ULTRASOUND:

Ultrasound is sound waves with frequencies higher than the upper audible limit of

human hearing. Ultrasound is not different from "normal" (audible) sound in its physical
properties, except that humans cannot hear it.
Humans can hear from approximately 20 hertz to20 kilohertz (20,000 hertz).

More about Ultrasound:

 The type of sound waves depends on the medium. Sound travels through the air and
liquids as longitudinal waves (i.e., waves vibrating in the same direction as that of
propagation). Through solids, however, it can be transmitted as both longitudinal
waves and transverse waves.
 Ultrasonic waves cannot pass through vacuum as they are longitudinal waves.
 Ultrasonic waves are gradually attenuated to become weaker while travelling through
the medium. Those with a higher frequency show a higher attenuation factor.
 The speed of ultrasonic waves in air is approximately 340 m/s.
 Propagation of ultrasonic waves through any medium is affected by temperature and
the density of the medium.

Applications of Ultrasound:
 In the non-destructive testing of products and structures, ultrasound is used to detect
invisible flaws. Industrially, ultrasound is used for cleaning, mixing, and accelerating
chemical processes.
 A common ultrasound application is an automatic door opener, where an ultrasonic
sensor detects a person's approach and opens the door. Ultrasonic sensors are also
used to detect intruders; the ultrasound can cover a wide area from a single point. The
flow in pipes or open channels can be measured by ultrasonic flow meters, which
measure the average velocity of flowing liquid.
 An ultrasonic level or sensing system requires no contact with the target. For many
processes in the medical, pharmaceutical, military and general industries this is an
advantage over inline sensors that may contaminate the liquids inside a vessel or tube
or that may be clogged by the product.
 Ultrasonic waves are used in the fields of human medicine, biomedical applications,
various mechatronics systems and many other household uses.
 Ultrasonic devices are used to detect objects and measure distances.
ULTRASONIC DISTANCE SENSOR (UDS):
Ultrasonic distance sensor determines the distance to an object by measuring the time taken
by the sound to reflect back from that object.

Construction:
A typical ultrasonic distance sensor consists of two membranes, transmitter and receiver.
One membrane produces sound, another catches reflected echo. Basically they are speaker
and microphone. The sound generator generates short (the length is a couple of periods)
ultrasonic impulses and triggers the timer. Second membrane registers the arrival of the
sound impulse and stops the timer. From the timers time it is possible to calculate the
distance travelled by the sound. The distance to the object is half of the distance travelled by
the sound wave.
Piezoelectric crystals are used in the ultrasonic sensor construction due to the fact that
these crystals oscillate at higher range of frequencies.

Working:
• STEP-1: Make 'TRIGGER' pin of sensor high for some duration (say 10µs). This will
initiate sensor cycle.
• STEP-2: Eight pulses of 40 KHz are transmitted from transmitter part of sensor. After this is
done, 'ECHO' pin goes high from low state.

• STEP-3: After the transmission, transmitted signal gets reflected from the nearby object and
returns back to the sensor.
• STEP-4: When the ultrasonic sensor detects reflected wave, 'ECHO' pin of sensor goes low.
• STEP-5: The time duration when ECHO pin is high will provide distance between sensor
and detected object.
• STEP-6: The ultrasonic sensor is programmed in such a way that if no object is found then
ECHO pin remains high for 38ms and will go low again.

Applications:
Used to replace measuring tapes in measuring devices at construction sites.

Cars are equipped with ultrasonic parking sensors.

They can just register the presence of the object in the measuring range, for example in
danger zones of working machines.
If ultrasound transmitter and receiver are separated, the flowing speed of the substance
between them can be measured, because the sound wave travels slower upstream and vice
versa.