Posted to News on 25th May 2012, 00:00
Standardised flange on metal bellows couplings
With the development of a metal bellows coupling with a standardised flange connection, a niche product is now going into full production.
>For many years metal bellows couplings have been the gold standard when it comes to connecting two opposing shafts. Of course, application requirements never stand still, with performance parameters ever increasing, so the demands on the couplings are increasing, too. In their endeavour to meet the industry's requirements for high power density combined with maximum torsional stiffness, manufacturers of engines and gear units are today using a standardised flange connection on the output side more and more frequently. Up to now, however, users have often had to fall back on complex coupling solutions to be able to use employ a standardised flange connection option.
>Now Jakob Antriebstechnik has responded to the market's demands by offering an innovative production series of servo couplings with a flange connection on one side. The models KPE and KPP-F developed by the experts from Lower Franconia allow connection of gear units and engines with a mechanic interface, standardised in accordance with DIN EN ISO 9409-1. Both versions guarantee the production-related advantages which are so typical for metal bellows servo couplings such as zero backlash, high torsional stiffness, the ability to compensate for misalignments, and a high operational torque.
>The new servo couplings in Jakob's portfolio can be recommended for a wide range of possible appli-cations. The advantages of the KPE series with its two-piece flange connection are its compact design and easy assembly while the plug-in version KPP-F offers strengths in installation locations which are difficult to access.
>The two new servo couplings are suitable for pitch circle diameters of the standard flange from 31.5 to 160 millimetres and can thus be used for a large number of purposes. As ever, Jakob Antriebstechnik has employed only the highest quality materials: the flange and the clamping ring hub are made of nitrocarburised quenched and tempered steel, while the clamping hub and the groove ring for their parts consist of high-strength aluminium.
>Stainless steel which easily sustains temperatures of up to 300°C has been used for the bellows. The beading press-in method which Jakob developed and patented in 1974 guarantees a perfect, backlash-free connection of the metal bellows and the hubs. For the steel and stainless steel hubs which are deployed in all models with a rated nominal torque of 1,600Nm, a special plasma weld-ing procedure is used to connect the bellows.
>The bottom line is that Jakob Antriebstechnik says the KPP-F and KPE couplings are the ultimate solution to connect a shaft with DIN standardised interfaces. The well-engineered, high-quality system is the company's innovative response to the market's requirements, with the inventor of the metal bellows coupling continuing to drive the technology forward.
>Based in Kleinwallstadt, Germany, Jakob Antriebstechnik is leader in the manufacture of servo couplings, safety coupling, motor-spindle safety systems, gripper rail couplings, and mechanical clamping elements. The safety couplings are designed to reduce expensive machine damage, repairs and downtime by providing reliable overload protection. The mechanical clamping elements with their internal force amplifying system provide an alternative to conventional clamping elements as well as to expensive half- or fully-automatic clamping systems.
