Sensor technology has recently made remarkable progress through advanced fine machining technologies and their application represented typically by integrated-circuit manufacturing technology, intelligent functions utilizing microprocessors, new sensor development with new materials, and so on. Under the circumstances, Fuji Electric has striven to develop and commercialize new sensors to meet the needs of various fields. This paper describes the present status and prospects for the whole sensor technology of Fuji Electric including types for processes and general factory automation.

The paper describes the recent progress of process sensors, analyzers, and radiation sensors. The needs for sensors are showing a tendency to spread gradually over the fields of factory automation, laboratory automation and others beside process control. In the field of process sensors, the application of field bus systems is expected. Under these circumstances, built-in microprocessors are incorporated in many intelligent sensors and new technologies such as laser-beam measurement and micro-sensors has come into application. As for radiation sensors, Fuji Electric sucessfully applied semiconductor detectors to β- and γ-ray detection and integrated the detector and amplifier, and further, intends to apply these improvement to neutron and α-ray detection.

Fuji Electric has developed microchip oxygen sensors applying zirconia solid electrolyte and then oxygen analyzers (O₂ controllers) including such sensors. These sensors are manufactured through stacking and sintering zirconia green sheets with electrodes and heaters formed by the printing method, and have features such as mass producibility, miniature size, low power consumption, good stability, and so forth. The application of O₂ controllers are expected in facilities for disaster prevention, security, food industry, biotechnology, and medical care.

Fourier transform infrared spectrophotometers (FT-IR) have come into wider use than dispersion type ones with a diffraction grating or prism because more light is available for spectrum analysis. This paper gives a brief description of the construction and features of Fuji Electric's FT-IR (FIRIS-100 and FIRIS-25), and refers to the application of FT-IR recently watched with interest such as GC-FTIR, infrared microscope, photo-acoustic, and dual beam spectroscopy.

Fuji Electric has developed several types of silicon radiation detectors for radiation control meters and instruments in nuclear power plants and other radiation facilities. Those detectors are formed as hybrid IC's of low-noise amplifiers and detecting elements which are characterized by amorphous silicon surface layers applied on extra-high purity silicon substrates. The operational principles and uses, specifications and experimental results are described for personal alarm dosimeters, survey meters, area monitors, dust monitors and personal neutron dosimeters, respectively.

Fuji Electric has developed an in-line particle monitor for particulate contamination on reflective solid surfaces (for example, silicon wafers). It is designed to count the number of particles by detecting the scattered laser beams and its optical and signal processing system is simple and compact enough for in-line equipment. The monitor is independent of a substrate transport system; therefore, users can combine it with another transport system. The following results were obtained from the experiment with a prototype: (1) Detection rate of 100% for particles above 0.5μm and over 30% for 0.3μm particles (2) Repeatability within 5% error for 0.5μm particles (3) Good correlation with other analyzers.

This paper outline the existing state and prospect of sensors for water treatment in waterworks and sewage plants and for traffic in highways and railways, and introduces Fuji Electric's characteristics sensors from among sensors used in each field. The sensors taken up are an optical fiber type immersion level transmitter for waterworks, a water quality sensor for sewage plants, a vehicle detector and a carbon moNO_xide analyzer for highways, and four types of preventive maintenance monitors for railways.

Sensing devices are very important apparatus for factory automation systems as well as controllers and actuators. These sensors, utilizing various physical phenomena, are made in many kinds according to uses, accuracy, or functions.
This paper describes the technical tendency and outline of typical standard sensing devices for factory automation.

Formerly devices such as limit switches, proximity switches, and photoelectric switches which detect the presence or absence of objects were mainly used in the field of factory automation.
Recently, as high-grade processing was made possible by personal computer and programmable controllers, distance sensors which can recognize the degree of distance change have increased importance in factory automation.
This paper introduces the following Fuji Electric's FA range sensors: (1) High-frequency inductive linear sensors (2) Ultrasonic linear sensors (3) Optical distance sensors.

Great concern in the preventive maintenance of machinery has recently been aroused according to increasing requirements toward high precision and high quality. Fuji Electric's Micro Vibromonitors "MVA01" has been well-reputed since their sale because they are monitors for trend management with excellent measuring accuracy and simple operation. Further, to meet the needs to centralize and systematize the preventive maintenance of machinery, the company is promoting the development of "MVM03" whose measuring part and displaying part are divided to enable date processing with microcomputers, and of "MVM04" which can transmit data to computers and measuring devices.

The semiconductor pressure sensors utilizing the piezoresistive effect of silicon have many features such as compactness, light weight, and mass producibility, and have been used widely in application to automobiles, home electronic appliances, industrial uses, and so on. Fuji Electric has developed an integrated-circuit pressure sensor which combines a strain gauge, temperature-compensational diffused resistors, and a quad-operational amplifier on one chip using its IC and fine machining technology. This paper introduces the features, structure, characteristics, and applications of the pressure sensor.

Twelve years have passed since Fuji video sensors were put on the market. In the period of first-generation exclusive-use units, various types of automatic visual inspection equipment were developed. Now Fuji video sensors are used not only for inspection but also for automation of visual judgment such as positioning, sorting, classification, and so forth. Mainly second-generation general-purpose video sensors are playing an active part here.
This paper gives a brief description of the development, new products, and prospects of Fuji video sensors.

Fuji Electric has put on the market the MWP-3000 having additional functions to former MW-2000. Additional functions are inspection area setting (dictionary pattern) by showing, judgment of matching, compensation for position change including rotation, control in binary condition following up the grey level change of image signals from a television camera, and high-speed judgment (33 ms at the highest). It aims to increase applications to lines including rotation change of the product or illuminance change and to lines where high-speed processing is required.

This paper outline the feature of the video sensor unit VR-F developed to cope with the tendency of FA systems toward network configuration. The unit is provided with sufficient I/O interface to be connected with any FA system; especially, it can be connected directly to Fuji Electric's programmable controllers into high-speed distributed networks, which makes it easy to structure visual FA networks. It is expected that the extent of application will make great strides owing to the BASIC programming supporting application and the functions for judging and position-sensing.

As preventive maintenance techniques for electric power systems is taken more seriously, the higher performance and more sophisticated application technique are desired. Fuji Electric energetically proceeds with developing and commercializing sensors for preventive maintenance and diagnostic systems for electric power machines and apparatus such as rotating machines, transformers, switchgers, and the like. This paper introduces recent Fuji Electric's techniques of sensor application to electric power installations.