| Next time you visit your doctor for a routine | | | | the pressure to signals that can be read by various |
| checkup, notice the pressure transducer in his exam | | | | software programs. Not only do these transducers |
| room. If you're not sure what that is, just look for | | | | show the movement of the foot but they give clues |
| the cuff that is put around your arm to check your | | | | as to weight distribution and balance throughout the |
| blood pressure. When you think about it, the science | | | | whole body. |
| behind checking something as simple as blood | | | | There is even a type of pressure transducer that is |
| pressure is impressive. Each time your heart beats it | | | | used for measuring blood flow in very small blood |
| creates pressure in your blood vessels and they | | | | vessels and tissue. Laser Doppler micro vascular |
| expand slightly. If an object is resting against the | | | | probes have the transducer signal delivery fiber right |
| blood vessel as it expands then pressure is applied to | | | | in the tip of a needle that can be placed in a very |
| the object. A blood pressure cuff is a transducer that | | | | specific area. Held in place usually by clamps, these |
| takes that pressure and measures it, then translates | | | | tiny tools can monitor blood flow inside tissue and are |
| the pressure change into a signal sent up to | | | | extremely useful in today's micro surgery |
| equipment that reads the signal, amplifies it, and then | | | | environments as well as laboratory tests. |
| organizes the data so that it can be read. | | | | There are transducers that translate air flow |
| Another useful transducer is used to determine heel | | | | pressure in and out of the lungs, range of motion, |
| and toe pressure applied when a patient walks, runs | | | | and an incredible number of different types of input. |
| or jumps. Sometimes also used by professional | | | | Next time someone takes your blood pressure, take |
| athletes for analyzing their running, walking and | | | | note of the pressure transducer that we all know as |
| jumping habits, these instruments are able to | | | | the blood pressure cuff. These commonplace pieces |
| translate the force applied by either the heel or the | | | | of equipment are used everywhere in the medical |
| toe. Force sensitive resistors are attached to the | | | | profession and provide accurate, speedy translations |
| bottom of the subject's shoes and they perform | | | | of our bodies' movements. |
| routine movements while the transducers convert | | | | |