LEGACY PRODUCT SUPPORT
Legacy Capacitive Tip Clearance

All of Rotadata's tip measurement systems are used for measuring tip clearance gaps between compressor and turbine blade tips and the engine inner casing. AUTOCAP will also measure blade disc movement and shaft oscillations when installed at three or more equi-spaced locations. The blades, discs or shafts must preferably be earthed for the systems to operate and a good quality, dry, cooling air and a tachometer signal of shaft speed must also be provided for all systems.

ROTATIP and AUTOCAP are gap measuring capacitive systems using a retracting touch electrode. ROTATIP measures the longest blade, whilst AUTOCAP measures all blade lengths on an engine stage. All our tip clearance and gap measurement system are, where necessary, calibrated before despatch and can also be supplied with our control and display software RCAP is this is needed.

Rotadata supplied four systems for use in blade tip clearance and gap measurement all used for measurement while the engine is running. The probes are located strategically on stator parts of the engine with the probe tip facing the blade tip, disc or shaft surface. All our four types of tip clearance and gap measurement systems are used on many civil and military aero engines, large industrial gas turbines and compressors and on engine development test rigs. Other applications include the measurement of rotating shaft oscillations and blade and stator alignment. All four types of system controllers can be interfaced to our RCAP software and enable the display of gaps measured, blade lengths and disc and shaft oscillations. Tip clearance and gap data acquired can be streamed directly to customers own data acquisition system or to the RCAP ground station. We have standard probe designs, of various lengths, suitable for use up to operating temperatures of 1,300℃ and, where necessary, the probes are calibrated in our factory before despatch enabling immediate installations and use on the engine.