American Hofmann Corporation

Gebr. Hofmann Gmbh & Co. Kg

Richard Mueller

Guenther Himmler

Guenter Fietzke

An inbalance detecting and correcting station for a disk-shaped rotor. The system rotates a rotor up to speed at a measuring station, and detects reflections from the rotor. A peak among the reflections is detected in steady state, and 80% of this peak is taken as a trigger level. The peak is then used to provide a phase reference whenever the reflection exceeds the trigger level. Inbalance data is determined based on the phase 0 detected at this peak. An inbalance correction station corrects for this inbalance, using the same trigger level detected in the inbalance measuring station. This trigger level is coupled from the inbalance detecting station to the inbalance correction station, and a photosensor detects reflections from the same rotor. These reflections from the same rotor are used with the same trigger level to produce pulses at appropriate times without having to re-measure the trigger level.

Rotor inbalance correction apparatus and method thereof

An apparatus and method for balancing a workpiece in which material is removed by advancing a drill, mill or the like into contact with the workpiece and thereafter removing material therefrom. A force transducer is coupled to the workpiece or tool holder to produce an electrical signal in response to the force resulting from contact between the tool and the workpiece to reliably and accurately indicate contact for zero depth reference of the material removing operation.

Touch sensing method and apparatus

An apparatus for balancing a body to correct for unbalance determined during a measurement run on a balancing machine. The body to be balanced is rotated at a measuring speed by compressed air and the unbalance is determined. A braking device then is applied to the body to brake the body and rotate the body at a low speed. When a predetermined portion of the body is located in a desired angular position, a stopping device, such as a pawl, is actuated to stop rotation of the body. Appropriate mass is then added to or removed from the body to correct the unbalance. If necessary, the pawl is released, and body is incrementally rotated so that unbalance can be corrected on several portions of the body. The apparatus, instead of balancing the body, is usable to mark the body as to the location of unbalance.

Apparatus for balancing rotatable bodies

A balancing machine and support structure usable therewith for measuring unbalance in a rotor. Each support structure of the balancing machine has a pedestal, a yoke, and springs interconnecting the yoke and pedestal. A pair of round springs are positioned between confronting surfaces of the yoke and pedestal. A pair of flat springs are connected to one of the yoke pedestal and are selectively engagable with the other of the yoke and pedestal. A connecting plate is provided to interconnect the yokes of two structures to each other when the flat springs are disengaged. The connecting plate is removed when the flat springs are engaged. As a result, the balancing machine can be used in a first configuration to measure unbalance in a rotor having a bearing prepositioned on a shaft of the rotor and can be used in a second configuration to measure unbalance in a conventional rotor not having a bearing prepositioned on a shaft.

Balancing machine and support structures usable therewith for measuring

A process and apparatus for measurement of nonuniformity of mass of a gyro rotor having a single bearing. The gyro rotor, which is mounted in a radially fixed and spherically yielding pivot, is rotated to a predetermined speed. The static imbalance of the rotating rotor is then determined by measuring the magnitude and angular position of excursion of the rotating rotor. A force couple acting on the gyro rotor and drift of mass of the gyro rotor are determined by sensing movement of a surface of the rotating rotor at two different times. Preferably, the determination of static imbalance, force couple, and drift are obtained in a single course of measurement. After the preceding have been measured, the components of a mass balancing operation for correcting the measured nonuniformities are determined.

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Lynchburg, VA, United States of America

Richard Mueller