How Does Material Choice Impact Miniature Accelerometer Design?

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Discussion Overview

The discussion revolves around the design of a miniature accelerometer, focusing on the impact of material choice on its performance. Participants explore various aspects of the design, including stiffness, dimensions, deflection under acceleration, and damping requirements, while considering both theoretical and practical implications.

Discussion Character

  • Homework-related
  • Technical explanation
  • Debate/contested

Main Points Raised

  • Post 1 presents a design problem for an accelerometer, specifying parameters such as measurement bandwidth, proof-mass, and material options (Silicon or Aluminum).
  • Participants question the completeness of the initial post, suggesting that missing formulas should be included for clarity.
  • Some participants express uncertainty about the correctness of the formulas provided for calculating stiffness and deflection.
  • There are requests for more detailed attempts at solving parts of the problem, particularly regarding the damping ratio and dimensions of the cantilever.
  • One participant emphasizes the need for effort from the original poster to facilitate assistance from others.

Areas of Agreement / Disagreement

There is no consensus on the solutions to the design problem, with multiple participants expressing uncertainty about the formulas and calculations involved. The discussion remains unresolved, with participants seeking clarification and further contributions.

Contextual Notes

Participants note the importance of including all relevant formulas and assumptions in the calculations. There is a lack of clarity regarding the specific requirements for the damping ratio and the dimensions of the cantilever, which may depend on additional constraints not fully articulated in the discussion.

Who May Find This Useful

This discussion may be useful for students and professionals interested in mechanical engineering, particularly those focused on sensor design and dynamics of materials.

Gradon
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Accelerometer Design: You have been asked to help design an accelerometer with a measurement bandwidth of 1000 Hz using a cantilevered design (see figure). The cantilever (c) has a rectangular cross-section and the proof-mass (m) is 1 gram. The cantilever can be made from single-crystal Silicon [E=190 GPa, ρ =2.3 g/cm3] or Aluminum [E = 75 GPa, ρ =2.7 g/cm3], your choice.
upload_2015-7-25_8-1-56.png


Assuming this accelerometer design can be properly modeled and analyzed as a second order system (i.e., a lumped mass-spring-damper, ignoring the mass of the cantilever), please answer the following:

a) What is the amount of stiffness in the spring element such that the natural frequency of the device is 2 kHz. Is this a good natural frequency for an accelerometer that may be used for accelerations of frequencies up to 1 kHz?

b) Please design the dimensions of the accelerometer cantilever given the stiffness calculated in part (a) such that the mass of the beam is less than 2% of the proof-mass. Also comment on which material (Silicon or Aluminum) you selected and explain why you selected this material. [Hints: This is a design problem so there are multiple solutions. If you want a more specific (constrained) case, consider a square cantilever cross-section. Recall that the deflection of a cantilever can be modeled as a linear spring and watch your units].

c) How much deflection will your designed accelerometer cantilever see subjected to a 10g acceleration (g = 9.8 m/s2) resulting from an external force (F) (assume that the cantilever is massless)?

d) Assume the requirements are that the settling time of accelerometer must be less than 20 milliseconds, what is the amount of viscous damping (or damping ratio) needed? [Hint: Assume the accelerometer is underdamped]
solve:
a.

For a cantilevered beam, the 1st natural Frep is
where B=pi/2, L=length of cantlevered, E young's moduler, I=b.h^3/12,
b. i don't know
c. deflection at beam delta=M.L/2EF
d. i don't know
can you help me to solve and edit my answer?
 

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a. You might want to include the missing formula in your post?
b. Can you attempt something here? It seems like it would be easy.
c. I don't think your formula is right. You may also need to assume a time variable.
d. Do you know a formula with damping you could use?
 
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paisiello2 said:
a. You might want to include the missing formula in your post?
b. Can you attempt something here? It seems like it would be easy.
c. I don't think your formula is right. You may also need to assume a time variable.
d. Do you know a formula with damping you could use?
can you show your answer more detail? please ., thanks
 
If you want others to put in effort to help you, you should make an effort too.
Can you answer b & d?
 

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