The relevance of optical transducers to the process industries

Abstract The first part of the paper deals with the requirements of the process industries for measurement transducers and systems. It classifies the industries and discusses the measurands involved. Reference is made to the desirable characteristics and performances of transducers as discrete units and as system components. The second half of the paper examines these requirements in relation to the potential of optical transducers. It concludes that although these new transducers could have some useful characteristics involving simplicity, safety and freedom from interference, there are many obvious design and development problems and limitations which have to be overcome before optical transducers can replace their electrical counterparts particularly in control systems.