3 Variable Resistance Sensor
3 Variable Resistance Sensor
3 Variable Resistance Sensor
? The "transmitter" in this diagram contains its own precision regulated source of
voltage, and the potentiometer setting is varied by the motion of a float inside the
water tank following the water level. The "indicator" is nothing more than a
voltmeter with a scale calibrated to read in some unit height of water (inches,
feet, meters) instead of volts.
? As the water tank level changes, the float will move. As the float moves, the
potentiometer wiper will correspondingly be moved, dividing a different
proportion of the battery voltage to go across the two-conductor cable and on to
the level indicator. As a result, the voltage received by the indicator will be
representative of the level of water in the storage tank.
? This elementary transmitter/indicator system is reliable and easy to understand,
but it has its limitations. Perhaps greatest is the fact that the system accuracy can
be influenced by excessive cable resistance.
Exercise on Potentiometer
1. Consider the Linear displacement Circuit. The input voltage is 5-volt the output
voltage is 2.5-volt. The total resistance element length is 100mm. The Linear
displacement of an object causes the sliding contact to move such that the output
voltage 2.65-volt. Determine the displacement of the object and the direction to
which it moves.