Thread: DIY Steel Plate Impact Detection

Originally Posted by timattalon

Looking at it I have the same concerns as someone mentioned about pass through or damage from the plate being hit HARD. How much impact does the sensor need to have? Does it need to be attached to the back of the plate? Something to try would be to attach it to the back of the post. See if enough energy passes down the post to trigger it there,If so you could put a protector / deflector plate in front of the sensor so that a pass through or miss does not damage the sensor. And if it works there, would it work at the bottom of the post with protection in front of it?

It is possible to play with the sensitivity of the sensor, but outside of the enclosure if you tap it with your finger it will be sufficient. Inside the enclosure a light pat with your hand on the box will trigger it. I have actually tested it on the post in the workshop, and it worked without an issue - I had to hit the plate a bit harder with the hammer (harder than what you see in the video clips). So if you mount the sensor box on the frame where the impact jolt will be transferred, it should be working fine. I see some more testing coming...