Research Article

Assessment of uncertainties in pressure and velocity measurements in ballistics using piezoelectric transducers and light screens

¹ Military Academy, Fondouk Jedid, Grombalia, 8012 Nabeul, Tunisia
² University of El Manar, National Engineering School of Tunis, LR11ES19 Laboratoire de Mécanique Appliquée et Ingénierie, 1002 Tunis, Tunisia
³ Science and Technology for Defense Laboratory, Center for Military Research, l’Aouina, Base Militaire Aouina, 2045 Tunis, Tunisia

^* Corresponding author: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

Received: 28 May 2025
Accepted: 20 May 2026

Abstract

Metrology has become the inevitable guarantee to gain confidence in all areas of industry and science. In the specific field of ballistics, significant technological progress has been achieved in recent years in terms of measurement means and techniques, including high-speed data acquisition, improved piezoelectric pressure sensors, advanced digital signal processing techniques and modern optical velocity measurement systems. These developments contribute to improving the reliability and performance of both weapons and ammunition, thereby mitigating potential risks to human life and economic losses. However, the traceability of measurement results is not always obvious due to the absence of primary standards for certain physical quantities or the difficulty of estimating measurement uncertainties. Within the framework of the accreditation of the ballistics laboratory according to the requirements of the ISO/IEC 17025 standard, significant efforts have been undertaken to contribute to the establishment of a well-founded approach for the assessment of uncertainties of the main measurable quantities in ammunition proof tests, namely the ballistic pressure and the flight velocity of the projectile using piezoelectric transducers and light screens. In addition to the technical aspects of measurement, this work aims to highlight the factors that significantly affect the uncertainty of projectile velocity and gas pressure measurements. First, possible sources of measurement errors are determined, then their elementary contributions to the uncertainty are estimated. Finally, global uncertainties are evaluated based on the propagation of variances as mentioned in the guide to the expression of uncertainty in measurement (GUM). Furthermore, the validity of these uncertainties has been verified using the Monte Carlo method in accordance with Supplement 1 of the GUM. The required simulations were performed by the LNE-MCM software (Laboratoire National de Métrologie et d’Essais – Monte Carlo Method). The results obtained allow us to implement a practical method for estimating the uncertainty of measurement of the most sought-after ballistic quantities, considering their importance in evaluating the performance of firearms and their ammunition according to standards in the field of ballistics.