Couplings in Test Bench Engineering - Demanding Couplings from a Modular Design Kit for Test Benches

Trust is good, control is better: This ancient saying fits especially well to the sense and purpose of test benches - because their effective-ness stands and falls with the us of optimized couplings which are required to master even multiple days of continuous running under the most arduous operating conditions without causing any problems. The modular design-oriented TOK system from Reich Kupplungen allows for the manufacture of tailor-made, yet cost-effective, couplings for a wide variety of test benches.

The recipe of success D2C (Designed to Customer) adopted by Dipl.-Ing. Herwarth Reich GmbH in Bochum applies in particular to the components for test bench applications because the requirements imposed on these couplings are multifaceted and challenging. The TOK system developed on the modular principle can be used in almost all types of engine test benches. A particular specialty are individual solutions for test bench applications which are devised in Bochum on the basis of a modular design kit. The company also produces light-weight versions made of high-strength aluminium upon request.

For their D2C solutions, the experts from the Ruhr area can draw on many years of experience in the design of couplings for engine, roller dynamometer and racing engine test benches. The salient features of TOK couplings are their efficiency and flexibility. A multitude of self-developed rubber compounds ensures, for example, that the rigidity of the coupling elements can be matched to numerous applications. The couplings are suited for use at temperatures ranging from -40°C to +100°C. They cover a torque range from 75 to 70,000 Nm and master rotational speeds up to 13,000 r.p.m. The backlash- and maintenance-free components are connectable to flywheels conforming to SAE J620 or to any other standard. Flexible use is made possible by variable fitting lengths and by the compensation of axial, radial and angular misalignments. As a special service, Reich Kupplungen offers torsional vibration calculations for the test rigs. In the words of the C.E.O., Dipl.-Ing. Herwarth Reich, and his son, Dipl.-Ing. Christian Reich: ’It is last but not least thanks to our decade long expertise in test bench couplings that the TOK system contributes to a significant increase in the lifetime of test bench installations and their components.’