This document describes an experiment using strain gauges to measure strain. [1] Strain gauges work by detecting changes in electrical resistance caused by changes in physical dimension when strain is applied. [2] A Wheatstone bridge circuit is used to detect the small resistance changes from the strain gauge. [3] The experiment involves using single and dual strain gauge configurations in a Wheatstone bridge to measure the output voltage from a cantilever beam under increasing loads, analyzing the results to determine sensitivity, hysteresis, and non-linearity.
This document describes an experiment using strain gauges to measure strain. [1] Strain gauges work by detecting changes in electrical resistance caused by changes in physical dimension when strain is applied. [2] A Wheatstone bridge circuit is used to detect the small resistance changes from the strain gauge. [3] The experiment involves using single and dual strain gauge configurations in a Wheatstone bridge to measure the output voltage from a cantilever beam under increasing loads, analyzing the results to determine sensitivity, hysteresis, and non-linearity.
This document describes an experiment using strain gauges to measure strain. [1] Strain gauges work by detecting changes in electrical resistance caused by changes in physical dimension when strain is applied. [2] A Wheatstone bridge circuit is used to detect the small resistance changes from the strain gauge. [3] The experiment involves using single and dual strain gauge configurations in a Wheatstone bridge to measure the output voltage from a cantilever beam under increasing loads, analyzing the results to determine sensitivity, hysteresis, and non-linearity.
This document describes an experiment using strain gauges to measure strain. [1] Strain gauges work by detecting changes in electrical resistance caused by changes in physical dimension when strain is applied. [2] A Wheatstone bridge circuit is used to detect the small resistance changes from the strain gauge. [3] The experiment involves using single and dual strain gauge configurations in a Wheatstone bridge to measure the output voltage from a cantilever beam under increasing loads, analyzing the results to determine sensitivity, hysteresis, and non-linearity.
Name ID Tareq abuzaid 0176988 Osama alkurdi 0173845 Abdullah aljbour 0188340 Gaith mohammad 0176443 Mohammad marar 0177625
1|Page Contents Objectives: ............................................................................................................. 3 Introduction: .......................................................................................................... 3 Part 1: Basic Strain Gauge ...................................................................................... 5 Procedure: .......................................................................................................... 5 Part 2: Dual Gauge System ..................................................................................... 8
List of Figures and Tables
Table 1: DATA part 1 .............................................................................................. 6 Table 2: DATA part 2 .............................................................................................. 9
Figure 1: working concept behind the strain gauge on a beam ............................. 3
Figure 2: Half-Bridge Strain Gauge Configuration .................................................. 4 Figure 3: Strain Gauge circuit. ............................................................................... 5 Figure 4: plot part 1 .............................................................................................. 6 Figure 5: plot with best fit ..................................................................................... 7 Figure 6: Dual Strain Gauge circuit ........................................................................ 8 Figure 7: plot part 2 .............................................................................................. 9 Figure 8: plot with best fit ................................................................................... 10
2|Page Objectives: -Know how the change in resistance of a material, caused by a change in its physicaldimension, can be used to measure the strain in the material
-To design a one and two arm bridges
-Find the characteristics of the strain gauge
Pre-lab: read about dc bridges and strain gauges
Introduction: The strain gauge is the most common device used in mechanical testing and measurements. The most common type is the bonded resistance strain gauge, which consists of a grid of very fine foil or wire. The electrical resistance of the grid varies linearly with the strain applied to the device. When using a strain gauge, you bond the strain gauge to the device under test, apply force, and measure the strain by detecting changes in resistance. Strain gauges are also used in sensors that detect force or other derived quantities, such as acceleration, pressure, and vibration. These sensors generally contain a pressure sensitive diaphragm with strain gauges mounted to the diaphragm.
Figure 1: working concept behind the strain gauge on a beam
Because strain measurement requires detecting relatively small changes in resistance, the Wheatstone bridge circuit is almost always used. The Wheatstone bridge circuit consists of four resistive elements with a voltage excitation supply applied to the ends of the bridge.
3|Page Strain gauges can occupy one, two or four arms of the bridge, with any remaining positions filled with fixed resistors. Figure 4.2shows a configuration with a half-bridge strain gauge consisting of two strain gauge elements, RG1 and RG2, combined with two fixed resistors, R1 and R2.
Figure 2: Half-Bridge Strain Gauge Configuration
When the ratio of RG1 to RG2 equals the ratio of R1 to R2, the measured voltage VO is 0 V. This condition is referred to as a balanced bridge. As strain is applied to the gauge, their resistance values change, causing a change in the voltage at VO. Full-bridge and half bridge strain gauges are designed to maximize sensitivity by arranging the strain gauge elements in opposing directions.
For example, the half-bridge strain gauge in Figure 5 includes an element RG1, which is installed so that its resistance increases with positive strain, and an element RG2, whose resistance decreases with positive strain. The resulting VO responds with sensitivity that is twice that of a quarter-bridge configuration.
Some signal conditioning products have voltage excitation sources, as well as provisions for bridge-completion resistors. Bridge completion resistors should be very precise and stable. Because strain-gauge bridges are rarely perfectly balanced, some signal conditioning systems also perform nulling. Nulling is a process in which you adjust the resistance ratio of the unstrained bridge to balance the bridge and remove any initial DC offset voltage. Alternatively, you can measure this initial offset voltage and use this measurement in your conversion routines to compensate for unbalanced initial condition.
4|Page Part 1: Basic Strain Gauge Procedure: - Design a one arm bridge using the setup in the lab. You have two strain gauges fixed on cantilever beam. - You need to specify R1, R2 and R3in the bridge so that you initially balance the bridge as no force is applied to the beam. You need to apply series balancing after specifying the resistance values, use potentiometer for this purpose. The nominal value of the strain gauge resistance is 120 𝛺 check it. The maximum current that is allowed to pass through the gauge is 50 mA. - After designing the bridge use AD620 instrumentation amplifier see the data sheet. You need to specify the value of 𝑅𝐺 depending on the maximum output voltage of the bridge, see figure 4.3. - Use the micrometer to deflect the cantilever beam .5 mm each time and record the data in table 4.1
Figure 3: Strain Gauge circuit.
Q1: What are the advantages of using the Wheatstone bridge?
To measure the small change of strain gauge voltage and make reference at 0 volt The second step is amplifying Q2: why do we need this step? To condition the signal and feed it to a microcontroller
Then you can read the output voltage from the signal
5|Page Q3: If we want to improve the output signal what type of conditioning can we add to the circuit, for pc processing as an example? instrumentation amplifier Table 1: DATA part 1
Plot your results of micrometer settings against output voltage.
Figure 4: plot part 1
6|Page Q5: Find the maximum hysteresis, non-linearity and the sensitivity as a percentage of f.s.d ? Hysteresis - According to the above graph the maximum hysteresis at 2(mm)=6
non-linearity -drawing best fit as shown:
Figure 5: plot with best fit
Maximum difference at 1 (mm)= 48-45.51=3.51
Minimum measure = 4.5 Maximum measure=106.58 Non linearity= Maximum difference/( Minimum - Maximum )= 3.51/(106.58-4.5)=3.43%
7|Page Sensitivity Sloe of the best fit line M=dy/dx = 41.0147 [mv/mm]
Part 2: Dual Gauge System
Connect up the circuit of figure 4.4. Although the tow gauges are nominally of equal resistance there could still be a small unbalance remaining so the offset potentiometeris used
Figure 6: Dual Strain Gauge circuit
8|Page On the Wheatstone bridge set R1=R2=1 kΩ, Set the operating rod to the same mid- position as was used in part1 and then adjust R49 to give an exact zero as before. Nowtake a set of readings of output voltage against micrometer setting as before (0 up to 4 and back up to 10.0 mm) and record them in the following table. Table 2: DATA part 2
