Microstrain
- www.microstrain.com
- 1-800-449-DVRT
MicroStrain is a rapidly growing, privately held company based in Williston with 36 employees. Founded in 1987, the company's early development focused on producing micro-miniature displacement sensors for strain measurement in biomechanics research. The company's inclinometer product line was initially developed to measure angles of limbs to help re-animate the limbs of paralyzed individuals.
As MicroStrain's customer base expanded, it continued to innovate by combining multiple sensors with advanced micro-controllers to enhance system performance. The company was one of the first to add wireless capability so that low-power, miniature digital sensors could communicate easily with PCs and send data to the Internet.
Today, MicroStrain's wireless systems are used for condition-based monitoring of machinery, health monitoring of structures, and test and measurement applications. The company is developing leading-edge energy-harvesting systems that eliminate the need for batteries, enabling wireless systems to operate for the life of the structure. The company's tiny, lightweight gyro-enhanced orientation modules are used for navigation and control of unmanned systems in military and exploratory robotics applications.
MicroStrain is currently working on several major government-funded contracts — developing structural health-monitoring systems for airplanes and helicopters — that will total approximately $5 million over the next three years. These systems will enable aircraft to fly well beyond their expected lifetimes, saving the government and airlines billions of dollars in replacement aircraft, and will enhance readiness levels and reduce downtime.
MicroStrain is also making headlines for its solar-powered wireless sensors that monitor the structural integrity of bridges. The sensors are already in place on the Corinth Canal Bridge in Greece and on an Interstate 95 bridge in Connecticut.