A segmented conductor is placed on top of this construction in which resistance changes upon deflection which is why it can be produced in a great form factor in a thin flexible substrate. The sensor we are using is made out of conductive ink protected with Phenol Formaldehyde Resin substance. The construction of a Flex sensor consists of different materials. More detailed practical explanation is given below. To explain the working we are using a 15K fixed value resistor to form a voltage divider circuit with the flex sensor and if you just put the value in a voltage divider equation or an online voltage divider calculator, you can verify the values. When the sensor is straightened again, the resistance returns to its normal value. For example, shown above, the max resistance we can achieve is 22K. When the sensor is bent the conductive layer inside the sensor gets stretched, the cross-section of the sensor gets thinned and the resistance of the sensor increases. When the sensor is straight the resistance is about 10K, and when the sensor is bent the value is 22K. This sensor is commonly available in two sizes, the first is 2.2” and the second one is 4.5” long. As the resistance of the sensor is directly proportional to the amount of bending, it's often called Flexible potentiometer. In layman's terms, a flex sensor is a variable resistor that varies its resistance upon bending. Since the flex sensor acts as a resistor, pins P1 and P2 are exactly the same. Resistors have two leads, there is no polarity for a resistor and hence can be connected in both directions.

The pinout of Flex Sensor is given below: The sensor acts more like a variable resistor, whose resistance changes based on how much it is bent, hence just like a resistor, the pins on this sensor are also interchangeable. The flex sensor has two pins, one is P1 and the other one is P2, these two pins can be used to retrieve data from the flex sensor. So in today's project, we will learn all about flex sensors, how it works, and how you can interface them with an Arduino. The sensor's resistance is lowest when it's flat on the surface, increases when we bend it slowly and reaches its maximum when it's at a 90-degree angle.įlex sensors are popular because they are used in many different applications like game controllers, data gloves, motion trackers, and even in biomedical devices to register static and dynamic postures.

A flex sensor is a low-cost, easy-to-use variable resistor that is designed to measure the amount of deflection it experiences when bent.

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