Paris Air Show is all set to provide a launch platform for the new 5mm Smart Washer by JPB Système, a manufacturer of technology solutions for aerospace, aeronautic and other industries. The 5mm Smart Washer is a disruptive smaller-sized smart washer sealing technology that improves MRO efficiencies by reducing the need to manually check the torque level because of the touchless and wireless measurement of bolt axial load.
The thickness of the washer has been reduced by more than one-third. JPB Système has leveraged improvements in strain gauge technology to develop a smaller Smart Washer variant that is much easier to integrate and retrofit while delivering the same functional benefits as its larger counterpart. The smaller size of the washer allows for it to be used across an increased number of areas within the aircraft, whereas the original 7.6mm washer is more suitable to experimental scenarios in on-the-ground test environments.
The washer uses intelligent connectivity by incorporating a proprietary strain gauge, as well as a transmission system into the washer, which through an accompanying reading device (Smart Reader), relays the information to maintenance engineers. Engineers can be quickly alerted to fasteners that are too tight or too loose and can address them accordingly to limit aircraft downtime
JPB now allows the engineers to view the percentage of the tension rather than just the value of the bolt axial load due to the relative measurement which calibrates the Smart Washer directly on the customer’s bolt. This has increased the accuracy of the device from +/- 6% to +/- 2.5%.
The new validated redundancy measurement allows Smart Washer to ‘control’ itself to eliminate incorrect readings in the unlikely event of a software issue. This is enabled by doubling the number of measurement points on the washer, which means that upon a false reading, the system immediately alerts the engineer before taking another measurement from another area of the device.
Jonathan Beaumel, Mechanical Design Engineer at JPB Système said that the company has continued to listen to the feedback from its Smart Washer beta customer sites. And in the process, the organisation has directly addressed some important observations. It has integrated the appropriate updates to Smart Washer to further improve its functionality and flexibility. He further added that these collective developments will significantly improve accuracy and safety across MRO operations, both for aerospace companies as well as those in other industries such as rail, nuclear and oil & gas