Test apparatus having a regenerative system for loading rotating devices

Claim 1

TEST APPARATUS FOR SUBJECTING A ROTATING POWER TRANSMISSION DEVICE TO A LOAD TEST COMPRISED OF A PRIME MOVER, CLOSED-LOOP GEAR MEANS CONNECTED TO SAID PRIME MOVER, SAID GEAR MEANS INCLUDING A TORQUE SHAFT AND A PLANETARY GEARING HAVING A NORMALLY STATIONARY MEMBER, SAID GEAR MEANS FURTHER INCLUDING MOUNTING MEANS FOR MOUNTING A DEVICE TO BE TESTED, FORCE APPLYING MEANS CONNECTED TO THE STATIONARY MEMBER OF SAID PLANETARY GEARING WHEREBY WHEN A DEVICE TO BE TESTED IS MOUNTED IN SAID CLOSED-LOOP GEAR MEANS THE RESULTING REGENERATIVE GEAR SYSTEM CAN BE LOADED WITH TORSIONAL DEFLECTION, MEASURING MEANS CONSTRUCTED AND ARRANGED TO DETERMINE THE TORQUE APPLIED TO SAID CLOSED-LOOP GEAR SYSTEM, SAID FORCE APPLYING MEANS BEING CONSTRUCTED SO THAT A SMALL FORCE CAN BE GRADUALLY-APPLIED AND FURTHER SO THAT A LARGE FORCE CAN BE RAPIDLY APPLIED, A SPEED INDICATOR CONNECTED TO SAID CLOSED LOOP GEAR MEANS AND ARRANGED TO INDICATE THE SPEED OF THE DEVICE TO BE TESTED, SAID STATIONARY MEMBER OF SAID PLANETARY GEARING HAVING EXTERNAL WORM TEETH, SAID FORCE APPLYING MEANS INCLUDING A WORM MESHING WITH THE EXTERNAL WORM TEETH OF SAID STATIONARY PLANETARY MEMBER, A CASING, SAID WORM GEAR BEING ROTATABLY-MOUNTED IN SAID CASING, A HOUSING, SAID CASING BEING SLIDABLY MOUNTED IN SAID HOUSING, SAID FORCE APPLYING MEANS INCLUDING A LEVER CONNECTED TO SAID CASING AND A FLUID-OPERATED ACTUATOR CONNECTED TO SAID LEVER.