Warning: I have no working experience with components like these nor do I know the terminology, so please be patient or let know of a better way to find my information – I felt this may be a good place to start.
I’m just looking for a way to create a prototype for fun and I’m not sure what’s available out there yet. It’s a simple, probably boring low tech idea so I assume it’s been done but I can’t find information on how I would go about making one to test nor would I know the options with any components that might be involved.
I’m calling it a Proximity Sensor because that’s the closet thing I can find out there that’s similar.
These sensors seem to mostly be used on assembly lines to trigger actions and in cars now to sense when you are getting to close to a guardrail. The difference between the two is range and I believe the car version is probably not the same technology, I’m assuming at least one is IR. I can tell there is technology out there to sense if an object is getting close to the sensor and I assume that the range/sensitivity is somehow adjustable… anywhere between the few inches of an assembly line to several feet for a car, depending on the technology used. I have a drone that has the same technology that somehow knows when I’m getting close to a tree for example. I don’t know if it’s simply motion of an oncoming object or the object itself.
Questions:
If it were in the drone range of inches to several feet what would be the available sensor technologies be if it was best for it to be small and cost effective?
I assume the usual sensor needs a clear view to the trigger target but what if there was something in the way? Like a consistent obstruction, would any of these technologies be able to ignore that and see through or around it?
If I need to, can the trigger target be another component, like a small beacon that would or could be uniquely programmed to trigger the sensor, instead of just moving objects?
If a beacon situation ends being the best or simplest solution, would the sensor need an unobstructed view of the target as mentioned in question 2?
I’m going to have to figure out some kind of result like a buzzer or light but It would be cool if the technology could increase the intensity of this result the closer it gets to the target.
Any help to identify what I might get to try and build this idea would be great, even if it means I should go somewhere else for this infoormation.
I’ve seen the sensors you describe, but SparkFun doesn’t carry any of those. I can really only comment on what we carry.
I’m just looking for a way to create a prototype for fun and I’m not sure what’s available out there yet. It’s a simple, probably boring low tech idea so I assume it’s been done but I can’t find information on how I would go about making one to test nor would I know the options with any components that might be involved.
If you’re looking for a sensor that’s easy to use for a prototype and to mess around with, you’d probably want to go with an analog sensor like our Sharp IR Proximity sensors. All those need is a power source and you can read the results on a voltmeter. These have an analog output that varies depending on the distance to an object.
- [[Infrared Proximity Sensor Short Range - Sharp GP2Y0A41SK0F](https://www.sparkfun.com/products/12728)
- [[Infrared Proximity Sensor Long Range - Sharp GP2Y0A02YK0F](https://www.sparkfun.com/products/8958)
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If it were in the drone range of inches to several feet what would be the available sensor technologies be if it was best for it to be small and cost effective?
This really depends on your operating environment and what you're trying to sense. A ultrasonic sensor might work but you'd need to test one on a drone to make sure it would function correctly. (Motor noise and air moving past the sensor might be a problem)
I assume the usual sensor needs a clear view to the trigger target but what if there was something in the way? Like a consistent obstruction, would any of these technologies be able to ignore that and see through or around it?
If something is in the way that the sensor can't 'see' through, all you will sense is that object. Radar might work to see through objects but that's a very complex thing to implement.
If I need to, can the trigger target be another component, like a small beacon that would or could be uniquely programmed to trigger the sensor, instead of just moving objects?
Possibly, but we don't carry anything quite like that. RFID might be a possibility but may be hard to implement in a way that works consistently.
If a beacon situation ends being the best or simplest solution, would the sensor need an unobstructed view of the target as mentioned in question 2?
Depends on how the beacon is sensed. Light or sound won't work through many obstructions where radio might.
I’m going to have to figure out some kind of result like a buzzer or light but It would be cool if the technology could increase the intensity of this result the closer it gets to the target.
That shouldn't be too hard to implement as long as whatever sensor you use gives a range to target. You'd need to program things so that your output got bigger as the input got bigger. You're going to need external circuitry and probably a microcontroller and writing software for this to work.