Wear Measurement on Chain Joint Components Using a Roundness Instrument

Abstract

Driving and timing chains are widely used machine elements which are continuously improved regarding wear and energy efficiency. Especially for timing chains, reducing wear is of high importance as it is critical for the function of the combustion engine. To achieve this goal, the wear in the chain joint has to be measured precisely which is usually done by measuring the length of the entire chain. With this method, no information about the distribution of wear between the contacting bodies, pin and bush, is available. An additional measuring and analyzing technique using a standard roundness instrument is developed with which more detailed information about the wear in the chain joint is obtained. With this method, unworn chain joint components are characterized and the wear on worn components is measured and compared for pins with different surface treatments. Furthermore, approaches to use the measured data in simulation and calculation are presented.