A Method for Monitoring the Technical Condition of Large-Scale Bearing Nodes in the Bodies of Machines Operating for Extended Periods of Time

Failure of systems applied in machines comprising rolling and slewing bearings usually causes downtime of the entire heavy machine. The problem of failures can be aggravated by extremely difficult operating conditions, such as significant loads or a harsh environment. The entire issue inspired us to develop a method of monitoring the condition of such units. A study was carried out for six different large-scale excavators which examined strain distributions in the tested subassemblies. In order to estimate the technical condition of wheeled bogies, we used the phenomenon of strain propagation caused by the concentrated force acting in the ring girder web. Flamant theory was utilized to describe this phenomenon. Measurements were performed using strain gauges and the obtained results were compared with the FEM model. To determine whether bearing joints were in a good or bad condition, a coefficient of variation and an impulse factor were introduced as diagnostic indicators. It turned out that by evaluating these indicators, it was possible to distinguish between these two conditions. The method was successfully validated on machines that are in operation.

Effects of mechanical thinning on botrytis bunch rot on Sauvignon blanc wine grapes

Mechanical fruit thinning could be a practical and cost-effective alternative to hand thinning of Sauvignon blanc grapes to increase quality by reducing yield. Botrytis bunch rot, caused by the fungus Botrytis cinerea, is the main seasonal disease risk for grapes grown in New Zealand but it is unknown if this disease is exacerbated by mechanical rather than manual thinning of the vines. It was hypothesised that the damage caused by mechanical thinning would result in more disease or increase disease pressure than hand thinning or no thinning. Botrytis bunch rot was determined in the field at harvest following mechanical thinning in the 2009, 2010 and 2011 seasons compared with an un-thinned control. In the 2011 season, possible mechanisms that may have influenced disease severity were investigated. The parameters investigated were: bunch openness; berry susceptibility to infection; and percentage of bunch debris infected with Botrytis cinerea. Mechanical thinning resulted in the same or lower observed disease severity compared with the un-thinned control in the 2009, 2010 and 2011 seasons while reducing yield as desired. In all seasons, both heavy and light machine thinning treatments reduced incidence of botrytis compared to the un-thinned control and the heavy machine treatment always reduced disease severity compared to the un-thinned control. Berry susceptibility to Botrytis cinerea was a complex interaction between various factors. Heavy machine thinned berries without wounding and inoculation were significantly less susceptible than the un-thinned control. Further investigation will be required to determine if the significant differences observed in berry susceptibility to infection and total infected bunch debris per bunch can be correlated with observed field disease levels.

Systematic review of research relating to heavy-duty machine tool foundation systems

The quality of heavy-duty machine tool foundations can drastically affect the operating life and working precision of the tool, and the high cost of manufacture has drawn a lot of attention. This article summarized the research status of the relevant literature on the characteristics, vibration isolation, foundation optimization, and quality inspection of heavy-duty machine tool-foundation system, induced the influencing laws of the influencing factors of the system, reviewed the highlights and achievements in the research of heavy machine tool-foundation system at present, and put forward some problems and development directions existing in the research of heavy machine tool-foundation system. It lays a foundation for realizing the judgment of the concrete foundation quality and improving the processing precision and the maintenance of the heavy machine tool.

TRIZ Application in Bionic Modeling for Lightweight Design of Machine Tool Column

The selection of biomimetic prototypes mostly depends on the subjective observation of a designer. This research uses TRIZ to explore some inferential steps in bionic design of the heavy machine tool column. Conflict resolution theory of TRIZ is applied to describe improved and deteriorated parameters and a contradiction matrix is used to obtain recommended inventive principles. A reference table of solutions corresponding to the biological phenomenon and TRIZ solutions is formed to expedite retrieving the biomimetic object. Based on the table, herbaceous hollow stem is selected to imitate column structure. Four kinds of plant are chosen from the biological database. To select the best from four candidates, a bionic ideality evaluation index is proposed based on similarity analysis and ideality evaluation theory in TRIZ. Thus, the bionic effect can be described and compared quantitatively. Bionic configuration is then evolved concerning manufacturing requirements. Size optimization of stiffener thicknesses is implemented finally, and satisfactory results of the lightweight effect is obtained.