Strain Gauge

A strain gauge is an electronic component used to measure the deformation, or strain, on an object, invented by Edward E. Simmons and Arthur C. Ruge in 1938. A typical strain gauge consists of an insulating flexible backing that supports a pattern of metallic foil. As the object it is bonded to deforms, the foil deforms with it, changing the foil electrical resistance, and that change is measured with a Wheatstone bridge and converted into a strain value using a factor called the gauge factor. Simmons developed his version while studying the stress and strain behavior of metals at Caltech using fine resistance wires, while Ruge, an MIT professor studying seismology, separately found he could measure resistance changes in metal wires bonded to small scale model tank walls where earlier optical methods for reading vibration had proven inadequate. This description is adapted from Wikipedia contributors under CC BY-SA 4.0; changes were made. https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/