Featured Article

By Todd Zara, Director, Supplier Marketing for Electro-Mechanical Products and Sensors, at TTI, Inc.

The word sensor has many definitions and covers a broad spectrum of applications. Make no mistake the demand for sensors is growing rapidly. A few examples are medical, manufacturing, heavy duty off-road vehicles, handheld devices, and information technology. The estimated global demand for sensor technology in 2011 is approximately US $50 billion.

Sensors are used in everyday items such as thermometers, refrigerators, elevators, and automobiles. A mid-level automobile is estimated to have over 100 sensors depending on features and options. Commonly used sensors include temperature, humidity, motion, speed & position, pressure, force, air flow, optical, liquid level, proximity, and photocell.

Sensors improve quality of life, conserve energy and provide enhanced levels of safety. Motion sensors automatically turn lights on and off in a room. Temperature and humidity sensors in our homes monitor air quality and increase the efficiency of the heating and cooling unit. Speed sensors are used in automotive ABS breaking systems. Let's look at the medical segment. Many design factors create demand for sensors in medical equipment. These include safety, increased intelligence, reliability, accuracy, small size, and low power consumption. From the patient and consumers point of view it's about ease of use and improving quality of life. Sensors allow for earlier detection of symptoms which provides a more timely prevention or cure.

In healthcare, sensors are experiencing a revenue increase due to the demand for improved quality of care, sensor technology advancements, and new and evolving medical applications -- each one creating its own demand for sensors in medical devices. The patient and consumer requirements for sensors in the medical market are as abundant as the demands of the design engineer. As insurance companies continue to reduce in-patient allowables, the need for more accurate medical diagnostic tools and portable diagnosis equipment designed for home use increases.

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