State transducers in combination with mechanical components

Claim 1

A mechanical component comprising in combination therewith at least one state transducer, and associated electric conductors (17, 18; 21, 23; 31-34), said transducer including at least one electronic circuit (20, 22, 29, 30; 35-38), and which transducer will emit an electric signal in response to the state of the component to which the transducer is responsive, and which transducer is capable of measuring and measures at least one operational state, to which said mechanical component is subjected, selected from a group of operational states consisting of state of wear, state of mechanical load and state of thermal load; said component having at least one active planar load bearing surface which is subject to at least one of said operational states; and wherein said transducer and its electric conductors have been applied upon said active planar surface of the component (7; 11) that will be subjected to said at least one operational state; and where a protective layer (10) is applied upon at least portions of said transducer and its conductors; said transducer and said conductors are applied on a microscale upon said planar active surface of the component, which said transducer including said at least one circuit are covered with said protective layer (10); and said transducer and any said circuits and said protective layer are an atomically integrated unit with said component (7, 11) so that said protective layer becomes the planar load bearing wear layer at said planar surface of the component; and that necessary connection terminals (12-14) are provided to enable connecting the component and state transducer to signal processing equipment.