VISVESVARAYA TECHNOLOGICAL UNIVERSITY

Jnana Sangama, Belagavi,Karnataka - 590 018

A Technical Seminar Report on

"Sensor Classifications and Their Applications in IoT

Systems"
Submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the award of the degree of
Bachelor of Engineering
in

Electronics and Communication Engineering

by

Abhilash N USN:1KI21EC001

Under the Guidance of

Mrs. Shilpa C N B.E, M.Tech

Assistant Professor,
Dept. of ECE,
K.I.T,Tiptur-572 201.

Department of Electronics and Communication Engineering

Kalpataru Institute of Technology
Tiptur - 572 201.
April 2025
 VISVESVARAYA TECHNOLOGICAL UNIVERSITY
Jnana Sangama, Belagavi-590 018.
KALPATARU INSTITUTE OF TECHNOLOGY
Department of Electronics and Communication Engineering
Tiptur-572 201.

CERTIFICATE

This is to certify that the technical seminar entitled "Sensor Classifications and Their
Applications in IoT Systems" is carried out by Abhilash N (1KI21EC001), the
bonafide students of Kalpataru Institute of Technology, Tiptur in partial fulfillment for
the award of "Bachelor of Engineering" in department of "Electronics and Communi-
cation Engineering" of the Visvesvaraya Technological University, Belagavi, during the
year 2021-2025. It is certified that all the corrections/suggestions indicated for internal
assessment have been incorporated in the report deposited in the departmental library.
The technical seminar report has been approved as it satisfies the academic requirements
in respect of Technical Seminar prescribed for the said degree.

Signature of internal Guide Signature of the HOD

Mrs. Shilpa CN B.E, M.Tech Dr. S V Rajashekararadhya M.E.,Ph.D
Assistant Professor, Professor and Head of Department
Dept. of E&CE, K.I.T., Tiptur. Dept. of E&CE, K.I.T., Tiptur.
 ABSTRACT

The Internet of Things (IoT) has revolutionized various industries by enabling seamless
connectivity and automation, with sensors serving as the fundamental building blocks
of IoT ecosystems. Sensors collect, process, and transmit real-time data, facilitating in-
telligent decision-making and automation in diverse applications. This report provides
an in-depth classification of sensors based on their working principles, sensing param-
eters, and communication mechanisms. Sensors can be categorized into physical (e.g.,
temperature, pressure, motion), chemical (e.g., gas, pH, humidity), and biological (e.g.,
biosensors, DNA sensors) types. Further classification includes active and passive sensors,
analog and digital sensors, and wired and wireless sensors.
The integration of sensors in IoT systems is transforming various domains, includ-
ing smart healthcare (remote patient monitoring, wearable health devices), smart cities
(traffic management, pollution monitoring), agriculture (precision farming, soil moisture
sensors), industrial automation (predictive maintenance, robotics), and environmental
monitoring (climate tracking, disaster detection). The advancement of smart sensors
with embedded artificial intelligence (AI), edge computing, and energy-efficient wireless
communication protocols such as Zigbee, LoRa, and NB-IoT is further enhancing the
efficiency of IoT networks.
This seminar explores the technological evolution of sensors, their role in IoT applica-
tions, and future trends, including miniaturization, self-powered sensors, and enhanced
cybersecurity in sensor networks. Understanding sensor classifications and their applica-
tions is essential for optimizing IoT systems, improving real-time analytics, and paving
the way for next-generation smart environments.

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 ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

We wish to express our sincere gratitude to everyone who helped and guided
us in the Technical seminar.

We are grateful to Dr. S V Rajashekararadhya, Professor and Head of the

Department of Electronics and Communication Engineering for encouraging
us to aim higher.
We would like to express our gratitude to our guide Mrs. Shilpa C N,
Assistant Professor in Department of Electronics and Communication Engi-
neering for constant support and guidance.
We are also thankful to all faculty members of the Department of Electronics
and Communication Engineering for their assistance and encourage

Abhilash N (1KI21EC001)

ii
 Contents

Abstract i

Acknowledgements ii

List of Figures iv

1 INTRODUCTION 1

2 IOT ARCHITECTURE 3

3 IOT-SENSOR AND CHARACTERISTICS 5

3.1 Sensors . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5
3.2 Characteristics of Sensors . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6

4 CLASSIFICATION OF SENSORS 8
4.1 Motion Sensors . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8
4.2 Environmental Sensors: . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10
4.3 Position Sensors . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11

5 CONCLUSIONS 12

REFERENCES 13

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 List of Figures

1.1 Number of devices predicted to be internet-connected by 2025. . . . . . . 1

2.1 Four stage IoT architecture . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3

3.1 Outline of simple temperature sensing system . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6

4.1 General view of accelerometer sensor. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9

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Chapter 1
INTRODUCTION

In light of the aim to build more intelligent, more con nected environments that seam-
lessly incorporate technology into our daily lives, the Internet of Things (IoT) has grown
in popularity over the past few years.
IoT is driven by the potential to optimize processes, increase productivity, and enhance
user experiences. IoT has the potential to completely transform how we live and work,
from homes and cities to industries and agriculture, by enabling connectivity across var-
ious devices, systems, and services. Most manufacturing, service, and software sectors
are investing more and imple menting IoT technologies more quickly, which drives their
rapid expansion.

Figure 1.1: Number of devices predicted to be internet-connected by 2025.

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 IoT exposure has increased dramatically over the past few years, and billions of con-
nected devices are anticipated to exist within the foreseeable future. The accelerated
expansion of the IoT market can be ascribed to improvements in com munication tech-
nology, falling hardware prices, and growing public knowledge of its advantages. IoT is
consequently being incorporated into various applications, from intelligent home systems
to extensive industrial automation.
A recent survey states that there will probably be 75.44 billion internet connected ob-
jects, and the IoT economy will increase from $2.7 to $6.2 trillion by 2025.
Figure 1 shows how many devices are expected to be online by 2025, and these devices
will produce about 80 Zettabytes of data.
For IoT-based systems, sensors are critical since they allow the IoT to gather data for
informed decision-making. Various sensors support recent advancements in IoT systems,
appli cations, and technologies, including industrial Cyber-Physical Systems (CPSs).
Sensors enable the collection of insightful data that may be used for decision-making by
keeping track of numerous environmental conditions, including temperature, humidity,
and pressure. Process optimization, increased pro ductivity, and improved user experi-
ences are all made possible by this real-time data analysis.
This paper’s main contribution is offering an extensive look into sensor classifications
and their use in IoT systems. We thoroughly study the frequently used IoT sensors,
their prop erties, and their applicability for diverse smart applications. We also discuss
how sensors are grouped depending on their features and sensing capabilities to comprise
various widely used sensors, including temperature, humidity, pressure, mo tion, etc.
Further, we discuss the role of an actuator in IoT systems.

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Chapter 2
IOT ARCHITECTURE

The future of IoT is limitless. However, one of the critical technological challenges is
adopting IoT devices that support current functionality and future improvements. Fur
thermore, the growing volume of massive data produced by the connectivity between IoT
sensors and gadgets is a new difficulty. The solution is to design a multi-layer advanced
IoT architecture as depicted in Figure 2. A modern IoT system is a 4-layer architecture
that consists of a sensor, network, middleware, and application layer.

Figure 2.1: Four stage IoT architecture

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1. Sensing Layer: The first layer of the architecture is the sensing layer, which
mainly depends on sensors and ac tuators. The physical objects that make up
the real world include humans, animals, electrical equipment, modern cars, and
structures. These real-world organisms send out signals and data that sensors pick
up and transform into an analysis of the available information. Actuators can also
change reality by controlling other things like a room’s temperature, a car’s speed,
a light’s brightness, etc. The sensing layer is thus the primary source to gather
information from the environment, so further actions by IoT are necessary.

2. Network Layer: The network layer coordinates with gateways, data-collecting

systems, sensors, and actuators. This level involves aggregating and structuring
the enor mous quantity of data created in the sensing layer in a manner that
is appropriate for processing [10]. IoT devices and sensors are connected to the
cloud and data processing through a central hub called an IoT gateway. Modern
IoT gateways typically make it feasible to transmit data in both directions in the
gateway.

3. Middleware or Processing layer:Once the enormous volume of data gets orga-

nized and aggregated, the next layer, namely the middleware or processing layer, in
spects, pre-process, and prepares for the next layer. Be fore the data is delivered to
the data center, it is accessible by software applications commonly called business
ap plications. The processing layer is treated as the brain of an IoT ecosystem.
Two main phases, data accumulation, and abstraction, actively participate in the
operations of the layer.

4. Application layer: Giving input to improve the precision and accuracy of the
entire system is one of the essential jobs at the last layer, which also involves
extensive processing and analysis. All user interactions at this stage take place on
the data center or cloud server.

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Chapter 3

IOT-SENSOR AND
CHARACTERISTICS

In this section, we provide some critics related to the 5G approach to network slicing,
and we also identify a list of features regarding network slicing in future mobile networks
that are available or weakly supported in 5G. The analysis performed in this section will
serve as a basis for the concept, which is further presented in Section IV.
IoT innovation connects everyday things to the internet and collects data for various
purposes. Nowadays, data is the new oil and has dramatically increased its importance.
The origin of IoT data is a sensor. IoT sensors and actuators cooperatively provide
automation on an industrial scale. Over time, analysis of the data generated by these
sensors and actuators yields insightful business information.

3.1 Sensors
Sensors are an essential part of IoT-based solutions. Sensors are the devices to collect data
as input for these solutions. The environmental changes in their immediate environment
or the targeted deployment zone can be measured, quantified, or responded to by sensors.
By analyzing the input functions and these external cues, followed by turning them into
typically electrical impulses, they react to these cues or physical occur rences. A sensor
is better referred to as a transducer. A physical component known as a transducer
converts one energy source into another. In a sensor, the transducer transforms a physical
phenomenon into an electrical impulse, which decides the reading. A microphone is a
sensor that effectively converts sound waves from vibrational energy to electrical power so
that other system components may link the electrical energy back to the original sound.

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For example, Figure 3 describes a simple temperature sensing task. Here, a temperature
sensor continuously scans the environment for modifications. The temperature of the
surroundings rises in the event of a fire. The temperature sensor detects this shift in the
environment’s temperature and quickly transmits this information to a distant monitor
via the CPU.

Figure 3.1: Outline of simple temperature sensing system

3.2 Characteristics of Sensors

The ability of all sensors to measure or capture a specific occurrence and report it as
output signals to various other devices can be used to define them all. The following
characteristics are mainly used to categorize sensors even within the same sensor type
and class regarding their capacity to detect the occurrence.

1. Sensor Resolution: The sensor resolution is the most negligible variation in the
the digital output that digital sensors are capable of assessing. A sensor’s resolution
determines how accurate and precise it is. The accuracy of a sensor is independent
of its resolution. For example, temperature sensor A can detect changes in tempera
ture up to 0.5 °C while sensor B can detect changes in temperature up to 0.25°C.
As a result, sensor B’s resolution is more significant than sensor A’s resolution.
The gyroscope in mobile phones has a different purpose than that of aeroplanes. A
sensor width resolution specification is thus selected based on requirements.

2. Sensor Accuracy: The capacity of a sensor to monitor a system’s environment

as accurately as feasible is referred to as accuracy. For example, a weight sensor

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 measures 99.96 kg as the weight of a 100 kg mass. With an error rate of 0.04cor-
rectness of sensor data is evaluated using ground truth (GT), previous data values
in the same application, or a different data set, such as historical data.

3. Sensor Precision: The repeatability principle controls a sensor’s precision. A

sensor is precise when it repeatedly provides the same error rate.

4. Sensor Range: The parameter defines a set of minimum to maximum values that
a sensor can sense. For example, the measuring range for a resistance temperature
detector (RTD) temperature is from-200°C to 800°C.

5. Energy Consumption: Another essential parameter is the energy a sensing de-

vice consumes to maintain a solution and its cost. A sensor or sensor node may
become energy inefficient when its energy sources need regular refilling, especially
in mission-critical areas.

6. Device Size: Most IoT applications call for sensing options so minimal as not
to impede any obstruction by a sensor node; otherwise, it incurs more cost and
energy. Alternatively, wearable technology has started taking off quickly because
of compact, energy-efficient wearable sensors.

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Chapter 4

CLASSIFICATION OF SENSORS

Sensor types vary depending on the sensing objects that help to decide the change in
their movements, environmental conditions, and placements. IoT sensors are primarily
grouped into three major types. Table II summarizes the IoT sensors.

4.1 Motion Sensors

Motion sensors track the devices’ orientation and any changes in motion. The two sorts
of actions that can be seen in a gadget are linear and angular. An IoT device’s “linear
motion” refers to its linear displacement, while its “angular motion” refers to its rotating
displacement.

Table 4.1:Comparision of temperature sensors based upon the characteristics.

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1. Accelerometers: Motions can be detected by accelera tion, shock (instantaneous
acceleration), vibration (peri odic acceleration), tilt (static acceleration), and rota-
tion. Accelerometers can measure all of these except rotation. Accelerometers have
a variety of uses, ranging from gaming gesture recognition to triggering a hard disc
protection mechanism as a device is falling. Several accelerometer sensor applica-
tions include wear able technology, smartphones, and other electrical equip ment.
Accelerometers are employed in biomedical appli cations, and sensors in this field
are primarily used for motion art and suppression, activity monitoring, and step
counting. Figure 4 shows a general view of the accelerometer sensor.

Figure 4.1: General view of accelerometer sensor.

2. Linear Acceleration Sensor: The device’s built-in sen sor is subjected to ac-
celeration measurements using a linear accelerometer, excluding gravity’s effects.
Figure 5 shows typical acceleration sensors. Applications such as modern mobile
phones and gaming joysticks use linear acceleration sensors as step counters, user
interface controls, and toggle between modes. In a car crash, airbag sensors detect
sudden negative acceleration and establish the ideal moment to deploy the airbag.

3. Gyroscope: A gyroscope sensor is a tool that measures and keeps track of an

object’s orientation and angular ve locity. Gyroscope sensors are used in various
applications, from small mobile phones to complex aeroplanes, rescue motorboats,
and automobiles. Mobile phones frequently use these for camera shake features
and gaming. It is utilized in any application that measures angular velocity, angle
sensing, and control mechanisms.

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4.2 Environmental Sensors:
To sense changes in environmental conditions in the device’s peripheral, sensors like light
and pressure sensors are incorpo rated into IoT devices. The primary purpose of envi-
ronmental sensors in IoT devices is to let them make autonomous decisions in response
to changes in their environment. En vironment sensors are utilized in applications such
as home automation, smart lights, smart locks, etc., to enhance user experience.

1. Light Sensor: The light sensor transforms light energy, photons, into electrical
energy, or electrons. It is a passive device that regulates the light output in ap-
plications. For example, they are employed in mobile devices like smartphones
and tablets to control brightness. By measuring the intensity of light under the
surroundingsand the Number of views, this sensor helps control auto mated illumi-
nation in cars and roadways and maintains adequate descriptions of these purposes.

2. Proximity Sensor: This type of sensor finds adjacent items by sending out a
beam of electromagnetic radia tion and then waiting for a response or change in
the f ields. A programmable logic controller is utilized with inductive and capacitive
proximity sensors in numerous applications. Selected applications include calculat
ing the amount of parking available at stadiums, shopping centers, and airports.
Figure 7 gives an abstract view of a proximity sensor.

3. Temperature Sensor: A sensor must have direct or no contact with the environ-
ment to measure the tem perature. For example, temperature sensors are predomi-
nantly employed for air conditioning, re frigerators, and other environmental control
systems. These days, they are employed in the manufacturing, agricultural, and
medical fields where a specific am bient temperature and equipment temperature
is neces sary.

4. Heartbeat Sensor: The heartbeat sensor is based on the photoplethysmography

hypothesis. It tracks changes in blood flow through any organ in the body that
affects how much light enters that organ (an avascular region).

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4.3 Position Sensors
Position sensors are concerned with IoT devices’ exact location and whereabouts. Mag-
netic and Global Positioning System (GPS) sensors are IoT devices’ most frequently used
position sensors. Magnetic sensors act as digital compasses and aid in stabilizing the dis-
play alignment of devices. On the other side, IoT devices employ GPS for navigational
purposes.

Table 4.2: IoT applications and sensors used in IoT.

1. GPS Sensors: It operates according to the 2D trilateration principle. The satel-

lites transmit feedback signals back to the sensors once they send them. The time
needed to send the feedback signal is determined to pinpoint the object’s location.
For example, GPS tracking systems use the Global Navigation Satellite System
(GNSS) network to pinpoint a vehicle’s location. The two types of vehicle tracking
systems are done passively and actively. While passively tracking systems track the
position and retain the data, intelligent monitoring systems monitor and transmit
data to a central tracking gateway.

2. Magnetic Sensors:These sensors measure the magnetic f ield . Magnetic sensors

come in two varieties: those that detect the magnetic field’s net and those that
measure its components. Magnetic sensors are employed in vehicles and aircraft,
but one of their most important uses is memory systems like tape drives. The
magnetometer is one of the most popular magnetic sensors for detecting the Earth’s
magnetic field.

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Chapter 5

CONCLUSIONS

The classification of sensors plays a fundamental role in the design and implementation of
IoT systems, ensuring precise data collection and transmission for various applications.
Sensors are broadly categorized based on their working principles, measurement param-
eters, and communication capabilities. Each category—such as environmental sensors
for monitoring air quality, temperature, and humidity, or motion sensors for detecting
movement and positioning—contributes uniquely to the efficiency of IoT networks.
The integration of these sensors with IoT platforms has transformed numerous indus-
tries, including smart healthcare, where biosensors enable real-time patient monitoring,
industrial automation, where predictive maintenance is achieved through vibration and
pressure sensors, and smart agriculture, where soil moisture and weather sensors opti-
mize crop production. Similarly, in smart cities, sensors facilitate traffic management,
energy conservation, and environmental monitoring, improving urban sustainability and
livability.
As technology advances, IoT sensors are evolving with enhanced miniaturization,
energy efficiency, and AI-driven analytics. The rise of edge computing allows data pro-
cessing closer to the source, reducing latency and bandwidth consumption, while wireless
sensor networks (WSNs) improve real-time decision-making. Challenges such as power
consumption, data security, and sensor interoperability remain areas of active research.
However, with innovations in nanotechnology, AI, and 5G connectivity, the future of IoT
sensor technology promises greater precision, scalability, and automation, paving the way
for smarter and more efficient IoT ecosystems.

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