Shear and Bending Beam Load Cell Fundamentals

Shear and bending beam are two types of load cells that are used to measure weight or force. To best understand shear and bending beam load cells, it’s critical to understand how they each handle forces.

Shear force causes objects to slide from one cross section against another. Tasks like using scissors, shaving, painting, and scrolling through a touch-screen phone all employ shear force. Conversely, bending force is exactly what it sounds like, it is an outside force that causes an object to bend.

The difference between shear and bending beam load cells lies in the way they measure force:

• Shear load cells measure force by measuring the shear stress on a beam, usually made of metal, that is subjected to an applied load.
• Bending beam load cells measure force by measuring the bending of a beam caused by an applied load. This bending causes a strain in the material, which is then translated into a measurement of force.

Both types of load cells are widely used in industrial and testing applications. The choice between them depends on the specific requirements of the use case.

Shear Beam Load Cell Considerations

• High accuracy is required: Shear beam load cells are known for their accuracy and stability, making them ideal for applications that require precise measurements.
• High capacity measurements: They are available in high capacities, making them suitable for large force measurements.
• Rugged environment: Shear beam load cells are designed to withstand harsh and rugged environments, making them ideal for industrial and outdoor applications.
• Easy installation: Shear beam load cells are compact and easy to install, making them a popular choice for applications that require simple and quick installation.
• Side loading: Shear beam load cells are designed to handle side loading, making them suitable for applications where the load is applied at an angle rather than vertically.

Shear beam load cells are widely used in industrial automation applications, such as packaging, material handling, and weight monitoring, where the accurate measurement of force is important, and the environment is sometimes harsh and rugged.

Bending Beam Load Cell Considerations

A bending beam load cell is used to measure force because of its design and ability to accurately translate a force into a readable output signal. The main reasons for using a bending beam load cell include:

• High accuracy: Bending beam load cells are known for their high accuracy and stability, making them ideal for applications where precise measurements are required.
• Wide range of capacities: They are available in a wide range of capacities, making them suitable for both small and large force measurements.
• Durability: Bending beam load cells are made of high-strength materials that provide excellent durability and resistance to environmental factors such as temperature, humidity, and shock.
• Easy installation: Bending beam load cells are compact and easy to install, making them a popular choice for applications that require simple and quick installation.

Overall, bending beam load cells are widely used in industrial, scientific, and medical applications where the accurate measurement of force is important.

Engineering and Design Specifics

Shear and bending beams are straight blocks that are fixed on one end and loaded on the opposite end. Bending beams are more compact. Although bending beams tend to be smaller overall, shear beam load cells can be designed to be more compact than a bending beam to effectively handle larger capacity applications.

From the outside, a shear beam cell might look identical to a bending beam cell, but there’s a key difference. Shear beam cells have a large hole that’s bored partially through either side, leaving nothing but a thin, vertical web in the center of the cell. This is different from a bending beam cell, where the large hole in a bending beam passes all the way through.

Because shear force is cross-sectional, shear beam load cells offer excellent stability for lateral forces. Also, shear strains aren’t varied when the point of application moves within a determined range. Meaning, the electrical signal that converts the force into a numeric value is independent from the point of load application.

For both bending and shear beam cells, weight is placed on the load cell’s spring. The force applied to the spring is then converted into an electrical output by the strain gage that’s installed on the spring. These beam cells have advantages in their simplicity, as shear and bending beam cells at their core are a beam with a strain gage. These basic components can then be enhanced with additional elements to protect the load cell, such as enclosures.

Popular Interface beam load cells are the Interface Sealed Shear Beam Load Cell (SSB) and the Miniature Beam Load Cell (MB). Model SSB is a highly accurate beam-type load cell for general purpose applications. This product is available in capacities ranging from 50 to 10,000 lbf (222.4 N to 44.48 kN). Model MB is a miniature beam load cell used in medical test machines and a variety of low capacity applications. Performance on this product is +/- 0.03% FS and available capacities are 5 to 250 lbf (22.2 N to 1.11 kN).

The consideration of both shear and bending forces must be accounted for when building almost anything, including bridges, aircraft, houses, and most infrastructure related projects.

For more information about shear and bending beam cells, please contact Interface?here.

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