What is a load cell?
Load cell is an electro-mechanical sensor for measuring weight and force. Producers manufacture load cells in compression (Canister), shear beam and bending(Beam), and tensile types (S-type).
Load Cell Producers:
Nowadays, Because of wide usage in automation industries, load cell producers are increasing around the world.
Our company is cooperating with famous producers including Vishay, Flintec, HBM, Zemic, Keli and Celltec.
What are load cells used for?
This product has application in measuring force and weight in different industries and also measuring tensile force of cables in textile industry, Cranes and so on. Digital weight measuring also needs load cells. Nowadays, there are many types of load cells with different capacities which have application in weighing industries and also in other industries like food processing plants, textile, asphalt plants, concrete ready-mix plants and more.
What is load cell structure? And how does it work?
Load cell includes a metal core and an electronic board (Wheatstone bridge)
Load cell principle is based on Hook principle which interprets relationship between stress and strain in a metal core. Stress applied by the external weight or force will cause a correlated strain in metal core of load cell. Difference in size produced by strain changes resistance in Wheatstone bridge circuit which is stuck to the core and emits some mV. If measurement take place in Hook elastic range of metallic core, then we can read and calibrate output mV in linearity range. We normally do it by a weight indicator.
How to determine the accuracy of a load cell?
The accuracy of load cell means the ratio of its resolution to its total capacity and also to its total error.
The factors that affect the accuracy and quality of a load cell are types of its core alloy and its strain gauge structure. OMIL institute (Switzerland based) provide the codes for load cell classification.
Recommended class of a load cell as legal for trade is OIML C3.
Types of load cells:
Due to applications, companies manufacture load cells in different types like:
- Shear beam load cells
- Dual shear beam load cells
- Compression load cells
- Tension load cells
