Transducers encompass a lot of devices because it is simply a device that changes one form of energy into another form and one form of signal to another of thesignal. From electrical energy to something useful like light, kinetic energy,and heat energy. It can also go in reverse order. So, a simple speaker, that is a transducer because it takes electrical impulses and changes it into acoustical impulses.
The pressure transducer is the special ones that take the pressure, either a gas or a liquid of a certain range and output a voltaic signal of a certain range. Depending on the input pressure, the output pressure will vary. The input pressure will be in ‘psi,’ and the output will be in ‘volts.’
Use of Transducer
The transducers are used in various communication systems, instruments and other control systems, such as, pressing the button of remote control and making your TV do something. So, it is an interface between environment and the electronics.
The Difference between Sensor and Transducer
There is a very thin barrier between a sensor and transducer. A sensor is deal with changes and makes it readable that means that the change must be visible, either in the form of up and down displacement or regarding area shrinkage and expansion. The output of thesensor is not necessarily an electrical energy form. However, the transducer output is always in electrical energy form. The sensors such as these piezoresistive pressure sensors are also called as primary transducers.
Types of Transducers
There are two types of transducers:
- Input transducer
- Output transducer
Input Transducer
Input transducer converts the other type of energy into electrical energy. The input transducer has the capability of converting the non-electrical sources of energy into electrical energy. This is what an input transducer does. For example:
- Microphones are the special type of transducers that convert the sound wave energy into electrical energy.
- The photodiode is another example in which you shine alight on it,and it passes current through it.
- Solar energy cells are the ones that convert the heat energy coming from thesuninto electrical energy.
- Thermistors are the transducers that convert the thermal energy into electrical energy, that is, voltage. It detects heat and changes the electrical property of itself.
Output Transducers
The output transducer works in reverse direction of input transducers, that is, they convert the electrical form of energy into some other kind of energy. For example:
- The output transducer could be the speaker in your earphones, where it is converting the electrical of energy into sound energy.
- The lamps in our homes are another example of output transducers that convert the electrical energy into light energy.
Transducers normally respond to things in the environment and to change the electrical property of itself. Transducers are most important in the instrumentation gate. Through them, it has now become very easy to record alarge number of quantities.
