of a specific level sensor for a given application depends on feasibility, reliability, and cost. Feasibility is related to factors such as the physical and chemical nature of the material (e.g., conductivity, dielectric constant, index of refraction, density, viscosity, stickiness, and pH), nature of the container (e.g., wall thickness, conductivity, and location), and accessibility to the potential location of the sensor. Moreover, reliability is a critical factor whose emphasis is on durability in an installation before removal for cleaning, refurbishing, or replacement. Lastly, cost to the customers and safety to the personnel, facility, and overall process are important factors too. 4.2.1. Hydrostatic Tank Gauging (HTG) System Hydrostatic Tank Gauging (HTG) systems use a combination of temperature and pressure readings to determine the volume of liquid inventory (e.g., beer) in a storage tank [1]. Figure 4.1 displays the HTG system with a cylindrical vertical tank having an area A [1].

19

Figure 4.1: Hydrostatic Tank Gauging (HTG) System

At any given time, the liquid will be at a level L that varies directly with the consumption and resupply. As shown in Figure xx, the tank has four important sensors: TP1, which is the temperature sensor, and P1, P2, and P3 as the pressure sensors. Pressure sensor P1 is placed below pressure sensor P2 with their distance being h. Then, pressure sensor P3 measures the ullage pressure of the tank, which is the pressure of the gas or air in the space above the liquid. Since the volume somewhat varies with temperature, the temperature sensor TP1 is needed to measure the temperature. In this HTG system, the level L and temperature T are compared with the parameters taken at a standard temperature of 60F. In order to determine the volume and level of the liquid, there are a few basic measurement relationships that are important to the system. The volume of a cylindrical column of liquid of cross-sectional area A and height L is defined as

V = LA,
where volume is in cubic meters, L is the liquid column height in meters, and A is the cross-sectional area in square meters. Given that the cross-sectional area is equal to D2/4, the volume is more specifically stated by V = L / D 2 . 4

Thus from this relationship, the volume of the liquid is proportional to the liquid inventory level since the diameter D of the tank has already been designed and determined ahead of time. For some situations, it is necessary to know the mass M of the liquid in the tank. The information can be determined from the relative pressures in the tank. Specifically, the measurements needed to accomplish such a task are the ullage pressure P3 and the overall pressure at the bottom of the tank P1. Since pressure is defined as force per unit area, the force is given as

20 F = PA, where force F is essentially the weight of the liquid. Through the use of Newtons F = MA relationship and substitution into the above equation, the mass can be more explicitly stated by M = PA , G

with G being the gravitational constant of 6.67 x 10-11 Nm/kg2. Because the pressure is a combination of the liquid static head pressure P1 and ullage pressure P3, the differential pressure P1-3, the mass is actually given as M = (P13 )(D 2 / 4) . G

The density of the liquid inventory is defined as mass per unit of volume. It is possible to calculate the density using the differential pressure between pressure sensors P1 and P2 and distance between them through
P1 2 . h With the density, the level of the liquid inventory can be measured with the differential pressure P1-3 as

L=

P13

Due to the volume V being a function of temperature T, the temperature measured with sensor TP1, standard look-up tables can be used that allow for the determination of the present volume from the known standard volume Vs at 60F. The standard volume is found by comparing the mass with the reference density s with the mass by Vs = M

Overall, the HTG system represents a very simple but reliable approach to measuring the mass, density, level, and volume of a liquid inventory in a tank.
5. CONCLUSION

In this paper, the concept and uses of position, displacement and level sensors was introduced and discussed. Several common and modern operating principles were detailed for both position and level sensors. Of course, there are many other possible implementations for these sensors than those discussed here, and many will be more

21 appropriate than the ones presented in this paper in some applications. Some of the important factors that influence the choice of sensor type and design were discussed, and some examples of limitations and advantages for different sensor implementations were given. Additionally, a unique sensor design for use in speaker tracking with applications to spatial filtering for robust speech recognition systems was developed, and some common applications of position, displacement and level sensors were presented. The theory, design, and applications of these sensors that were discussed provides a solid introduction, but the scope of research and commercial production in this area is quite widespread, and extends beyond the limits of this paper.
6. REFERENCES

[1] [2] [3] [4] [5] [6] [7] [8] [9] [10] [11] [12]

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