Chain wear monitor

A chain wear monitor mounted on a chain drive system for counting a selected number of links in a section of chain and simultaneously measuring the length of the section of chain during regular operation of the chain drive system, said monitor comprising:

• a) a mounting bracket for positioning said bracket adjacent a chain on a chain drive system;
• b) a sensor positioned on said mounting bracket for sensing links in the chain as the chain drive system pulls the links pass said sensor, said sensor generating a counting signal in response to the links;
• c) a measuring wheel positioned adjacent said counting sensor and rotatably connected to a shaft mounted on said bracket such that the links in the chain engage and drive said measuring wheel as the chain drive system pulls the chain;
• d) an encoder connected to the shaft of said measuring wheel for generating a distance signal as the measuring wheel rotates;
• e) a magnetic assembly secured to one of the links in the chain;
• f) a magnetic sensor positioned on said mounting frame for detecting said magnetic assembly and generating a session signal;
• g) a controller electrically connected to said counting sensor, said encoder and said magnetic sensor for receiving the counting signal, the distance signal, and the session signal, said controller calculating a distance measurement per selected number of links in a section of chain, repeating the calculation process for every section in the chain, storing the distance measurement for each section of chain, and generating a corresponding output signal;
• and
• f) an output means for receiving the output signal and for indicating the distance per section of chain and other calculated data.