displacement reading and connecting software to LVDT

[viv2525]

Hello! I am new at using an LVDT (LVDT Linear Position Sensors with DC and Current | NEW) and I want to measure position vs time. I am not sure what to use to connect the LVDT to the computer, the settings to be able to read the data, and if I need anything like a transducer or calibration for the LVDT. I have access to a myDAQ so far. Will a myDAQ work? or is a different device more useful

or if there are any LVDTs you might recommend. 

[Bob_Schor]

Are you a student doing a "student" project?  The myDAQ was created more than a decade ago to be something every EE undergraduate could purchase and replace the VOM, oscilloscope, and signal generator needed for the "lab" part of the EE courses (circuit theory, how transistors work, etc.) -- it even comes with a little breadboard to build the circuits and do measurements for Lab courses.

If this is a serious project, you might want to consider more modern NI hardware.

Bob Schor

[viv2525]

Can you recommend any Ni hardware that I could use? Sorry, I am very new to this.

[Bob_Schor]

In order to specify hardware, it is important to know certain things:

• What are the signals you are trying to measure?
  
  • For analog signals, what frequencies do you expect in the signal?  This relates to the sampling rate you need for the A/D convert.  Also, what is the expected voltages you are measuring?
  • For digital signals, what voltages are involved?  Are the signals used for "triggering" (meaning you want to synchronize processing with a signal transition) or something else (explain)?
  • I don't know much about LVDT devices -- what can you tell us about any special requirements to get data out of one?  Does it have "unusual" inputs or outputs or circuitry that has to be considered (and possibly be generated) by other hardware?  Does it need a "timing signal" input, for example?

I'm not primarily an expert on NI Hardware, but there are plenty of participants on this Forum that can make recommendations, particularly when they know more about what you want to measure and/or control.

Bob Schor