KR101723484B1

KR101723484B1 - Planar type torque detector where input and output device is connected in same direction about slip ring

Info

Publication number: KR101723484B1
Application number: KR1020150126220A
Authority: KR
Inventors: 정규원; 주진원; 이진성; 신창환
Original assignee: 충북대학교 산학협력단
Priority date: 2015-09-07
Filing date: 2015-09-07
Publication date: 2017-04-05
Also published as: KR20170029201A

Abstract

The present invention relates to a planar slip ring which can be installed in a narrow space by reducing its width and a plurality of slip rings arranged concentrically around the central axis on a surface intersecting the central axis for a thin torque detector including the planar slip ring, A slip ring apparatus comprising: a plurality of brush units contacting with a slip ring; a brush fixing beam to which the plurality of brush units are coupled in parallel; and a brush fixing member to which the brush fixing beam is fixedly coupled, A torque detector is provided.

Description

[0001] The present invention relates to a planar type torque detector, and more particularly, to a planar type torque detector in which input and output devices are connected in the same direction to a slip ring device,

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a planar slip ring which can be installed in a narrow space by reducing its width and a thin torque detector including the same

Conventional Rotary Torque Meter is installed on the shaft that transmits power, and it is used in the case where the input shaft and output shaft are on the same line on both sides of the sensing portion when installed in a long length in the axial direction.

However, when a wheel is located at the end of a power shaft, such as an automobile wheel, or when a belt pulley or a gear is used, the conventional torque meter becomes inconvenient because it becomes long in the axial direction.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION The present invention has been made to solve the above-mentioned problems, and it is an object of the present invention to provide a torque sensor which is configured to have an input shaft and an output shaft on both sides of a sensing unit, And an input / output device is connected in the same direction to shorten the length in the axial direction.

According to an aspect of the present invention, there is provided a slip ring comprising: a plurality of slip rings arranged concentrically around a central axis on a surface intersecting a central axis; a plurality of brush units in contact with the slip ring; And a brush fixing member to which the brush fixing beam is fixedly coupled.

The brush securing beam is a shape maximizing the cross-sectional area moment of inertia, and the brush securing beam may be "L" shaped.

The brush unit includes a brush holder, a brush which is exposed in the brush holder so as to be in contact with the slip ring and is movable in the slip ring direction to the brush holder, and a brush which is elastically biased toward the brush in an outward direction of the brush holder And an adjusting screw provided on the brush holder to adjust the degree of compression of the elastic member.

According to another aspect of the present invention, there is provided an outer ring, comprising: an outer ring; an inner disk disposed inside the outer ring and coupled to a surface intersecting the central axis with the slip ring apparatus described above; Wherein the outer ring and the inner disk have an external device for inputting and outputting power on the opposite side of the position at which the slip ring device is coupled with respect to the internal disk and a plurality of bridges to which the strain gauges are attached, A thin torque detector is provided, which can be connected. .

The bridge may be flat or concave on both sides intersecting the plane disposed on the central axis of the inner disk.

According to an embodiment of the present invention as described above, a planar slip ring capable of reducing its width and being installed in a narrow space and a thin torque detector including the slip ring can be realized. Of course, the scope of the present invention is not limited by these effects.

1 is a perspective view schematically showing a planar slip ring apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention.
2 is a perspective view schematically showing a slip ring of a flat type slip ring apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention.
3 is a perspective view schematically showing a brush unit of a flat type slip ring apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention.
4 is a cross-sectional view schematically showing a brush unit of a flat type slip ring apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention.
5 is a perspective view schematically showing a brush unit and a brush fixing beam of a flat type slip ring apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention.
6 is a perspective view schematically showing a thin torque detector according to another embodiment of the present invention.
7 is a cross-sectional view schematically showing a thin torque detector according to another embodiment of the present invention.
8 is a plan view schematically showing a strain gauge of a thin torque detector according to another embodiment of the present invention.
9 is a circuit diagram schematically showing a Wheatstone bridge of a thin torque detector according to another embodiment of the present invention.
10 is a perspective view schematically showing a part of a thin torque detector according to another embodiment of the present invention.

Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings. It should be understood, however, that the invention is not limited to the disclosed embodiments, but may be embodied in many different forms and should not be construed as limited to the embodiments set forth herein. Rather, these embodiments are provided so that this disclosure will be thorough and complete, Is provided to fully inform the user. Also, for convenience of explanation, the components may be exaggerated or reduced in size.

In the following embodiments, the x-axis, the y-axis, and the z-axis are not limited to three axes on the orthogonal coordinate system, and can be interpreted in a broad sense including the three axes. For example, the x-axis, y-axis, and z-axis may be orthogonal to each other, but may refer to different directions that are not orthogonal to each other.

While the invention is susceptible to various modifications and alternative forms, specific embodiments thereof are shown by way of example in the drawings and will herein be described in detail. It should be understood, however, that the invention is not intended to be limited to the particular embodiments, but includes all modifications, equivalents, and alternatives falling within the spirit and scope of the invention. Like reference numerals are used for like elements in describing each drawing.

The terms first, second, A, B, etc. may be used to describe various elements, but the elements should not be limited by the terms. The terms are used only for the purpose of distinguishing one component from another. For example, without departing from the scope of the present invention, the first component may be referred to as a second component, and similarly, the second component may also be referred to as a first component. And / or < / RTI > includes any combination of a plurality of related listed items or any of a plurality of related listed items.

It is to be understood that when an element is referred to as being "connected" or "connected" to another element, it may be directly connected or connected to the other element, . On the other hand, when an element is referred to as being "directly connected" or "directly connected" to another element, it should be understood that there are no other elements in between.

The terminology used in this application is used only to describe a specific embodiment and is not intended to limit the invention. The singular expressions include plural expressions unless the context clearly dictates otherwise. In the present application, the terms "comprises" or "having" and the like are used to specify that there is a feature, a number, a step, an operation, an element, a component or a combination thereof described in the specification, But do not preclude the presence or addition of one or more other features, integers, steps, operations, elements, components, or combinations thereof.

Unless defined otherwise, all terms used herein, including technical or scientific terms, have the same meaning as commonly understood by one of ordinary skill in the art to which this invention belongs. Terms such as those defined in commonly used dictionaries are to be interpreted as having a meaning consistent with the contextual meaning of the related art and are to be interpreted as either ideal or overly formal in the sense of the present application Do not.

Hereinafter, preferred embodiments according to the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings.

1 is a perspective view schematically showing a planar slip ring apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 2 is a perspective view schematically showing the slip ring 10 of FIG. 1, FIGS. 3 and 4 are views schematically showing the brush unit 20 of FIG. 1, FIG. 5 is a perspective view of the brush fixing beam 30, As shown in Fig.

The flat slip ring apparatus according to the present embodiment may include a slip ring 10, a plurality of brush units 20, a brush fixing beam 30, and a brush fixing member. A flat slip ring device is a device that electrically connects a rotating device and a fixed device. Hereinafter, the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings.

Referring to Figures 1 and 2, the slip ring 10 is disposed on the surface of an object or device to be rotated and can rotate with an object or device. That is, the slip ring 10 can be formed on the surface of the rotating body.

In particular, in order to reduce the overall length of the slip ring apparatus, the slip ring 10 may be formed on the surface of a disk-shaped disk-shaped rotator. The slip ring 10 may be formed on a flat surface substantially perpendicular to the central axis as shown in Fig. Here, the central axis is a virtual line.

The slip rings 10 may be formed concentrically around the center axis C as a plurality of slip rings. Since the slip ring 10 is made of a conductor, an insulator may be provided between the plurality of slip rings 10.

Referring to Figs. 1, 3 and 4, a plurality of brush units 20 are in contact with the slip ring 10 to exchange electrical energy with the slip ring 10. That is, the plurality of brush units 20 can be disposed on the slip ring 10. Hereinafter, the brush unit 20 may be a wire type, a pancake type, an optical fiber type, or the like.

The brush unit 20 may include a brush holder 21, a brush 22, and a contact adjustment assembly.

The brush holder 21 can be fixedly coupled to a brush fixing beam 30, which will be described later, for example, in the form of a housing. For example, the brush holder 21 may be a housing as shown. However, the present invention is not limited thereto, and the brush holder 21 may be a "C" shaped frame.

The brush 22 may be coupled to the brush holder 21 to be exposed in the brush holder 21 to contact the slip ring 10. At this time, the brush 22 can be installed in the brush holder 21 so as to be movable in the direction of the slip ring 10 (z direction).

The brush 22 is made of a conductor and can exchange electrical energy with the slip ring 10.

The contact adjustment assembly pushes the brush 22 in the direction of the slip ring 10 (-z direction) and adjusts the pushing force to adjust the contact area between the brush 22 and the slip ring 10 or adjust the contact force have.

Specifically, the contact adjustment assembly may include an elastic member 23 installed in the brush holder 21 to provide an elastic force to the brush 22 in the outward direction (approximately ?? z direction) of the brush holder 21. Here, the elastic member 23 is connected to the brush 22 at one end by a coil spring, and the other end can be connected to an adjusting screw 24 to be described later.

The contact adjustment assembly may also include an adjustment screw 24 that is mounted to the brush holder 21 to adjust the degree of compression of the elastic member 23. That is, the user can adjust the degree of compression of the elastic member 23 as the adjusting screw 24 is loosened or tightened.

Referring to FIGS. 1 and 5, a plurality of brush units 20 are juxtaposed in a brush fixing beam 30. Specifically, the brush fixing beam 30 may be shaped to maximize the cross-sectional area moment of inertia as shown. For example, the brush securing beam 30 may be "L" shaped. Of course, the shape of the brush fixing beam 30 is not limited thereto, but may be an H-shape or the like.

The brush fixing member may be fixedly coupled to the brush fixing beam 30. For example, the brush fixing member may include a brush fixing shaft 41 and a brush fixing shaft collar 42. However, the present invention is not limited thereto, and the brush fixing member may be in the shape of a housing that encloses the slip ring 10 and the brush unit 20, as shown in FIG.

The brush fixing shaft 41 may be disposed along a central axis which is the rotation center of the slip ring 10. [ That is, the brush fixing shaft 41 can be coupled to the center of rotation of the internal disk 60 of the force sensing unit, which will be described later.

At this time, the brush fixing shaft 41 may not rotate even if the internal disk 60 rotates. That is, a bearing may be provided between the brush fixing shaft 41 and the inner disk 60. In addition, a rotation preventing mechanism (not shown) may be coupled to the brush fixing shaft 41 so that the internal disk 60 is not rotated even when the internal disk 60 rotates.

The brush fixing shaft (41) can be fixedly coupled to the brush fixing beam (30). For example, the brush fixing beam 30 can be coupled to the brush fixing shaft 41 so as to extend in a direction (x direction or y direction) substantially perpendicular to the extending direction (z direction) of the brush fixing shaft 41 .

In order to more firmly fix the brush fixing beam 30, a brush fixing shaft collar 42 may be further provided. The brush fixing shaft collar 42 has a ring shape surrounding the brush fixing beam 30, and the brush fixing beam 30 can be coupled to the outer circumferential surface thereof. At this time, the brush fixing beam 30, the brush fixing shaft 41, and the brush fixing shaft collar 42 are both fixedly coupled.

The connector 43 is electrically connected to the brush unit 20 by electric wires or the like, and may be coupled to one end of the brush fixing shaft 41. The electric energy can be transmitted via the connector 43 to the strain gauge 1 to be described later via the brush unit 20 and the slip ring 10. The electric energy can then be transmitted from the strain gauge 1 through the slip ring 10 and the brush unit 20 through the connector 43 to the outside.

FIG. 6 is a perspective view schematically showing a thin torque detector according to another embodiment of the present invention, and FIG. 7 is a cross-sectional view schematically showing a section taken along line A-A of FIG. The thin torque detector according to the present embodiment may include the flat slip ring apparatus according to the above-described embodiment. Therefore, redundant description will be omitted.

The thin torque detector may include a force sensing portion.

The force sensing portion includes an outer ring 50, an inner disk 60 located inside the outer ring 50 and coupled with the above-described slip ring device, and an inner ring 60 connecting the outer ring 50 and the inner disk 60, And a plurality of bridges 70 to which a plurality of bridges 1 are attached.

The outer ring 50 may be in the form of an annular ring. And the internal disk 60 may be a disk. That is, the outer ring 50 may be disposed along the outer circumferential surface of the inner disk 60.

The inner disk 60 is a disk-shaped disk whose thickness is smaller than the diameter, and the slip ring device can be coupled to any surface of the surface that intersects the central axis. Specifically, the slip ring 10 can be disposed on either one of the two planes perpendicular to the central axis of the inner disk 60. That is, the surface that intersects the central axis on which the slip ring 10 described above is disposed may be a flat surface of the inner disk 60. Wherein the flat surface is disposed substantially perpendicular to the central axis.

The bridge 70 is composed of a plurality of bridges 70, and the outer ring 50 and the inner disk 60 can be connected. And the bridge 70 can be attached to the strain gage 1. Here, the strain gauge 1 may be a shear type strain gauge 1. At this time, the strain gage 1 can be attached at an angle of 45 ° with respect to the center line (line perpendicular to the central axis) of the bridge 70 as shown in FIG. That is, two strain gauges 1 may be attached to each of the four bridges 70.

Here, the strain gauges 1 are attached to the front surface, but the present invention is not limited thereto. If necessary, the strain gauges 1 may be attached to the rear surface at the same position as the front surface. By attaching the strain gauges 1 at the same time to the front and rear surfaces as described above, more precise measurement can be performed.

When the outer ring 50 and the inner disk 60 are respectively urged in different directions with respect to the central axis, the bridge 70 can be deformed. Specifically, when a torque is applied between the first input / output shaft 80 and the second input / output shaft 90 to be described later, the bridge 70 is deformed. At this time, the strain gage 1 detects the deformation of the bridge 70. Here, the strain gage 1 is electrically connected to the slip ring device by electric wires or the like, receives electric energy from the outside through the slip ring device, and can send the detected signal to the outside.

More specifically, the strain gage 1 is connected as shown in Fig. 9 to constitute the wheatstone bridge 70, and when the applied voltage Ei is applied thereto, the Wheatstone bridge output voltage Eo appears. Here, the relationship between Ei, Eo and strain of the strain gage is as follows.

; The strain gage 1

: Gauge constant

: Whiston bridge full deformation

When a slip ring 10 is installed concentrically as shown in FIGS. 6 and 7 in order to apply a voltage to a Wheatstone bridge and connect the output to the outside, the slip ring 10 contacts the slip rings 10 and transmits an electric signal.

These bridges 70 may be flat on both sides as shown in FIG. 10A. Or both side surfaces may be concave as shown in Fig. 10B. When concave, as the stress is concentrated at the central portion of the bridge 70, the torque can be measured more accurately.

Referring again to FIGS. 6 and 7, the outer ring 50 and the inner disk 60 include an outer device for inputting and outputting power to the opposite side of the position at which the slip ring device is coupled with respect to the inner disk 60, Can be connected. Hereinafter, the external device will be referred to as a first input / output axis 80 and a second input / output axis 90 for the sake of clarity.

The first input / output axis 80 may be coupled to the inner disk 60. Specifically, the first input / output axis 80 can be coupled to the center of the inner disk 60. The rotation center of the first input / output axis 80 and the rotation center (center axis) of the internal disk 60 may coincide with each other. At this time, the first input / output axis 80 may be coupled with the inner disk 60 by screws or rivets. At this time, the first input / output axis 80 may be coupled with the inner disk 60 by screws or rivets.

The second input / output shaft 90 is provided on the same side as the first input / output shaft 80 with respect to the force sensing portion (the outer ring and / or the inner disk) and can be fixedly coupled to the outer ring 50. At this time, the second input / output axis 90 may include a ring-shaped disk that surrounds the first input / output port. The rotation center of the second input / output shaft 90 may coincide with the rotation center of the first input / output shaft 80, the outer ring 50, and the inner disk 60. The second input / output shaft 90 may be fixedly coupled to the outer ring 50 by screws or rivets.

Here, the first input / output shaft 80 is connected to the power shaft, and the second input / output shaft 90 can be connected to output the torque. Therefore, when power is input through the first input / output axis 80 and output through the second input / output axis 90, the bridge 70 can be deformed.

According to the present embodiment, since the first input / output axis 80 and the second input / output axis 90 are located on either side of the force sensing unit, the size of the thin torque detector according to the present embodiment can be significantly reduced , It is possible to detect the torque even in a narrow space.

In addition, the bridge 70 to which the strain gauge 1 is attached can be made straight or curved to enhance the durability, and the front-end strain gauge 1 can be attached to the front and back surfaces of the bridge 70 to improve the measurement accuracy. .

In addition, the slip rings 10 can be arranged concentrically in a plane to reduce the thickness of the torque sensor as a whole, and vibration and deformation that may occur when the brush fixing beam is rotated using a high moment of inertia moment is reduced .

Further, when the brush 22 is worn, the spring force of the brush unit can be adjusted to easily adjust the contact force.

While the present invention has been described with reference to exemplary embodiments thereof, it is to be understood that the invention is not limited to the disclosed exemplary embodiments, but, on the contrary, is intended to cover various modifications and equivalent arrangements included within the spirit and scope of the appended claims. Accordingly, the true scope of the present invention should be determined by the technical idea of the appended claims.

1: strain gauge 10: slip ring
20: Brush unit 21: Brush holder
22: Brush 23: Elastic member
24: adjusting screw 30: brush fixing beam
40: Brush fixing part 41: Brush fixing shaft
42: Brush fixing shaft collar 43: Connector
50: outer ring 60: inner disk
70: Bridge 80: First input / output axis
90: 2nd input / output axis

Claims

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Outer ring;
A plurality of brush units arranged in the inner side of the outer ring and arranged on the surface of the outer ring so as to concentrically concentrate around the central axis, a plurality of brush units in contact with the slip ring, and a plurality of brush units A flat plate type slip ring device including a brush fixing beam and a brush fixing beam to which the brush fixing beam is fixedly coupled;
An inner disk coupled to the slip ring device and coupled to a surface intersecting the central axis; And
A plurality of bridges connecting the outer ring and the inner disk and attached with strain gauges;
Lt; / RTI >
Wherein the outer ring and the inner disk are connected to an external device for inputting and outputting power in the same direction opposite to a position where the slip ring device is coupled with respect to the inner disk,
A first input / output shaft coupled to the inner disk, and a second input / output shaft fixedly coupled to the outer ring, wherein the input / output device is connected to the slip ring device in the same direction.

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