Design
A rope brake dynamometer (Figure 1) was created to measure the torque-speed
characteristics of the TT motor. The rope brake dynamometer assesses the power of
a motor by introducing a frictional force opposite to the motor’s motion using a
rope. The dynamometer used an elastic rubber band and a load to apply a torque to
the motor while it was running.
The final dynamometer incorporates many important design decisions. The motor
was screwed directly into the metal support beam to minimize any wobbling which
could have created discrepancies in the data. The load itself is a stack of multiple
rotated wheels of the same size, which enables smaller weights to be placed in
between the spokes for finer weight tuning. The rubber band is double banded to
shorten its length and therefore allow for a greater weight range (before the load
cannot lower any further). These design decisions enabled the construction of a
robust experiment.
Figure 1: Labelled Isometric View and Free-Body Diagram of Dynamometer
Load Cell Calibration
To ensure accurate data collection regarding the forces applied to the motor, an
experiment was conducted to compare the extension of the elastic to an applied
force. The experiment involved hanging masses of known weight from the rubber
band vertically off the side of a table. By doing so, the elastic’s length could be
measured in comparison to how much force was applied when the spring was at
equilibrium, thus ensuring that the applied force and spring force were equal. When
the measurements were plotted on a graph, a linear slope is observed (Figure 2).
As the R²-value of this model is 0.9988, the model is a very good approximation of
the relationship between the applied force and the change in elastic length. The
constant, linear slope paired with an R²-value very close to 1 indicate that the band
behaves according to Hooke’s Law over the ranges of deformation encountered
during the experiment. Furthermore, the slope of this graph represents the
reciprocal of the band’s spring constant, which is a measure of the force required to
stretch or compress it by a unit distance, as shown below:
F s=k ∆ x
F s=F a
F a=k ∆ x
1
∆ x= F a
k
Where:
∆ x = change in the length of the elastic ( m )
k = spring constant ( )
N
m
F a = applied force ( N )
Figure 2: Graph of Rubber Band’s Length as a Function of Force Applied
Torque-Speed Curve
After constructing the dynamometer and plotting the calibration curve of the load
cell, a torque-speed curve was created by plotting the torque of the TT motor and
the corresponding RPM of the wheel of the TT motor. To get the values for that
curve, a free-body diagram of the motor was created (Figure 1). From that, the
equations for the torque of the motor were derived as shown below:
τ f =τ 1−τ 2
τ f =W ⋅ r−F s ⋅r
τ f =mg⋅r −k ∆ x ⋅r
Where:
τ m= torque of the motor ( N ⋅m )
m = mass of weight hanging off the dynamometer ( kg )
( )
g= acceleration due to gravity 2
m
s
k = spring constant on the elastic( )
N
m
∆ x = change in the length of the elastic ( m )
r = radius of the TT motor ( m )
Next, different masses were applied to the end of the string with the magnitude of
the mass being increased for each data point. The mass of the weight and the
change in the length of the elastic band due to addition of weight was then inputted
into the equation for the torque of the motor. Finally, the RPM was calculated by
marking a point on the dynamometer and using an iPhone to film a slow-motion
video to determine the number of rotations in a 2-second interval, then multiplying
it by a factor of 30. The points were then plotted, and a linear line of best fit was
created (Figure 3). Figure 3 displays a linear relationship between the torque and
the speed of the motor that fits the data reasonably well. The model has an R 2-value
of 0.9158. This backs up the claim that the model is a reasonable fit since the R 2-
value suggests that 91.58% of the variance in the torque of the motor can be
explained by the variance in Angular Speed. Following such a linear curve is
consistent with the behaviour of commercial TT motors, which also have a constant
negative slope with a positive y-intercept.
Figure 3: Graph of the Torque of the TT Motor as a Function of the Angular Velocity
Sources of Error
An R2-value of 0.9158 indicates that though the model does an adequate job of
predicting the torque-speed curve of the motor, there are some variations in the
data, which may be due to the sources of error. Sources of systemic error include
the calibration of the scale used to weigh the hanging masses and the assumption
of a massless string used in the calculations. Sources of random error in the
experiment include the fluctuation of power supplied to the motor and the
measurement readings for the elastic band. More robust means of determining the
changes in elastic lengths for various weights. Furthermore, the frictional force of
the string could result in the stall torque of the motor being recorded to be lower
than its actual result. In addition, only one trial was conducted leading to possible
inaccurate measurements being present in the data. Moreover, the orientation of
the string was not the same for the trials which may have resulted in further
inaccuracies. In summation, while not significant, there several sources of error.