Abstract
Sensors Monitor Wind Turbines
PCB Piezotronics provides a broad range of sensors and instrumentation for the testing of wind turbines and turbine components. Such sensing systems enable wind farms to keep operating at optimum performance by increasing reliability and reducing highly expensive downtime.
Because of the very high costs associated with repairing of bearings up in a wind turbine generator – hundreds of metres in the air and often out to sea – the generators are fitted with many industrial sensors to monitor for increasing trends in vibration on the bearing casings. Engineers can then plan maintenance at an appropriate time rather than having to react to emergencies.
The company’s conditioning monitoring sensors already deployed in such monitoring systems include series 601, 607, and 626 and models 602D01 and 603C01 low-cost integrated circuit piezoelectric (ICP) accelerometers, as well as the latest embeddable accelerometers that can easily be designed into printed circuit boards.
Also offered are microphones and preamplifiers that can be used to measure internal and external wind turbine noise. Gearboxes and main bearings are typical noise sources that are monitored internally, while overall turbine noise is measured externally. Model 831 features a built-in narrow-band fast Fourier transform (FFT) analysis option that enables higher frequency components to be analysed for predicting possible machine faults. Analysis of the source of audible noise can result in gearbox modifications so that equipment runs more quietly and efficiently.
Other problems can include blade imbalances, which can result in very low-frequency vibration. These can be detected using a microelectromechanical systems (MEMS) accelerometer from the 37XX series of single and triaxial direct current (DC) response devices. These feature gas-damped silicon MEMS sensing elements for uniform repeatable performance and offer high frequency overload protection.
PCB Piezotronics provides many sensors and instrumentation for testing wind turbines and components
Simplify.NET Programmer Test and Measurement System Design
National Instruments (www.ni.com) has launched Measurement Studio 2013, claimed to be the only .NET software suite that provides all the tools needed to build a professional, end-to-end test or measurement system in Microsoft Visual Studio. Indeed, this new product, which integrates into Visual Studio 2012, 2010 and 2008, is said to be the only software on the market that addresses the specific needs of the test, measurement and automation industries.
It simplifies hardware communication code with instrument control libraries and built-in configuration assistants for the latest data acquisition (DAQ) devices. With more than 500 advanced analysis, maths and signal processing functions, this software suite provides the functions necessary to accurately process raw data and yield meaningful results.
National Instruments’ Ray Almgren commented,
Instead of wasting time creating their own UI controls or purchasing financial UI software and modifying it to work with engineering data, engineers and scientists can use Measurement Studio to quickly and easily create.NET test and measurement applications.
Amplicon Launches Test System Division
The Amplicon engineering division has long been involved in the development of turnkey test systems used in a variety of industrial applications, including complex data logging systems, high-speed DAQ, passive component testing, strain gauge measurements and vibration testing.
The company’s newly launched Test Systems section provides detailed information on how to help customers design and build bespoke test system solutions. Its engineering team is experienced in using and specifying a variety of technologies, including personal computer (PC)-based DAQ, PXI, GPIB, cPCI, local area network extensions for instrumentation (LXI) and virtual machine environment extensions for instrumentation (VXI), all typically used in automatic test equipment for electronics (ATE). To complement this, Amplicon offers a comprehensive range of 19-inch rackmount computers and cabinet solutions.
The goal is to alleviate the design considerations and challenges encountered in the development of a test system including test requirements, development time, decreased budgets and test system longevity. To find out more, visit http://www.amplicon.com/test-systems.
Bluetooth Low Energy Controller Wins EDN China Award
The EM Microelectronic (http://www.emmicroelectronic.com) EM9301 ultra-low power Bluetooth low energy controller has won a Best Product Award at the 2012 EDN China Innovation Awards in the Communications and Networking category. In this competition, 128 products from 71 vendors vied for Best Product Awards in nine major technology categories.
Michel Willemin, EM president and general manager, commented,
We are honoured that EDN China, one of that country’s most prestigious electronic design magazines, has recognised our flexible BLE controller for its technical superiority. A significant market is developing for smartphone-connected, ultra-low power BLE sensing solutions and the EM9301 offers excellent flexibility and low power consumption. The EM9301 is currently being designed-in by major OEMs, innovative start-ups, and module manufacturers worldwide. Our BLE controller is a significant addition to our growing family of 2.4GHz wireless transceivers.
Optimised for ultra-low power wireless sensing, remote control and monitoring applications, the EM9301 operates on as little as 0.8 V. In receive mode, the EM9301 requires only 16.5 mA, while competing products consume up to 23 mA. It can be powered by a wide range of common single-cell batteries or energy harvesters such as solar cells and piezoelectric and electro-magnetic elements.
The EM9301 is fully Bluetooth smart qualified for single-mode master and slave applications and combines the physical layer, link layer and host controller interface (HCI) layer in one flexible chip.
Giddy-Up! Sensors for Equestrian Training
Tapeswitch (http://www.tapeswitch.co.uk), the manufacturer of pressure-sensitive products, safety light curtains and accessories, is claiming to be ‘first past the post’ by providing sensors for horse riding simulators to Racewood Equestrian Simulators.
Racewood is one of the principal manufacturers of equestrian simulators, designing and manufacturing a patented product to simulate a wide range of horse riding activities. These include racing, polo, jumping and riding for equestrians of all abilities. Racewood machines have sensors fitted at the neck, saddle and knee to identify the riding position and help identify and correct any flaws in the rider’s position.
Historically, Racewood had used foil sensors, but these proved unreliable, therefore the company asked Tapeswitch to provide a different solution. Tapeswitch identified a switch that would deliver just the right sensitivity that the customer needed; this allowed Racewood to fit the switches inside foam and leather.
Valve Monitoring and Control Website Launched
Westlock Controls (http://www.westlockcontrols.com), which specialises in solutions for the networking, monitoring and control of process valves, has launched its new website. This, says the company, provides a useful resource to plant engineers looking to assess its broad range of valve monitoring and control systems.
With many permutations available for valve monitoring and control solutions, Westlock has redesigned and updated its website to take visitors through a logical process in order to aid system specification and product selection. A key feature is that visitors can search for Westlock products by hazardous classification and standards; therefore, they can immediately identify which products are relevant for their specific application and installation requirements.
The website also incorporates an enhanced technical support area that features new material, including product specifications and technical datasheets, standard wiring diagrams and installation and maintenance instructions. Technical bulletins provide visitors with industry best practice advice and guidance on key topics, such as hazardous area classification, safety integrity levels (SILs) and enclosure standards.
Westlock Controls has launched its new website
Electro-Hydraulic Valve Actuation Advantages for Coal Mine
Rotork has supplied valve actuators for the pipework delivering water to the north and south coal processing (washing) plants from a new 2-GL dam source at Mount Thorley Warkworth (MTW). This facility is an integrated operation of two adjacent open cast mines in the Hunter Valley region of New South Wales, Australia, supplying international and domestic markets with semi-soft coking coal and thermal coal.
This project has included an actuator for a pipeline supplying water to a new Water Cart Fill Point for routine dust suppression operations. Each water cart fill is made up of 120 tonnes of water, delivered at a pressure high enough to overcome a 10 m rise in the height of the pipework at the point of delivery.
The specification for the actuator to operate the isolation valve on the Water Cart Fill Point was very demanding, calling for a solar powered, 24VDC SIL-rated electric fail-safe actuator, capable of closing a 500 mm butterfly valve in 10 s. Rotork has been able to satisfy all these criteria with a standard Skilmatic Pro electro-hydraulic product solution.
Rotork has supplied valve actuators for the pipework delivering water to the north and south coal washing plants in New South Wales, Australia
These self-contained electrically powered actuators – called Skilmatic Pro – combine, says Rotork, ‘the simplicity of electrical operation with the precision of hydraulic control and the reliability of mechanical fail-safe action’. They comprise integrated control module, hydraulic manifold and a power unit consisting of a motor, hydraulic pump and reservoir, which offer flexibility and customisation to suit specific applications.
I/O Available in Stainless Steel
TURCK (http://www.turck.com.au) says that its input/output (I/O) solution, BL Compact, is now available in a stainless steel model. The material provides greater resistance to corrosion and other environmental contaminants than standard nickel–brass variations, therefore extending longevity.
The system collects a variety of signals in a single, rugged node on a network. Rather than routing all signals through a control cabinet, this device makes it possible to obtain analogue, digital, thermocouple, resistance temperature detector (RTD), serial, radio-frequency identification (RFID) or a mixture of signal types in a compact, on-the-machine device over Ethernet Industrial Protocol (IP), DeviceNet, CANopen and PROFIBUS-DP.
Up to two signal types can be combined in any combination in the BL Compact system, including RFID and analogue, digital and serial. To extend application flexibility, up to 16 devices may be added to an existing network, and signals may be gathered on the machine without an enclosure. This reduces the time it takes to run wires for each device back to the control cabinet and the potential for wiring errors.
TURCK’s BL Compact input/output (I/O) solution is now available in stainless steel
News in Brief
Stockist Forward 2000 (Oxon) wins Festo award
Festo (http://www.festo.co.uk) has announced that it has awarded Oxford-based Forward 2000 (Oxon) with its ‘Premier Stockist of the Year’ award for outstanding performance in 2012. This award is presented to the company within the Festo Premier Stockist network that shows the best sales growth of Festo products for the year, combined with demonstrable gains in operational efficiency – evidenced by more than 90% usage of the Festo online shop – and the highest level of commitment to strategic campaigns.
Wireless sensor gateway for cost-effective embedding
Banner’s
Testing LU automated signalling
Upgrading traditional methods of testing rail services involve closing down services, spending time and money and disrupting passengers. The automatic signalling system upgrade to the Jubilee and Northern lines on the London Underground (LU) required an innovative substitute to minimise these issues. Testing a new automated signalling system with several virtual test trains (VTTs) was achieved by Thales UK using NI CompactRIO hardware and NI LabVIEW system design software to mimic an actual passenger train. The solution has reportedly saved vast amounts of time and money, increased productivity and helped provide a significant leap forward in signalling testing innovation.
Remote online control of micro PLCs
Crouzet is using HMS Industrial Network’s Netbiter as remote management solution for its latest generation of micro programmable logic controllers (PLCs) – the Millenium 3 Smart. This provides users of the micro PLC with instant access to data on their field equipment over the web. An example of an early adopter is the Swedish company Triplesign, which uses the solution to monitor alternating billboards. With Netbiter, the status of each billboard can easily be seen and the message to display can be remotely controlled. A Netbiter EasyConnect gateway is connected to the micro PLC in the field. This gateway communicates with a cloud-based data centre, which collects and stores the data from the field equipment. By logging in to Netbiter Argos, users can see the exact status of the Millenium 3 and thereby their own devices in a web dashboard.