Patent ID: 8590401

Claim:
A system for monitoring the torque at a set of rod tongs during a make-up process, comprising; rod tongs comprising an upper jaw and a back-up wrench; a load cell positioned adjacent the back-up wrench; and a block member capable of being in contact with the load cell, wherein the block member transmits a force from the back-up wrench to the load cell, the force generating the load signal at the load cell, wherein in response to a torque being applied to a rod held by the rod tongs, the second end of the back-up wrench moves in a first direction; wherein the movement of the second end of the back-up wrench in the first direction causes a corresponding move of the first end of the back-up wrench in a second direction opposite the first; wherein movement of the first end of the back-up wrench in the second direction generates a corresponding force in the block member in the second direction; and wherein the load cell senses the force from the block member in the second direction and generates a torque signal.