Design and construction of a test stand for diesel engine governors

Abstract

This thesis is a concise description of a simple, electrically driven, governor test stand, as designated by the need of the Malta Dry Docks to be able to carry out performance tests, there and then, on suspected malfunctioning governors and/or similar actuators. Malta Dry Docks is majorly concerned with Woodward governors, a considerable batch of which has to be annually despatched to the United Kingdom for performance testing, and successive commissioned repairs, when retained necessary. Due to this effect, past records reveal that a considerable waste of time and thus, money, is being afflicted upon MDD in various ways. For example; requests of overhauling the governors on marine diesel engines (usually found in good working conditions), without trying to locate where the actual problem might lie, and only some hours away from termination of the work on the vessel, according to contract; and in some cases, late shipping back of the governor on behalf of Woodward in the UK, in a few cases, without even having tested, let alone repaired, the governor. Consequently, a governor test stand would enable to prove to the customer whether a governor is actually malfunctioning or not, and allow the normally permissible slight adjustments to the governor internal linkage, thus regaining the required governor performance. Only in cases where the governor is completely battered, or heavily damaged, will it be immediately despatched to the Woodward technical premises for a complete overhaul, The test stand effective for our local must be, thus, proficiently designed to cater for a reasonable range of existing governors in the marine industry. This, of course, demanded getting acquainted with the 'a' to 'z' about governors, in particular, those designed by Woodward. Admittedly, this proved to be a somewhat tedious task, due to our limited theoretical and practical knowledge on governors. Consequently, the first and foremost step had to involve familiarising ourselves with these governors - namely; design, construction, operation, etc.