Q&A Forum
I am designing a small engine dyno using an old emissions dyno. The brake will absorb 25 hp and has a maximum rpm of 6000. The rotor is 33 mm thick with a diameter of 55 cm. Most of my testing will be with engine rpms between 3000 and 8000. My initial thought on gearing was to use 1.5 ratio to obtain a max brake rpm of around 5,300. One of my concerns is wear and tear on the centrifugal clutches. Would I lose any accuracy if I went with a numerically higher gear ratio, say 3/1 or 4/1 spinning the brake to a lower rpm? Would the rotor be of sufficient size to use as an inertia dyno? 90 % of my testing would be 15 hp or under. Thank you.
Chip Gronostalski
Springfield Massachusetts USA
Chipg1956@gmail.com.
Hi,
With such low power levels you can gear down as you wish without issue. One reason why people want to keep as high RPM as possible is that the HP capacity of the brake increases with RPM (the torque drops somewhat though). But you will be nowhere near the HP capacity of the brake, so that is fine. Your effective Moment of inertia will also reduce, but that is also ok for such low power levels.
You need to ensure that the RPM sensor gets at least 200 pulses per second at the RPMs you are interested in. So if you are running low RPMs your trigger wheel needs more teeth. Not a problem of course, just ensure this, so that inertia calculations are accurate.
Hi Chipg1956 and welcome to the forun. Don't use the centrifugal clutch direct couple it would be a better option.
Use a car differential for ratio rpm multiplication
What electric brake is it exactly do you have any specification on the unit?
The Dyno was sold by Snap On Tools / Sun originally to check emissions and do driver simulations. Model is RG240P also as EESE101A. http://www.snaponequipment.com/Common/productmanuals/DY/0692-9213/BID-EESE101A.pdf It is portable and I have both brakes and have cut down the frame and re-purposed the rollers. I believe it was originally manufactured in Austria in 1996. Each unit has 2 rather large coils. I have not been able to find much more about it.
I am near completion with this project. Now at the point that I most feared, hooking everything up without frying my purchase. I am enclosing photos of the existing electronics. I am not concerned about sensor hook up. In terms of hooking to the Your Dyno unit is it as simple as it looks? Just hook the two wires at the very bottom right (image 5251a) to the output with PWM configuration? As I mentioned in previous communication the original dyno had 2 separate brakes, each using 2 large coils. I am using only one unit and for the life of me I cannot tell if they are all connected in series. Will I have problems with voltage or operation using only one unit? I would love to use your power supply but my shop does not have 220 volt service. I want to use the original load cell. How can I confirm it does not have a built in amp?
Thanks for your help,
Chip Gronostalski
Hi, are you sure the control mechanism is a PWM signal? To check with YourDyno, measure that the 0V input to the power supply either is isolated (best) or the 0V input is connected to earth. If not, you will need an isolator like an optocoupler.
I cannot see from the picture where to connect the PWM from YourDyno. Is there another board in the original system?
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There is a chance you will need a new power supply. But there is no harm in trying with your existing one. You can make a guess that the control signal is a 0-5V analog signal, which is the most common. Put a voltage on the two wires you are mentioning and see if the brake starts to brake, for example using a 1.5V battery. You will also hear it hum if it works.
Can you post a pic of the brake?
Does it matter if I use AC or DC on the analog signal?
So there are two coils there it seems? Do you know which voltage the brakes work at?
The control signal is likely a 0-5V signal, where 0 is 0 output and 5V is full output power. But it may not be possible to find where to connect, so you may need a new power supply.
The eddy brakes work such that at 0V supply they are off and at max supply power (DC) they are fully on. They only work on DC.
It seems that my best option is to purchase your power supply. However I have a concern on how to wire the input. I see that it is designed to operate on 220 European style voltage. Do I need some sort of converter to get it to work with USA voltage and would I need to adapt it from 110 or 208?
Thanks,
Chip G.