Drive chain

Chain wear can be measured with a sensor that sits directly on the chain and continuously records its elongation. In the ifm example, the IWIS chain sensor compares the total elongation with the maximum elongation of a single chain link. moneo records the values and shows how wear increases over time. If limits are exceeded, the system automatically issues warnings or alarms.

The key is comparing the total length of the chain with its longest individual link. The sensor in the ifm solution supplies the position of the link with the greatest elongation, the total length, the running time and the number of links that have passed since start-up. It adds the current running speed, average acceleration and temperature. Historical data shows how these values develop over time.

IoT makes conveyor chain wear predictable and shows when the chain needs replacing. RUD Ketten developed a solution with Deutsche Telekom for conveyor systems in coal-fired power plants: sensors record load and conveying speed, and the data is sent to the cloud via GSM. In the RUD Cockpit, customers see operating time, load and chain wear, and alarms flag unusual behaviour patterns in real time.

The right time follows from measured wear, not from instinct or fixed intervals. At RUD Ketten, maintenance used to come too late in many cases; today, long-term analyses in the RUD Cockpit show chain wear. In the ifm solution, ticket processing rules in moneo define what happens after a warning, and the SFI interface automatically creates maintenance orders and spare parts orders in SAP.