MATERIALS TEST & ANALYSIS SPECIAL REPORT: Making Hardness Tests a Moving Experience
Large parts or those with surfaces that are difficult to access are the prime reasons to consider portable hardness testing.
In response to the need to test products that are too large for conventional Rockwell, Brinell or Vickers hardness testing methods, quality and manufacturing professionals are making more use of portable hardness testers. For production testing, the ability to test complex shapes and access difficult test areas allows portable testers to complement stationary testers.
Two common methods used by portables employ the Ultrasonic Contact Impedance (UCI) and rebound. Instruments based on the UCI principle measure a frequency shift of an oscillating rod with a diamond tip to determine the area of an indentation. Instruments using the rebound principle measure voltage to indirectly measure hardness through the loss of energy of a so-called impact body. Each method has its individual advantages and appropriate applications.