Ball Screw Coolant Pressure Sensing via Sealing Member
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing ball screw systems face challenges in accurately detecting the flow rate and pressure of coolant liquid, leading to inefficient heat transfer and potential leakage issues, with existing solutions like ring-shaped force sensors being costly to manufacture.
Innovation Solution
A ball screw design that incorporates a sensor on a sealing member, including a piezoresistive sensor, signal processing unit, and indication system, allowing for real-time detection and processing of coolant liquid flow and pressure without complex manufacturing requirements.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Measurement precision
If a ring-shaped force sensor and ring-shaped deformable platform are disposed in the nut to detect coolant liquid parameters, then the detection function is achieved, but the manufacturing complexity and cost increase significantly
Solution Approach 1:
The patent extracts the sensing function from a complex ring-shaped force sensor and relocates it to a simple sealing member. The sealing member, which already exists in the ball screw structure, is modified to include a sensor that directly detects coolant liquid pressure, eliminating the need for complicated ring-shaped sensors and deformable platforms.
Solution Approach 2:
The sealing member acts as an intermediary between the coolant liquid and the sensor. Instead of placing the sensor directly in the coolant flow path or using complex deformable platforms, the sealing member transmits the coolant liquid pressure to the sensor, enabling simple and effective detection.
2Temperature
If coolant liquid flow rate is not monitored accurately, then the system structure remains simple, but heat transfer efficiency decreases and components may overheat
Solution Approach 1:
The sealing member, which already serves the function of sealing the opening in the nut, is enhanced to also perform the sensing function. This self-service approach allows the same component to fulfill multiple roles, eliminating the need for separate complex detection systems while maintaining temperature monitoring capability.
Solution Approach 2:
The sealing member is designed with multi-functionality, serving both as a seal and as a sensor mounting platform. This universal component approach reduces device complexity by combining sealing and detection functions in a single element, while still enabling accurate coolant liquid parameter detection for temperature control.
Applied Scientific Principles
This section explains which scientific principles are used to turn an abstract innovation direction into a practical engineering solution.
Function Achieved in This Case
Enables precise and cost-effective detection of coolant liquid flow and pressure, preventing overheating and leakage, while simplifying manufacturing and reducing operational costs.
Implementation Method 1
the sensor is a piezoresistive sensor
Data Source
AI summary
A ball screw adapted to detecting coolant liquid includes a screw, a nut, a plurality of sealing members, a sensor, a signal processing unit and a cover. The nut includes a main body and an end surface, and a through-hole and a flow channel are disposed on the main body. The nut is threadedly disposed on the screw via the through-hole. A plurality of openings are disposed on the end surface, and the openings communicate with the flow channel. The sealing members are disposed in the plurality of openings. The sensor is disposed on one of the sealing members to detect a pressure of the coolant liquid and output an original signal. The signal processing unit is electrically connected to the sensor to receive the original signal and convert the original signal to a digital signal. The cover is disposed on the sensor and fixed to the nut.