Measuring Temperature with Thermocouples, RTDs, and Thermistors

Temperature is a very common measurement with verification, validation, and production test. This document provides context and information to help you select the best temperature sensor for your application needs. After you decide on your sensors, you can consider the required hardware and software to properly condition, acquire, and visualize temperature measurements. You can also…

What is a temperature sensor?

Have you ever left your smartphone in your car on a hot day? If so, your screen might have displayed an image of a thermometer and a warning that your phone has overheated. That is because there is a tiny embedded temperature sensor that measures the interior temperature of your phone. Once the inside of…

Main Benefits of IoT Technology for Agriculture

The world of agriculture is undergoing a transformation. As technology continues to advance in the agricultural sector, farmers are experiencing various benefits from using IoT for the day-to-day operations of their farms. The impact of IoT is felt in all aspects of food production, including crop, food safety, nutrition, and food accessibility. So it’s beneficial…

Smart Farming Technology and Benefits

Crop yield is a major issue for farmers due to bad weather conditions, peasants, unplanned seed sowing, irregular irrigation, and unpredicted locust attacks. Bigger challenges for farmers include soil erosion, biodiversity losses, and rising demands for food of higher quality. Such issues usually leave farmers on the verge of settling for less and hopeless for…

Thermocouples

Seebeck EffectAn interesting phenomenon applied in the field of instrumentation is the Seebeck effect, which is the production of a small voltage across the length of a wire due to a difference in temperature along that wire. This effect is most easily observed and applied with a junction of two dissimilar metals in contact, each…

Optimizing thermistor-based temperature sensing systems: Challenges

Thermistors vs. RTDs As discussed in a previous article series, “Optimizing RTD temperature sensing systems Sensing System,” an RTD is a type of resistor with resistance that varies as a function of temperature. Thermistors operate in a similar manner to RTDs. Unlike RTDs that only have a positive temperature coefficient, thermistors can either have positive…

Introduction to Temperature Sensors: Thermistors, Thermocouples, RTDs, and Thermometer ICs

Temperature Sensor TypesTemperature sensors are among the most commonly used sensors. All types of equipment use temperature sensors, including computers, cars, kitchen appliances, air conditioners, and (of course) home thermostats. The five most common types of temperature sensors include: Thermistor Basics—NTC vs PTC ThermistorAs the name implies, the thermistor (i.e., thermal resistor) is a temperature-sensing…