TW201411107A - Non-contact type torque measurement method and measurement method thereof - Google Patents

Abstract

A non-contact type torque measurement device and a method thereof are disclosed. The device comprises: a torque sensing member installed in a rotatable test object, a signal processing unit electrically connected to the torque sensing member, a first transceiver electrically connected to a modulation circuit of the signal processing unit, a second transceiver, and a demodulation unit electrically connected to the second transceiver. The signal processing unit can modulate a signal outputted from the torque sensing member into an output pulse signal corresponding to a torque value of the test object. The first transceiver can transmit the output pulse signal to the second transceiver in a contactless way, such that the demodulation unit can demodulate the torque value. The measurement device and method can transmit the measurement signal with lower energy and higher efficiency; meanwhile, the invention can also assure the reliability and accuracy of the torque measurement result.

Description

Non-contact torque measuring device and measuring method thereof

The present invention relates to a torque measurement technique, and more particularly to a torque measurement device that transmits a measurement signal in a non-contact manner and a measurement method thereof.

Torque measurement technology is widely used in various force transmission systems of rotary power machines. Torque sensing is performed on the rotating spindle. The output sensing signals can be applied to related applications, such as calculation of power and load.

The conventional torque measuring device mainly comprises a plurality of strain gauges and a circuit ring connector, and the strain gauges are attached to a surface of a rotatable test object and form a strain gauge. a bridge, the circuit rotary connector is disposed on the object to be tested, and is electrically connected to the strain gauge bridge that rotates with the object to be tested, and also controls a power source and a signal that does not rotate with the object to be tested. The receiving device is electrically connected, thereby transmitting the power provided by the power source to the strain gauge bridge, and transmitting the signal outputted by the strain gauge bridge to the signal receiving device; in other words, the conventional torque measuring device utilizes the circuit rotating connector The electrical connection and the sensing signal are transmitted between the rotating strain gauge and the non-rotating power source and the signal receiving device by the electrical connection of the sliding contact.

However, the above-mentioned circuit rotary connector is electrically connected by a contact contact type, which causes problems such as temperature rise and wear aging due to long-term sliding friction, and the signal transmission quality is degraded or even unreliable. In view of this, the industry has developed a torque measuring device that transmits a sensing signal in a non-contact manner. The voltage signal outputted by the strain gauge bridge is converted into a frequency signal form by using a signal converter disposed on the object under test, and the two sets of special toroidal rotary transformers are used to respectively transmit the electric energy and the frequency signal by electromagnetic induction; in other words, The torque measuring device utilizes the transformer coupling to transmit electrical energy and the sensing signal in a non-contact manner, thereby avoiding degradation of the sensing signal quality caused by problems such as temperature rise and wear aging caused by contact friction.

However, the aforementioned torque measuring device is more susceptible to electromagnetic interference from other devices (such as an electromagnetic field generated by a motor for driving a test object) than a conventional torque measuring device because it transmits signals in a non-contact manner, which may cause Part of the signal transmission fails, thereby reducing the reliability and accuracy of the measurement results; in addition, the above-mentioned frequency signal transmission technology can obtain a sufficient number of pulse waves in a unit time in order to obtain a sufficiently high degree of measurement resolution ( Usually hundreds or thousands of pulse waves are required to obtain accurate measurement values, so the signal transmission process consumes more power, which limits the application range and cost of the measurement device.

In view of the above-mentioned deficiencies, the main object of the present invention is to provide a torque measurement method for transmitting a sensing signal in a non-contact manner, and maintaining the correctness and transmission quality of the sensing signal to eliminate the transmission error. The signal ensures the reliability and correctness of the torque measurement result, and the transmission of a torque value signal can be achieved by 2 to 3 pulse waves, so the torque measurement method is more efficient and more energy efficient.

In order to achieve the above object, the torque measurement method provided by the present invention comprises There are the following steps: a) setting a torque sensing component to a rotatable test object; b) adjusting the analog signal outputted by the torque sensing component to an output pulse wave signal, the output pulse wave signal includes a first a pulse unit and a second pulse unit, the first pulse unit has at least one first pulse wave, the second pulse unit has at least one second pulse wave, and the first pulse unit and the second pulse unit can be defined a phase difference corresponding to a torque value of the test object; c) receiving the output pulse signal in a non-contact manner; and d) demodulating the output pulse signal to obtain the test object Torque value.

Thereby, the demodulation of the output pulse signal can be performed by determining whether the first pulse unit and the second pulse unit alternately appear in the output pulse signal, and whether the output pulse signal is completely received; That is, if the first pulse unit continuously appears in the output pulse signal, or two second pulse units appear consecutively, it may be determined that the transmission signal of the segment signal has a transmission error. In other words, the torque measurement method can detect the correctness and transmission quality of the sensing signal to ensure the reliability and accuracy of the torque measurement result by eliminating the sensing signal of the transmission error. In addition, the pulse wave in the output pulse signal can be set to a relatively short wave width, so that the voltage outputted by the modulation circuit lasts for a relatively short period of time, and can be transmitted by 2 to 3 pulses. The purpose of a torque value signal, therefore, the torque measurement method has the advantage of saving power.

Another object of the present invention is to provide a non-contact torque measuring device which can use the aforementioned torque measuring method, so that the measurement result is more reliable and accurate, and is more energy-saving.

To achieve the above object, the non-contact torque measuring device provided by the present invention comprises a rotating module for being disposed on a test object, and a fixed module. The rotating module includes a torque sensing component, a signal processing unit electrically connected to the torque sensing component, and a first transceiver electrically connected to the modulation circuit of the signal processing unit. The signal processing The unit can adjust the analog signal outputted by the torque sensing component to an output pulse signal, the output pulse signal includes a first pulse unit and a second pulse unit, the first pulse unit having at least one first pulse The second pulse unit has at least one second pulse wave, and the first pulse unit and the second pulse unit can define a phase difference corresponding to the torque value of the object to be tested. The fixed module includes a second transceiver, and a demodulation unit electrically connected to the second transceiver; the first transceiver can adjust the output pulse signal of the signal processing unit It is transmitted to the second transceiver in a non-contact manner, and is further demodulated by the demodulation unit.

The detailed construction, features, assembly or use of the non-contact torque measuring device and the measuring method thereof according to the present invention will be described in the detailed description of the following embodiments. However, it should be understood by those of ordinary skill in the art that the present invention is not limited by the scope of the invention.

The technical contents and features of the present invention will be described in detail below with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which: 1 is a block diagram of a non-contact torque measuring device according to a first preferred embodiment of the present invention; and FIG. 2 is a non-contact torque measuring device according to the first preferred embodiment of the present invention; A schematic diagram of one of the output pulse signals generated; the third diagram is a schematic diagram of another output pulse signal generated by the non-contact torque measuring device provided by the first preferred embodiment of the present invention; A schematic diagram of still another output pulse signal generated by the non-contact torque measuring device provided by the first preferred embodiment of the present invention; and the fifth figure is the non-contact provided by the first preferred embodiment of the present invention A schematic diagram of still another output pulse signal generated by the torque measuring device; and sixth and seventh figures are block diagrams of the non-contact torque measuring device according to a second preferred embodiment of the present invention.

Referring to the first figure, a non-contact torque measuring device 10 according to a first preferred embodiment of the present invention includes a rotating module 12 and a fixed module 14. The rotating module 12 is disposed on a rotatable object (not shown), such as a rotating shaft of an electromechanical machine, and the fixing module 14 can be disposed at a position where the electromechanical device is fixed. The configuration of the non-contact torque measuring device 10 will be further described below, and the torque measuring method provided by the present invention will be described by taking the non-contact torque measuring device 10 as an example.

The rotating module 12 includes at least one torque sensing component 20, an amplifying circuit 30, a signal processing unit 40, and a first transceiver 52 of a signal transmission component 50, and a power transmission. A power receiver 62 in assembly 60.

The fixed module 14 includes a second transceiver 54 , a demodulation unit 70 , a microcomputer 80 , and a power transmitter in the power transmission component 60 . 64.

The torque measurement method provided by the present invention comprises the following steps:

a) A torque sensing member is placed on a rotatable test object.

The current torque sensing component is usually a strain gauge. When it is applied to the torque measurement, usually a plurality of strain gauges are attached to the test object to form a strain gauge bridge. In this case, the rotation module 12 includes There are a plurality of torque sensing members 20. However, the type and number of the torque sensing members 20 and the form of the object to be tested are not the focus of the present invention and are not limited as long as the torque sensing member 20 disposed on the object to be tested can output correspondingly. The analog signal of the torque of the measured object can be used.

In this embodiment, the signal processing unit 40 includes a modulation circuit 41. The analog signal outputted by the torque sensing component 20 is first amplified by the amplification circuit 30, and then modulated by the modulation circuit 41. ), that is, step b) below. The amplifying circuit 30 and the modulation circuit 41 can be generated by a software program of a microcomputer or a hardware circuit.

b) adjusting the analog signal outputted by the torque sensing component into an output pulse signal, the output pulse signal comprising a first pulse unit and a second pulse unit, the first pulse unit having at least one first pulse The second pulse unit has at least one second pulse wave, and the first pulse unit and the second pulse unit can define a phase difference corresponding to the torque value of the object to be tested.

Taking the output pulse signal 91 shown in the second figure as an example, the first pulse unit 911 and the second pulse unit 912 respectively have a first pulse wave 911a and a second pulse wave 912a, and the first pulse wave 911a The wavelength width (that is, the length of time during which the wave is maintained) is greater than the width of the second pulse wave 912a, and the time interval between the end point of each of the first pulse units 911 and the start point of the second pulse unit 912 appearing thereafter is The phase difference t ₁ , t ₂ corresponding to the torque value of the test object.

In detail, the output pulse signal 91 has a fixed base period T, and the end points of the first pulse units 911 are equivalent to the starting point of the periods T (that is, the frequency system in which the first pulse unit 911 appears). The second pulse unit 912 is provided in each period T, so that each period T can define a phase difference t ₁ , t ₂ , and each of the phase differences t ₁ , t ₂ corresponds to the The torque value of the measured object. For example, T=2000 (microseconds), each of the phase differences t ₁ and t ₂ may be 100 to 1700 (microseconds), and linearly corresponds to a torque value of -80 to 80 (Newton meters), then t ₁ Corresponding torque value = ×80 (Newton meters), and the torque value corresponding to t ₂ = × 80 (Newton meters). In principle, the pulse widths of the pulse waves 911a and 912a of the output pulse signal 91 are much smaller than the period T.

c) receiving the output pulse signal in a non-contact manner.

The first transceiver 52 and the second transceiver 54 of the signal transmission component 50 are respectively a primary coil and a secondary coil of a rotary transformer, and the power transmitter 64 and the power receiver 62 of the power transmission component 60. They are the primary coil and the secondary coil of another rotary transformer. The power transmitter 64 can electromagnetically transmit the pulse wave signal provided by the microcomputer 80 to the power receiver 64 that rotates with the object to be tested. The power of the receiver 64 is supplied to the torque sensing unit 20, the amplifying circuit 30, and the signal processing unit 40. The output pulse signal 91 generated by the signal processing unit 40 outputs a fixed driving voltage during the period of the pulse wave 911a, 912a, and does not output the driving voltage during the period without the pulse wave, and therefore, rotates with the object under test. The first transceiver 52 can transmit the output pulse signal 91 to the second transceiver 54 in an electromagnetic induction manner.

In other words, in the embodiment, the non-contact mode is electromagnetic induction of the rotary transformer; however, the non-contact mode is not limited thereto, and may be, for example, infrared transmission.

d) Demodulating the output pulse signal to obtain the torque value of the test object.

The second transceiver 54 transmits the received output pulse signal 91 to the demodulation unit 70, when the demodulation unit 70 interprets a first pulse unit 911, and after a period of time, reads a second The pulse unit 912 can calculate the torque value of the test object by the time interval between the end point of the first pulse unit 911 and the start point of the second pulse unit 912, and then transmit the torque value to the microcomputer 80, which can be The force of the test object (rotating shaft) is effectively monitored for torque.

By the non-contact torque measuring device 10 and the torque measuring method provided by the present invention, the first pulse unit 911 in the output pulse signal 91 can be determined by demodulating the output pulse signal 91. Whether the second pulse unit 912 alternates occurs, and whether the output pulse signal 91 is completely received by the second transceiver 54 is known. For example, if the demodulation unit 70 interprets a first pulse unit 911 and then after a period of time When the other first pulse unit 911 is interpreted and the second pulse unit 912 does not appear between the two, the signal indicating that the signal between the two first pulse units 911 has a transmission error occurs. Similarly, if two second pulse units 912 are continuously present, it may be determined that a transmission error occurs between the signals between the two second pulse units 912. In other words, the non-contact torque measuring device 10 and the torque measuring method provided by the present invention can detect the correctness and transmission quality of the sensing signal, thereby ensuring the torque measurement result by eliminating the sensing signal of the transmission error. Reliability and accuracy.

Moreover, since the pulse waves 911a, 912a in the output pulse signal 91 modulated by the modulation circuit 41 have a relatively small wave width, that is, the modulation circuit 41 outputs to the first transmission. The voltage of the device 52 lasts for a relatively short period of time, and the non-contact torque measuring device 10 has the advantage of saving power as long as a small number of pulse waves can achieve the transmission of a torque value signal.

Furthermore, the modulation circuit 41 can add an additional pulse unit 913 between the end point of each of the second pulse unit 912 of the output pulse signal 91 and the start point of the next first pulse unit 911. The additional pulse unit 913 can carry other information of the rotation module 12 (for example, an abnormal code, a status code); thereby, the information can be transmitted to the demodulation unit 70 along with the output pulse signal 91.

It is to be noted that, in the torque measurement method provided by the present invention, the correspondence between the first and second pulse units 911 and 912 of the output pulse signal 91 and the phase differences t ₁ and t ₂ is not implemented as described above. For example, each of the phase differences t ₁ , t _{2 may be} defined as the difference between the starting point of the first pulse unit 911 and the end point of the second pulse unit 912; as long as the output pulse signal is The correspondence between the first and second pulse units 911 and 912 of the 91 and the torque value of the test object may be the same in each period T.

In addition, in the foregoing embodiment, the output pulse signal 91 modulated by the modulation circuit 41 is distinguished by the first and second pulse waves 911a and 912a whose durations (wave widths) are different. The first and second pulse units 911 and 912 respectively indicate the start point and the end point of each of the phase differences t ₁ and t ₂ for the demodulation unit 70 to discriminate. However, the modulation circuit 41 can also convert the analog signal outputted by the torque sensing component 20 into an output pulse signal 93 as shown in the third figure, and the first and second pulse units 931 and 932 respectively have a first The pulse wave 931a and the two second pulse waves 932a, and the first and second pulse waves 931a and 932a have the same wavelength width, and the first and second pulse units can be distinguished by the number of the pulse waves 931a and 932a. 931, 932. Alternatively, the modulation circuit 41 can also convert the analog signal outputted by the torque sensing component 20 into an output pulse signal 94 as shown in the fourth figure, and the first and second pulse units 941 and 942 respectively have a first The pulse wave 941a and the second pulse wave 942a, and the amplitudes (ie, voltage intensities) of the first and second pulse waves 941a, 942a are different, and the amplitude of each of the first pulse waves 941a is less than a reference value V _ref . The amplitude of each of the second pulse waves 942a is greater than the reference value V _ref , and the first and second pulse units 941 and 942 can be distinguished by whether the amplitude of the pulse waves 931a and 932a exceeds the reference value V _ref . Alternatively, the modulation circuit 41 can also convert the analog signal outputted by the torque sensing device 20 into an output pulse signal 95 as shown in FIG. 5, and the first pulse unit 951 has a first pulse that is a negative wave. The second pulse unit 952 has a second pulse wave 952a which is a forward wave, and the first and second pulse units can be distinguished by determining whether the pulse waves 951a and 952a are positive or negative waves. 951, 952.

In the foregoing first preferred embodiment, the signal processing unit 40 is sent to the output pulse signals 91, 93, 94, 95 of the first transceiver 52, and the first and second pulse units are all adjusted by the adjustment. The variable circuit 41 is generated, but the first pulse unit having a fixed frequency is not limited to be generated by the modulation circuit 41.

For example, referring to the sixth figure, the signal processing unit 40' of the non-contact torque measuring device 10' according to a second preferred embodiment of the present invention includes a modulation circuit 41' and a microcomputer 42'. And a switch 43'.

The switch 43' enables the microcomputer 42' to transmit a signal to the first transceiver 52 (as shown in FIG. 6). At this time, the microcomputer 42' can generate the first pulse unit and transmit to the first pulse unit. The first transceiver 52. In other words, the first pulse unit and the second pulse unit of the output pulse signals 91, 93, 94, 95 can be respectively generated by the microcomputer 42' and the modulation circuit 41', and respectively transmitted to the first transmission. 52.

The switch 43' can also enable the first transceiver 52 to transmit signals to the microcomputer 42' (as shown in FIG. 7), since the second transceiver 54 can also transmit signals in a non-contact manner to the The first transceiver 52, at this time, the microcomputer 80 of the fixed module 14' can generate the first pulse unit and sequentially transmit the rotation to the second transceiver 54 and the first transceiver 52 to the rotation The microcomputer 42' of the module 12' is transmitted to the first unit together with the second pulse unit A transceiver 52. In other words, the first pulse unit and the second pulse unit of the output pulse signals 91, 93, 94, 95 can be generated by the microcomputer 80 and the modulation circuit 41', respectively.

It should be noted that the signal processing unit 40' of the non-contact torque measuring device 10' may not include the switch 43', and the output pulse signal 91, 93, 94 is fixed by the microcomputer 42'. The first pulse unit of 95, or the first pulse unit of the output pulse signal 91, 93, 94, 95 is fixed by the microcomputer 80.

Finally, it is to be noted that the constituent elements disclosed in the foregoing embodiments are merely illustrative and are not intended to limit the scope of the present invention, and alternative or variations of other equivalent elements should also be the scope of the patent application of the present application. Covered.

10‧‧‧ Non-contact torque measuring device

12‧‧‧Rotary Module

14‧‧‧Fixed modules

20‧‧‧Torque sensing parts

30‧‧‧Amplification circuit

40‧‧‧Signal Processing Unit

41‧‧‧Modulation circuit

50‧‧‧Signal transmission component

52‧‧‧First Receiver

54‧‧‧Second transceiver

60‧‧‧Power transmission components

62‧‧‧Power Receiver

64‧‧‧Power transmitter

70‧‧‧Demodulation unit

80‧‧‧Microcomputer

91‧‧‧ Output pulse wave signal

911‧‧‧first pulse unit

911a‧‧‧ first pulse wave

912‧‧‧second pulse unit

912a‧‧‧second pulse wave

913‧‧‧Additional pulse unit

93‧‧‧ Output pulse signal

931‧‧‧First pulse unit

931a‧‧‧First pulse wave

932‧‧‧second pulse unit

932a‧‧‧second pulse wave

94‧‧‧ Output pulse signal

941‧‧‧ first pulse unit

941a‧‧‧First pulse wave

942‧‧‧Second pulse unit

942a‧‧‧second pulse wave

95‧‧‧ Output pulse signal

951‧‧‧First pulse unit

951a‧‧‧First pulse wave

952‧‧‧second pulse unit

952a‧‧‧second pulse wave

t ₁ , t ₂ ‧‧‧ phase difference

T‧‧ cycle

V _ref ‧ ‧ reference value

10'‧‧‧ Non-contact torque measuring device

12’‧‧‧Rotary Module

14’‧‧‧Fixed Module

40’‧‧‧Signal Processing Unit

41’‧‧‧Modulation Circuit

42’‧‧‧Microcomputer

43'‧‧‧Toggle switch

1 is a block diagram of a non-contact torque measuring device according to a first preferred embodiment of the present invention; and FIG. 2 is a non-contact torque measuring device according to the first preferred embodiment of the present invention; A schematic diagram of one of the output pulse signals generated; the third diagram is a schematic diagram of another output pulse signal generated by the non-contact torque measuring device provided by the first preferred embodiment of the present invention; A schematic diagram of still another output pulse signal generated by the non-contact torque measuring device provided by the first preferred embodiment of the present invention; and the fifth figure is the non-contact provided by the first preferred embodiment of the present invention A schematic diagram of still another output pulse signal generated by the torque measuring device; and sixth and seventh figures are block diagrams of the non-contact torque measuring device according to a second preferred embodiment of the present invention.

10‧‧‧ Non-contact torque measuring device

12‧‧‧Rotary Module

14‧‧‧Fixed modules

20‧‧‧Torque sensing parts

30‧‧‧Amplification circuit

40‧‧‧Signal Processing Unit

41‧‧‧Modulation circuit

50‧‧‧Signal transmission component

52‧‧‧First Receiver

54‧‧‧Second transceiver

60‧‧‧Power transmission components

62‧‧‧Power Receiver

64‧‧‧Power transmitter

70‧‧‧Demodulation unit

80‧‧‧Microcomputer

Claims (10)

A non-contact torque measuring device includes: a rotating module, configured to be disposed on a test object, the rotating module includes a torque sensing component, and a signal processing unit electrically connected to the torque sensing component And a first transceiver electrically connected to the modulation circuit of the signal processing unit, the signal processing unit capable of converting the analog signal outputted by the torque sensing component into an output pulse signal, the output The pulse signal includes a first pulse unit and a second pulse unit, the first pulse unit has at least one first pulse wave, the second pulse unit has at least one second pulse wave, and the first pulse unit and the first pulse unit The second pulse unit can define a phase difference corresponding to the torque value of the test object; and a fixed module including a second transceiver and a second electrical connection with the second transceiver a demodulation unit; the first transceiver can transmit the output pulse signal modulated by the signal processing unit to the second transceiver in a contactless manner, and then the demodulation unit performs demodulation. The non-contact torque measuring device according to claim 1, wherein the first pulse unit and the second pulse unit of the output pulse signal are generated by the modulation circuit. The non-contact torque measuring device of claim 1, wherein the signal processing unit further comprises a microcomputer, wherein the first pulse unit and the second pulse unit of the output pulse signal are respectively The modulation circuit is generated. The non-contact torque measuring device of claim 1, wherein the fixing module further comprises a second electrical connection with the second transceiver Connected to the microcomputer, the first pulse unit of the output pulse signal is generated by the microcomputer, and sequentially transmitted to the signal processing unit by the second transceiver and the first transceiver; the output pulse signal is The second pulse unit is generated by the modulation circuit. A method for measuring torque includes the steps of: a) setting a torque sensing member to a rotatable test object; b) adjusting an analog signal output by the torque sensing member to an output pulse wave signal, The output pulse signal includes a first pulse unit and a second pulse unit, the first pulse unit has at least one first pulse wave, the second pulse unit has at least one second pulse wave, the first pulse unit and the The second pulse unit can define a phase difference corresponding to the torque value of the test object; c) receiving the output pulse signal in a non-contact manner; and d) demodulating the output pulse signal to The torque value of the test object is obtained. The torque measurement method of claim 5, wherein the phase difference of the output pulse signal is equal to a time interval between a termination point of the first pulse unit and a start point of the second pulse unit. The torque measuring method according to claim 5, wherein the length of time during which the first pulse wave of the output pulse signal is maintained is different from the length of time during which the second pulse wave is maintained. The torque measuring method according to claim 5, wherein the number of the first pulse waves of the first pulse unit of the output pulse signal is different from the number of the second pulse waves of the second pulse unit. The torque measuring method according to claim 5, wherein the amplitude of the first pulse wave of the output pulse signal is different from the amplitude of the second pulse wave. The torque measurement method of claim 5, wherein one of the first pulse wave and the second pulse wave of the output pulse signal is a forward wave and the other one is a negative wave.