Sealing arrangement for detecting thickness of a sealing element of a seal

A sealing arrangement comprising:

• a first component having a first surface and a recess within the first surface;
• a second component having a second surface facing the first surface, wherein the second component and the second surface move relative to the first component and the first surface along a movement direction;
• a sealing element seated in the recess of the first component and having a first width along a direction orthogonal to the movement direction, wherein the sealing element spans a gap between the first surface and the second surface, and the sealing element has a first sealing surface is in sliding engagement with the second surface across the first width of the sealing element and a second surface opposite the first surface and within the recess;
• and
• a sensor embedded in the second surface and having a sensing surface facing the first sealing surface, a width or diameter of the sensing surface, along the direction orthogonal to the movement direction, is narrower than the first width such that portions of the first width of the sealing element extend beyond the sensing surface along the direction orthogonal to the movement direction,
• wherein the sensor is configured to determine a thickness of the of the sealing element,
• wherein the thickness is along a direction orthogonal to the movement direction and to the first width and the thickness extends from the first sealing surface to the second surface of the sealing element,
• wherein the sensor is configured to determine a first distance indicative of a distance from the first surface to the second surface of the sealing element abutting the component or determine a second distance indicative of a distance from the first surface to an insert abutting the second surface while the insert is in the recess of the component, and
• wherein the sensor is configured to determine the thickness of the seal based on the first distance or the second distance.

A method of monitoring sealing arrangement comprising:

• sealing with a sealing element a gap between a first surface of a first component and a second surface of a second component moving along a movement direction relative to the first component, wherein the sealing element is seated in a recess in the first surface of the first component, wherein the sealing element has includes a first width along a direction orthogonal to the movement direction, the sealing element spans the gap, and the sealing element includes a first sealing surface and a second surface on a side of the sealing element opposite to the first sealing surface, wherein the first sealing surface is in sliding engagement along the movement direction with the second surface across the first width of the sealing element and the second surface is in the recess and abut the first component or the second surface abuts an insert in the recess;
• repeatedly determining a thickness of the sealing element along an entire length of the sealing element using a sensor embedded in the second surface and having a sensing surface facing the first sealing surface, a width or diameter of the sensing surface, along the direction orthogonal to the movement direction, is narrower than the first width such that portions of the first width extend beyond the sensing surface along the direction orthogonal to the movement direction, wherein the thickness is along a direction orthogonal to the movement direction and to the first width and the thickness extends from the first sealing surface to the second surface, wherein the determining includes determining a distance indicative a distance from the first sealing surface to the second surface of the sealing element abutting the component or a distance indicative of a distance from the first sealing surface to an insert abutting the second surface while the insert is in the recess of the component, and
• periodically reporting a thickness value indicative of the sensed thickness along the entire length of the sealing element.