The gripper cylinder that provides braced force for Tunnel Boring Machine(TBM) might fail due to severe vibration when the TBM excavates in the tunnel. Early fault diagnosis of the gripper cylinder is important for the safety and efficiency of the whole tunneling project. In this paper, an online condition monitoring system based on the Empirical Mode Decomposition(EMD) method is established for fault diagnosis of the gripper cylinder while TBM is working. Firstly, the lumped mass parameter model of the gripper cylinder is established considering the influence of the variable stiffness at the rock interface, the equivalent stiffness of the oil, the seals, and the copper guide sleeve. The dynamic performance of the gripper cylinder is investigated to provide basis for its health condition evaluation. Then, the EMD method is applied to identify the characteristic frequencies of the gripper cylinder for fault diagnosis and a field test is used to verify the accuracy of the EMD method for detection of the characteristic frequencies. Furthermore, the contact stiffness at the interface between the barrel and the rod is calculated with Hertz theory and the relationship between the natural frequency and the stiffness varying with the health condition of the cylinder is simulated based on the dynamic model. The simulation shows that the characteristic frequencies decrease with the increasing clearance between the barrel and the rod, thus the defects could be indicated by monitoring the natural frequency. Finally, a health condition management system of the gripper cylinder based on the vibration signal and the EMD method is established, which could ensure the safety of TBM.
Lin LiJian-Feng TaoHai-Dong YuYi-Xiang HuangCheng-Liang Liu
Full-face hard rock tunnel boring machines(TBM)are essential equipment in highway and railway tunnel engineering construction.During the tunneling process,TBM have serious vibrations,which can damage some of its key components.The support system,an important part of TBM,is one path through which vibrational energy from the cutter head is transmitted.To reduce the vibration of support systems of TBM during the excavation process,based on the structural features of the support hydraulic system,a nonlinear dynamical model of support hydraulic systems of TBM is established.The influences of the component structure parameters and operating conditions parameters on the stiffness characteristics of the support hydraulic system are analyzed.The analysis results indicate that the static stiffness of the support hydraulic system consists of an increase stage,stable stage and decrease stage.The static stiffness value increases with an increase in the clearances.The pre-compression length of the spring in the relief valve a ects the range of the stable stage of the static stiffness,and it does not a ect the static stiffness value.The dynamic stiffness of the support hydraulic system consists of a U-shape and reverse U-shape.The bottom value of the U-shape increases with the amplitude and frequency of the external force acting on the cylinder body,however,the top value of the reverse U-shape remains constant.This study instructs how to design the support hydraulic system of TBM.
