Why in your monitoring and diagnostic systems as a rule only
the vibration signals are used? The question asked by the representatives of
auto repair shops of the Defense Ministry of Russian Federation.
The question is answered by
Alexej Barkov:
There are several reasons for this.
First of all, we do not offer the protective monitoring systems (the shut
down systems in accidental situation). These systems must meet strict
requirements for parallel control of the main equipment parameters that is
needed for quick shut down of the equipment in the beginning stage of the
accidental situation. We produce the machine condition prediction monitoring
systems that enable to maintain the equipment long before the appearance of an
accidental situation being well prepared to this maintenance. In the most cases
it is quite enough just to analyze the equipment vibration but using
comparatively complicated methods and algorithms of analysis. The protection
monitoring systems in the cases when they are necessary must be supplied by the
manufacturers of the equipment itself uniting these systems with the automatic
control systems.
Secondly, the vibration, and sometimes the noise, are excited by the
oscillation forces that are simultaneously the main sources of wear and defects
in the diagnosed objects. These are the forces of dynamic, mechanic, hydro and
aerodynamic nature and besides this the forces created by alternated
electromagnetic fields. So any other signals, except vibration and noise,
express only secondary information and are used in the monitoring systems
unwillingly if their developers by some reasons cannot measure or obtain the
necessary diagnostic information from the vibration or noise signal. Just
because of the complexity of noise measurements in the fluid or gas flows in
such systems the signals of the case vibration where these flows exist are used,
but if there is a possibility to measure the pressure of fluid or gas in the
flow the corresponding transducers are used. The monitoring and diagnostics of
the equipment where there are only static loads and electromagnetic fields are
conducted by absolutely different systems which we nowadays do not produce.
Thirdly, the signals of other nature we do not use also from economical
point of view. We do not want to increase the cost of the monitoring system nor
by the expenses for mounting the transducers on the diagnosed equipment, nor the
time necessary to make the measurements and diagnostics (condition prediction)
of the equipment.
But for the users who want to conduct in parallel their own (custom)
measurements and equipment monitoring by the results of these measurements such
a possibility is provided both by our hardware and software.
