Dynamometer History

When banks have a part of the performance measure since the days that the presence of horsepower was usually accompanied by four hooves and a tail. This versatile tool is applied over the entire world, as companies like Taylor Dynamometer build on previous innovations with new breakthroughs in data collection and control system technology.

* 1828 Gaspard de Prony inventor of the Prony Brake, one of the earliest dynamometers
* 1838 Charles Babbage, known to historians as the Father of the Computer introduces a car chassis dynamometer to measure the pulling power of the English railway locomotives
1877 * William Froude of Britain, the first hydraulic dynamometer, with the first commercial models produced in 1881
* 1921 Professor e.V. Collins, of Iowa State College is developing a draft dynamometer, which is used to measure a horse is able to pull the era of heavy metals company implements
* 1930 The use of models through a groundbreaking partnership with Rudolf Diesel, John Taylor are the Taylor Dynamometer and Machine Company to produce engine dynamometers
* 1931 Martin and Anthony Winther introduce the first eddy current brake dynamometer


During the past seven decades of sustained development dynamometer, Taylor has her status as a leader in promoting the power measurement technology. Please contact us for more information on the latest developments in dynamometers and engine diagnostics, or for information about a specific product or application Dyno.

How dynamometers work

All dynamometers perform the same essential function, measurement of torque, speed and power of a combustion engine, electric motor or other power source. Although the result is the same, many technologies are used to achieve the desired result.

Two major types

Most banks can be placed in two different categories. Motor Dynamo Meters are designed to link directly to the drive shaft of an engine under test, and chassis dynamometers measure the ability of drive trains using rollers turned by the tires of a vehicle in beta. In addition to the two traditional types, Taylor offers a line of portable dynamometers that attach directly to the flywheel of an engine. This gives precise measurement of output engine without the removal of an engine from the train in motion.

A variety of models

The work of examining and measuring power is carried out by instruments with a wide variety of designs:

• Eddy current dynamometers a measurable effect on resistant engines under test conditions by using the magnetic flux between fixed and rotating electromagnets spun by the engine in beta.

• A variant of the eddy current design, powder dynamometers make flux through the application of a fine magnetic powder between the rotor and coil

• electric motor / generator types are a variation on the adjustable speed drive, using semiconductor components instead of the physical relationship between electromagnets to create measurable energy transfer

• Fan, hydraulic brakes and use water from air, water or hydraulic fluid to provide physical resistance to power by an engine or an engine in beta. The amount of resulting force is absorbed by the liquid is measured to provide an indication of the force exerted on the system

The best source for information on the dynamometer function and application is an application specialist Taylor Dynamometer. Please contact us for more details on implementing the latest technology in a dynamometer to work in your application.

Eddy current dynamometer History

The story of the eddy current dynamometer is the story of two Danish guys from Wisconsin, growing up in a time when innovations requires an inquisitive mind and a machine shop instead of a supercomputer and a doctoral degree. Phillip Martin Winther arrived at Ellis Island, New York in 1892 from his native Denmark. The family eventually settled in Kenosha Wisconsin, where Martin and his American-born brother Anthony started his working life as workers at the Jeffry Company, makers of the Rambler car. On Jeffry, the brothers were involved in the engineering of a four-wheel-drive truck, which led them to break and took the Winther Truck and Engine Company in 1917. While Winther Motor and Truck made several types of motor vehicles (including light trucks, fire engines and a sporty car) the company's main product is innovation. From about 1920, Martin and Anthony Winther patents were granted for nearly 300 mechanical devices. These included the first successful air conditioning system for Pullman railroad cars, a four-wheel-drive post-hole digger for AT & T, the first inductive coupling, a magnetic clutch, a cycle-car, variable speeds and transmission gears, and Press a gigantic driving, braking and couplings for the oil industry field.

Although productive, but one of the Winther brothers' inventions proved to have lasting impact. They are best known for the invention of the eddy current dynamometer, a type of high speed and high power dynamometer is far surpasses the products then available in terms of power handling capacity. The eddy current Dyno was able to recover quickly enough to test the turbine engines used in airplanes, wind tunnels and high-speed cars of the day. The eddy current dynamometer was the main product of the Dynamatic Corporation, founded in 1932 by the Winthers. The company was a success for many years both before and after the brothers sold their interest to Eaton Corporation in 1946. Variations on the eddy current draft still serve as a basis for dynamometers today. The designs continue to use is testament to the ingenuity of two men who never rose above the eighth grade in formal education, have parlayed their considerable on-the-job understanding of a lasting legacy of technical performance.

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