Method and apparatus for monitoring vibrating equipment
First Claim
1. An apparatus for detecting understroke or overstroke conditions of a vibrating piece of equipment, said apparatus comprising:
- support means for mounting said apparatus on said vibrating piece of equipment;
an oscillatory member mounted on said support means for oscillation with said piece of equipment;
Hall effect switch means positioned on said support means adjacent said member for operation by said oscillatory member; and
circuit means operated by said Hall effect switch means to provide an alarm signal when said oscillatory member is undergoing an oscillatory motion outside of a predetermined motion.
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Abstract
An apparatus and method for detecting overstroke, understroke and/or overspeed, underspeed conditions in vibratory equipment includes a vibratory member mounted on the equipment to vibrate therewith and to operate solid-state switches over a large number of cycles. The preferred switches are Hall effect switches operable by a magnet carried by the vibratory member. During normal vibratory motion, a normal stroke Hall effect switch resets a timing means which will operate as a missing pulse detector and will generate an abnormal pulse if it is not reset during a predetermined period of time. If the amplitude is too large, the overstroke Hall effect switch is operated and causes an abnormal condition pulse. A control circuit means is operable by an abnormal pulse to generate an alarm and/or shut down the vibrating equipment. An initial start-up means operates for an initial predetermined time period to inhibit said control circuit from shutting down or alarming due to a transient vibratory condition during the start-up of the equipment.
31 Citations
19 Claims
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1. An apparatus for detecting understroke or overstroke conditions of a vibrating piece of equipment, said apparatus comprising:
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support means for mounting said apparatus on said vibrating piece of equipment; an oscillatory member mounted on said support means for oscillation with said piece of equipment; Hall effect switch means positioned on said support means adjacent said member for operation by said oscillatory member; and circuit means operated by said Hall effect switch means to provide an alarm signal when said oscillatory member is undergoing an oscillatory motion outside of a predetermined motion. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6)
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7. A method of detecting understroke or overstroke conditions of a vibrating piece of equipment over a long period of time, said method comprising the steps of:
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moving an oscillatory member on the equipment for having an oscillatory motion in accordance with the oscillatory motion of the equipment; operating a solid-state switch means positioned at a predetermined distance from an at rest position for the oscillatory member with each oscillation of said oscillatory member within a predetermined range of amplitude of motion of the equipment and of the oscillatory member; operating a timer means and controlling operation of said timer means in accordance with signals from said solid-state switch means; and actuating an alarm means when said timer means is in a state indicating that said vibratory member has a motion outside of a predetermined range indicating an understroke or an overstroke for said equipment. - View Dependent Claims (8, 9, 10)
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11. An apparatus for sensing amplitude and frequency of vibratory motion in vibrating equipment and for providing output signals indicating when the amplitude and frequency of the vibratory motion are outside of a predetermined range, said apparatus comprising:
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support means on the vibratory equipment; oscillatory means disposed on the support means containing signal generating means capable of undergoing oscillatory along an oscillatory path in response to the oscillatory motion of the vibrating equipment; signal sensing means positioned with respect to the oscillatory path travelled by the signal generating means for providing output signals relative to the amplitude and frequency of the vibratory motion of the vibrating equipment, wherein the signal generating means and the signal sensing means do not engage in physical contact, said signal generating means comprising a magnet means for generating a magnet field, said signal sensing means comprising a first Hall effect switch positioned with respect to a first portion of the oscillatory path travelled by the magnet means and displaced to one side of the position occupied by the magnet means when the vibratory equipment is at rest, such that when the vibrating member is undergoing vibratory motion where the amplitude of vibration is within a predetermined normal range, the magnetic field created by the magnet means induces a voltage in the first Hall effect switch, and a second Hall effect switch positioned with respect to a second portion of the oscillatory path travelled by the magnet means and displaced to the opposite side of the rest position of the magnet means from the first switch such that when the vibrating member is vibrating at an abnormally large amplitude, the magnet field created by the magnet means induces a voltage in the second Hall effect switch. - View Dependent Claims (12, 13)
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14. A device for sensing amplitude and frequency of vibrating motion in vibrating equipment and for providing output signals indicating that the amplitude and/or frequency of the vibrating motion is outside of a predetermined range, said device comprising:
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a housing adopted to be attached to the vibrating equipment; oscillating means including an elongated beam secured near one end to an interior surface of the housing, the other end of the beam bearing a magnet for generating a magnetic field, the magnet-bearing end of the beam capable of undergoing oscillatory motion along an oscillatory path in response to the vibratory motion of the vibrating equipment, a first Hall effect switch positioned with respect to a first portion of the oscillatory path travelled by the magnet means and displaced to one side of the position occupied by the magnet means when the vibratory equipment is at rest, such that when the vibrating member is vibrating in a normal amplitude and frequency, the magnet field created by the magnet means induces a voltage in the first Hall effect switch, and a second Hall effect switch positioned with respect to a second portion of the oscillatory path travelled by the magnet means and displaced to the opposite side of the rest position of the magnet means from the first switch such that when the vibrating member is vibrating at an abnormally large amplitude, the magnetic field created by the magnet means induces a voltage in the second Hall effect switch. - View Dependent Claims (15, 16)
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17. A method for sensing amplitude of vibratory motion in vibrating equipment and for providing output signals indicating the amplitude of the vibratory motion to a control system for the vibrating equipment, said method comprising:
generating a normal signal pulse for each period of oscillation of the vibrating equipment when the equipment is vibrating in a predetermined normal range of amplitude, activating a timer reset circuit with each normal pulse, in absence of a normal pulse within a predetermined time period generating an abnormal pulse for disabling the motor of the vibrating equipment, and generating an abnormal pulse in response to vibrations in the vibrating equipment which are greater than predetermined normal range of amplitude of vibration of such equipment and disabling the motor of the vibrating equipment. - View Dependent Claims (18)
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19. An apparatus for monitoring vibrations in vibrating equipment and for controlling the same, said apparatus comprising:
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a vibrating member for movement with said vibrating equipment, an understroke switch means operable by said vibratory member during each cycle of operating of said equipment at said normal vibrations, a timing means resettable upon operation of said first switch means, said timing means generating a missing pulse abnormal signal if not reset within a predetermined time period, an overstroke switch means for sensing vibrations of an amplitude larger than a predetermined amplitude and for generating an abnormal pulse signal, control circuit means operable by an abnormal pulse signal to cause a shutdown of the vibrating equipment, and start-up means operable for a predetermined initial period of time during initial start-up of the vibrating equipment to inhibit operation of said control circuit means by an abnormal signal during said predetermined initial period of time.
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Specification