Measurement of impulse response of force transducers

Impulse responses of force transducers are measured. An object levitated with sufficiently small friction using a pneumatic linear bearing is made to collide with a force transducer under test. The inertial force acting on the object is measured as the product of the mass and the acceleration. The acceleration of the object is measured using an optical interferometer. The output signal of the force transducer and the inertial force acting on the levitated object are then compared. Impulses with a maximum value of approximately 80–90 N with a half value width of approximately 5–19 ms have been applied to two different types of force transducers. The inertial force is measured with standard uncertainty of approximately 0.9 N, which corresponds to approximately 1% of the maximum applied impulse.