A temperature calibration of a temperature/strain transducer based on two strain gauges

The operation of a temperature/strain transducer, called “duplex gauge”, based on two electrical resistance strain gauges, that are temperature compensated for use on materials with different coefficients of linear expansion, was briefly recalled. Three steel specimens were equipped with “duplex gauges” and were subjected to temperature variations and no external loads were applied. The chosen experimental setup (i) to measure the outputs of the gauge temperature compensated for steel and titanium silicate and (ii) to impose known temperature, assured good accuracy and precision in evaluation of the temperature calibration curve. The obtained results showed that the strain differences could be considered, at least for the experimental arrangement examined, a linear function of temperature over the range of 20 to over 140°C. The prepared calibration chart, that allows the correction of temperature induced apparent strain, will be used in future research when generic temperature and strain fields are applied to specimens.     

测定材料屈服强度的应变计法试验研究

对应变计测量屈服强度的可能性做了讨论，选择适合弹塑性区测试的应变片，进行与引伸计的对比试验以考察测试结果的异同试验表明两种方法测试同一试样所得值之差最大为７ＭＰａ，测试相同状态不同试样所得平均值之差不到７ＭＰａ，由于差别很小，故应变计法可用于屈服强度的工程测试，且与引伸计法具有相同的测量精确度。     

Development of a Vibrating Wire Strain Gauge for Measuring Small Strains in Concrete Beams

Abstract:  A vibrating wire strain gauge capable of measuring strains in concrete elements to an accuracy of better than 0.5  μ ɛ is presented. This offers some advantages over conventional electrical resistance gauges, the quoted accuracy of which is typically 3  μ ɛ , and which are often considered unsuitable for concrete because of their inability to span cracks. While vibrating wire gauges are potentially more accurate, they are prone to significant errors because of temperature changes. In the purpose-built gauge described here, temperature correction is achieved using an unstrained reference gauge. The vibration data are analysed using a moving-window Fourier transformation in order to identify and remove the geometrically nonlinear portion of the response. The resulting system is accurate, economical and easy to use. The gauges have been used to study the behaviour of cracked concrete specimens. Typical results are presented and discussed.     

一种基于应变测量的放入式电子测压器设计

目的：设计一种新型的放入式电子测压器。方法：直接利用测压器的外壳来作为应变式压力传感器，代替了压电式压力传感器，结果：给出了这种传感器的灵敏度和动态响应频率。结论：这种基于应变测量的放入式测压器具有结构紧凑，成本低的优点。     

活塞压力计自动化校准方法研究

利用高精度压力传感器作为原位传递标准,提出了一种活塞压力计校准新方法。对传感器的分辨率和短期稳定性进行了测试,并评估了传感器线性系数对校准结果的影响。对比研究了新方法和传统方法的校准结果,两者的不确定度均约为5×10-6(k=1),且在不确定度范围内是一致的。在新方法的基础上研制了活塞压力计自动化校准装置,实现了压力控制、阀门操作和数据采集等功能的自动化。该自动化装置提高了活塞压力计校准的效率。     

液氮低温环境下电阻应变片测试性能的试验研究

分别采用低温电阻应变片及拉线式位移传感器的电测技术,该文开展了液氮浸泡下的悬臂梁结构在静载条件下的应变测量。对两种实验测试结果和理论分析结果进行了对比和精度分析,给出了相应的实验标定曲线,并探讨了测量过程中应变片粘接、电桥连接方式、液氮冷却和数据采集对实验结果精度的影响因素等。结果表明:在采用温度补偿和应变片的正确粘贴和良好固化情形下,低温应变片能够在液氮低温区给出较高精度的应变测量;拉线式位移传感器几乎不受低温的影响,测量简单易行。相关技术和结果将为中科院近代物理研究所自主研制的兰州潘宁离子阱7T超导磁体的低温下应变测量提供方法和指导。     

Identifying the Magnitude and Location of a Load on a Slender Beam Using a Strain Gauge Based Force Transducer

A unique strain gauge based method is developed to identify the magnitude and location of a load on a slender beam with variable cross sections, and pinned, firm rest, soft rest, pinned‐fixed, and fixed boundary conditions. Four uniaxial strain gauges are mounted to the bottom surface of the beam, and the bending moment diagram of the beam can be constructed using measured strains on the beam. By combining individually scaled strain gauge outputs, the magnitude and location of the load can be accurately identified. The strain gauge based force transducer methodology is experimentally validated on prismatic beams with firm rest, soft rest, firm rest‐fixed, and fixed boundary conditions, and a continuously tapered beam with rest boundary conditions. The force transducer methodology is independent of the boundary conditions of the beam, and the error from strain gauge drift due to uniform thermal expansion on a prismatic beam can cancel out.     

Direct pneumatic pressure in a clamping technique during strain gauge bonding

A technique is described for the clamping of metallic foil strain gauges during epoxy adhesion bonding to non -porous surfaces. Following application of the uncured adhesive, the gauge is conformed to the surface using self-adhesive tape and the workpiece placed in a pressurised environment for the duration of cure. The pnematically derived clamping pressure is transmitted directly to the glue line, and is equal to the pressure within the containment vessel. Since the clamping pressure is both uniform over the strain gauge area, and readily reproducible between installations, it is possible to produce consistent gauge performance. The technique may offer time and cost advantages over classical clamping methods where gauges are installed on small, intricate, or batch components in stress analysis and transducer applications.     

Microstructured vacuum gauges and their future perspectives

New prototypes and concepts of microstructured vacuum gauges have been developed by using the fabrication technologies for micro electro mechanical systems (MEMS). The realization of such microstructured gauges requires sophisticated fabrication processes such as thin film deposition, photolithography and etching techniques. This approach of MEMS vacuum gauges is demonstrated by a few examples.Micro-Pirani gauges are based on the principle that the heat transfer between two surfaces is proportional to the number of molecules (and hence the pressure) transferring the heat, when the mean free path in the gas is larger than the distance between the surfaces. In contrast to conventional Pirani gauges with heated thin wires, in a micro-Pirani gauge the heat transfer takes place between an extremely thin heated membrane and the surrounding. The thin membrane (200-nm thick) is realized by deposition of siliconoxide/siliconnitride, photolithography and anisotropic etching of silicon wafers. Heating is performed by a meander-shaped aluminum thin film heater in the center of the membrane. This micro-Pirani gauge shows a high sensitivity in the pressure range between 10⁻⁴ and 100 mbar. By using a silicon “microbridge” with 10 μm small gap between heated membrane and surrounding, the pressure sensitivity of the chip is extended up to 1000 mbar.Similar concepts are presented and discussed with respect to the miniaturization of spinning rotor gauges. The new concept is based on the application of microfabricated disks (instead of spheres) and of electrostatic instead of magnetic driving forces. The extension of the sensitivity range for miniaturized spinning rotor gauges is also discussed.Finally, new perspectives for mechanical vacuum gauges are demonstrated. By application of micromechanical processes, very thin stress-compensated membranes can be fabricated which enable sensitive mechanical gauges even for pressures in the high vacuum range. First, experimental results with respect to these membranes are represented.     

空间真空测量技术研究

针对国内外在空间真空测量方面的研究状况作了简要描述,对研制的2种空间真空规(转换器方向性真空规和束检测器方向性真空规)进行了介绍,并对空间真空测量技术的后续研究工作作了展望。     

The effect of trimming on strain gauge accuracy

During a programme of fatigue testing welded tubular joints, similar to those in use in North Sea offshore structures, it was necessary to measure the strain as close to the weld toe as possible and also to detect crack initiation. To this end general purpose miniature foil strain gauges were used. The backings of these gauges were trimmed prior to installation to enable placing the measuring grid as close as possible to the weld toe. The investigation described was carried out to assess the accuracy of these strain gauge installations.     

高温ITO薄膜应变计制备及压阻性能EI北大核心CSCD

高温薄膜应变计被广泛应用于极端条件热端构件的应变测量。ITO薄膜应变计通常能够应用于1000℃以上的应变测量,为了研究ITO薄膜的显微结构、XPS光谱、阻温特性及压阻响应,采用磁控溅射在陶瓷基底上制备了ITO薄膜应变计,并在高温纯N2中热处理ITO薄膜。结果表明,其电阻温度系数稳定在-750×10-6℃-1,在1200℃下测试其应变特性,测得电阻漂移率为0.0018 h-1,应变因子为16。ITO薄膜在高温下具有稳定的电阻温度系数和低漂移率,为高温端部件应变的测量提供了可能。     

Local stiffening effect of 'double deck' bending strain gauges: part 1

In stress measurement where it is difficult or impossible to access the inside surface of the structure, "double deck" (DD) or "sandwich" bending strain gauges can be used to measure both the membrane and bending strains. A DD gauge consists of a pair of constituent foil gauges which are bonded on the upper and lower surfaces of a plastic base or filling. It is mounted on the external surface of the test specimen to measure the external surface strain, and by extrapolation, the internal surface strain of the specimen. The sensitivity of the DD bending gauge increases when the separation between the pair of constituent foil gauges increases. However, this also increases the stiffness of the whole gauge. If the stiffness of the DD gauge is significant compared with that of the plate to which it is attached, the presence of the gauge may cause significant changes in local stiffness and result in errors of strain interpretation. This study is presented in two papers. Part I presents an approximate, analytical solution for the local stiffening effect of a DD gauge and quantifies the errors in the strain measurement. Part 2, to appear subsequently in Strain, will present the verification of the solution using a three dimensional finite element calculation, a parametric study and a correction method that can be applied easily. The extrapolation errors due to the stiffening effect and random reading noises are also explored.     

A Gas Pressure Scale Based on Primary Standard Piston Gauges

The National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) has redefined its gas pressure scale, up to 17 MPa, based on two primary standard piston gauges. The primary standard piston gauges are 35.8 mm in diameter and operate from 20 kPa to 1 MPa. Ten secondary standard piston gauges, two each of five series of the Ruska 2465 type, with successively smaller diameters form the scale extending up to 17 MPa. Six of the piston gauges were directly compared to the primary standards to determine their effective area and expanded (k = 2) uncertainty. Two piston gauges operating to 7 MPa were compared to the 1.4 MPa gauges, and two piston gauges operating to 17 MPa were compared to the 7 MPa gauges. Distortion in the 7 MPa piston gauges was determined by comparing those gauges to a DH Instruments PG7601 type piston gauge, whose distortion was calculated using elasticity theory. The relative standard uncertainties achieved by the primary standards range from 3.0 × 10⁻⁶ to 3.2 × 10⁻⁶. The relative standard uncertainty of the secondary standards is as low as 4.2 × 10⁻⁶ at 300 kPa. The effective areas and uncertainties were validated by comparison to standards of other National Metrology Institutes (NMIs). Results show agreement in all cases to better than the expanded (k = 2) uncertainty of the difference between NIST and the other NMIs, and in most cases to better than the standard (k = 1) uncertainty of the difference.     

Cut‐off Frequencies Induced by the Length of Strain Gauges Measuring Impact Events

Abstract: The finite length of strain gauges may induce filtering effects when measuring impact events. In this study, we are interested in quantifying these effects. Precisely, we determined the cut‐off frequencies of strain gauges cemented on visco‐elastic bars and measuring impact‐induced strain waves. This study shows that the cut‐off frequencies increase with the bar’s wave velocity and decrease with the bar’s diameter. The asymptotic value, corresponding to an infinite bar diameter, is reached rapidly (bar diameter ≈ 15 mm). Moreover, we showed that the mode cut‐off frequencies are more severe (lower) than the gauge length cut‐off frequencies for bar diameters greater than 8 mm.     

A SIMPLE TELEMETERING SYSTEM FOR STRAIN MEASUREMENT

A simple short-range telemetering system has been adapted for use with strain gauges and two applications are described, a transducer measuring displacements and a circuit with two semi-conductor gauges measuring torque on a shaft.     

The Performance of Three-Dimensional Strain Rosettes Evaluated when Embedded into a Sphere

Abstract:  Two spheres were manufactured, each containing planes of embedded strain gauges that were arranged so that individual gauge readings could be combined in a variety of ways to calculate the least squares strain tensor. Each sphere was tested by loading along its axis of symmetry. It was found that the particular pattern of rosette chosen produced satisfactory predictions of the orthogonal strains but minor off-axis gauge misalignments combined with the matrix operations in the least squares strain tensor led to misleading forecasts of the shearing strains. The method of manufacture used to embed the gauges was largely responsible for these errors. The investigation confirmed that three-dimensional strain rosettes should be made from square plugs and the direction cosines measured on the plug prior to embedment in the model.     

Differential Strain Gauge: A Sensor Device for Macro‐ and Microsystems

Abstract: The paper describes an operating principle for the electrical measurement of mechanical strain states. This principle gives up the idea of measuring the strain‐induced resistance change of single wire conductors and passes on to determining the strain‐induced deformation of the electrical field in area conductors. The basic operating principle, sensitivity considerations and the design of a functional prototype are described. Several experimental results in the application fields of transducer technology and strain analysis demonstrate the high capability of this method. The compact design allows simplification of the production process. An interesting additional advantage is the use of science‐based temperature compensation, i.e. the conventional, difficult process of foil treatment to attain temperature self‐compensation and suitability of each strain gauge for different component materials is superseded.     

The effect of ambient temperature on the sensitivity of hot-cathode ionization gauges

We measured the sensitivities of five hot-cathode ionization gauges for ambient laboratory temperatures between 23 and 31 °C. All of the ionization gauges exhibited very similar behavior, and the sensitivity could be adequately modeled with a linear function of temperature. The slopes of the fits were smaller than one would expect due to changes in the calibration chamber number density. The thermal transpiration effect, due to local heating of the gauge structures, can account for this, and a characteristic gauge tube temperature can be inferred from the temperature dependence of the sensitivity. A recent comparison of the high vacuum standards of several National Metrology Institutes (NMIs) was performed over the range of 10⁻⁶-10⁻³ Pa using hot-cathode and spinning rotor gauges as transfer standards. Among the participants, laboratory temperatures varied by as much as 5 °C. It is necessary to know how laboratory temperature affects the sensitivity of the hot-cathode transfer standards (spinning rotor gauges explicitly account for the gas temperature) so that individual laboratory results can be corrected to a common temperature.     

Local stiffening effect of 'double deck1 bending strain gauges: part 2

In stress measurement where it is difficult or impossible to access the inside surface of the structure, "double deck" (DD) or "sandwich" bending strain gauges can be used to measure both the membrane and bending strains. A DD gauge consists of a pair of constituent foil gauges which are bonded on the upper and lower surfaces of a plastic base or filling. It is mounted on the external surface of the test specimen to measure the external surface strain, and by extrapolation, the internal surface strain of the. specimen. The. sensitivity of the DD bending gauge increases when the separation between the pair of constituent foil gauges increases. However, this also increases the stiffness of the whole gauge. If the stiffness of the DD gauge is significant compared with that of the plate to which it is attached, the presence of the gauge may cause significant changes in local stiffness and result in errors of strain interpretation. This study is presented in two papers. Part I, appeared in the Feburary 1996 issue of Strain, presented an approximate analytical solution for the local stiffening effect of a DD gauge, and quantifies the errors in the strain measurement. Part 2 (this paper) presents the verification of the. solution using a three-dimensional finite element calculation, a parametric study and a correction method that can be applied easily. The extrapolation errors due to the stiffening effect and random reading noises are also explored. The figure and equation numbers in this part are continuedfrom Part 1, but the reference numbering is specific to Part 2.