Tag Archive for: fatigue life

Aircraft Wing Testing Requires Force Measurement Accuracy
Interface offers force measurement solutions for testing aircraft wings in static load tests and complex, multi-year simulations of an aircraft’s entire operational lifespan. Engineers and manufacturers use Interface fatigue-rated load cells in wing tests requiring millions of cycles. Aerospace testing labs use load cells and multi-axis sensors to conduct complex wing testing on drones, UAVs, defense aircraft, and commercial airplanes.

Fundamentals of Fatigue Life Prediction
Interface load cells accurately quantify the forces applied during fatigue testing for predicting failure. Fatigue refers to the weakening of material caused by repeatedly applied loads. Failure occurs after a certain number of cycles, even when the stresses are well below the material's ultimate tensile strength. While an accurate prediction of fatigue life is not a reality, theoretical analysis and empirical data allow for useful approximations to estimate the margin of safety for a given design.

Low Profile Load Cells versus Simple Single Column Load Cells
The Interface LowProfile Load Cell, a pancake design, is dramatically better than the simple single column cell in every respect. The low profile design outperforms the single column design. The overall proprietary Interface LowProfile design is more compact, with all the components bonded to the flexure structure, making it better able to withstand the 100 million-cycle fatigue life. Our standard 1200 “Blue” LowProfile Load Cell is the most popular load cell in the market and is used in testing labs and industry applications worldwide.

Fatigue Testing with Interface Load Cells
Fatigue testing requires accurate and reliable force measurement. Interface fatigue-rated load cells are designed to withstand the rigors of repeated loading, which makes them ideal for even the most demanding high cycle count fatigue testing applications. Interface uses 'fatigue-rated' as an exact specification that defines a special class of load cell design and construction.