Intelligent triboelectric V-belts with condition monitoring capability

In this study, the V-belt transmission structure and triboelectric nanogenerator (TENG) are combined, and an intelligent transmission system, the triboelectric V-belt (TVB), is proposed. Furthermore, its condition-monitoring capability is investigated to improve the intelligence level of the traditional mechanical transmission system. The designed TVB can be integrated with a belt pulley without additional structural space; moreover, it exhibits good reliability by avoiding contact with the working surface of the V-belt transmission. For the output characteristics of the TVB, the variation curves of the output voltage and current with load resistance were tested and the influence of several design variables was elucidated. Through monitoring the amplitude and time–frequency features of the TVB output current, the slipping failure of the V-belt drive can be detected in time, and typical faults of a bevel gearbox (including defective driving/driven gears and supporting bearings) were classified with an average accuracy exceeding 90%. The classification accuracy based on TVB was only slightly lower than that based on the vibration sensor. The designed TVB exhibits promising application prospects for monitoring industrial transmission systems.