CONTROL! Clutches, don't wear out!
“We saw smoke coming out of clutch box”, said an engineer at our tractor OEM customer. They were testing a PTO clutch pack using an on-off solenoid controlled direction valve.?
Clutch engagement and torque transmission is a delicate process. If the clutch engagement is not designed effectively, ?it may lead to clutch failure or reduced clutch life and jerky torque transmission.?
Clutch Engagement Cycle:
A hydraulics operated clutch engagement cycle goes through three phases, fill, hold and ramp up. Please refer diagram below.
Fill: During this time, we fill in the volume of the actuator so that the clutch plate is close enough to begin the torque transmission. This pressure point is known as kissing point.
Hold: The pressure is held at the kissing point to compensate for any leakage and giving it time to stabilize.
Ramp up: The pressure is gradually ramped up to full torque. A slow and smooth ramp up ensures that there is minimum shocks in transmission due to inertia.?
The electro-hydraulic system:
The clutch engagement cycle could be achieved using an electro-hydraulic system shown in the diagram below
EHPR: The Electro-Hydraulic Pressure Reducing/Relieving valve controls pressure acting on the clutch actuator.
ETDR: The Electronic Transmission DRiver controls the supply current to EHPR.?
The configuration/programming software for ETDR is free of cost and can be downloaded from our electronics portal.
Mechanical Program Lead Engineer
4 个月Nice and informative Nilesh