In the intricate world of aerospace engineering, precision and reliability are paramount. As the aviation industry evolves, so do the demands on aircraft components, including actuators like flaps that play a critical role in flight dynamics. At the heart of these components lie wire displacement sensors, the unsung heroes ensuring accurate position feedback. Tasked with the challenge to develop a system that would measure force versus distance versus output of these sensors across an impressive four-foot span. Not only did the system need to meet exacting standards, but it also had to accommodate the diverse product family already in production and be adaptable for future innovations. Learn more about how we overcome these obstacles with a String Potentiometer Test System and engineered a groundbreaking solution.
Customer
Firstmark Aerospace
Requirements
Develop a system to measure the force vs distance vs output of a wire displacement sensor over a maximum distance of 4 feet. These sensors are used to provide position feedback of the actuators used in aircraft such as flaps on the wings. The system shall be flexible enough to accommodate the entire product family currently in production and be adaptable to support new products in the future.
Challenge
Creating a system to measure the force vs distance vs output at an accuracy of 0.5 thousandths of an inch across a distance of 6 inches to 4 feet. In addition, supporting the entire product family which had several package types and mechanical constraints.
Solution
The String Potentiometer Test System, built using the National Instruments PXI, LabVIEW, TestStand Technologies, is able to meet the demanding challenge of 0.0005” measurement accuracy across the full four feet of displacement. The high precision encoders used for the actuation provided the resolution required to make the precision measurements needed for this system. Since the range of products was large, several system design constraints were added to the solution. First was the need for multiple load cells to accommodate the wide range of forces. Second was the various output types we range from voltage to current to encoder output. Lastly was the programmable travel profile for each sensor. This allowed the customer to optimize the system TAKT time based on the length of stroke required for the test.