Configure VibrationVIEW to Calibrate Piezoelectric Accelerometers

Back to: Calibrating a Piezoelectric Accelerometer in VibrationVIEW

Equipment Needed

• • VR9500 or VR10500 vibration controller
  • Windows PC with VibrationVIEW Sine software and Accelerometer Calibration add-on package
  • VR5200HF shaker and amplifier
  • Reference device (REF) such as Dytran 3027B back-to-back accelerometer
  • Piezoelectric accelerometer that requires calibration
  • Cables

Set-Up

1. Connect and power the PC, controller, shaker, and amplifier.

2. Mount the DUT accelerometer to the REF in a back-to-back configuration.

Make sure to use a good mounting technique (see article: Accelerometer Mounting Tip Sheet.)

• Stud mount the REF to the shaker head
• Stud mount the DUT to the top of the REF

3. Make testing connections

• Connect the REF to Input Ch1
• Connect the DUT to Input Ch2

4. Configure VibrationVIEW

• Click Configuration > System Limits; select Vibration Research VR5200
• Click the Inputs tab
  • Select accelerometer power for Ch 1 and Ch 2
  • Enter the proper Sensitivity for Ch 1 and Ch 2
  • If the DUT supports TEDS, check the TEDS box

• • Click OK

5. Create the calibration test profile for Ch2

• Click the Navigator button
• Click the Sine library > Sine Accelerometer Calibration

• • Click OK
  • Enter a file name for the Sine test profile

6. Run the Test

• Click the Run button

• Fill in the test information on the HTML form

• Click Continue. The calibration of the DUT accelerometer will run at 100Hz. After the calibration is complete, the test will verify the accuracy across a full operating range of frequencies.

7. After the Test Completes

• Click Save New Values and VibrationVIEW will update the TEDS information stored on the DUT accelerometer

• VibrationVIEW will generate an Accelerometer Calibration report as an Excel file