In order to analyse the propulsive performance of ships, it is very much desired to measure the exact value of the thrust as well as that of the torque acting on actual ship propellers. In this paper a new type thrustmeter which measures mechanically enlarged compressive strain using strain gauges is developed and the results of measurements at sea trials are presented. It is shown that this thrustmeter can be used successfully to measure the thrust of ships, provided that the temperature of the thrustmeter and the propeller shaft surface can be measured accurately.
