SAS TESTERS offers unique spring testers available with pitch tracing and O.D. mapping capabilities. Pitch tracing provides the ability to reproduce springs to exacting dimensional standards including length, pitch, coil transition and load. There are many ways to produce a spring to meet load and height requirements for a given spring design within the specification envelope. But not all combinations of free lengths, load heights, diameters and coil transitions are equal. Some will perform much better than others.
How does the spring manufacturer duplicate this spring?
The ability to chart “pitch trace” results over proven “gold standard” spring designs enables the spring maker to eliminate part to part variability from lot to lot. Pitch Trace Testing is the ideal solution for demanding high performance applications such as OEM valve springs, racing engine valve springs, injector springs, clutch springs, and die springs.
- Rapid Acquisition of Pitch Trace and OD Map
- Accurate Determination of Eccentricity, Concentricity and Parallelism (Patent Pending)
- Accommodates Springs with OD\’s up to 3.5″ (89mm) and Free lengths up to 8″ (200mm)
- Stand alone and portable
- Measures spring geometry using vision technology combined with servo driven camera motion
- Fully Programmable for Automated testing with spring test setups stored in files for quick recall and test
Custom Measurement Solutions available to replace shadowgraph applications
Example: High Performance Valve Springs for auto racing
Two cars with identical engines enter a race. Car A uses valve springs produced in LOT 1. Car B uses valve springs produced in LOT 2. Both valve spring LOTS 1 and 2 are produced by the same manufacturer, to the same specifications, but at different times. Both lots are within acceptable tolerance limits for the spring design. Car A with LOT 1 finishes the race in record time. Car B with LOT 2, breaks a valve spring half way through the race and has to quit. Cost: GREAT!
During pitch trace tests performed on both LOTS of springs, it is determined instantly that the difference between the valve springs is directly related to coil transitions and pitch variations within the coil body. For whatever reason, LOT 1 is far superior to LOT 2. LOT 1 has now becomes the “Gold Standard” design for performance. The race team wants this spring every time.