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Noise sources in mechanical measurements

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In this technical brief, we detailed how to differentiate between the part of a measurement due to a mechanical environment and the part of that measurement due to noise. We categorized noise within three broad categories: (1) acquisition; (2) instrumentation; and (3) background noise. We detailed an experimental example illustrating how to determine which of these sources of noise are significant and how to quantify their impact on measurement quality via the signal-to-noise ratio (S/N). This type of procedure can be helpful when tracking down the root cause of unacceptable noise levels in a mechanical measurement or ensuring appropriate measurement quality.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Virginia Tech., Blacksburg, VA, USA

    S. O. Fahey (SEM Member, graduate student with Engineering Science and Mechanics) & A. L. Wicks (SEM Member, Assoc. Professor of Mechanical Engineering)

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  1. S. O. Fahey
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  2. A. L. Wicks
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Additional information

Editor’s Note: Digital data collection is fundamental to most engineering endeavors. The rapid change in data acquisition hardware over the past decade or two has created such diversity in capability that many engineers fail to take full advantage of this technology. This series of articles discusses various aspects of data acquisition systems that impact the process of acquired data.

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Fahey, S.O., Wicks, A.L. Noise sources in mechanical measurements. Exp Tech 24, 40–43 (2000). https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1747-1567.2000.tb02271.x

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1747-1567.2000.tb02271.x

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