From Condition Monitoring to Condition-Based Maintenance

“How can we use predictive maintenance to make the transition from pure condition monitoring to true condition-based maintenance for the powertrain?” asked Tim Lang, head of the Systems and Test department at Stöber, and his team.

The second phase of development adds measurement data to the model

"In the second stage, the computational model is supplemented with active measurements," Lang explains.

To this end, the company is integrating an accelerometer into the system consisting of the transmission, motor, cables, and drive controller. No additional power or voltage sources are required for this. This approach is intended to enable the monitoring of bearing seats, gear teeth, and other powertrain components, among other things.

"Through frequency analysis, we can use spectral data to predict impending damage," Lang said. "We are currently still in the prototype phase."

Stöber is collaborating with Dr. Johannes Heidenhain GmbH on the development of a gearmotor with an integrated acceleration sensor.

Load matrices form the basis for further analyses

At the same time, according to Stöber, the company has further developed the analytical model and expanded the database to include more than 80,000 combinations of transmissions and engines.

“Among other things, we have improved the analytical model and expanded the database to include more than 80,000 combinations of transmissions and engines,” said Lang.

The LastMatrixAnalyzer is also scheduled to become available in the coming months. The software allows users to compare load matrices, create standardized reports, and generate custom analyses. In addition, Stöber plans to provide function blocks and sample programs that will enable load matrices, in particular, to be read via EtherCAT or PROFINET.

According to the company, the load matrices serve as a basis for simulating real-world load conditions. Among other things, they are intended to provide insights into the effects of design and installation, as well as long-term trends.

Visualize and Document Load Cases

Tim Lang explains how the software works: “For each analysis of the load matrices, users assign a project name. This allows individual matrices to be uniquely named, described, and tagged with all relevant information for the analysis report.” The LoadMatrixAnalyzer itself offers several key functions. These include the visualization of load cases. Here, torque and speed at the gearbox output are visualized over time in a 3D graph—making load conditions visible at a glance.”

According to the company, the standard limits for the motor, gearbox, and drive controller can also be displayed individually or together. This makes it possible to determine whether load ranges are within the permissible values or whether deviations are occurring.

The results of an analysis can be documented directly in the software. There, for example, you can note whether a moment load is classified as non-critical or whether there are risks for individual components.

Comparison of Several Load Matrices

The LoadMatrixAnalyzer also allows you to compare up to four load matrices.

“This tells us, for example, whether a transmission has already been run in or whether there are signs of stress or defects,” explains Stöber expert Lang.

The analysis results can then be exported as a standardized PDF report.

AI as the Next Stage of Development

For Tim Lang, the development of the software goes beyond a mere analysis application.