Universal mechanical tester for measuring friction and wear characteristics of materials

A universal apparatus for testing wear and friction characteristics of a material, comprising:

• a frame that includes a carriage moveable along a vertical plane and a slide moveable along a horizontal plane;
• a force sensor assembly coupled to said slide;
• a holder for an upper specimen, said holder being coupled to the force sensor assembly;
• a mechanism for causing said upper specimen to exert a predetermined force on a lower specimen;
• a plurality of modular sample stages, each of said stages including a support for said lower specimen and a mechanism for producing a motion of the lower specimen relative to said upper specimen, said motion being rotational around a horizontal axis in one of said stages, rotational around a vertical axis in another of said stages, and linearly reciprocating along a horizontal direction in yet another of the stages;
• a base for alternatively supporting one of the stages, said base including a locking mechanism for coupling said one of the stages to the base and a rotational drive adapted for engagement of said mechanism for producing a motion of the lower specimen;
• a motor housed in said frame, said motor being adapted for actuation of said rotational drive;
• a controller for varying said force exerted on the sample;
• a processor programmed for executing a predetermined set of test operations;
• means for identifying a sample stage coupled to the base and for automatically enabling only a subset of said test operations, said subset corresponding to the sample stage coupled to the base;
• means for measuring a temperature of the upper and lower specimens;
• an expansion slot and a corresponding expansion card with an enabling electronic identification for activating test protocols relevant only to said means for measuring said temperature;
• means for measuring a humidity in an environment containing said upper and lower specimens;
• a second expansion slot and a corresponding expansion card with an enabling electronic identification for activating test protocols relevant only to said means for measuring said humidity;
• means for controlling and measuring a voltage applied to said upper and lower specimens;
• a third expansion slot and a corresponding expansion card with an enabling electronic identification for activating test protocols relevant only to said means for controlling and measuring said voltage;
• means for controlling and measuring a resistance across said upper and lower specimens;
• a fourth expansion slot and a corresponding expansion card with an enabling electronic identification for activating test protocols relevant only to said means for controlling and measuring said resistance;
• means for measuring an acoustic emission of said upper and lower specimens;
• and
• a fifth expansion slot and a corresponding expansion card with an enabling electronic identification for activating test protocols relevant to said means for measuring said acoustic emission.