Difference Between Sensor and Transducer

Sensor vs Transducer

Sensor and Transducer are physical devices that are used in electrical, electronic and many other types of gadgets and appliances. Difference between sensor and transducer is something that many people are often confused with and needs to be brought into light. These are physical devices that are used in electrical and electronic gadgets and are often encountered by mechanics. While a sensor is a device that, as its name signifies, measures a physical quantity and then converts it into signals that can be read by the user or by any other instrument. Transducer, on the other hand is a physical device (Electrical, electro-mechanical, electromagnetic, photonic or photovoltaic) that converts either one type of energy into another or a physical attribute into another for the purposes of measurement or transfer of information.

It is easy to see why people confuse between transducers and sensors. Because transducers are often found in sensors, people fail to make a difference. Transducers are parts of more complex devices and are used to convert energy from one form to another. Sensors are used to measure and to indicate levels of measurement.

Things become complicating for many when they see many sensors utilizing contact transducers in order to detect energy levels and then converting them into electrical energy that influences a display meter. In eighties, contact transducers became very commonplace and you must have seen them as tape heads in cassette players. These transducers touched the magnetic tape and read the magnetic information that was there. This information was then converted into electrical signals that were carried through wires to speakers where it was finally converted into sound waves.

2nd common types of transducers were immersion transducers which found application in liquid environments. These transducers effectively measured energy in the form of sound, pressure or any other type of mechanical energy. Paintbrush transducers are just like immersion transducers except that they work in air. Antennae in radios to catch radio waves collect air waves and convert them into electrical energy which is converted back into sound energy which you hear from the speakers.

Sensors, on the other hand are rather simple as they have a single purpose and that is to convert energy types and make them legible for people to understand. To achieve this end, sensors make use of transducers which are expert in converting energy from one type to another, mostly electrical in the case of sensors to allow sensors to display it digitally or with an analog meter.