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Paint Brush with internal Force Reader

rlikht

As a professional painter, the consistency in your brushstrokes are due in large to how much pressure you push the bristles of the brush against the surface you're painting. This action involves a very low, and very precise degree of pressure.

 

What I am after is the best way to measure the force of the strokes on the brush unit itself, and read it onto my laptop. This, I'm thinking, will involve either a few sensors within the hairs, or even installed into the base. Wireless is preferable.

 

 

Can somebody please recommend a product that could be purchased to achieve what I'm after?

 

Thank you,

Richard

 

Ps. Please redirect me if this is posted in the wrong subforum.

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    I am not aware of a product that does this.  I also agree with John that if you are trying to measure precisely it will be difficult.  However, here are some DIY ideas to consider...

     

    Flex Sensor -  You can get these numerous places but here is one source: https://www.adafruit.com/product/1070  They have two sizes and also some material that you could use to make your own.  This will not measure force against the brush tip but rather how electrical resistance changes as the bristles are bent.  You would need to adhere it to the ferrule and possibly the bristles themselves.  The change in resistance could be measured with a microcontroller as outlined in the link above.  The measurement will probably be crude.  Here is a photo of mine held against a soft brush pushed against a table to give you the idea:

    image

     

    Strain Gage - You possibly could arrange strain gages around brush bristles and/or the ferrule - an internet search will turn up information on how they work.  Load cells are strain gages bonded onto a deformable block of metal which could be the ferrule for example.  They can be arranged in a number of ways to measure with great precision but I only have limited experience with simple applications.

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  • 0

    I am not aware of a product that does this.  I also agree with John that if you are trying to measure precisely it will be difficult.  However, here are some DIY ideas to consider...

     

    Flex Sensor -  You can get these numerous places but here is one source: https://www.adafruit.com/product/1070  They have two sizes and also some material that you could use to make your own.  This will not measure force against the brush tip but rather how electrical resistance changes as the bristles are bent.  You would need to adhere it to the ferrule and possibly the bristles themselves.  The change in resistance could be measured with a microcontroller as outlined in the link above.  The measurement will probably be crude.  Here is a photo of mine held against a soft brush pushed against a table to give you the idea:

    image

     

    Strain Gage - You possibly could arrange strain gages around brush bristles and/or the ferrule - an internet search will turn up information on how they work.  Load cells are strain gages bonded onto a deformable block of metal which could be the ferrule for example.  They can be arranged in a number of ways to measure with great precision but I only have limited experience with simple applications.

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