PORTABLE HARDNESS TESTER

A hardness tester includes a frame with a penetrator slidably carried by said frame for movement along a penetration axis, and thereby adapted to form an indentation in a specimen upon application of a load thereto. The resulting depth of the indentation is determinative of the hardness number of the specimen. The means by which a load is applied to the penetrator is rotatably actuated. The rotational displacement of the loading means bears a predetermined relationship to the linear dimension of the indentation depth formed during hardness testing of a specimen. The hardness tester further includes electro-optical mechanical encoding means, and further adapted to emit a coded electrical signal indicative of the sensed angular displacement. Furthermore, an electronic counting circuit decodes the output signals of the encoding means in the form of a count. The count, determinative of the resulting depth of penetration, is indicative of the hardness number of the tested specimen. Optical numerical display means are also provided for visually displaying the specimen hardness number.