Digital Transducers and Interfacing

As discussed in chapter 1 of this book, the quantities we wish to measure are usually inherently analogue in nature, and most so-called digital transducers simply employ well-known analogue effects in such a way as to produce a digital output. Various digital devices have therefore been discussed in the chapters on length, temperature or light measurement. In this chapter we will first discuss the concept of digital measurement, then make a classification of digital transducers and finally discuss the interfacing of transducers in computer systems.