D6F-series MEMS Flaw Sensor User’s Manual (A286)
2
1 Outline
This application note explains the features, basic usage and some notices of OMRON MEMS
Flow Sensor (D6F series) before use.
2 What is a Flow Sensor?
A flow sensor is a sensor that detects the flow rate and flow velocity of a gas. In general, there are
various types of flow sensors, such as a propeller type, a float type, an ultrasonic type, a hot wire
type, and so on. OMRON flow sensors adopt a MEMS heat wire type, and have relatively excellent
characteristics in comparison with other types of flow sensors.
Table1. Various Types of Flow Sensor and Features
3 Structure
3.1 Basic composition of flow sensors
OMRON flow sensors are dedicated to gas, it can be used for detecting the mass flow of
various types of gases. The basic composition of flow sensors consist of a MEMS flow sensor
chip that can detect the flow rate, the amplifier circuit for amplifying sensor output and the
optimized flow path that is designed for each application by CAE (Computer Aided Engineering).
Optimizing these three compositions is very important because gas flow is a vector volume.
Type
Sensitivity
Response
Time
Pressure
Drop
Current
Consumption
Sensing
Size Element
Mechanical
Endurance
Propeller
Float
Ultrasonic
Heat Wire
MEMS
Heat Wire
OMRON
Conventional Sensors
Volumetric Flow Sensor
Mass Flow Sensor
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