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US 4,326,424 AGranted
Web tension transducer arrangement
AssigneeCleveland Machine Controls, Inc.
InventorRobert G. Koenig
Life of this patent
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AssigneeCleveland Machine Controls, Inc.
InventorRobert G. Koenig
Estimating the term…
A web tension transducer device which is easily in-installed, has a high natural frequency, excellent linearity, and extremely low hysteresis. A twin beam type transducer having strain gages at the flex points of the beams is coupled to the shaft supporting the moving web through a self-aligning anti-friction bearing, the strain gages being so located and electrically connected that effects of friction in the bearing due to bending of the shaft are automatically cancelled out in the circuitry in which the strain gages are connected. The self-aligning bearing coupling is arranged to permit relative axial displacement between the shaft and the twin beam transducer for accommodating comparatively large amounts of shaft expansion. The bearing also may have a bearing surface liner comprised of a low coefficient of friction thermoplastic resin material such as teflon fiber or teflon fiber-filled acetal resin fabric.
In a web tension measuring device for apparatus having a frame and adapted to handle a continuously moving web which passes partly around a transversely extending roller supported at least on one of its ends by said device, said device including a pair of spaced plates, one being fixed and adapted to be supported by the frame of said apparatus, and the other being movable and having roller support means adapted to support an end of said roller, a pair of spaced arms rigidly fastened at their ends to said plates with the plane defined by said arms being generally parallel to the plane of the transverse web forces on said roller, the improvement which comprises a pair of strain gages mounted on said arms in positions where one will be compressed and the other tensioned by forces parallel to said plane, said roller support means including a self-aligning spherical bearing and said strain gages being so electrically connected that resistance changes therein caused by longitudinal tension (or compression) forces in said arms caused by friction in said bearing cancel each other out, said roller support means comprising a boss on said movable plate and said self-aligning bearing including a member mounted on said boss and a second member operatively associated with the end of said roller.
In a web tension measuring device for apparatus having a frame and adapted to handle a continuously moving web which passes partly around a transversely extending roller supported at least on one of its ends by said device, said device including a pair of spaced plate members, one being fixed and adapted to be supported by the frame of said apparatus, and the other being movable and having roller support means adapted to support an end of said roller, a pair of spaced arms rigidly fastened at their ends to said plates with the plane defined by said arms being generally parallel to the plane of the transverse web forces on said roller, the improvement which comprises a pair of strain gages mounted on said arms in positions where one will be compressed and the other tensioned by forces parallel to said plane, said roller support means including a self-aligning spherical bearing and said strain gages being so electrically connected that resistance changes therein caused by longitudinal tension (or compression) forces in said arms caused by friction in said bearing cancel each other out, said roller support means comprising a boss on said movable plate and said self-aligning bearing including a member mounted on said boss and a second member operatively associated with the end of said roller, and interengageable means on said movable plate and said second member for preventing relative rotation therebetween about said bearing.
In a web tension measuring device for apparatus having a frame and adapted to handle a continuously moving web which passes partly around a transversely extending roller rotatably mounted on a fixed shaft supported at least on one of its ends by said device, said device including a pair of spaced plate members, one being fixed and adapted to be supported by the frame of said apparatus, and the other being movable and having roller support means including a coupling supporting the said one end of said shaft, a pair of spaced arms rigidly fastened at their ends to said plates with the plane defined by said arms being generally parallel to the plane of the transverse web forces on said roller, the improvement comprising said roller support means comprising a boss on said movable plate and said self-aligning bearing including a truncated spherical inner ball member mounted on said boss and an outer race member mounted on said coupling and having a spherical bearing surface, said inner ball member being slidable on said boss to a slight extent between limited clearance stop shoulder means thereon, and spring means compressed between said movable plate and said coupling to remove free play between said inner ball member and said stop shoulder means.
In a web tension measuring device for apparatus having a frame and adapted to handle a continuously moving web which passes partly around a transversely extending roller supported at least on one of its ends by said device, said device including a pair of spaced plates, one being fixed and adapted to be supported by the frame of said apparatus, and the other being movable and having roller support means adapted to support an end of said roller, a pair of spaced arms rigidly fastened at their ends to said plates with the plane defined by said arms being generally parallel to the plane of the transverse web forces on said roller, the improvement which comprises a pair of strain gages mounted on said arms in positions where one will be compressed and the other tensioned by forces parallel to said plane, said roller support means including a self-aligning spherical bearing and said strain gages being so electrically connected that resistance changes therein caused by longitudinal tension (or compression) forces in said arms caused by friction in said bearing cancel each other out, said self-aligning bearing including an outer race member having a bearing surface liner comprised of a low coefficient of friction non-fretting and non-galling thermoplastic resin material.
In a web tension measuring device for apparatus having a frame and adapted to handle a continuously moving web which passes partly around a transversely extending roller supported at least on one of its ends by said device, said device including a pair of spaced plates, one being fixed and adapted to be supported by the frame of said apparatus, and the other being movable and having roller support means adapted to support an end of said roller, a pair of spaced arms rigidly fastened at their ends to said plates with the plane defined by said arms being generally parallel to the plane of the transverse web forces on said roller, the improvement which comprises a pair of strain gages mounted on said arms in positions where one will be compressed and the other tensioned by forces parallel to said plane, said roller support means including a self-aligning spherical bearing and said strain gages being so electrically connected that resistance changes therein caused by longitudinal tension (or compression) forces in said arms caused by friction in said bearing cancel each other out, said roller support means comprising a boss on said movable plate and said self-aligning bearing including a member mounted on said boss and an outer race member operatively associated with the end of said roller and having a bearing surface liner comprised of a low coefficient of friction non-fretting and non-galling thermoplastic resin material.
In a transducer device for connecting one end of a shaft having a central axis to a support frame, including first support means for fixing the transducer to said frame and movable support means for supporting said one end of said shaft, flexure beam means extending longitudinally of said shaft axis and interconnecting said first support means and said movable support means, strain gauge means mounted on said beam means for creating a signal indicative of flexure of said beam means, and coupling means between said shaft end and said movable support means and including one element mounted on and movable with said shaft end and another element mounted on said movable support means and slidably engaging said one element, the improvement comprising:
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.