Customer
Our client is a company operating in the field of industrial rubber. It manufactures parts for customers all over the world, mainly in the automotive sector.
Tested product
Steering Columns
The steering column, present in all motor vehicles, is the axis on which the steering wheel is placed. The column passes through watertight partitions by means of seals.
Objective
Testing steering column joints by measuring the torque generated by the joint when the column is rotated.
Problematic issues
The programming software associated with the bench must be intuitive and easy to use, even for non-experts.
Solution and result
The torque measurement bench designed by LF Technologies' engineers houses, on its right, a motorised drive block integrating a precision torque measurement with limit stops, as well as an angular position transmitter.
The torque measurement is provided by two sensors measuring the deformation of an aluminium frame. The combination of these two sensors provides a differential and therefore reliable measurement, independent of electromagnetic disturbances and potential temperature-related drift of the sensors.
Concerning the control part, the machine is controlled via a specific software developed under LabVIEW. As requested by the customer, it is easy to set up and use. Once the steering column has been installed on the bench and the axes have been set and entered, the operator simply specifies a few parameters (angle, number of cycles, etc.) and presses the "Play" button. The PC instantly displays the graphs corresponding to the test in progress. The software also delivers a report with the results of the test performed.
