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Pressure

Pressure sensors detect physical force and are used in both physical security systems and industrial control environments to monitor contact, equipment handling, and containment levels.

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About this video

Pressure sensors detect and measure the amount of force exerted on a surface or object, with sensitivity that scales as force increases. In physical security contexts, this technology can be embedded in floors or surfaces to trigger alarms when someone makes contact, providing a layer of intrusion detection that requires an intruder to avoid touching the ground entirely to go undetected. While this application is well established in concept, it is relatively rare in practice outside of high-security facilities. Far more common is the use of pressure sensors in industrial control systems, where precise force management is critical to safe and effective operations. These sensors help automated equipment handle materials or components without applying excessive force, protecting both the machinery and the product being handled. They are also widely deployed on tanks and vessels storing gases or pressurized liquids, where continuous monitoring ensures pressure stays within safe operating limits and prevents potentially hazardous buildup.

What you'll learn

Describe the function of pressure sensors and identify common use cases in industrial control systems and physical security environments

What's covered

Pressure Sensors

How Pressure Works
- Hands pressed together
- Harder push more pressure
Security Applications
- Mission Impossible example
  - Hovering above floor
  - Triggers alarm if touched
- Rarely seen in companies
Industrial Applications
- Equipment grabbing control
  - Prevents excess pressure
- Tanks and gas vats
  - Monitors gas buildup

Key terms

Pressure Sensor: A device that detects and measures physical pressure, used in industrial control systems to monitor equipment grip and tank levels, and in physical security systems to detect unauthorized entry or movement.
Industrial Control System: Industrial Control System is a broad category of control systems used in industrial production and critical infrastructure, including SCADA systems and PLCs; ICS security focuses on protecting physical processes from cyber threats with minimal downtime tolerance.

Topics

Pressure Sensors Industrial Control Systems Physical Security Ics Scada Sensor Technology Operational Technology

Transcript

Pressure sensors

We also can sense pressure changes. When you put your hands together, there's a pressure that happens, and the harder we push, the more pressure there is. So there are pressure sensors that can sense that.

From a security perspective, the first thing that jumps into my mind is going to be Tom Cruise in Mission Impossible, when he's hovering above the ground and he can't touch the ground, because what will happen is that will trigger one of those pressure sensors and set off the alarms. So he has to hover there perfectly still. That's an example of that.

I've not actually seen pressure sensors with any of the companies that I've worked with; they've just not needed that level of security. But where I have seen pressure sensors is going to be like equipment, industrial control systems, where maybe something is grabbing something and they need to grab it in a certain way, making sure that there's not too much pressure, and so there'll be pressure sensors there. Another example might be on different vats or different tanks of maybe gases, making sure that that gas doesn't build up to a certain level. So I've seen that type of pressure sensor, just not the ones where you're actually stepping on the floor setting off alarms.

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