loadcell based project

i want to work on loadcells if anybody has the idea or a project based on loadcell please reply soon to my e-mail i.d. or through forum

dinesh_aurum@yahoo.com

dinesh_aurum said:

i want to work on loadcells if anybody has the idea or a project based on loadcell please reply soon to my e-mail i.d. or through forum

dinesh_aurum@yahoo.com

Click to expand...

what's a loadcell?

loadcell or straingage is device used to measure weight or pull force.
it is mechanical system (can be strip of metal) that has attached special resistor(s) along side that can change dimension (on a very small scale of course). amplifer circuit can measure change in resistance and provide analog output.

Loadcells are often used to measure the weight of something. A common application is to support a storage bin in such a way that loadcells can be used to keep track of weight.

We find it hard to judge just how much food to give our dog - too much and she gaines weight that she doesn't need. One way to address this would be to have a platform on loadcells to indicate her weight then adjust the amount of food (using food storage with loadcell indicators). A microcontroller or other computer would be required to manage feeding times and analyze the data. That's one project.

Another might be as part of a rain gage to record rainfall amounts and rates. Again, a computer or microcontroller might be an important part of the system.

Just some thoughts. Good luck.

stevez said:

Loadcells are often used to measure the weight of something. A common application is to support a storage bin in such a way that loadcells can be used to keep track of weight.

We find it hard to judge just how much food to give our dog - too much and she gaines weight that she doesn't need. One way to address this would be to have a platform on loadcells to indicate her weight then adjust the amount of food (using food storage with loadcell indicators). A microcontroller or other computer would be required to manage feeding times and analyze the data. That's one project.

Another might be as part of a rain gage to record rainfall amounts and rates. Again, a computer or microcontroller might be an important part of the system.

Click to expand...

stevez would have the most hi tech dog feeding station I've ever heard of if he builds his suggestion :lol:

However, using load cells to measure rain fall is not a good idea. Too many possibilities for errors to creep in. Rainfall gauges use the tipping spoon method which is about as simple as an electronic method can get.

A calibrated 'spoon' is mounted on a pivot and held horizontally by a small magnet resting on the head of an adjusting screw. When the spoon is full of rain water, it overbalances and tips, emptying its contents. It will then reset again and be held there magnetically.
The small magnet that's mounted on the spoon 'handle' also moves past a reed switch when gets tipped, giving one increment to the rain counter.

The spoon is fed via a calibrated funnel to tip the spoon when 0.1mm (or the equivalent in "points") of rain have fallen into the funnel.
Klaus

I am sure I'd never build the feeding station - my wife might want to apply the same principle with regard to my meals. Still, it's fun to think about the stuff anyway. I presume that many of the queries about ideas are for school projects that don't really have to be practical. With that said it would not surprise me to find that some gadget manufacturer would try to make and market something so silly. Half the TV stations now are info-mercials that advertise stuff like that. I'd have to conclude that someone actually buys the silly stuff.

Rain gage was just a thought. I'd have put a cup of some description on a lever and would have emptied it periodically - just to keep the loadcell within a reasonable range.