Vane Pump Sentinel Vane Wear Detection
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Solution Overview
Problem
Conventional vane pumps lack effective wear detection methods, leading to sudden failure due to undetected vane wear and fracture, which can cascade and result in unexpected loss of pump function.
Innovation Solution
Incorporating sentinel vanes with a base portion larger than the vane slot, which creates a gap when worn, and using vibration or pressure sensors to detect this gap, allowing for early wear detection and performance loss indication.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If conventional vane pumps operate without wear detection, then the pump structure remains simple and cost-effective, but sudden pump failure occurs due to undetected vane wear and fracture
Solution Approach 1:
The patent implements preliminary wear detection by installing sentinel vanes with base portions that protrude into the rotor before actual failure occurs. The vibration sensor continuously monitors for characteristic vibrations indicating vane wear or fracture, enabling early warning and preventive maintenance before sudden pump failure happens.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent introduces sentinel vanes as intermediary elements between the actual vanes and the detection system. These sentinel vanes are positioned to contact the cammed inner surface and generate characteristic vibrations when worn or fractured, serving as mediators that translate mechanical wear into detectable vibrational signals for the sensor.
2Measurement precision
If sentinel vanes with base portions are installed to enable wear detection, then early wear detection is achieved, but the device complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies local quality by modifying only specific sentinel vanes rather than all vanes. The sentinel vanes have distinctive base portions with larger cross-sectional areas than regular vanes, creating localized structural differences that enable their identification and wear detection without redesigning the entire vane set.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent utilizes mechanical vibration as the detection mechanism. The vibration sensor mounted on the rotor detects characteristic vibrational patterns generated when sentinel vanes contact the cammed inner surface or when they wear and fracture, translating mechanical events into measurable vibrational signals for wear detection.
3Loss of time
If vibration sensors are added to detect sentinel vane wear, then wear can be detected early, but the manufacturing cost and device complexity increase
Solution Approach 1:
The patent implements self-service by having the sentinel vanes themselves generate the detection signal through their normal operation. As the sentinel vanes contact the cammed inner surface during pump operation, they naturally produce characteristic vibrations that the sensor detects, eliminating the need for external test equipment or complex diagnostic systems.
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 early detection of vane wear, preventing sudden pump failure by indicating a worn condition through vibration or pressure pulsation sensing, thus extending pump lifespan and ensuring operational reliability.
Implementation Method 1
a vibration sensor operatively connected to the rotor to determine when the base portion of the at least one sentinel vane contacts the rotor
Implementation Method 2
a sensor operatively connected to the vane pump to sense a pressure pulsation from flow through the gap created between the sentinel van tip and the liner
Data Source
Figure 1
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Figure 4
AI summary
A vane pump (100) includes a liner (101) defining a cammed inner surface (103), a rotor (105) rotatably disposed within the liner (101) that has a plurality of vane slots, and a plurality of vanes (107, 109) slidably disposed within vane slots of the rotor (105) and configured to extend away from the rotor (105) and contact the cammed inner surface (103) of the liner (101). The plurality of vanes (107, 109) include at least one sentinel vane (109) that is configured to allow detection of wear on the sentinel vane (109).