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How are accelerometers used?

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pwotoole

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Will an accelerometer detect and/or indicate sustained acceleration over a period of time lasting as long as 15 seconds? For instance, the acceleration of an automobile as it changes speeds for a period of seconds, as in acceleration during a quarter mile acceleration and speed test.
Or are they mainly used in robotics to indicate quick/short changes in movement?

Examples of an accelerometer:
(SparkFun Electronics - Accelerometer Breakout Board - ADXL320 +/-5g)

(**broken link removed**)


Thank you
Patrick
 
THey can measure any acceleraiton for any period of time. What limits them is their sensitivty (for very low accelerations) or accuracy (for long term measurements that can be derived using acceleration via integration).

Higher quality accelerometers can be used to single integrate to get velocity, or double integrate (along with gyros to keep track of orientation) to determine total distance travelled. This takes almost impossibly accurate gyroscopes and accelerometers. It's mainly used for submarines and ships. Gyros for this are the size of entire rooms. Sometimes things like very very high end missiles.
 
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It's mainly used for submarines and ships. Gyros for this are the size of entire rooms. Sometimes things like very very high end missiles.

I'd have liked anti aircraft missiles approaching with a gyro as big as an entire room. :)

They usually stand 50g to track their target, while the target aircraft can only stand a max of 8g to escape without severe air frame damage (not to talk about the crew withstanding a sustained g-load of 8g for max 40 seconds without black-out; personally tested at "Flugphysiologisches Institut der Luftwaffe", GAF)

Room sized gyros must be steam driven then. :)
 
Analogue accelerometers output a voltage that is simply proportional to the acceleration. Add a battery, connect the accelerometer output to an oscilloscope and then shake the accelerometer, you will see the trace changing. A sustained acceleration will produce a sustained signal. The answer to yout 1st Q is 'yes.' Most would easily measure the acceleration and deceleration of a dragster.

Note that gravity is just an acceleration and so the accelerometer will show a constant acceln due to gravity (unless it's in free-fall). For this reason they can also be used to measure tilt.
 
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