Title: Inaccuracies in measurement of contact pressure due to the measuring grid of a foil sensor

Authors: Klaus Hoffmann, Klaus Decker

Addresses: Institute for Engineering Design and Logistics Engineering, Vienna University of Technology, Getreidemarkt 9, Vienna A-1060, Austria. ' Institute for Engineering Design and Logistics Engineering, Vienna University of Technology, Getreidemarkt 9, Vienna A-1060, Austria

Abstract: The measurement of contact stresses between elastic bodies is of great importance in a wide range of fields. Many methods are based on a sensor sheet which is placed between the bodies in contact. Depending on the application, the accuracy of measuring results can be considerably affected by the finite thickness and structure of the inserted sensor. This study deals with the imprecision of the Tekscan system and attempts to explain the cause of deviations. For this purpose an imprint method using Fuji prescale film/GODAV software and the Finite Element (FE) method was used to compare the results with those results of the Tekscan system. As an example where high inaccuracies can be caused by the measuring grid of the Tekscan sensor, the pressure distribution in the contact area between the rope and the polyamide inlay of a pulley wheel was measured. The results demonstrate clearly the high influence of the sensor grid.

Keywords: measurement; contact pressure; foil sensors; Tekscan system; Fuji prescale film; GODAV software; contact stresses; elastic bodies; finite element method; FEM; measuring grid; sensor grid; pressure distribution; ropes; polyamide inlays; pulley wheels.

DOI: 10.1504/IJISTA.2007.014128

International Journal of Intelligent Systems Technologies and Applications, 2007 Vol.3 No.1/2, pp.80 - 94

Published online: 22 Jun 2007 *

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