Touch Sensor – Conductors or Insulators
What is a Conductor?
Some materials allow the electric current to flow more freely than others. These materials are called conductors. This is due to the free charge on the conductor, which can move. When there is no voltage, the charge is equally distributed across the material.
Example
What is an Insulator?
The opposite of a conductor is an insulator. An insulator opposes the flow of electricity.
Insulators are important to keep us safe from electricity. The wire that carries electricity to your computer or television is covered with a rubber-like insulator that protects you from getting electrocuted. The insulator does not distribute charge.
How do Touch Sensors work?
Capacitive touch sensors are sensitive to charge. They monitor the charge level of the object and tell the evive. So if you have an object which has 5 free charges, then it will tell evive 5 charges.
But when another conductor touches the object, the number of free charge increases on the channel. So now there are 10 charges. This change in free charge is detected in the touch sensor.
However this only works for conductors and not for insulators. Because of free charge.
Activity: Testing the Touch Sensor
In this activity, you will learn how to use evive touch sensors to identify which object is a conductor and which is an insulator?
Components
- evive
- Male to male jumper cables.
Steps
- Connect a Male to Male jumper to evive touch channel.
- Turn on evive. You will see the menu. If not center press on evive navigation key.
- Now, go to the Touch Sensors option. When you touch the free end of the sensor, a sound will come.
- Connect different objects to the touch sensor channels using jumper wires.
After connecting objects find out which object detect touch and which do not by touching them. If the object detects touch then it’s a conductor, else an insulator.