An Apparatus for Automatic Assessment of Machine Condition
Gwidon Stachowiak, Jacob A. Baranski · 1987
A new apparatus for automatic assessment of machine condition has been developed. The 'life oil' sample extracted from the operating machinery is analysed for wear particles suspended in the oil. The operation of the apparatus, based on the ferrography principle, is completely automated and controlled by a microprocessor. The operations such as calibration, assessment of the measurement conditions, offset, oil sample and sample volume measurements are controlled by a microcomputer. The results of the measurements are computed and displayed in the form of commonly used wear parameters. The results can also be conveniently stored in the memory of any compatible PC computer and utilized further for a condition monitoring program. The apparatus is also self-calibrating and self-testing, thus any possible human and apparatus faults are detected and displayed, and can be quickly rectified. The apparatus has been designed to process two oil samples simultaneously. The apparatus is a powerful machine condition-monitoring tool for many engineering applications. It is efficient, reliable and reducing human error to a minimum. In the paper the design details, measurement and operating principles of the apparatus are described and possible sources of measurement errors discussed.