Torque limiter

A torque limiter is an automatic device that protects mechanical equipment, or its work, from damage by mechanical overload. A torque limiter may limit the torque by slipping (as in a friction plate slip-clutch), or uncouple the load entirely (as in a shear pin). The action of a torque limiter is especially useful to limit any damage due to crash stops and jams.

Torque limiters may be packaged as a shaft coupling or as a hub for sprocket or sheave. A torque limiting device is also known as an overload clutch.

Disconnect types will uncouple the drive, with little or no residual torque making its way to the load. They may reset automatically or manually

A shear pin type sacrifices a mechanical component, the pin, to disconnect the shafts.

A synchronous magnetic torque limiter uses permanent magnets mounted to each shaft, with an air gap between. They are very fast acting, but may have more backlash than mechanical types. Because there is no mechanical contact between the two shafts, they are also used to transmit torque through a physical barrier like a thin plastic wall. On some models, the torque limit may be adjusted by changing the gap between the magnets.

A ball detent type limiter transmits force through hardened balls which rest in detents on the shaft and are held in place with springs. An over-torque condition pushes the balls out of their detents, thereby decoupling the shaft. It can have single or multiple detent positions, or a snap acting spring which requires a manual reset. There may be a compression adjustment to adjust the torque limit.

Many cordless drills incorporate this type of torque limiter in a planetary gearset. It may be a part of an assembly of multiple gearsets used to primarily reduce speed and multiply torque as well as perform ratio changes. The torque limiter is typically the last gearset in the transmission. It uses the planet carrier as the input with the sun gear as the output, and the annulus normally locked. A series of ball detents act on the annulus to lock it, allowing power to be transmitted from the planet carrier to the sun gear. When the torque transmitted through the gearset reaches a determinate amount, the torque acting on the annulus causes it to unlock from its ball detents and freely rotate, causing power to be diverted from the load on the sun gear to the annulus and thereby stalling the output until torque is reduced to an amount where the ball detents can lock the annulus again. This system equally limits torque in both directions of rotation and also works with the sun gear as the input. The compression of the ball detents (and therefore the amount of torque at which the limiter is utilized) is typically adjusted by means of a rotating collar accessible to the user which is indexed and held in place with its own separate ball detents.

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