measuring vibration in pool cues and cue wood 1

[cueguy]

Hello,

I am trying to measure the vibration in the wood used to make pool cues as well as the shape of the stick taper and the materials used in the joint of a 2-piece stick (brass, steel, plastic). I am trying to investigate the feel in a more quantitative manner.

I have a PC with a 24-bit sound card and have been looking at the capture units that in interface with a PC.

This is a hobby project, so the budget is not big.

Should I be looking at accelerometers or microphones?
What kind of capture unit should I look at?
Any particular software?
What about the sensor/capture unit or sensor/computer interface?

Thanks for the thoughts.

 

[alexit]

I have done tooling analysis with audiophile software and 24-bit soundcard. Trick is to pay $$$ for a microphone, you want best dB for widest range, 20-20kHz is ok, 18-26kHz is better. Try to get one designed for acoustic analysis or professional recording studio not condenser mic (800-12kHz) for teenagers' tape box.

This has a good trial software package:

http://www.purebits.com/

Use software to record through soundcard and mic, run FFT on intersting range(s)...this produced very plausible results for my tool theory.

 

[amorrison]

May I suggest strain gauges to pick up the vibration - they will pickup Hz >> than the 20kHz that a microphone does. Also you will get displacement and not just frequency. Easier to mount also.
Sometimes they are available very cheap on eBay.

 

[GregLocock]

But given the problem of interest, low frequency is far more important than high frequency. I suggest cueguy does some calculations to work out roughly which modes he is interested in, and thei likey frequencies. My /guess/ is that first lateral will be around 50 Hz, and longitudinal about 1000 Hz or less



Cheers

Greg Locock

Please see FAQ731-376 for tips on how to make the best use of Eng-Tips.