Alternator Test Bench simulates vehicle environment.

Press Release Summary:

DACTEM test bench enables alternators to be checked for correct electrical operation and acoustic characteristics on conveyor belt. It identifies products and reconfigures interfaces to match dimensions, positioning, and types of connectors. Test bench simulates alternator's environment, running at 6,000 rpm with battery charge and discharge phases. It includes automatic workstation, PC-driven control and measurement cabinet, and electrical management cabinet.

Original Press Release:

Dactem's Automatic Test Bench for Alternator Production Simulates Vehicle Environment to Check How They Will Function

Chicago, June 13, 2002 The French company DACTEM, a specialist in the design and manufacture of test benches for the automotive industry, has perfected an alternator test bench. This enables all types of alternators to be checked for correct electrical operation and acoustic characteristics on the conveyor belt at the end of the production line. The design principle of this test bench can be adapted to test starters and other electrical motors, such as those used for windshield wipers. Automobile alternators are carried on pallet conveyors. At the test position they are halted, fixed, and prepared for the test. The DACTEM test bench automatically identifies products. An original feature of the equipment is its ability to automatically reconfigure its interfaces to match the dimensions, positioning, and types of connector for each product line. The test bench simulates the alternator's environment in a vehicle running at 6,000 rpm, with battery charge and discharge phases. The DACTEM test bench includes an automatic workstation to place the alternator in test conditions, with electro-technical equipment for simulation of battery charging and discharging. It also comes with a PC-driven control and measurement cabinet, and an electrical management cabinet. The "automated" workstation that places the alternator in test conditions is managed by an industrial controller. Application software, developed on a PC under National Instruments' LabWindows CVI, manages all the test sequences, taking and processing measurements. Tests are monitored by a real-time on screen display of the main results. Backups are made automatically of all the measurements taken on all the alternators tested. The average time for an alternator test cycle is just thirteen seconds. Measurements taken include alternator speed, voltage, current, and acoustical noise. The test bench generates 60 kW of power, and operates in production factories with ambient temperatures ranging from 59 to 95 degrees Fahrenheit and a relative humidity range of 0 to 90% without condensation. The power supply is 220V-440V, 50/60 Hz. Each test bench measures 9.8 feet high by 8.2 feet wide by 9.8 feet deep, and weighs 3,500 pounds. Formed in 1986, in Ales in the south of France, DACTEM specializes in designing, manufacturing, and integrating test benches and monitoring equipment for the automotive, aerospace, and other manufacturing industries, including domestic appliances and electrical engineering. For automotive equipment manufacturers, DACTEM designs and builds end of assembly line test equipment, quality control benches, characterization benches, as well as endurance testing equipment for laboratories. Products tested include sensors, electrical motors, air conditioning systems, calculators, dashboards, plastic and mechanical components. Tests performed range from functional tests to electrical, air leak, acoustic, and vibration tests. DACTEM's design office handles projects from start to finish. This starts with the analysis of requirements and follows right through to deployment of the full range of mechanical, electronic, computer, hydraulic, measuring, visual and vibro-acoustical testing techniques. In 2001 Dactem's sales totaled $5 million, with thirty-nine employees. A U.S. subsidiary named Dactem Inc has been formed in Detroit. The company has also opened a technical and sales office in Mexico. DACTEM's main clients in the automotive industry are Siemens, Valeo, Delphi, Electricfil, Faurecia, Behr, BorgWarner, Mecaplast, and MGI Coutier. For more information, please contact: Mr Yves Ruellan
Dactem Inc.
1100 Owendale, Suite E
Troy, MI 48083
Phone: (248) 712-1187
Fax: (248) 457-1543
dactem-us@dactem.com
www.dactem.com