While Others Meet Some Needs, We Meet Them All
Sensing systems are as complex as they are crucial when it comes to your technology. It can be frustrating trying to find a solution that doesn’t force you to trade cost for accuracy or volume for functionality.
We don’t force you to make that decision. Instead, we develop products that feature everything you want in a sensor:
- Market Differentiation: Innovation helps distinguish you in any field. Our applied R&D is best in class.
- Robust Solution: Technical capability and accuracy are paramount. We don’t compromise here, ever.
- Reduced Costs: No other developer can offer high-value, high-volume solutions without sacrificing quality.
Our Whiteboard Approach Makes This Possible
When our founders launched BH Sensors, they disrupted the sensor industry. All of a sudden, a small, private business began offering better technology than established corporations while streamlining customer costs.
Not only that, but it turned the sales and implementation process completely around. No longer did buyers need to choose a preexisting solution, hope it would fit well, and then settle for “good enough” if it didn’t. The real value came from the fact that what they bought was made for them, not for someone else.
This whiteboard approach to problem-solving is as innovative as our technology itself. We start with a blank canvas. We have no preconceived notions and aren’t locked into any one material, configuration, or topology. This not only lets us design a solution exclusively for your business, it also eliminates any tunnel vision that would prevent us from spotting other ways to optimize performance.
The result is a form-fitting sensor that achieves your goals and respects your budget.
Our Customers Benefit in 3 Major Ways
- Virtually unlimited topology options for sensing structures
- Any frequency can be used as a sensor operating point
- Electrical and mechanical designs are optimized independently
- No restriction on materials used for target construction
- Various materials can fill the target / transmission interface region
- No signal conditioning through an unnecessary intermediate device
Electromagnetic structure topology: Regardless of what topology the application dictates, we’re able to work with it. Coax, planar, waveguide and coplanar waveguide, microstrip, and slotline are all in play.
Frequency independence: We’re not restricted by a specific frequency as an operating point. Higher frequencies allow for sensor miniaturization for devices like accelerometers. Lower frequencies are ideal for macro sensors such as load cells and proximity sensors.
Independent optimization: The mechanical target and electronic sensor structure only interact through the electromagnetic (EM) field. Since they never physically connect, they can be optimized separately for sensing applications. In short, we’ve made electro-mechanical coupling interference a nonissue.
Target material: EM fields interact with everything. That means any material can be used as a target to be detected—metal, semiconductor, insulator, cement, ice, bone, etc. This makes it convenient for designers to easily match any of the many topologies available.
Non-contact interface: As long as it allows the target to displace, any material can fill the interface region between the target and sensing part of the structure. This includes structures that must stay sterile for transporting items like blood and plasma.
No signal conditioning: We’ve removed the usual intermediate electronics between sensors and end devices. Our technology’s inherent digital output eliminates this complexity for a more reliable and cost-effective solution.
- Full dynamic displacement range
- High non-compensated sensitivity with zero cross-axis sensitivity
- Spring-dependent repeatability / hysteresis
- Optimal operating temperature range
- Efficient digital and analog signal outputs
- Fully-scalable sizing across sensor technology
- Overload protection with no impact to performance
- Mechanical robustness and long-term stability
Dynamic displacement: Nominal distance between the target and sensing system ranges from 10um to 40mm. Our proximity sensors measure this entire range with excellent resolution and repeatability.
Sensitivity: For a nominal distance of 1mm, our non-compensated sensor can measure 10nm of target displacement (1 part in 100k). At 10mm, it can measure 1um of displacement (1 in 10k). No cross-axis sensitivity means displacement in one won’t couple into another.
Repeatability / hysteresis: This area depends only on the strength of the “spring” and material characteristic of the displacement structure.
Operating temperature: Our solutions function in the full industrial range of -40C to 85C. Specialty sensors continue to work in environments exceeding 1000C.
Digital and analog outputs: Our sensors’ native digital output requires no amplifying electronics. Devices can then be connected directly to digital networks, handhelds, or PCs. For an analog output, we simply convert the native digital signal into an analog signal through basic components integrated into the transducer.
Size scalability: Our technology scales to meet your needs. This covers large macroscopic devices like load cells and pressure transducers down to millimeter-size circuit chips used in devices such as accelerometers.
Overload protection: Displacements are small and mechanical stress is low. Sensors therefore function normally once returned to nominal operating condition. Our systems are rugged and reliable—even an overload of 10–100x won’t affect performance.
Mechanical robustness and stability: Displacement elements such as beams, diaphragms, and hinges can be made up to five times thicker than conventional strain gauge parts. This reduces creep, drift, and plasticity to minimize detection errors.
- Use the most cost-effective material for your solution
- Manufacturing is not restricted to expensive machined parts
- Automated assembly eliminates manual labor
- No individual tuning and testing of transducers or sensors
- Single modular transducer design
- Eliminate hidden expenses and reduce total cost of ownership
Cost-effective material: The most expensive material isn’t necessarily the best material. We choose the most sensible option for your solution. Available items include metals, plastics, ceramics, semiconductors, and even things like wood and bone.
Manufacturing process: You shouldn’t be forced to pay for expensive construction when you don’t have to. We’ll build your device using simple casting, extrusion, stamping, deep draw, and even epoxy bonding. We can also simplify machining as an option.
Automated assembly: The electronics and target / housing are independent structures. Mating them to form the entire transducer is as simple as bonding, screwing, or snapping the parts together. In other words, there’s no need for pricey manual labor.
No individual tuning / testing: Individual transducers and sensors don’t need to be tuned once topology is characterized and sizing tolerances maintained. They can simply be “cookie-cuttered” out without degrading their performance.
Modular design: Our single electronics design easily drops into things like load cells, pressure transducers, and proximity sensors. The lack of complex structures reduces the number of components and potential reliability issues.
Lower total cost of ownership: ”Hidden” training, maintenance, integration, and replacement costs are many times that of the sensor. We proactively minimize them for you. This starts by tailoring your new solution for form, fit, and function while resembling your old system’s look and feel for easier transition. Our versatile technology drops your total cost of ownership for a far more efficient long-term investment.
