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Accelerometer Design and Operating Characteristics

MECHANICAL CONSTRUCTION OF INDUSTRIAL PIEZOELECTRIC ACCELEROMETERS Accelerometers are transducers that are designed to produce an electrical output signal that is proportional to applied acceleration. Several sensing technologies are utilized to construct accelerometers, including, strain gage, piezoresistive, capacitive, and piezoelectric. Strain gage, piezoresistive, and capacitive types possess the ability to measure constant acceleration, such as that of earth's gravity, whereas piezoelectric types can only accurately measure an acceleration that changes, such as that encountered with vibration. IMI Sensors manufactures both piezoelectric and capacitive industrial accelerometers. Piezoelectric types are recommended for most every industrial vibration application on rotating machinery. Capacitive types are reserved for extremely low frequency measurements, such as that encountered with massive, slow-speed rollers. Many applications for accelerometers exist in the research and development sector on everything from computer disk drive mechanisms to automobiles to advanced weapons systems. The primary focus for conducting acceleration measurements in R&D applications is to minimize vibration experienced, or delivered, by an object in order to extend service life, improve efficiency, or improve user comfort. Applications for accelerometers in the industrial sector however, are primarily focused on extending service life of machinery by predicting failures, thus allowing maintenance to be conducted in a planned manner. By doing so, operators can make more intelligent decisions about spare parts purchases and keep critical equipment up-and-running longer and faster to increase product output and profitability. Piezoelectric accelerometers are ideal for industrial vibration monitoring applications. They can be made durable, protected from contamination, impervious to extraneous noise influences, and are easy to implement. Accelerometers that are designed with these features are classified as Industrial Accelerometers, i.e. suitable for use in rigorous industrial, field, or submersible environments. The sensing element of a piezoelectric accelerometer utilizes a polarized ceramic material or quartz crystal. Quartz is a natural piezoelectric material and has the advantages of long-term stability, repeatability, and is non-pyroelectric, i.e. does not generate an output signal with change in temperature. Ceramic materials, on the other hand, have the advantages of higher temperature operation, and higher output signal - leading to a superior signal-to-noise ratio. Both quartz and ceramic types are available with or without built-in signal conditioning electronics. Typically, the only reason not to use an industrial accelerometer with built-in electronics is when an extremely high temperature environment (>325 F (162 C)) would damage the internal circuitry. Otherwise, accelerometers with built in electronics, termed IEPE (Integrated Electronic PiezoElectric) or PCB's trademarked ICP (Integrated Circuit Piezoelectric) designation offer superior ease of use, lower system cost, and greater distance signal transmission capability. Industrial ICP accelerometers may also incorporate additional features, such as a built in temperature sensing circuitry, integration circuitry to convert to velocity units of measure, transmitter circuitry to generate a 4 to 20 mA output signal, and TEDS (Transducer Electronic Data Sheet) circuitry - an on-board, addressable memory with stored, self-identifying information. The piezoelectric material within an accelerometer is structured in a manner, which causes the material to undergo stress when under the influence of acceleration. This stress causes an electrical output that is linearly proportional to acceleration. The stress is achieved by placing a seismic mass in intimate contact with the piezoelectric material. Since F=ma, any force applied to the piezoelectric material will be proportional to the seismic mass and the applied acceleration. Since the seismic mass is constant, the force, and resultant electrical output signal, becomes directly proportional to the applied acceleration. There are several methods in which to stress the piezoelectric material with the seismic mass. These methods are categorized in following terms that define the geometry of the sensing element - compression, flexural, and shear. Each has advantages and disadvantages that are highlighted as follows:

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Accelerometer Design and Operating Characteristics


Compression - permits compact construction, high stiffness, high durability, and high resonant frequency. Susceptible to inputs from base strain caused by thermal transients and mounting on thin-walled structures.

Shear mode accelerometer For best overall performance in industrial machinery vibration applications, IMI utilizes, almost exclusively, the shear structured geometry for its piezoelectric industrial accelerometers. Only one, ultra-high-output, low frequency unit is offered that utilizes a flexural geometry. Compression geometries, although still utilized for some R&D applications, have been superseded by the shear type for industrial applications, primarily due to the thermal transient induced base strain error susceptibility of compression designs, particularly at low frequencies. This low frequency error, or drift, causes what is commonly termed "ski slope" error, which becomes evident when acceleration signals are integrated into velocity signals. Volume production of shear style accelerometers has also reduced their cost to a level acceptable to the industrial market, further benefiting their use. Industrial accelerometers have to endure severe environments and tough operating conditions. In order to achieve these requirements, there are several design and construction characteristics that demand awareness. In selecting an accelerometer for use in an industrial environment, ensure that the unit meets these design criteria: Welded, stainless steel housing - All IMI accelerometers are constructed from stainless steel. This proven, corrosive resistant material stands up well against dirt, oil, moisture, and harsh chemicals. Stainless steel is also non-magnetic, which minimizes errors induced when used in the vicinity of electric motors and other sources of electromagnetic interference. For durability, all mating housing parts are precision laser welded. No epoxies are used which can eventually fatigue or cause leaks. Internal faraday shield - All IMI accelerometers utilize an internal electrical shield to guard against ESD, RFI, EMI, and other extraneous noise influences. The result is an

Compression mode accelerometer Flexural - generates higher output signals and is less susceptible to inputs from base strain. Lower resonant frequency and more fragile.

Flexural mode accelerometer Shear - permits compact construction, good stiffness, good durability, and reasonable resonant frequency. Less susceptible to inputs from base strain and thermal transients. Piezoelectric crystal Signal conditioning electronics

Seismic mass Preload retaining ring

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Accelerometer Design and Operating Characteristics


electrically, case-isolated sensing element that is insulated from ground, which also insures that there will be no ground loops in the measurement system that can cause signal drift, noise, and other hard-to-trace electrical problems. Durable, military style electrical connectors or sealed, integral cables - IMI's electrical connectors offer a true hermetic seal with glass-to-metal fusing of connector pins and shells. All connectors are laser welded to the sensor housing. Sensors with integral cables incorporate hermetic feed through pins and high-pressure, injectionmolded sealing of the cable to a metallic shell that is laser welded to the sensor housing. Integral polyurethane jacketed cables offer 750 psi submersibility along with excellent pull strength and strain relief characteristics. Interconnect cables should utilize shielded, twisted, conductor pairs and an outer jacket material that will survive exposure to any media, or excessive temperatures present in the environment in which it will be used. Stainless steel, armored cables are recommended for installations where machined debris or chips may damage cable jackets, or where cables have the potential of being stepped on or pinched. Electrical connectors for cables are offered in a variety of styles and configurations to suit the application. Take care to note the temperature rating of the connector and material of construction. Environmentally sealed cable connectors provide a boot to protect the integrity of the connection in outdoor installations or during wash down episodes

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Accelerometer Design and Operating Characteristics


ELECTRICAL CHARACTERISTICS AND OPERATION OF INDUSTRIAL ICP ACCELEROMETERS What is an ICP Accelerometer? Accelerometers are transducers that are designed to produce an electrical output signal that is proportional to applied acceleration. Industrial ICP accelerometers rely on the piezoelectric effect of quartz crystals or polarized ceramics as the transduction mechanism for converting mechanical forces into a proportional electrical signal. As crystals are stressed, charged ions accumulate at their surfaces. Electrodes that are in intimate contact with the crystals collect these ions, which result in an electrical signal. The signal is then transmitted via a small wire to a signal conditioning circuit that is positioned within the accelerometer's housing. The signal conditioning circuit serves to convert the difficult to use, high-impedance, charge signal from the crystal into a low-impedance, voltage signal that can be transmitted outside of the accelerometer housing, over a relatively long distance, without degradation. This low-impedance voltage signal can then be interrogated by data collection equipment, displayed on an oscilloscope, stored on a recording instrument, or analyzed with a data acquisition system or FFT analyzer. This type of accelerometer is generically termed an IEPE accelerometer for Integrated Electronic PiezoElectric, or with PCB's trademark ICP accelerometer for Integrated Circuit Piezoelectric. Piezoelectric crystal Signal conditioning electronics capitalizes on the inherent electrical characteristics of the particular sensing element to create a sensing device with optimized performance. Additional circuitry may be added to enhance or tune the output signal for specific purposes. Such enhancements include filtering, rms conversion, 4-20 mA transmitters, integrators, and TEDS (Transducer Electronic Data Sheet - an on-board, addressable memory with stored, self-identifying information).

Seismic mass Preload retaining ring Shear structured ICP accelerometer How are accelerometer signals conditioned with built-in electronics? The heart of the signal conditioning circuitry within IMI Sensors' ICP industrial accelerometers is a transistor. This transistor may be a JFET or MOSFET type, depending on the style of circuitry that is desired. The circuitry may take the form of a voltage amplifier, or a charge amplifier, depending on the sensor. Typically, voltage amplifiers are used with quartz crystal sensing elements, whereas charge amplifiers are used with piezoelectric ceramic sensing elements. Each type of circuit Schematic of voltage amplified and charge amplified ICP accelerometer What kind of electrical signals are generated by an ICP accelerometer? As stated above, mechanical forces applied to the piezoelectric material generate a proportional electrical signal. If this force is positive going, then a positive electrical signal is generated. If this force is negative going, then a negative electrical signal is generated. Note that reversing the orientation of the crystals can reverse the output polarity. Regardless of polarity, this negative and positive going signal is delivered to the integrated signal conditioning circuit. Since the integrated, transistorized circuit is an active electrical device, excitation power is required to achieve operation. Typical excitation

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Accelerometer Design and Operating Characteristics


power for an ICP accelerometer is a positive voltage of 24 VDC, which is regulated to a constant current value of 4 mA. Since, by design, the integrated signal conditioning circuit is energized with only a positive voltage, it cannot deliver an output signal that swings negatively. To overcome this obstacle, the circuit is designed to operate at an elevated DC bias voltage. The negative electrical signal generated by the piezoelectric material will swing negatively from this elevated DC bias voltage toward zero, whereas the positive electrical signal generated by the piezoelectric material will swing positively from this elevated DC bias voltage toward the excitation voltage of 24 VDC. ranged for a 5 volt output swing to be well within this range. Should the sensor be driven beyond its normal range, signal distortion or clipping can occur which will lead to measurement error. This error condition is also known as "running out of headroom". Note that some sensors are designed to operate at lower bias levels and / or be powered from a lower excitation voltage. Either situation will result in a sensor that has less than the typical x 5 volt output swing, i.e. less headroom. Here are typical accelerometer sensitivities, along with their 5 VDC output ranges:
Sensitivity 1 mV/g 10 mV/g 100 mV/g 1000 mV/g 10,000 mV/g 5 VDC output range 5000 g 500 g 50 g 5g 0.5 g

This relationship can be calculated for any sensitivity using the following: 5000 S where: S = Sensitivity (mV/g) o.r. = output range (g) for 5 VDC How do ICP accelerometers respond to step input accelerations and low frequency vibrations? Piezoelectric accelerometers are AC coupled devices. As such, they are unable to provide a constant output signal with respect to a constant acceleration, such as the 1 g gravitational acceleration of the earth. If exposed to a step function of constant acceleration, the output of a piezoelectric accelerometer will initially follow the rise in acceleration amplitude, but then the output signal will decay back to zero. This decay occurs exponentially and at a rate that is governed by the value of the discharge time constant according to the following equation: q where: q Q R C t e = instantaneous charge (pC) = initial quantity of charge (pC) = bias (or feedback) resistor value (ohm) = total (or feedback) capacitance (pF) = any time after t0 (seconds) = base of natural log (2.718) = Qe(-t/RC) = o.r.

VB = Sensor Bias Voltage of 10 VDC Vs1 = Supply Voltage 1 = 24 VDC VE1 = Excitation Voltage 1 = Vs1-1 = 23 VDC Vs2 = Supply Voltage 2 = 18 VDC VE2 = Excitation Voltage 2 = Vs2-1 = 17 VDC Maximum Sensor Amplifier Range = 10 volts

Effect of excitation voltage on dynamic range (headroom) The bias voltage from sensor to sensor may vary but is typically within a range of 8 to 12 VDC. Allowing for a 2 volt consumption by the circuitry, a minimum of 6 volts will remain to accommodate the signal excursion about the bias voltage. Most industrial ICP accelerometers are

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Accelerometer Design and Operating Characteristics


The longer the discharge time constant is, the longer it takes for the decay to be completed. During the initial period of decay however, there is a short period of time when the output signal of the accelerometer is representative of the constant value of acceleration "within a reasonable acceptable error". Consequently, once a "reasonable acceptable error" is established, limits can be calculated, which determine the rate-of-change of acceleration required in order to stay within the acceptable error. These limits become the slowest rate of acceleration change, which is specified as the low frequency range of the accelerometer. Accelerometers with longer values of discharge time constant will have a lower frequency range capability. Many accelerometers are specified with several low frequency ranges, along with their corresponding typical error values of 5%, 10%, and 3 dB. When measuring reciprocating or cyclic acceleration, as is encountered with vibration, ensure that the low frequency range of the accelerometer meets the measurement frequency range of interest, within the reasonable acceptable error. How do ICP accelerometers respond to highfrequency vibrations? Piezoelectric industrial accelerometers are very rigid structures that conform to a single degree-of-freedom system. As such, their resonant frequency can be calculated from the relationship: fn where: fn k m = 2 = 1/2 k/m mesh could introduce vibration that might cause saturation of an accelerometer that is attempting to measure a relatively lower frequency bearing vibration on the same drive train. The following shows a typical, frequency response plot for an industrial ICP accelerometer.

Sensitivity Deviation vs Frequency It is important to understand both the frequency range of measurement interest and frequency range for the accelerometer to be used for the application. If an accelerometer is selected that does not have adequate frequency range, measurement accuracy and ability to detect machinery faults will be compromised. What is settling time? Settling time is specified as the duration of time required for the accelerometer to achieve a stable output signal within 1 percent of the specified bias voltage. Another term used to describe this is warm-up time. Settling time becomes a concern especially when acquiring data through a switch box, with a data collector that is providing excitation power to the accelerometer. The settling time is the minimum time that the data collection technician must wait before capturing any data. During the settling time, the output signal of the accelerometer will drift from the open circuit supply voltage, down to the bias voltage. This drift can introduce error in a measurement signal as it will be perceived as low frequency measurement data by the data collection or analysis equipment.

= the natural (resonant) frequency = angular frequency in radians = force / deflection (stiffness) = mass

This shows that resonant frequency is decreased as accelerometer mass is increased. Rule-of-thumb permits accurate operation (within a + 5% sensitivity deviation) to approximately one-fifth of the mounted resonant frequency. Response to higher frequencies will be represented with a greater increased sensitivity deviation, which becomes very substantial at the resonant frequency. Some ICP accelerometers incorporate built-in, low-pass filters to attenuate the mechanical gain induced at higher frequencies. This filtering may be especially desirable for accelerometers that are used on rotating equipment that is coupled to a variety of components operating at a variety of frequencies. For example, a high frequency gear

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Accelerometer Design and Operating Characteristics


POWERING ICP ACCELEROMETERS All ICP sensors require a constant current power source for proper operation. A typical sensing system includes an ICP sensor, ordinary two conductor cable and a basic constant current power supply. for proper operation.) Except for special models, standard ICP sensors require a minimum of 2 mA for proper operation.

Constant Current Diode Present technology limits this diode type to 4 mA maximum rating; however, several diodes can be placed in parallel for higher current levels. All line-powered signal conditioners should use higher capacity (up to 20 mA) constant current circuits in place of the diodes, particularly when driving long signal cables (See page 132). Decoupling of the data signal occurs at the output stage of the signal conditioner. A 10 to 30 F capacitor shifts the signal level to essentially eliminate the sensor bias voltage. The result is a drift-free AC mode of operation. Where do I find additional information? Further information about the operation of ICP and charge mode piezoelectric sensors can be obtained by requesting document PCB-G0001 or by visiting our websites: www.pcb.com and www.imi-sensors.com.

Typical ICP Sensor System The signal conditioner consists of a well-regulated 18 to 30 VDC source (battery or line-powered), a current-regulating diode (or equivalent constant current circuit), and a capacitor for decoupling (removing) the bias voltage from the measurement the signal. The voltmeter, VM monitors the sensor bias voltage (normally 8 to 12 VDC) and is useful for checking sensor operation and detecting open or shorted cables and connections. The current-regulating device is used in place of a resistor for several reasons. The very high dynamic resistance of the diode yields a source follower gain which is extremely close to unity and independent of input voltage. Also, the diode can be changed to supply higher currents for driving long cable lengths. Constant current diodes, as shown in Figure 2, should be used in ICP signal conditioners. (The correct orientation of the diode within the circuit is critical

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