Experimental Complex for Studying Friction in Active Journal Bearings

Abstract

One of the most important characteristics taken into account when designing machines is their efficiency. Active fluid-film bearings are able to influence tribological processes and reduce frictional energy, which increases the efficiency of the machine. For experimental determination of friction and verification of simulation results, an experimental complex was created, which makes it possible to directly measure the moment of friction force in active journal bearings. The complex is based on a rotor-bearing system with a rigid rotor on one active and one passive bearing. The information-measuring system includes a set of sensors and has the ability to control servo valves of active hybrid bearings. The system interface is based on virtual devices and allows both monitoring the state of the rotor-bearing system in real time and recording signals for their subsequent processing. The article contains a description of design and the principle of operation of the complex, including the features of processing various sensor signals, as well as a description of measures to improve measurement quality.