INCREASED PERFORMANCE

INTOWS, the INstrumented TOrque Wrench System, is currently being evaluated by both NASA and Lockheed. Developed for the NASA-Kennedy Space Center's Space Shuttle Payload Division by ANCO Engineers, INTOWS is a quality assurance tool, which ensures that all bolt torquing operations are performed according to specified procedures and provides a documented history of those operations. INTOWS is now entering its final phase of evaluation.

DECREASED COSTS

INTOWS will reduce costs during the torquing of the several thousand bolts in a typical payload by reducing the number of test personnel needed by at least one-third, while providing greater QA control and performance.

COMPLETE SYSTEM

The system consists of a desktop computer equipped with a barcode label printer, an instrumented torque wrench, and a hand held microcomputer equipped with a barcode wand.

The hand held microcomputer is equipped with an integral keyboard, a backlit display, internal rechargeable NiCad battery pack (capable of providing over 8 hours of operation between recharges), over 1 mbyte of memory, an RS-232 serial communications port, a printer port, and an ANCO-designed single-channel signal conditioner and digital data acquisition board. The hand held unit's applied torque data is uploaded to the desktop computer when desired so that the data acquired during the performance of the procedures can be recorded and archived for QA purposes.

The torque wrench is instrumented with a strain gage array to transduce the applied torque. An approved torque procedure is identified with a barcode label describing the number of bolts, type of torque operation, torque tolerances, and proper torque range. The procedure barcode label is scanned by the wand attached to the hand held unit, this informs the program of the proper parameters. The hand held unit monitors and records the torque applied by the wrench to the fasteners. Audible and visual annunciations are provided to the operator throughout the torque procedure. Over and undertorque conditions cause audible and/or visual alarms and cause the unit to lockout until cleared by approved personnel for further use.