The Art of Compromise:

Routine Data Collection

on Cyclic Systems
Rich Pratt
Machinery Health Management
Online Systems Technical Specialist
Background
 Navy Nuclear Power Program (Electricians
Mate)
 CSI - RbM Analyst
 P&H Mining Equipment – SR PdM Engineer
 Emerson Process Management – Regional
Service Supervisor
 Emerson Process Management – Online
Systems Technical Specialist
Defining a Cyclic System
 Rapid Changes
– On/Off
– Speed
– Direction
– Load
 No true “Steady State Operation”
 Examples
– Presses
– Cranes
– Winders
Transient vs Cyclic
 A “Transient” is normally an excursion from a
steady state condition.
 Transient data is normally taken on a one shot
basis. It is post processed looking for defects
 You can do transient data on a cyclic system; but
we are going to talk about using a standard
analyzer to capture periodic data on these cyclic
systems.
My Experience with Cyclic System
Cyclic Systems
Optimal Settings
 The first step: What do you want to get out of the data.
– Single Fault detection
– Multiple Fault Detection
 What kind of data do we want:
– Vibration Data
• Spectra
• Waveform
• Parameter Bands
 Collect equipment information to determine optimal
vibration settings:
– Gear tooth counts
– Bearing information
– Shaft Speeds
Optimal Readings
 What is an “Optimal” Reading:
– Repeatable/Trendable
– Sufficient Duration to capture all faults
– Sufficient Resolution to differentiate defect frequencies
– Proper FMax to capture all faults
 What can we do with Optimal readings:
– Identify fault, severity and recommend time to
replacement.
• Inner race defect on the inboard motor bearing, stage three of
failure, replace within 2 weeks.
Less than Optimal Reading
 What is a “less than Optimal” Reading:
– Repeatable/Trendable
– May not capture all faults
– All faults may not be visible in FFT
 There is still value in “less than Optimal” data.
– “I don’t know what it is, but its getting worse”
• If this can be said about specific components; bearings,
gearsets, etc, it still directs maintenance to a problem.
Real World Example – Hoist Gear Box

93T
141T

16T

16T
 Gearbox Information
Inboard Bearing Outboard Bearing
Shaft Pinion Gear Number FTF BSF BPFO BFPI Number FTF BSF BPFO BFPI
1 16 0.43 3.38 7.27 9.73 0.44 7.59 8.74 11.26
2 15 141 0.44 8.03 10.13 12.87 0.444 8.572 10.644 13.356
3 93 0.444 4.155 10.164 12.834 0.42 3.87 9.24 11.76
4
5

RPM 800 Speed Pinion Mesh Gearmesh

Orders Orders Orders Orders Orders
Hz RPM Hz RPM Hz RPM
Input Input Shaft Input Shaft
Shaft 1 1 13.33333 800 16 16 213.3333 12800
Shaft 2 0.113475 1.513002 90.78014 1.702128 15 22.69504 1361.702 16 141 213.3333 12800
Shaft 3 0.018302 0.244033 14.64196 1.702128 93 22.69504 1361.702
Shaft 4
Shaft 5

Bearings Inboard Bearing Outboard Bearing

FTF BSF BPFO BFPI FTF BSF BPFO BFPI
Hz 5.733 45.067 96.933 129.733 5.867 101.200 116.533 150.133
Shaft 1 CPM 344.000 2704.000 5816.000 7784.000 352.000 6072.000 6992.000 9008.000
Orders Input 0.430 3.380 7.270 9.730 0.440 7.590 8.740 11.260
Hz 0.666 12.149 15.327 19.472 0.672 12.969 16.104 20.208
Shaft 2 CPM 39.943 728.965 919.603 1168.340 40.306 778.167 966.264 1212.460
Orders Input 0.050 0.911 1.150 1.460 0.050 0.973 1.208 1.516
Hz 0.108 1.014 2.480 3.132 0.102 0.944 2.255 2.870
Shaft 3 CPM 6.501 60.837 148.821 187.915 6.150 56.664 135.292 172.189
Orders Input 0.008 0.076 0.186 0.235 0.008 0.071 0.169 0.215
Hz
Shaft 4 CPM
Orders Input
Hz
Shaft 5 CPM
Orders Input
Hoist Gear Box – Shaft 1

 900 CPM Max Speed

 Highest expected defect frequency is GM at
14400 CPM (240 Hz)
 FMax
– Set to capture 3 harmonics of GM, so I go out to at
least to 3.5 x GM. 840 Hz, I round up to 1000 Hz
Hoist Gear Box – Shaft 1

Lines of Resolution (LOR) defines two factors in data

collection in conjunction with the Fmax:
– Waveform duration
– Minimum resolvable frequency

Waveform Length = Sample Size = 2.56 * LOR

Sample Rate 2.56 * FMax

Waveform Length = LOR/Fmax

Hoist Gear Box – Shaft 1

 Minimum resolvable frequency will be the

inverse:
– Minimum resolvable frequency = Fmax/LOR
Hoist Gear Box – Shaft 1

 Our shaft is rotating at 15 Hz, or once every

0.0667 seconds.
 We want multiple occurrences of each defect
frequency for them to appear in the FFT.
 Our lowest frequency is FTF at 0.43 orders or
6.45 Hz, which repeats every 0.155 seconds. To
get 6 occurrences of the FTF we need at least
0.93 seconds of waveform data.
Hoist Gear Box – Shaft 1

 To get 0.93 seconds of data we can calculate the

LOR.
Duration = LOR/FMax
0.93 secs = LOR/1000 Hz (sec-1)
LOR = 930
 We round up the LOR to 1600
 Hoist Gear Box – Shaft 1

 With 1000 Hz 1600 LOR we get:

– 1.6 second time waveform
– 0.625 Hz resolution
Inboard Bearing Outboard Bearing
FTF BSF BPFO BFPI FTF BSF BPFO BFPI
Hz 6.450 50.700 109.050 145.950 6.600 113.850 131.100 168.900
Shaft 1 CPM 387.000 3042.000 6543.000 8757.000 396.000 6831.000 7866.000 10134.000
Orders Input 0.430 3.380 7.270 9.730 0.440 7.590 8.740 11.260
Hoist Gear Box – Shaft 2

 102 CPM Max Speed (0.5875 seconds to rotate)

 Highest expected defect frequency is GM at
14400 CPM (240 Hz)
 Lowest frequency is FTF at .749 Hz we need at 8
second time waveform for 6 repetitions
 So optimal settings is 1000 Hz 12800 LOR
 12.8 sec waveform and 0.078 Hz resolution
Hoist Gear Box – Shaft 3

C K
E
16.47 CPM Max Speed (3.64 seconds to rotate)


CH
Highest expected defect frequency is GM at

I T Y
1531.91 CPM (25.53 Hz)

L
 Lowest frequency is FTF at 0.122 Hz we need at

A
49 second time waveform for 6 repetitions
E


 R
So optimal settings is 100 Hz 6400 LOR
64 sec waveform and 0.015 Hz resolution
Hoist Gear Box – Shaft 3

 16.47
With aCPM Maxaccelerometer
standard Speed (3.64are
seconds
we goingtotorotate)
get decent data at 0.122 Hz (7.32 CPM) using
 Highest expected defect frequency is GM at
standard processing?
1531.91 CPM (25.53 Hz)
 Lowest frequency is FTF at 0.122 Hz we need at
49 second time waveform for 6 repetitions
 So optimal settings is 100 Hz 6400 LOR
 64 sec waveform and 0.015 Hz resolution
Back to the Real World
Our optimal settings:
 Shaft 1: 1000 Hz/1600 LOR 1.6 Secs
 Shaft 2: 1000 Hz/12800 LOR 12.8 Secs
 Shaft 3: 100 Hz/6400 LOR 64 Secs

Can we do it?
Compromise 1
 Staged Testing Out of Production
– Have the operators cycle the system unloaded out of
production
– Provides smoother operation and repeatable data
 8 - 10 Second cycle time (Start to stop)
Waveform Duration
 8 to 10 seconds of cycle time:
– Optimal settings:
• Shaft 1 = 1.6 seconds
• Shaft 2 = 12.8 seconds
• Shaft 3 = 64 seconds
 What drove waveform duration?
– FTF
 We can not detect FTF problems on the
intermediate or output shaft.
 Cage failures are a serious and common failure
on this equipment.
Compromise 2
 Do not attempt to detect
cage defects with your
vibration data.
 Let people know vibration
can not detect this fault.
1. Plan appropriate maintenance
strategy:
– Oil Analysis
– Physical Inspection
2. CYA – Cover Your Analysts
Ignore the FTF Frequency
 Ignore the FFT and focus on the next lowest
defect frequency: 1x
 Shaft 1 rotates in 0.067 seconds, no change
 Shaft 2 rotates in 0.58 seconds we can get close
to 6 rotations with 1000 Hz 3200 LOR
 Shaft 3 rotates in 3.64 seconds, there is no way.
We can get barely get 2 rotations in 8 seconds.
But we can’t see it in the FFT
 If we can barely get two rotations of the shaft in
the time waveform we will not see 1x faults in the
FFT.

Let’s see a real world example.

Intermediate Gear on Hoist Case
 Early on while testing shovels we did not have
optimal AP sets
 Data on this shaft was collected at 200 Hz
FMax, 400 LOR with a waveform duration of 2
seconds, the primary concern was being able to
collect the data in the time allotted.
Spectral Data
Intermediate Gear on Hoist Case
Gear turns at
49.68 CPM
0.828 Hz
1.2 secs per
rotation
Waveform

1x

2 seconds of data
 Waveform – Circular Format

1x

Gearmesh
Compromise 3
 You will not be able to see all the faults in the
FFT data.
 The Optimal readings are not always possible.
 With cyclic systems it is vital to look in both the
spectral and the waveform data.
Are we done?
 If I set up this AP set with 1000 Hz/1600 LOR will it take
me 1.6 seconds to collect data?
Averaging and Overlap
 Averaging is designed to reduce the signal to
noise ratio in the spectral data.
– Clears up the noise floor
 Overlap defines how much of the previous
sample is used in the next sample for averaging.
 With the default 67% overlap you are only
including 33% new data on each average.
Averaging and Overlap
Default settings
4 Averages
67% Overlap
Data collection
time is twice
defined
waveform length
Darker regions
are included in
more averages
Averaging and Overlap

The Analyzer
only stores the
last waveform
used in the
averaging.
Averaging and Overlap

This can be an
issue on cyclic
systems
Averaging and Overlap
 Number of averages is defined in the Analysis
Parameter set
 % overlap is defined on the Analyzer.
 The major issue with Cyclic systems is time, and
averaging costs time.
Compromise 4
 Eliminate Averaging
 Will increase noise floor
 Will increase the presence of non-repetitive
vibration
 Will decrease data collection time
 Order Tracking
 Is an averaging technique = Time
 Normalizes speed between averages
– Does not correct for rapid speed changes
Speed

Time
 Order Tracking
 Is an averaging technique = Time
 Normalizes speed between averages
– Does not correct for rapid speed changes
Speed

Time
Order Tracking
 Is an averaging technique = Time
 Normalizes speed between averages
– Does not correct for rapid speed changes
 Repeatability Issues-
– Centrifugal force ~ CPM2
• Data collected at 3600 CPM will have a dramatically different
amplitude than data collected at 1200 CPM.
Will the system take data in 1.6 Seconds?
Special Time Waveform
Special Time Waveform
 Benefits
– Allows you to use analog integration and still have an
acceleration time waveform
 Disadvantages
– Taken after spectrum and frequency bands are
calculated – More time
– You do not have the waveform the spectrum was
calculated from.
Analysis Parameter Bands

 Any bands outside the FMax of the FFT are collected

after the other data, including HFD.
 Adds time to the data collection.
Any other delays?
 What else adds time to the data collection?

Autoranging
Autoranging
 The default for the analyzer is to automatically
define the full scale range.
 Data is collected and evaluated for the optimal
range.
 The full scale range essentially defines your
amplitude resolution.
– With a 32 bit analyzer there are 32 bits of data from
zero to the full scale range.
– An optimal full scale range provides the most accurate
amplitude.
What does the Full Scale Range Do
What does the Full Scale Range Do

32 bit with full scale range of 1

What does the Full Scale Range Do

32 bit with full scale range of 2

What does the Full Scale Range Do

32 bit with full scale range of 4

Autoranging
 CSI 2130/2140
– Auto ranging is much faster
– When auto ranging the first range checked is the
range used on the last measurement.
– Initial reading will be slower than the first.
– You may be able to collect the data without
disabling autoranging.
Compromise 5
 Turning off
Autoranging
– Defined in the
database
– Can be turned off
at the
measurement
point level.
– You must set a
full scale range!!
Data Base Build Complete
 Our compromises so far:
1. Not testing during normal operating conditions
2. Unable to detect cage defects
3. Can’t rely on FFT to show all defects
4. Eliminated Averaging
5. Turned off Autoranging

The analyzer is turbocharged!!!

When to collect data
 Data needs to be repetitive.
– Need to ensure our testing conditions are repetitive
 Does direction of rotation matter?
– Consistent direction during data collection matters.
– Direction of the rotation during data collection depends
on system configuration
Issue 1 – Bearing Load Zone
 The direction of rotation can affect the load zone
of the bearing. If there is a much heavier load
during one direction of rotation, even if that load
is not present during testing, that direction of
rotation is preferred for testing.
 If that isn’t possible, compromise; but ensure the
direction of rotation is consistent in readings.
Issue 2 – Gear face engagement
 If a different face of the gear tooth is engaged in
the different directions of rotation, again the
preference would be to test in the direction with
the higher loading. Ideally testing would be
performed in both directions.
 Example 1 – Single direction testing – On a
crane hoist system the same gear face is
engaged whether hoisting up or hoisting down.
Issue 2 – Gear face engagement
 Example 2 – Dual direction testing – Crane
bridge drive – Different faces of the gear will be
engaged depending on the direction of
movement. In this case testing in both directions
would be recommended.
Why both directions matter

CW

CCW

Tooth Spacing Error

When to collect data
 This is where transient data can come into play.

Software Demo
Back to the Shovel
 Using portable
data collectors we
were able to
collect repeatable
during staged
testing on the
shovel systems.
The next stage
 Using transient
analysis we were
able to identify
steady state
conditions were
could configure an
online system to
capture data during
production.
 Repeatable data triggered in production
516 - Hoist System
Hoist -14X Front Interm Inbd Axial (21-Jun-07)
0.12
Max Amp
.11

0
21-Jun-07
15:14:49
21-Jun-07
15:04:32
PK Velocity in In/Sec

21-Jun-07
14:57:35

21-Jun-07
14:50:44

21-Jun-07
14:43:32

21-Jun-07
14:36:50

21-Jun-07
14:29:44
0 10 20 30 40 50 60
Frequency in Orders
Summary
 Understand what you want to accomplish
 Understand and accept the limitations of the
situation
 Communicate the limitations
 If at first you don’t succeed; write a paper.