Application 709

Disc Tribometer

Application Summary

Brake pads and scratch resistant coatings require an understanding of their friction coefficient and useful life. This requires a tribometer to characterize these material properties. By incorporating a multi-axis load cell into the tribometer, high accuracy measurements of friction and material life can be achieved.

Products in Use

One MBA500 Torque and Thrust Biaxial Sensor paired with Instrumentation (USB220, IDC305, IAA Series Amplifiers).

Disc Tribometer

How it Works

A material sample is attached to an MBA500 Torque and Thrust Biaxial Sensor paired with a linear actuator.
A motor spins a disc up to specific RPM.
The linear actuator then presses the sample into the spinning wheel.
The MBA500 then captures the applied force and the torque generated by the sample contacting the disc.
The output from the MBA500 is captured by a pair of USB220 High-Resolution USB Solutions.
The data from the USB220 is logged on a PC with our SENSIT software.
For a direct connection to a microprocessor, the IDC305 Digital Controller can be used to send torque and thrust data via SPI.
Additionally, the IAA series amplifiers can provide either an amplified analog voltage or current signal for a PLC or DAQ.