You asked for a wireless sensor system. We created one for you. We didn't want to just get rid of the wire between the computer and the interface—we wanted to get rid of all the wires. So we took it one step further and created a remarkable product, the new Wireless Dynamics Sensor System (WDSS). The WDSS measures forces up to 50 N, accelerations up to 50 m/s2 in three directions, and altitude changes of ±200 m. The data from these five sensors can be streamed wirelessly to a Bluetooth-equipped computer. Even better, if your experiment takes you outside the 10 m range of Bluetooth, the WDSS can store multiple runs of data internally for download to Logger Pro 3.
No More Dragging Wires
The WDSS can be used for any physics experiment where a force sensor or accelerometer is used, but with the significant advantage that there are no wires interfering with the motion. For example, you might attach the WDSS to a Vernier Dynamics Cart (all required hardware is included) and study Newton's 2nd law by measuring the applied force and resulting acceleration. No longer will you have to hope that the wires won't push or pull on the cart. Or, you might look at reaction forces in Newton's 3rd law by colliding two carts with units attached.
Use for Amusement Park Field Trips
Your students can take a WDSS on a roller coaster and analyze the accelerations. The altimeter makes it clear where on a ride a given acceleration value took place. Students can take multiple runs before downloading data wirelessly to a computer using the Start/Stop button. An indicator shows when a run is in progress.
Using the WDSS is easy. You can use multiple units in a classroom. Rechargeable batteries last for days of typical use, and the 1000 samples/second data rate is more than enough for dynamics experiments. On-board data storage of up to 100,000 points means you can collect many runs before downloading to a computer.
Requires Logger Pro 3.4.5; Windows XP SP2, Microsoft-compatible Bluetooth radio; or Mac OS X 10.3 or newer. Available May 2006.
Vernier Wireless Dynamics Sensor System | Order Code WDSS | $249