Tablet press instrumentation transducers

In general, one should be aware that tablet press instrumentation involves the use of strain gauges or piezoelectric transducers to provide a voltage signal proportional to the force applied for the compaction operation. Let us say we can measure forces, such as those applied to the granulation by the punches, that applied to the die wall, that required for tablet ejection, etc. With tlie use of other transducers we can also measure distance. With the measurement of force and distance, we can calculate work, energy, etc. 

The key to progress in this field was the introduction of the so-called instrumented tablet press by Higuchi and others in the mid 1950s, in which force transducers were fitted to the press to measure the applied load. This revolutionized research into the tabletting process and in addition has lead to the development of presses with automatic tablet weight control, since the mass of particles in the die governs the force detected by the transducer (see the article on Automation of Tablet Presses in this encyclopedia). 

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