Additive manufacturing is increasingly being adopted across many areas of industry and everyday life, including hydraulic systems. Compared with conventionally manufactured valves, 3D-printed valves can be smaller and lighter. Current trends aim to integrate sensors directly into individual components.
This thesis presents a system for indirect pressure measurement based on the strain of a 3D-printed 316L stainless steel tube. The mechanical properties of the LPBF-manufactured material were determined by tensile testing and used in finite element analysis to define the geometry of the measurement region. A measurement system using a resistive strain gauge, Wheatstone bridge, and instrumentation amplifier was developed and tested. The system detected pressure changes, while the results indicated the need for temperature compensation.
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