FEATURE Automotive Supply Chain
Sensors that perform reliably in harsh, demanding, vehicle road tests and dynamometers
Glenn Wedgbrow, Business Development Manager at Micro-Epsilon UK, discusses some of the more challenging automotive test applications for non-contact displacement measurement, draw-wire and infrared temperature sensors
T
he way the vehicle drives and feels is increasingly important. Normal engine noise tends to hide other noises such as brake squeals, suspension squeaks or pedal movements, which are disliked by customers. Therefore, manufacturers should understand the behaviour of key components and structures used in their vehicles as part of the noise, vibration and harshness (NVH) testing, and it’s very important that the instrumentation used to provide feedback doesn’t itself aff ect the NVH results. Micro-Epsilon has been developing contact and non-contact displacement sensors for vehicle test applications for over 50 years. These sensors are used in automotive R&D, test cells, production and on-vehicle testing, as well as in vehicles. Applications include laser sensors for vehicle ride height, draw- wire (string pot) sensors for measuring suspension spring/damper movements and pedal travel, capacitive sensors for measuring brake disc deformation, non-contact eddy-current displacement sensors for measuring valve lift, and non- contact temperature sensors and thermal imaging cameras for measuring the temperature of on-vehicle components.
Vehicle ride height In automotive and motorsport applications, measuring vehicle ride height is critical. As speeds increase, the stability of the car and its aerodynamics must be carefully monitored to ensure the car stays on the ground. Non-contact laser displacement sensors have been developed to withstand the shock and vibration of being mounted on a vehicle. With the laser window pointing down, toward ground or the racing track, Micro- Epsilon’s ILD1420 sensor series has been
12 May 2022 | Automation
extensively used across all motorsport classes to accurately measure and monitor the ride height of cars.
Deformation of brake discs Non-contact capacitive displacement sensors are being used to obtain accurate data on the deformation of brake discs under stress. With high surface temperatures to 600°C and typical deformations under 100µm, the high-resolution capaNCDT non-contact capacitive displacement measurement system reliably measures the deformation of the brake disc under loading conditions. The measurement system also off ers high bandwidth for frequency analysis, up to the 10th
harmonic, as well
as high-accuracy minimum zero shift with changes in temperature. To move the measurements from the
dynamometer onto the real vehicle, the capaNCDT DTV system is available for measuring brake disc thickness variations. The included software allows the engineer to take surface runout and thickness variation in situ before and after each test run, without dismounting the wheel, which would normally infl uence the results. In addition, a custom four-channel sensor has been developed that allows the measurement of the vehicle’s full braking cycle, with four tracks on each side of the brake disc simultaneously. Both single-point infrared temperature sensors and thermal cameras from the thermoMETER and thermoIMAGER ranges are also used to help vehicle development for brake- temperature testing.
capaNCDT by Micro-Epsilon
Crash tests, springs and pedals Draw-wire sensors are also readily found in road and crash tests and simulators, where they must meet the highest requirements in terms of wire accelerations, vibrations, shocks and installation space. For example, with a measuring range of 40mm and a possible cable acceleration to 60g, Micro-Epsilon’s wireSENSOR MT19 is particularly suitable for applications that require high dynamics, such as vehicle crash test dummies, simulators and impact test rigs.
automationmagazine.co.uk
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