Systems and methods for monitoring lubrication of a gear assembly
AssigneeGE Avio S.r.l.
InventorAndrea Piazza
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Abstract
Systems and methods of monitoring lubrication of a gear assembly during operation of a machine provide for receiving at a control system, a signal from a sensor indicative of a value obtained by the sensor for an electrical property of a circuit crossing the gear assembly operably coupled to the machine, ascertaining whether the value for the electrical property corresponds to a warning level for a condition of the lubricant film, and outputting a control command when the value for the electrical property corresponds to the warning level for the condition of the lubricant film.
Claims20
A method of monitoring lubrication of a gear assembly during operation of a machine, the method comprising:
- receiving at a control system, a signal from a sensor, the signal indicative of a value obtained by the sensor for an electrical property of a circuit crossing a gear assembly operably coupled to a machine, the gear assembly comprising a first gear, an intermediate gear meshing with the first gear, a second gear meshing with the intermediate gear, and a lubricant supplied to the gear assembly so as to define a lubricant film separating the intermediate gear from the first gear and the second gear, the circuit crossing the first gear, the intermediate gear, and the second gear, so that the first gear, the intermediate gear, and the second gear are part of the circuit;
- ascertaining, by the control system in communication with the sensor, whether the value for the electrical property corresponds to a warning level for a condition of the lubricant film, the electrical property correlating to the condition of the lubricant film;
- and
- outputting by the control system, a control command when the value for the electrical property corresponds to the warning level for the condition of the lubricant film.
A system for monitoring lubrication of a gear assembly during operation of a machine, the system comprising:
- a machine;
- a gear assembly coupled to the machine via an input shaft, the gear assembly comprising a first gear, an intermediate gear meshing with the first gear, a second gear meshing with the intermediate gear, and a lubricant supplied to the gear assembly so as to define a lubricant film separating the intermediate gear from the first gear and the second gear;
- a sensor operably configured to obtain a value for an electrical property of a circuit crossing the gear assembly and to output a signal indicative of the value for the electrical property obtained by the sensor, the circuit crossing the first gear, the intermediate gear, and the second gear, so that the first gear, the intermediate gear, and the second gear are part of the circuit;
- and
- a control system operably configured to receive the signal from the sensor, to ascertain whether the value for the electrical property corresponds to a warning level for a condition of the lubricant film and to output a control command when the value for the electrical property corresponds to the warning level for the condition of the lubricant film, the electrical property correlating to the condition of the lubricant film.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.