Chandley Technologies - Sensors: Temperature

Programming Tutorial

Temperature Sensor

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A LM34 is a simple analog temperature sensor in a TO-92 package. It operates from 5 to 30 volts, and will output a linear 10.0 millivolts per degree Fahrenheit. They are a relatively cheap and easy sensor to incorporate into a project requiring ±0.5°F accuracy.

The Tutorial:

Of course, there's many different types and forms of temperature sensors out there, but National Semiconductor's LM34 temperature sensor is surely one of the most common. The LM34DZ has a temperature range of 32°F to ~212°F (0°C to ~100°C). There is another variant of the LM34, the LM34CZ, which has a range of -40°F to ~230°F (-40°C to ~110°C), albeit at usually twice the cost of the LM34DZ.

In this tutorial, we will be using the cheaper variant, the LM34DZ, as we do not usually work below freezing temperatures. I usually get them from DigiKey (link goes to part)

Now, the LM34 is an analog sensor, which means that it outputs a voltage that is proportional to the temperature it is reading. From the datasheet, it is stated that the LM34 is designed to output a linear 10.0 millivolts per degree Fahrenheit with little or no calibration required.

In order to read the data from the LM34 with a Propeller you will need an analog-to-digital converter (ADC) (see the ADC tutorial).

[Code Table]

Time for some sleep.

Chandley Tech Projects Incorporating This Item:

Project A
- What it do?
- How it used?
- Available in Store?

Project B
- What it do?
- How it used?
- Available in Store?

References and Resources:

Datasheet: LM34 Datasheet

Resource: Explanation of Use

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