An optoelectronic system is developed to measure the motions and strains of the rotor blades of a helicopter in research. The motion parameters, including the flap, lag and pitch angles, are measured by two-dimensional position sensitive detectors (PSDs) responding to the changes in position of the light emitting points mounted on the surface of blades. The strains on blades are measured by Fiber Bragg Gratings. Test data show that there are good linear relationships between angles and their related voltages. Less than 1% of angle measurement error is achieved within the measuring range. The FBG data are consistent with that of the strain gauge, with linear correlation coefficient of about 0.999. Besides, the strain measurement is reproducible, with relative deviation of only 1.22% between twice strain measurements. It is concluded that the motions and strains can be measured accurately.

Date Published: 20 November 2012
PDF: 7 pages
Proc. SPIE 8563, Optical Metrology and Inspection for Industrial Applications II, 85630X (20 November 2012); doi: 10.1117/12.999279

Published in SPIE Proceedings Vol. 8563:
Optical Metrology and Inspection for Industrial Applications II
Kevin G. Harding; Peisen S. Huang; Toru Yoshizawa, Editor(s)