Accelerometer is a sensor to measure acceleration. It was invented in the late 19th century and was intended for installation in cars and locomotives to control the speed. The first accelerometers were heavy and bulky. They were based on the use of inertial forces, moving with the acceleration of the mass, and consisted of a pendulum with a spiral spring. When acceleration or deceleration of body weight sought to preserve its original position, i.e. to keep up or ahead of the body. One spring is thus compressed, and the pendulum did move. The magnitude of this move and was determined by the accelerometer to calculate the acceleration. How does a modern accelerometer, used in smartphones, in today’s issue!
The first accelerometer was installed in a mobile phone Nokia 5500, so it can be used as a pedometer. Because of design features of mobile devices to use the traditional accelerometer with a pendulum impossible. Therefore, it is replaced by a tiny chip inside which is an inert mass.
The principle of operation of such a chip similar to the classic accelerometer inertial mass changes its position during acceleration. Due to this, the smartphone receives data about its position in space. The chip itself is a stationary housing, which on a special elastic consoles mounted partition with aside conductors. These bends are placed between the contacts that take readings. When you move the elbows the tension field around the contacts changes its value as an indicator for measurement.
In the chip all the elements are extremely small, therefore they are produced on automated Assembly lines without human intervention, and are used during production reaction of the silicone with other substances.
In smartphones an accelerometer is most often used to automatically change screen orientation when you rotate the device. He also has found its application in the system gestures (such as shaking), games and navigation applications, as well as activity trackers.
As the largest and most promising market for accelerometers, oddly enough, is the automotive industry. The fact that the cars on the accelerometer is based a large number of safety systems: adaptive cruise control and suspension, airbags, stabilization system, and many others. Thus in this case we are not talking about the chip used in smartphones, but the full devices, often piezoelectric. The basis of such sensors is the sinker, which pressure acts on the piezoelectric crystal. Due to the pressure it produces an electrical current that allows you to calculate the desired acceleration. Also there is a thermal accelerometer, the architecture of which involves the use of an air bubble. With the acceleration of the bubble deviates from its initial position, which is fixed sensors, and then used to calculate acceleration.
How does it work? | Accelerometer
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