Instrumented impact is the technology for measuring the impact response of a target structure when struck by a falling hammer like mechanism. The resultant measurement is a impulse profile. This profile is determined through use of a force transducer attached to the tup of the hammer. This instrumented tup provides an analog signal for evaluation of the impact response characteristics of the target (test specimen) structure. In most cases the velocity at start of impact is also measured.

The initial development (1963 to 1975) of instrumented impact testing relied on oscilloscopes for capture of the analog force-time profile. The introduction of reliable high speed analog-to-digital (A/D) data acquisition instruments, resulted in the utilization of computer technology for reduction and evaluation of instrumented impact test results.

The A/D instrument provides an array of time based force data [F(t)]. With the impact velocity (vo) and the hammer mass (m), the computer reduction of impact test data provides an array of time based force (Fi), velocity (vi), displacement (Di), and energy (Ui). Typical algorithms used for these computations are presented at the Data Reduction page. 

Graphical presentations (profiles) of test results can be made from any of several combinations of the five impact response parameters (t, F, v, D, and U). The usual graphical presentation of impact response is F and U as a function of t. Typical profiles are presented at the Impulse page. The choice of parameters for the profiles is dependent on the objective for the test and the specimen structural configuration. The shape characteristics of these profiles are representative of the deformation response of the specimen during the impact event. Ductility and fracture parameters are readily identified.