A machine for real-time estimation of the tribological characteristics of materials

Abstract

A reciprocating friction machine Tribal-T intended for automated quality control of the rubbing surfaces of tribopairs is described. The distinctive feature of the machine consists in implementation of the forced relative motion due to the frictional interaction of the rubbing surfaces fixed on the drive and conjugate platforms. Continuous processing of the signals from displacement sensors is carried out under conditions of continuous recording of mutual displacements of loaded tribopairs using classical approaches of the theory of automatic control to identify the tribological characteristics. The machine provides consistent visual real time monitoring of the parameters. The MATLAB based computer technologies are actively used in data processing. The calculated tribological characteristics of materials, i.e., the dynamic friction coefficient, damping coefficient and measure of the surface roughness, are presented. The tests revealed that a Tribal-T reciprocating friction machine is effective for real-time study of the aforementioned tribological characteristics of materials and can be used for monitoring of the condition of tribo-nodes of machines and mechanisms.