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Mobile test bench for torque-/angle wrenches

This system was developed for dynamic testing of display-type torque and angle wrenches using a well-defined test cycle.

The integrated measurement and evaluation software monitors the test plan, the status of the available torque and angle wrenches, and when each tool is again due for testing.

The wrenches are tested in place on the assembly line, which means that hardly any interruption to the working process is necessary. The integrated rechargeable battery supports mains-independent operation for up to 8 hours. This keeps the time spent on testing small, thus reducing monitoring costs for torque wrenches to a minimum.

The working torque range of the system extends from 10 N·m to 300 N·m, with an angle range of 0 to 200 degrees of arc. Wrenches with a total length of up to 750 mm (including extension attachments) can be tested.

The tests are freely configurable and are defined in advance to correspond to the types of joints actually encountered in assembly processes. Torque-driven and angle-driven tests are possible. The joint classes ‘hard’, ‘medium’, and ‘soft’ as defined in ISO 5393 or the draft VDI/VDE 2647 standard can be specified in the reference test system and simulated by the system.

Two different test procedures can be selected: manual testing and automatic testing.

The objective of manual testing is to assess the accuracy of the torque and angle wrenches while taking human influences into account, while the objective of automatic testing is to determine the inherent accuracy of the tools with the human factors excluded. Following completion of testing, a conclusion regarding the repeat accuracy of the torque wrench can be drawn for both types of test procedure.

The wrench test station, which originates from the Schatz® CerTest product family, is operated using the touch screen of the integrated industrial PC. The PC also hosts the measurement and evaluation software, which is based on the CEUS 8.1 software platform and is used to control the testing system. That means that the test station can be integrated into an existing CEUS quality assurance network at any time.

When the system is operating in documentation mode, all measured values are automatically logged to a central database, from which they can be retrieved and documented in the form of graphic plots whenever so desired. After a test has been completed and the values for the item under test have been acquired, the CEUS software automatically checks them against pre-defined acceptance limits.

The test plan shows the status of the torque wrenches present in the plant and when each tool must be tested.

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