In any business organization, a sure way to increase profit is to reduce the maintenance cost of equipment and also. ensure that equipment operates at maximum efficiency. Slip rings ensure that signal transmission is effective, fast, and easy. It also determines the cost of maintenance of your machines.
Having highly functional and reliable slip rings may be cost-effective, hence the need to maintain them and ensure that they have an increased lifespan and perform optimally. What does it entail for you to improve the performance and durability of slip rings? We shall be considering several factors.
You must have mapped out a plan that would help increase the efficiency and lifespan of a slip ring after purchasing one. At what stage do you begin to maintain your slip rings? To increase the performance and durability of slip rings, engineers may consider three major factors.
How to Effectively Maximize the Performance and Lifespan of Slip Rings
The first question you may want to ask after buying a slip ring is at what point do you start the process of maintaining your slip rings? To answer that, let us look at three different tips to consider if you want to enhance your slip ring performance and increase its lifespan.
Ensure That You Purchase a Slip Ring with the Best Design
Getting your slip rings to last long and perform optimally starts with purchasing slip rings with the right type of design. Your purchase of your slip must ring from a reliable manufacturer. Buying a slip ring of high quality helps in reducing the cost of maintenance as well as improving the overall efficiency and durability of the slip ring. How do you identify the right slip ring design when purchasing a slip ring? To do that, you must take the following factors into consideration.
· The Type of Slip Ring
Getting the right type of slip ring to buy may be a little difficult because there are a variety and brands of slip rings available in the market. To effectively make the right choice, you must ask some pertinent questions like, what is the main purpose of buying the slip ring? Is the slip ring required to transmit signal, electricity, or data? What is the amount of space available for the installation of the slip ring?
With these questions in mind, you may be able to get the right type of slip ring to meet the purpose for which it is purchased.
· Mechanical Robust
Mechanical robustness refers to how effectively the slip ring performs under extreme conditions and heavy vibrations. A good slip ring is designed to meet its operating conditions. Such slip rings that are designed slightly above their operating conditions may be able to withstand certain conditions when stretched beyond their limits. However, to ensure the lifespan of slip rings, you must make sure that you do not overstress them above the manufacturer’s approved conditions.
· Contact Material
What materials are used in making conductive metal and brushes? As you may already know, having the right contact material in a slip ring plays a significant role in optimizing data transmission and signal reliability. Contact materials that are made of silver alloy and precious metals are heat resistant and therefore make them be well suited for transmission of electricity.
· Seal
When purchasing a slip ring, one important aspect you have to consider is the seal that comes with it. Is there a seal attached to the slip ring? The function of the seal is to serve as a protection against any form of external damage which may guarantee uninterrupted and continuous data and signal transmission.
The seal in a slip ring also functions as an insulator. It helps to shield the slip ring from harsh weather conditions.
· Configuration
Most people often overlook this aspect when purchasing a slip ring. Purchasing a slip ring for the wrong task may hinder its performance and lifespan. Buying the right type of slip ring may help to eliminate issues that may arise due to overload. It is, therefore, imperative to buy slip rings that allow multiple channels to reduce maintenance costs and increase efficiency.
Installation of Slip Rings
Many engineers do not place much emphasis on the installation of slip rings. They fail to realize that an error during installation may cause corruption in signal transmission. So what should be done to ensure that slip rings are properly installed to maximize performance and increase durability? We shall consider the following helpful tips.
· Environmental Consideration
When installing slip rings, environmental factors such as humidity, dust and severe weather conditions in the installation site should be taken into consideration. Understanding these factors will influence your choice of the slip ring. Purchasing the wrong slip ring may cause it to wear out more quickly, which may require high maintenance costs. Buying slip rings that are resistant to rust may also ensure durability.
· Strict Adherence to Installation Instructions
Most slip rings come with an instruction manual on installation. The installation guidelines must be strictly adhered to to ensure that they function optimally. Wrong installation may cause a malfunction of the slip ring, which may also reduce its lifespan.
Maintenance
The maintenance of a slip ring plays a vital role in determining its performance and durability. The process of maintaining a slip ring may differ from another; hence the following tips may help maintain your slip ring:
· When to Carry Out Maintenance?
When is the appropriate time to carry out maintenance on a slip ring after purchase? Most manufacturers advise that maintenance of a slip ring should be carried out after it has completed over fifty million revolutions, which may be after or less than a year.
· How to Carry Out Maintenance?
Dusting the surface of the slip ring would help remove unnecessary contacts or loads that may hinder its performance. The oiling of the moving part of slip rings also helps to reduce friction. It is also essential that you have the right person to assist in carrying out maintenance of your slip rings.
Good slip ring maintenance personnel should be able to identify and provide a solution for any issue that may develop during the maintenance process.
Conclusion
Enhancing the performance and lifespan of slip rings would go a long way in reducing the cost of maintenance. As simple as it may sound, it may be complicated without knowing where to start and the right approach to take. By using the above tips, you may have a headway in improving the performance of slip rings and ensuring that they last longer.
