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NEW TORQUE SENSOR WILL REVOLUTIONISE MACHINE CONTROL

Torque measuring specialist Sensor Technology Ltd will be displaying on their stand D20 their complete range of TorqSense transducers and TorqView2, a complementary software programme that generates a visual instrumentation display of the TorqSense output.

TorqSense measures the characteristics of rotating shafts in real time, including torques, speed, power and positional angle, using a non-contact technique that has redefined the ease and accuracy with which such data can be collected.

TorqView2 lets the data generated be displayed on a full-sized screen, in a variety of graphical and textural forms, as well as collecting and analysing it.

Unlike traditional slip ring transducers, the TorqSense units use a radio frequency (RF) signal for both power and signal communication so does not require physical contact with the rotating shaft. This is possible because the power requirements for the piezoelectric sensor fixed to the rotating shaft at the heart of the TorqSense are miniscule.

The piezoelectric sensor is in fact tiny comb-like ceramic chip that deforms when the shaft experiences torque, changing its resonant frequency proportional to the torque, which the RF head is able to pick up across an airgap.

TorqSense transducers are currently available with integral or separate control electronics in a range of sizes from 100mNm through to 10KNm and can provide real time outputs of all the dynamic characteristics of turning shafts, including torques, speed, power and positional angle. Larger sizes can be provided on special request.

TorqView2 has fully configurable and scalable graphics modules, so that the data can be presented in a number of different formats including as discrete digital readouts, as analogue dials, as bar graphs, etc. User configurable inputs, such as 4-20mA signals from accelerometers allow complete customisation of TorqView2 for every application.

Data such as peak values, time-sequenced and time-stamped values, etc, can also be collected and stored in text files or spreadsheets and exported to other programmes for subsequent analysis. Text comments can be incorporated into the data, either using an auto-trigger function or discretely as the user requires.

TorqView2 incorporates an auto-scaling function that allows it to recognise the individual transducer with which it is working by reading its serial number. This also allows it to confirm its latest re-calibration date and to check security settings relating to the individual user.

"Our TorqSense transducers redefine the ease with which it is possible to collect real-time performance data from machine drive shafts," says Tony Ingham of Sensor Technology. "It is also complimented by TorqView2 which is the user friendly front end that opens up the technology to any users."