Electronics Engineering (ELEX) Board Practice Exam

A typical data acquisition system primarily consists of what components?

1. Microprocessors

2. Storage devices

3. Actuators

4. Sensors

The correct answer is: Sensors

A typical data acquisition system is fundamentally designed to gather, measure, and analyze data from the physical world, which is achieved through its core components. Sensors play a critical role in this system by detecting changes in environmental conditions and converting those changes into measurable electrical signals. They serve as the initial interface between the physical world and the data acquisition system, capturing data such as temperature, pressure, light levels, and more. In a data acquisition system, while microprocessors and storage devices are important for processing and storing the data, they do not serve the primary function of data collection. Actuators are used to create physical movements based on the received input signals but are not involved in the measurement or data collection process itself. Therefore, sensors are correctly identified as the essential components that form the foundation of any data acquisition system by providing the necessary information for further processing and analysis.