Page 97 - ENGINEERING REVIEW APRIL 2022 DIGITAL MAGAZINE

TECH INNOVATION
# SENSOR SOLUTIONS

the sensor.
Due to factory calibration, eddyNCDT
3001 and 3005 sensors offer high
accuracy and temperature stability,
making them particularly well suited
to continuous operation in industrial
environments. The sensors can be rapidly
exchanged due to, amongst others, their
M12 housing. They are robust, protected
to IP67 and their compact design allows
them to be integrated into the smallest
of installation spaces. The sensors are
therefore ideal for predictive wear and
condition monitoring tasks. Compared
to inductive switches and sensors, these
models provide a higher bandwidth and
In a wind turbine, the offset of the coupling ring, gap measurement of the plain so are suitable for exact detection of high
bearing, temperature monitoring of the generator and air gap monitoring in the speed movements.
generator are, amongst other things, critical factors.
while efficiently using resources & saving cases, serious damage to the wind Gap measurements in plain bearings
money. turbine. The measurement is carried out Hydrostatic bearings are used in large
Modern and innovative sensor in different directions – in the axial, radial plant and machinery such as stone mills,
solutions from Micro-Epsilon enable and tangential axes. The eddyNCDT telescopic installations and also wind
reliable measurements and targeted 3001 and 3005 eddy current sensors turbines. The task is to monitor the gap
evaluation of a considerable amount of are temperature-compensated and size between the bearing surface and
critical data. In a wind turbine, the offset so offer high stability, even in strongly the shaft. In the lubricating gap is an
of the coupling ring, gap measurement fluctuating ambient temperatures. They oil film which prevents direct contact
of the plain bearing, temperature are factory-calibrated for ferromagnetic between the bearing surface and the
monitoring of the generator and air gap and non-ferromagnetic materials, which shaft. In the case of a malfunction in
monitoring in the generator are, amongst eliminates the need for field calibration of the hydraulics, the oil pressure can
other things, critical factors.

Offset measurement of the coupling
ring
Above 100 meters, enormous wind loads
act on the rotor blades, housing and
tower. Therefore, gearbox and generator
have an elastic bearing. This is why
couplings in wind turbines must balance
the relative movement of the gearbox
and generator. When measuring the
offset of the coupling ring, eddy current
sensors determine the distance, while
measuring onto the metallic coupling
ring. This leads to the determination
of the load profile. Monitoring the
measured values is required in order to In the case of a malfunction in the hydraulics, the oil pressure can rise and, in
avoid unnecessary wear of couplings, extreme cases, the gap will close. The sensor measures through the oil film and the
bearings and shaft seals or, in extreme plain bearing directly onto the shaft.

APRIL 2022 | 95