Design of a Moiré Fringe Torque Transducer

This transducer has advantages for certain applications where conventional techniques are not adequate. One such application is the measurement of torque variation in a rotating shaft when a physical connection to the shaft is undesirable. The transducer could also be useful when used with high speed movies. This use can give the engineer a visual indication of torque while the mechanism action that provides the loading is also being viewed. Disadvantages of the transducer include the need to design for each particular application and the difficulty in adjustment which eliminates some of the very small shaft-size applications. The technique described here is by no means complete. It is hoped that further effort will refine the design so that its potential contribution to instrumentation can be more fully achieved