Module-2

IoT Sensing and Actuation

Introduction, Sensors, Sensor Characteristics, Sensorial Deviations,

Sensing Types, Sensing Considerations, Actuators, Actuator Types,
Actuator Characteristics.

Textbook 1: Chapter 5 – 5.1 to 5.9

 Introduction
A major IoT applications involves sensing in one form or the other.
Sensing forms the first step.
Incidentally, actuation forms the final step in the whole operation of IoT application
deployment.
Sensing and actuation is based on the process of transduction.
Transduction is the process of energy conversion from one form to another.
A transducer is a physical means of enabling transduction.
Transducers take energy in any form (for which it is designed)—electrical, mechanical,
chemical, light, sound, and others—and convert it into another, which may be
electrical, mechanical, chemical, light, sound, and others.
For example, in a public announcement (PA) system, a microphone (input device)
converts sound waves into electrical signals, which is amplified by an amplifier system
(a process). Finally, a loudspeaker (output device) outputs this into audible sounds by
converting the amplified electrical signals back.
 Sensors
A sensor is a device that detects and responds to some type of input
from the physical environment.
The input can be light, heat, motion, moisture, pressure or any
number of other environmental phenomena.
They generate responses to external stimuli or physical phenomenon
through characterization of the input functions (which are these
external stimuli) and their conversion into typically electrical signals.
For example, heat is converted to electrical signals in a temperature
sensor, or atmospheric pressure is converted to electrical signals in a
barometer.
A sensor node is made up of a combination of
1. sensor/sensors,
2. processor unit,
3. radio unit, and
4. power unit.
The nodes are capable of sensing the environment they are set to measure and
communicate the information to other sensor nodes or a remote server.
Typically, a sensor node should have low-power requirements and be wireless.
This enables them to be deployed in a vast range of scenarios and environments
without the constant need for changing their power sources or managing wires.
 The wireless nature of sensor nodes would also allow them to be freely
relocatable and deployed in large numbers without bothering about managing
wires.
The various sensors can be classified based on:
1) power requirements,
2) sensor output, and
3) property to be measured.

Power Requirements: Depending on the requirements of power, sensors can be

of two types.
(i) Active: Do not require an external circuitry or mechanism to provide it with
power. It directly responds to the external stimuli from its ambient environment
and converts it into an output signal.
For example, a photodiode converts light into electrical impulses.
(ii) Passive: Require an external mechanism to power them up. The sensed
properties are modulated with the sensor’s inherent characteristics to generate
patterns in the output of the sensor.
For example, a thermistor’s resistance can be detected by applying voltage
difference across it or passing a current through it.
 Sensor Output
The output of a sensor helps in deciding the additional components to be
integrated with an IoT node or system.
Sensors are broadly divided into two types, depending on the type of output
generated from the sensors.
Analog
Digital
Analog sensor
 Analog sensor
It produces continuous output signal or voltage which is proportional
to quantity to be measured.
It produces analog output.
Quantities such as temperature, speed, displacement, pressure,
strain etc. are analog quantities as they are continuous in nature
Example: Temperature of liquid can be measured using thermometer
or thermocouple which continuously responds to changes in
temperature as liquid is heated up or cooled down.
Digital sensor
 Digital sensor
 It produces discrete digital output signal or voltage which is digital
representation of quantity to be measured.
It produces binary output in the form of ones (1s) and zeros (0s).
Digital sensors overcome limitations of analog sensors counterpart.
They are used in various applications such as waste water, water and other
industrial processes.
Digital sensor consists of sensor itself, cable and a transmitter.
Examples: Measurements such as pH level, conductivity, dissolved oxygen,
ammonium, nitrate etc. are conducted using digital sensors.
 Measured Property
The property of the environment being measured by the sensors can be
crucial in deciding the number of sensors in an IoT implementation.

Depending on the properties to be measured, sensors can be of two

types.

(i) Scalar:
(ii) Vector
 Scalar sensor
The sensor which produce output signal/voltage which is proportional to
magnitude of quantity to be measured is known as scalar sensor.

Temperature of a room is measured using scalar sensor (i.e. thermometer or

thermocouple) which measures temperature changes irrespective of sensor
orientation.

 Eg: Temperature sensor, Color sensor, pressure sensor, strain sensor etc.
 Vector sensor
The sensor which produce output signal/voltage which is
proportional to magnitude, direction as well as orientation of
quantity being measured is known as Vector sensor.
Acceleration of body is measured using accelerometer which
measures component of acceleration of body with respect to x, y, z
coordinate axes.
 Examples: Sound sensor, image sensor, velocity sensor, acceleration
sensor etc.
 Sensor Characteristics
Sensors can be characterized by their ability to sense the phenomenon based on
the following three fundamental properties.
Sensor Resolution: The smallest change in the measurable quantity that a sensor
can detect is referred to as the resolution of a sensor.
 For digital sensors, the smallest change in the digital output that the sensor is
capable of quantifying is its sensor resolution.
The more the resolution of a sensor, the more accurate is the precision.
A sensor’s accuracy does not depend upon its resolution.
For example, a temperature sensor A can detect up to 0.5, where as another
sensor B can detect up to 0.25. Therefore, the resolution of sensor B is higher
than the resolution of sensor A.
 Sensor Accuracy: The accuracy of a sensor is the ability of that sensor to
measure the environment of a system as close to its true measure as possible.
 For example, a weight sensor detects the weight of a 100 kg mass as 99.98 kg.
We can say that this sensor is 99.98% accurate, with an error rate of ±0.02%.
Sensor Precision:

Precision can be described as the reproducibility of measurements.

Only upon multiple repetitions, the sensor is found to have the same
error rate, can it be deemed as highly precise.
For example, consider if the same weight sensor described earlier
reports measurements of 98.28 kg, 100.34 kg, and 101.11 kg upon
three repeat measurements for a mass of actual weight of 100 kg.
Here, the sensor precision is not deemed high because of significant
variations in the temporal measurements for the same object under
the same conditions.
Sensorial Deviations

A) Full-scale range: In the event of a sensor’s output signal going beyond its designed maximum
and minimum capacity for measurement, the sensor output is truncated to their maximum or
minimum values, which are also the sensor’s limits. The measurement range between a sensor’s
characterized minimum and maximum values is also referred to as the full-scale range of that sensor.

B) Offset error or bias: Under real conditions, the sensitivity of a sensor may differ from the value
specified for that sensor leading to sensitivity error. This deviation is mostly attributed to sensor
fabrication errors and its calibration. If the output of a sensor differs from the actual value to be
measured by a constant, the sensor is said to have an offset error or bias. For example, while
measuring an actual temperature of 0 ◦ C, a temperature sensor outputs 1.1 ◦ C every time. In this
case, the sensor is said to have an offset error or bias of 1.1 ◦ C.
C) Non-linearity: some sensors have a non-linear behavior. If a sensor’s transfer function (TF)
deviates from a straight line transfer function, it is referred to as its non-linearity.

D) Drift: If the output signal of a sensor changes slowly and independently of the measured
property, this behavior of the sensor’s output is termed as drift. Physical changes in the sensor or its
material may result in long-term drift, which can span over months or years. Noise is a temporally
varying random deviation of signals.
In contrast, if a sensor’s output varies/deviates due to deviations in the sensor’s previous input
values, it is referred to as hysteresis error.

E ) Quantization error : Focusing on digital sensors, if the digital output of a sensor is an

approximation of the measured property, it induces quantization error. This error can be defined as
the difference between the actual analog signal and its closest digital approximation during the
sampling stage of the analog to digital conversion
 Sensing Types
Sensing can be broadly divided into four different categories based on the
nature of the environment being sensed and the physical sensors.

1. Scalar sensing,
2. Multi media sensing,
3. Hybrid sensing and
4. Virtual sensing.
 Scalar sensing
Scalar sensing encompasses the sensing of features that can be quantified
simply by measuring changes in the amplitude of the measured values with
respect to time.

Quantities such as ambient temperature, current, atmospheric pressure,

rainfall, light, humidity, flux, and others are considered as scalar values as they
normally do not have a directional or spatial(3D) property assigned with them.

Simply measuring the changes in their values with passing time provides
enough information about these quantities.
 Multimedia sensing
Multimedia sensing encompasses the multiple parameters like amplitude and
time (direction and magnitude).
Vector quantities like image, direction, speed, sound, energy.

Hybrid sensing
Hybrid sensing encompasses both scalar as well as multimedia sensing at the
same time is referred to as hybrid sensing.
Example: Camera and temperature sensor are collectively used to detect and
confirm forest fire during wildlife monitoring.
 Virtual sensing
Virtual sensors represent a software layer that provides indirect
measurements of a process variable or an abstract condition based on data
gathered.
It learns to understand the relationships between the different variables, and
observes readings from the different instruments.
Virtual sensing encompasses very dense and large-scale deployment of sensor
nodes spread over a large area for monitoring of parameters.
Example: Agriculture domain. Here, the parameters being measured, such as
soil moisture, soil temperature, and water.
 Figure 5.4(d) shows an example of virtual sensing.
Two temperature sensors S1 and S3 monitor three near by events E1, E2, and
E3 (fires). The event E2 does not have a dedicated sensor for monitoring it;
however, through the superposition of readings from sensors S1 and S3, the
presence of fire in E2 is inferred.
 Sensing Considerations
The major factors influence the choice of sensors in IoT-based sensing
solutions:

1. Sensing range,
2. Accuracy and Precision,
3. Energy
4. Device size.
 Sensing Range:
The range of the sensor is the maximum and minimum values of applied parameter
that can be measured. For example, a given pressure sensor may have a range of -400
to +400 mm Hg.
 Sensing Range:
The sensing range of a sensor node defines the detection reliability of that
node.
Sensing range in deployments include
• Fixed k-coverage
• Dynamic k-coverage.
Fixed k-coverage : It requires a large number of sensor nodes, the sensing
range of some of which may also overlap.
Dynamic k-coverage: Incorporates mobile sensor nodes post detection of
an event, which, however, is a costly solution and may not be deployable in
all operational areas and terrains.
Additionally, the sensing range of a sensor may also be used to signify the
upper and lower bounds of a sensor’s measurement range.
For example a camera has a sensing range varying between tens of meters
to hundreds of meters.
As the complexity of the sensor and its sensing range goes up, its cost
significantly increases.
 Accuracy and Precision
The accuracy and precision of measurements provided by a sensor are critical in
deciding the operations of specific functional processes.

Accuracy refers to how close a measurement is to the true or accepted value.

Precision refers to how close measurements of the same item are to each
other.
Accuracy provides a high level of quality and precision
 Energy
The energy consumed by a sensing solution is crucial to determine the
lifetime of that solution and the estimated cost of its deployment.

If the sensor or the sensor node is so energy inefficient that it requires
replenishment of its energy sources quite frequently, the effort in maintaining
the solution and its cost goes up; whereas its deployment feasibility goes down.
 Device Size
Modern-day IoT applications have a wide penetration in all domains of life.
Most of the applications of IoT require sensing solutions which are so small that
they do not hinder any of the regular activities that were possible before the
sensor node deployment was carried out.
Larger the size of a sensor node, larger is the obstruction caused by it, higher is
the cost and energy requirements, and lesser is its demand for the bulk of the IoT
applications.
Consider a simple human activity detector. If the detection unit is too large to be
carried or too bulky to cause hindrance to regular normal movements, the
demand for this solution would be low.
It is because of this that the onset of wearables took off so strongly.
The wearable sensors are highly energy-efficient, small in size, and almost part of
the wearer’s regular wardrobe.