Looking for a distance sensor

OBones · 2010-10-02T11:45:12+00:00

Hello all,I'm looking for a distance sensor to be used in a situation where I need to mesure the distance from the sensor of an object moving toward or away from it without noticeable lateral movement (and I don't want to measure it anyway). The object is always different but all possible combinations are showing an almost flat square surface of 20 centimers side and cannot be tempered with so the sensor has to work on its own.With this measurement, I want to give feedback (visual, audible, to a supervisory system...) of that distance considering that anything closer than 5 centimeter is considered "too close" and anything farther than 200cm (approximately) is considered "too far".I don't need great precision, and if I was to use an ADC for reading the analog value, 8 bit would be enough giving me a resolution of roughly 1cm. Note that I would prefer a linear sensor but it doesn't have to be. For instance, it could be that the greatest precision is obtainable between 5 and 100cm (80% of values for instance) and less precise farther than 100cm. I would need however to distinguish between the "too close" and "too far" states.As the system will have to run on batteries in most installations, I would like it to consume as little energy as possible with the possible help of microcontroller turning it on and off on a regular basis. Having a microcontroller on the board is almost granted for the whole system to work, so it should not be a problem to add the management of the sensor.For this kind situation, I know of laser, infrared and ultrasonic sensors but I'm not sure what would be best suited considering the "low current" requirement. Nor do I know if there is a better kind of sensor.So if anything comes to mind to anyone, please do not hesitate to point me in the right direction.Regards

Oct 02, 2010 47 Replies

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John Fields 15 years ago

If the box moves toward the sensor, will the plane of one of the flat faces of the box be perpendicular to the direction of travel of the box? Assuming the boxes are mounted/placed on some sort of structure, would it be possible to instrument the structure with, say, an ultrasonic transponder? How much can you spend to get what you want?

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Rich Grise 15 years ago

Well, then, what do you call all those places in California where I can buy stuff? ;-)

Thanks, Rich

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krw 15 years ago

read,

You paid $5 for what? Your Mexican checker? ;-)

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krw 15 years ago

East of Kansas - the long way. ;-)

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Charlie E. 15 years ago

They also own Trader Joes, but that is a different (and BETTER) format altogether!!!

I couldn't live anywhere that didn't have a Trader Joes... ;-)

Charlie

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Jim Thompson 15 years ago

The only place I can get Calamari steaks :-) ...Jim Thompson

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Rich Grise, Plainclothes Hippi 15 years ago

I wish I could find a Hickory Farms around here - their summer sausage is "to die for"!

Cheers! Rich

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OBones 15 years ago

I see what you mean, placing barriers at various points is an interesting alternative.

Well, no, they are not mounted on anything particular, it could be a car, a bike, a box mounted on a cart...

Ideally not much.

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