Anserve Inc.
Accelerometers are used in mobile devices to sense movement and tilt. Accelerometers are electromechanical devices used to measure acceleration (velocity or speed divided by time) gravity, vibration or movement. Accelerometers fulfill many functions but the main function that accelerometers performs when used in mobile devices like phones and smart pads is to sense movement and as a result reorientation of the screen. It does these by adjusting the screen to fit horizontally or vertically depending on the way the user holds the device. However, there are many applications where an accelerometer used in conjunction with a gyroscope allows the mobile device to correctly orient the screen quickly because the gyroscope also provides information on about the rate of the angular rotation. Accelerometers can be used as Pedometers Accelerometers are used to sense a user’s steps in mobile phone applications. In this way apps can become pedometers and even with some input of the user’s weight, these apps can track calories burned by walking and distance walked. Why is an Accelerometer used in a Mobile Phone? The accelerometer measures the force of gravity active on the device when it is at rest, and it also measures any acceleration of the device on its X and Y axis. In this way it senses movement of the smart phone. This movement can be used by the phone’s interfaces to keep the orientation (horizontal or vertical) of the screen display correct for the way the user is holding the phone. Other Apps That Require Accelerometers on Mobile Phones With the help of a mobile phone accelerometer, apps provide better page turning experiences, image zooming, photo viewing, games that require tilting the phone, correcting the vibration while taking photos, and rotating images. Some apps use it to mute calls if the device is placed facing down on a flat surface. Rieker Inc has been manufacturing accelerometers and other sensing devices since 1917 in the United States. While using accelerometers in smart phones is a relatively recent development, using accelerometers in many other devices to measure acceleration has been a staple of manufacturing for decades.