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Improving strain-measurement accuracy when using shunt calibrations

Paper presents a method of measuring strains by using a single shunt calibration to simulate the bridge unbalances for both tension and compression strains

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Abstract

It is conventional practice to consider shunt calibration of a strain-gage bridge in a manner which can result in erroneous tension-strain measurements. For strains from 1 percent to 10 percent as encountered increasingly in today’s structural materials and composites, the measured tension strains can be significantly lower than the actual strain. These errors are eliminated by using the method of determining ‘equivalent strains’ which is presented here. Shunt-calibration output is equated separately to tension-and compression-strain outputs to determine the ‘equivalent strain’ to be used for the reduction of each.

Equivalent-strain equations are given for the most commonly used bridge configurations. For the common quarter bridge, the relationship between positive strain and shunt-calibration resistance is found to be a simple linear relationship for all strain levels.

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Abbreviations

R :

bridge-arm resistance

ΔR :

change in arm resistance

Rsh :

shunt-calibration resistance

V :

bridge input voltage

e o :

bridge open-circuit output voltage

e o /V :

bridge output per volt input

ε:

strain

F :

gage factor=(ΔR)/(Rε)

References

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Space Division, Rockwell International, 90241, Downey, CA

    Robert W. Troke

Authors
  1. Robert W. Troke
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Troke, R.W. Improving strain-measurement accuracy when using shunt calibrations. Experimental Mechanics 16, 397–400 (1976). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF02320698

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/BF02320698

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