A metal detector is a device which responds to metal that may not be readily apparent.
The simplest form of a metal detector consists of an oscillator producing an alternating current that passes through a coil producing an alternating magnetic field. If a piece of electrically conductive metal is close to the coil, eddy currents will be induced in the metal, and this produces an alternating electric field of its own. If another coil is used to measure the electric field (acting as a magnetometer), the change in the magnetic field due to the metallic object can be detected.
Industrial metal detectors are used in the pharmaceutical, food, beverage, textile, garment, plastics, chemicals, lumber, and packaging industries. The basic principle of operation for the common industrial metal detector is based on a 3 coil design. This design utilizes an AM (amplitude modulated) transmitting coil and two receiving coils one on either side of the transmitter. The design and physical configuration of the receiving coils are instrumental in the ability to detect very small metal contaminates of 1mm or smaller. Today modern metal detectors continue to utilize this configuration for the detection of tramp metal.

A metal detector is a device which responds to metal that may not be readily apparent.
The simplest form of a metal detector consists of an oscillator producing an alternating current that passes through a coil producing an alternating magnetic field. If a piece of electrically conductive metal is close to the coil, eddy currents will be induced in the metal, and this produces an alternating electric field of its own. If another coil is used to measure the electric field (acting as a magnetometer), the change in the magnetic field due to the metallic object can be detected.
Industrial metal detectors are used in the pharmaceutical, food, beverage, textile, garment, plastics, chemicals, lumber, and packaging industries. The basic principle of operation for the common industrial metal detector is based on a 3 coil design. This design utilizes an AM (amplitude modulated) transmitting coil and two receiving coils one on either side of the transmitter. The design and physical configuration of the receiving coils are instrumental in the ability to detect very small metal contaminates of 1mm or smaller. Today modern metal detectors continue to utilize this configuration for the detection of tramp metal.