Custom Designed Actuator Test Stands
Kalsi Engineering specializes in designing, manufacturing, and assembling custom fixtures for testing multi-turn and quarter turn actuators. Existing test stand designs include high capacity torque stands, torque and thrust stands for multiturn actuators, and test stands that are fully integrated with power cabinet and other production cell equipment.
The KEI design team can custom design an actuator test stand and develop software and controls to meet your actuator capacity and test program needs. KEI design engineers can select the necessary instrumentation and controls to satisfy your specific test processes and test acceptance requirements. The KEI design team can develop and provide custom tailored test stand software that fully integrates with human interface devices to control the test process. The KEI design team can also provide and interface with all necessary accessories to power and test motor-operated, air-operated, and hydraulic-operated actuators.
Benefits of Performing Actuator Output Verification Tests
Power plants and actuator manufacturers have realized tremendous value in proving actuator capability and functionality prior to use in service. Benefits of actuator testing include:
- Improved safety by confirming actuator capability to validate functional margin
- Increase productivity by reducing maintenance downtime and eliminating unnecessary actuator refurbishment
- Increase equipment reliability and safety by ensuring structural strength of actuator components.
- Establish benchset values for condition monitoring and tracking and trending.
- Properly set torque switches to prevent overload of valve components
- Verify functionality of actuator switches and accessories like auxiliary position switches, local control units, and thermal overload protection.
Motor-Operated, Multiturn Actuators Test Stands
KEI has designed a wide variety of multi-turn actuator test stands. KEI designs test stands that range from simple torque benches that measure only running and peak torque and shaft speed to high-end stands that provide both torque and thrust to the actuator drive allowing the effects of bearing efficiency to be captured.
Test stands and accessories can be designed to measure torque and speed as well as actuator line voltage, current, power factor, position feedback signal, and position and torque switch states. Test stands can also come with dynamometers that install between the motor and the actuator to measure motor torque and speed at the same time as actuator drive torque and speed. See list of example stands below for more information.
Quarter-turn Actuator Test Stands
Q-turn Actuators
KEI has designed a wide variety of Quarter-turn actuator test stands that can be used for motor-operated, air- operated, and hydraulic operated actuators. Quarter-turn stands can be designed to measure torque, angular position (based on test stand hardware), and actuator position feedback signal.
Test stands for motor-operators can be designed to measure actuator line voltage, current, power factor, and position and torque switch state. Test stands for air-operators and hydraulic operators can be designed to measure actuator pressure, net thrust provided to the quarter turn mechanism and other user-specified parameters. See list of example stands below for more information.
Software and Test Controls
KEI can provide test stand software and controls that control the torque bench. The test stand controls interface with the brake units to produce a user-specified torque profile. The torque profile can be specified as time-dependent or position dependent. KEI can develop the test stands software and controls to perform actuator endurance testing, verify rated torque, or set torque switches. The software and test stand controls can be developed to provide simple basic user-controls or to provide a fully automated test platform that logs technician, actuator serial number, performs an actuator acceptance review and stores all test parameters to a SQL database on your network.
Power Cabinets and Other Accessories
KEI routinely works with customers to develop specifications for power supply equipment and other test accessories. Power supplies can be designed to provide DC, single phase AC, split-phase AC, or three-phase AC power. The software, test stand controls, and power supplies can be integrated to provide the user with a platform to control voltage, frequency, and user-defined levels of harmonic distortion. The power cabinet can be designed to include a wide array of voltage, current, and frequency measurement equipment.
KEI can integrate a wide variety of accessories to streamline your test process. KEI can integrate our components and software with touch screen monitors, barcode scanners, HID devices to read technician access cards, emergency stop devices, and other test process and specimen related equipment at customer’s facility.
Click here to contact KEI and learn more of what our design team can do for you!
Test Stand Examples
Below is a short list of example test fixtures that were developed based on customer’s needs.
