T
T
H
H
E
E
W
W
O
O
R
R
L
L
D
D
L
L
E
E
A
A
D
D
E
E
R
R
I
I
N
N
C
C
O
O
M
M
P
P
A
A
C
C
T
T
M
M
A
A
T
T
E
E
R
R
I
I
A
A
L
L
H
H
A
A
N
N
D
D
L
L
I
I
N
N
G
G
S
S
O
O
L
L
U
U
T
T
I
I
O
O
N
N
S
S
15 of 21
Sept/20
RPM Test Procedure
The first step in troubleshooting most performance problem with a PowerHandler is to check whether the
unit is running at its design speed. This is a quick and simple check to do and requires only a means of
marking the drive roller, a means for counting seconds and about 2 minutes of your time.
Why we want to do this test and why it helps
For pneumatic machines, if insufficient air pressure or volume is being supplied or if there is a mechanical or
other machine problem, it will likely be evidenced by a slower RPM (revolutions per minute). Likewise for
battery-powered machines if the battery is not maintaining the required voltage or other mechanical or
electrical issues exist, the RPM will likely be lower. If a PowerHandler does not appear to roll or lift a load
that it should be able to, the starting point should be “is the machine performing as it should be?”.
Depending on the outcome of this quick test, different paths exist to find the actual solution.
The Test
With the PowerHandler “in situ” – being in the plant and connected to the airline it should operate on (air
machines) or with a fully charged battery pack (battery machines) do the following:
1.
Mark the drive roller with the felt tip pen.
2.
Pivot the machine back onto its rear wheels, so that the drive roller is out of contact with the
support roller and the support roller is lifted off the ground. (I.e., we want a ‘no-load’ RPM test).
3.
Depress the throttle to full/100% speed and the unit has reached its maximum speed, start the
stopwatch as the felt tip mark passes its highest (12 o’clock) position. Then count 10 revolutions
and
as the mark again reaches the 12 o’clock position, stop the watch.
4.
Immediately repeat above step again and assuming the count is similar, take the average and refer
to the table below to determine the performance of the machine vs. its design speed/RPM.
UNLOADED MACHINE SPEEDS
TYPE
MODEL
RPM
Seconds per 10
Rev's
Ft/Min
M/Min
AIR
MACHINES
A25 / A30
84 / 62
7.1 / 9.7
72 / 53
22 / 16
A40 / A60
57 / 39
10.5 / 15.4
49 / 34
15 / 10
Interpreting the Results
If the unloaded RPM is within 5% of the values in the table, we consider this acceptable and unlikely to be a
major issue. If it is above 5%, please firstly refer to the trouble-shooting guide in your machine’s Operator
and Maintenance Manual or advise PowerHandling so we can help trouble-shoot the issue. PowerHandling
checks and records the RPM of every machine it builds or repairs (in addition to test running the machine on
a paper roll). This can be used as a comparison to what RPM you measure.