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Precision Instrumentation and Measurement Solutions

Precision Instrumentation and Measurement Solutions

Instrumentation for force, torque, strain, temperature, angular speed and position, and acceleration measurements.

Featured Products

Clamping Battery Telemetry

Clamping Battery Telemetry

The Clamping Battery Telemetry (CBT-mini) is a far field wireless, battery powered signal transmitter for strain gauge or thermocouple signals. It easily mounts to shafts one inch (25 mm) in diameter or larger. The CBT-mini has small, rugged housing and is designed for hostile environments. This signal transmitter has a battery life of up to 28 hours and signal transmission of up to four meters.

3 Axis Load Cell Transducers

3 Axis Load Cell Transducers

MSC Three Directional Load Cells are ideal for measuring forces and moments. With high accuracy, wide range of capacities, and small size, these load cells are used in a wide variety of applications. Applications include measuring engine and motor mount forces in a vehicle, vehicle suspension forces, and test bench reaction forces. Rugged housing and temperature compensation ensure results in challenging conditions.

Wheel Force Transducers

Wheel Force Transducers

Wheel Force Transducers (WFTs) are used to measure vehicle reaction forces during durability and vehicle dynamics testing. MSC WFTs are known for their durability, accuracy, simple installation, and ease of use. Installed on cars, SUVs, all sizes of trucks, ATVs, agriculture equipment and construction machinery, MSC has a wide range of WFT capacities to fit almost any wheeled vehicle.

Short S-Series Slip Ring Assembly

Short S-Series Slip Ring Assembly

The utility of MSC’s instrument quality slip rings is unparalleled. MSC slip rings transfer signals in the harshest of conditions. They provide low noise rotating connections for various sensors including strain gauges and thermocouples. The Short-S Series can provide up to ten rotating connections and are ideal for applications with limited space.

News

- Wheel Pulse Transducer Case Study | Comparing GPS and WPT Data
  August 5, 2020Blog / News / ProductsThe Michigan Scientific High Resolution Wheel Pulse Transducer (WPT) is an optical encoder which attaches to the lug nuts of a vehicle’s wheel. The WPT is commonly used to track a vehicle’s position and speed for applications such as fleet management and autonomous vehicle tracking. This case study will demonstrate the accuracy of using two Wheel Pulse Transducers together, comparing the position and velocity measurements to GPS data. How It Works The signal from the encoder is used to calculate the angular position and velocity of the wheel. Data recorded by two WPTs on either side of the car can be averaged to find the center, thus giving the most accurate representation of the distance and speed the car has traveled. Mapping vehicles often use WPTs to compensate for breaks in GPS signal, allowing tracking of the distance traveled during the signal loss. In this study, the high resolution of the WPT data performed much better than that of the GPS sensor that was used due to its high sampling rate of 10,000 Hz. Test Setup To compare the Wheel Pulse Transducer results to the GPS results, two WPT systems were attached to a vehicle, one on the rear-right side and one on the rear-left side. The transducers were assembled on the rear wheels so that the turning motion of the front wheels would not have to be compensated for in the data. A GPS device was placed on top of the vehicle, in the center of the roof above the rear wheels, where it would give the most accurate reading. Left and right WPT distances and speeds were averaged to match the GPS signal at the center of the vehicle. The mile-long course shown below, along with a latitude and longitude plot from the GPS, includes a round-about and a zigzag maneuver. Loop When going counterclockwise around the circular part of the test track (shown in green above), one would expect the velocity and distance of the right wheel to measure much higher than the left. Looking at the data, shown below, this is found to be true. The right (blue) and left (green) wheel velocities are averaged (red), and line up nearly perfectly with the GPS data (purple). Zigzag Path The area containing a quick right and left turn, shown within the blue square on the test track outline provides another interesting perspective. For the velocity plot below, the vehicle was maneuvered with a quick left turn, then an immediate right. The “W” shape created by this shows that the left wheel (purple) went slower than the right (green) around the left turn, then the left went faster than the right around the right turn. While the two opposing sides trade places throughout the maneuver, the calculated average (red) and the GPS data (blue) stay close together in the middle. The time in between the two intersection points on the graph below is where the left and right turns occurred. The right wheel (blue) surpasses the left wheel (red) in distance traveled as it has a larger radius to go around during the left turn, which starts around 14 seconds and ends at approximately 15.5 seconds. At this point, the right wheel has traveled farther than the left wheel. The right turn begins just before 17 seconds, and the left wheel catches up with the right wheel by the time the turn ends at approximately 18 seconds. The average (purple) distance traveled stays centered between the two. Because the slope of the average distance and the GPS is the same, they are still recording the same speed and change in distance. However, the GPS is lagging a few feet behind the wheel, hence the slight offset in the data. Error The last few data points of the test can show the benefits of using two WPTs rather than just one. If only one WPT was used, the recorded distances would have a maximum error of 0.22%. However, by installing two WPTs and averaging them, the error is only 0.0115%, a decrease of a factor of 19. This shows that using two Wheel Pulse Transducers can help to reduce error that can accumulate over multiple turns. This test is just one of a multitude of different tests that utilize Wheel Pulse Transducers. Having a durable and precise measurement system is beneficial for accurately tracking a vehicle’s position and speed in any environment. If you would like to discuss your wheel testing application, contact a Michigan Scientific representative today....

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