Experimentation Challenge

By
Abir Rahman
Timothy Xiong

ME438 Section 804

Mechanical Engineering Experimentation

University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee
College of Engineering and Applied Science
PO Box 784
Milwaukee, Wisconsin 53201-0784

Date: 3/1/2018
Executive Summary:

The following report details an experiment performed to understand the relationship

between the force applied by a baseball bat and the strain experienced by the bat. The data will

then be used to measure force applied by the bat from using just the strain data gathered from

the bat.

Based on the understanding of bat geometry the position for best strain measurement is

chosen and the area is treated for strain gauge mounting. The strain gauge is mounted in the

area just below the grip ending. A calibrated pressure/force pad is then used to measure the

force delivered by the bat when used and simultaneously the strain on the bat is recorded for

the delivered force. The relationship between the force delivered and strain is directly

proportional, allowing for the setup of a linear graphical trend line that is ultimately used to

calculate unknown force delivered by the bat based on the strain experienced.

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Table of Contents

Executive Summary: .................................................................................................................... 2

Introduction................................................................................................................................. 4
Theory ......................................................................................................................................... 5
Apparatus and Procedure ........................................................................................................... 5
Results ......................................................................................................................................... 7
Discussion .................................................................................................................................... 8
Appendix ................................................................................................................................... 11

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Introduction

The experiment is performed to determine the force exerted by a baseball bat based on

the strain experienced by the bat in exerting the force. For the purpose of this experiment, an

aluminum baseball bat is chosen and an appropriate position is located to mount a strain

gauge. In this case, the strain gauge is mounted around the neck of the bat, below the grip.

The proper mounting procedure is followed for the strain gauge installation and is

detailed in the report later. Once the strain gauge is tested and approved for use, the bat is

used to hit a force/pressure pad. From the calibrated pressure pad we are able to determine

the force that was applied by the bat when hit. Accordingly, the strain experienced by the bat is

also recorded with the help of the strain gauge connected to the NI DAQ system giving output

through the Lab View VI.

Using the data from the force pad and the corresponding strain experience in creating

the recorded forces, a scatter plot is made with force in the y-axis and strain in the x-axis. The

scatter plot is then used to find a linear trend line and the equation for the line. This equation

can now be used to determine the unknown force applied by the bat based on the strain

experienced by the bat.

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Theory

Hooke's Law will be used to measure the experimental strain using the Modulus of
Elasticity and the measured force from the pressure gage. And the experimental force can be
calculated from the Modulus of elasticity and the measured strain from the strain gage.

Hooke’s Law:
𝜎 = 𝜀∗𝐸
Where
𝜎 = 𝑎𝑝𝑝𝑙𝑖𝑒𝑑 𝑓𝑜𝑟𝑐𝑒
𝜀 = 𝑠𝑡𝑟𝑎𝑖𝑛 (𝑢𝑛𝑖𝑡𝑙𝑒𝑠𝑠)
𝐸 = 𝑀𝑜𝑑𝑢𝑙𝑢𝑠 𝑜𝑓 𝐸𝑙𝑎𝑠𝑡𝑖𝑐𝑖𝑡𝑦

Apparatus and Procedure:

The following apparatus are used in performing the experiment:

 Baseball bat
 Strain gage
 NI DAQ system
 Computer
 Vishay strain gage mounting kit
 Calibrated weights
 Pressure sensor

The following procedure is used in the installation of the strain gage to the bat:

1. Use degreaser on the baseball bat and wipe off the degreaser.

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 2. Use M-prep and abrade with 220 or 320 grit silicon carbon paper, mark the baseball bat
with a pencil to make an alignment mark and scrub off the mark using cotton-tips with
M-Prep.
3. Apply M-Prep Neutralizer and carefully wipe off the residue, without back tracking.
4. Put the strain gage on a non-chemical tape with the bonding side down
5. Align strain gage with alignment mark on the bat.
6. Lift up the tape until you fully lifted up the strain gage off the bat.
7. Apply M-Bond 200 catalyst to the bonding surface and allow for the adhesive to dry.
8. Apply M-Bond 200 adhesive to the junction of the tape and beam
9. Using gauze slowly and firmly place the strain gage back onto the beam wiping any
excess residue. Let it dry.
10. Peel off the tape.
11. Solder the wires together onto the strain gage
12. Apply a coat over the strain gage and let it dry for 20 minutes.
13. Mount strain gage on metal beam
14. Set up the NI DAQ system
15. Wire using the quarter bridge configuration and set up a new vi.
16. You will need a raw value, zero out value and true value along with a graph in the VI.
17. Setup the pressure gage with the NI DAQ system.
18. Create a new VI for the Pressure gage.

Testing Procedure:

1. With the strain gage attached to a Lab View software and the force/pressure pad
calibrated. The bat is used to hit the pressure pad.
2. From the Lab View VI, the force recorded by the force/pressure gage is recorded along
with the corresponding strain on the bat.
3. A few different instances of different force and the corresponding strain is recorded and
the data is analyzed graphically.

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 4. A liner trend line is established for the tabulated data.
5. The equation for the trend line is then used to find the unknown force exerted by the
bat based on the strain reading recorded from the strain gage mounted on bat.

Results

The following data is used to find the relationship between the strain experienced by the bat
and the resulting force that is exerted by the bat. As explained earlier, a calibrated force/pressure pad is
hit with the baseball bat to see the force imparted by the bat and the strain gage that is mounted on the
bat gives us a strain reading. The respective strain for each load applied is tabled and a graph with the
linear trend line and line equation is generated.

Table 1
load Strain
0.000 -7.44E-05
0.225 -1.00E-05
0.425 -2.50E-05
0.575 -1.60E-04

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 Deflection of Bat
0.7
0.6
0.5
Load(lbf)
0.4
y = 6316.6x + 0.5043
R² = 0.5524 0.3
0.2
0.1
0
-0.00008 -0.00007 -0.00006 -0.00005 -0.00004 -0.00003 -0.00002 -0.00001 0
Strain (in/in)

Figure 1: Graph shows the relationship between the load and the strain.

Next, the strain experienced by the bat in applying different unknown forces is observed and recorded.

Strain Force
Chair -0.000048 0.201103
Hitting wood -0.000070 0.062138

Using the equation: y = 6316.6x + 0.5043 (with x as the strain reading and y as the force
exerted) the force exerted is calculated as shown in the table above.

Discussion

Based on the obtained results it can be said that the device worked in the capacity for
which it was tested. However, the results may be lacking in regards to a high degree of
accuracy. The calibration process for the experiment redone with more data points will allow a
more accurate trend line to be created which will ensure a more precise result.

The strain gage in the VI interface gives fluctuating values that are relatively close.
Taking an average value for each testing point will improve the accuracy of the final findings.

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There is also the human error in performing the test. As such, if the strain gage is not kept at
the same position relative to the point from which the force is imparted, the value of strain
obtained for the force exerted would not give an accurate result. Ensuring these conditions
when redoing the experiment will provide better accuracy.

From Table 2 The calibration of the pressure gage was needed so that we would be able

to find the error within the pressure gage. By taking measurements of the pressure gage with

calibrated weights we can plot Strain vs Weight to find the relationship between the two and

set a scale in the VI to account for the relationship.

There could be a possible experimental error when we swung the bat into the pressure

gage and into objects. The possible error could come from the location of impact and the

location of the strain gage. If the location of impact on the bad is on the opposite side of the

location of the strain gage there is a possibility of not being able to get the correct strain

measurements.

When repeating the experiment, a larger set of data should be used to calibrate the
setup so that the uncertainty due to experimental error can be kept to a minimum.

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Conclusion
Our initial objective was to turn an object into a device that can be used to measure force
exerted. Although the primary issue of our experiment was low accuracy, the experiment
performed was a success in terms of our initial objective, which was to construct a device that
can determine unknown forces using a mounted strain gage.

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Appendix

Table 2
Calibration of the Pressure Gage
Weight(lbs) Strain(in/in)
0 0.0000744
5 -0.005278
10 -0.0106601
15 -0.0158784

y = -939.09x + 0.0479
R² = 1 Strain
20

15
Load (lbf)

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Strain
5 Linear (Strain)

0
-0.0200000 -0.0150000 -0.0100000 -0.0050000 0.0000000 0.0050000
-5
Strain

Figure 2: Graph shows the relationship between the weight applied to the beam and the strain.

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