Method of making force transducer flexure

A method of manufacturing a flexure for use in connecting a force sensing element to a mounting base in a force transducer comprising:

• providing a blank with two opposed surfaces;
• masking said blank except for opposed indicator portions on each of said surfaces and at least one surface portion;
• removing a predetermined amount of material from the non-masked portions of said blank;
• removing said mask from said blank;
• continuing removal of the material from a flexure section of said blank;
• and terminating removal of material from said flexure section of said blank when at least a portion of the material between said first and second indicator portions disappears such that at least a portion of said indicator portions meet.

In the manufacture of a force transducer having a movable element hinged to a base by a bendable flexure, the movable element having an electrical circuit component thereon, the improved method of forming the flexure section, comprising:

• providing a transducer blank having a flexure section with parallel faces extending from said base to said movable element, said parallel faces being generally at right angles to the sensitive axis of the movable element;
• removing material from a portion of at least one face of said flexure section to form a conductor receiving channel;
• removing material from a pair of opposed indicator areas on each face of said blank, simultaneously with and at the same rate material is removed from said channel of said flexure section;
• and
• terminating removal of material from the face of said flexure section when the opposed indicator areas break through, the bottom surface of said channel lying substantially in the neutral bending plane of said flexure section.

In the manufacture of a force transducer having a movable element hinged to a base by a bendable flexure, the movable element having an electrical circuit component thereon, the improved method of forming the flexure section, comprising:

• providing a transducer blank of a fused quartz material, having a flexure section with parallel faces generally at right angles to the sensitive axis of the movable element;
• removing material from a portion of each face of said flexure section to form a pair of oppositely facing conductor receiving channels;
• removing material from a pair of opposed indicator areas on each face of said blank, simultaneously with and at the same rate material is removed from said channels of said flexure section;
• and
• terminating removal of material from said channels of said flexure section when the opposed indicator areas break through, the bottom surface of each channel lying substantially in the neutral bending plane of said flexure section.

A method of manufacturing a flexure for use in connecting a force sensing element to a mounting base in a force transducer comprising:

• providing a transducer blank with two opposed surfaces;
• removing material from a first indicator portion of one of said surfaces to provide an indicator surface with a predetermined recess depth;
• removing additional material from said indicator portion and at least one other portion of at least one of said surfaces to form a flexure region on said blank;
• and
• discontinuing removal of material from the flexure region when at least a portion of said indicator surface breaks through and disappears.