Technology : Capacitive Sensing

Capacitance is a measure of the charge and electrical potential energy storing capability of two conductors, and always is a function of the geometric arrangement. Capacitive sensors use this ability to convert physical signals in the mechanical domain to measurable signals in the electrical domain. For example, ISSYS sensors use two parallel plates separated by an insulator, or dielectric, where the distance between the plates varies with a physical quantity such as pressure. ISSYS sensors using this and other geometries have many advantages over other transduction techniques, including:

• Inherently low power consumption
• Very high resolution and sensitivity
• Excellent stability and durability
• Rapid response
• Electrically grounded exterior sensing surface
• Highly scaleable dynamic range and sensitivity yields a wide range of applications for the core technology
• Insensitive to temperature variation