Load Cells: Types, How It Works, Applications, & Advantages

Encardio Rite
3 min readMay 8, 2019

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Load Cells are commonly used to measure weight and, they can measure things as small as a needle to as heavy as big drilling machines. You can find load cells everywhere, even in your nearby grocery stores to weigh your items, though, they are inside the instruments.

Load cells find their application in a variety of fields. Let us discuss more about load cells, their types, working principle, advantages, disadvantages, and much more.

What is a Load Cell?

Load Cells are a type of transducers that convert the force exerted on them into electrical readable units, similar to our regular weighing scales. But, load cells are always bonded along with elastic material, known as strain gauges.

To understand load cells, it is necessary that you must know about strain gauges, their types, working principle, areas of applications, advantages and limitations.

| Read More: Strain Gauge: Principle, Types, Features and Applications |

Types of Load Cells

Model ELC-150S-H High Capacity Compression Load Cell

The Encardio-rite model ELC-150S-H load cell is extensively used for compressive load measurement during testing of piles. For testing of piles at loads greater than 12,500 kN, more than one load cell can be used.

The Encardio-rite model ELC-150S-H is a resistive strain gage type precision engineered, high capacity load cell designed to measure large compressive load or axial forces. It is specially designed for civil engineering applications. It is available in capacities ranging from 5000 kN to 12500 kN.

Operating Principle of High Capacity Compression Load Cell

The compression strain gauge load cell comprises a columnar element of high strength martensitic stainless steel. The sensor utilizes sixteen 350 Ohm resistance strain gauges, wired to form a 1400 Ohm bridge. To minimize the effect of uneven and eccentric loading, the strain gauges are equally spaced along the circumference.

The load applied to the cell can be measured by using any standard digital read-out unit suitable for resistance strain gauge applications. The load cell has great resistance to extraneous forces and is protected against dust, moisture and adverse environmental conditions.

The sectional area of the element is varied in the different capacity load cells to give approximately the same millivolt output for a variation of zero to full load.

Model ELC-210S Resistive Strain Gage Type Compression Load Cell

The Encardio-rite model ELC-210S is a heavy duty precision load cell. It is specially designed to meet the increasing demand in load measurement with a high degree of accuracy and reliability. The load cell is ideally suited for measurement of compressive load or forces in struts application. It is available in capacities ranging from 1000 kN to 3500 kN.

Construction of Resistive Strain Gage Type Compression Load Cell

The internal construction of the load cell is columnar. The element of the load cell is made of martensitic stainless steel. The element is hardened to give better linearity and hysteresis. The strain gages used is of foil type and are bonded to the elements using special epoxy cements which are very reliable.

Operating Principle of Resistive Strain Gage Type Compression Load Cell

The electron beam welded sensor utilizes precision bonded foil strain gages connected in a simple Wheatstone bridge circuit. The output is derived from imbalances in the bridge circuit as load is sensed by the sensor.

Typically the bridge circuit is excited by 10 V DC to give a full scale output of around 1.5 mV/V. Load applied to the cell can be measured by using any standard digital read-out unit suitable for

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Encardio Rite
Encardio Rite

Written by Encardio Rite

Established in India in the year 1966, Encardio Rite is a world leader in safety monitoring providing geotechnical, structural monitoring solutions.

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