Tag Archives: efficiency

Business Case, Humidity, News, Process, Sensors, Temperature

INDUSTRY 4.0 MONITORING FOR AUTOMOTIVE TESTING

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casestudy

In 2018 the UK automotive sector was valued at £82 billion and employed 823,000 people.

As the trends towards automated, low carbon and electrical vehicles increase the requirements of modern testing and certification are critical. In this customer application we explore how one of the UK’s largest automotive test companies is meeting these new challenges helped by the adoption of the cutting edge Rotronic Monitoring System (RMS).

Automotive Test and Validation

In 2017 the Worldwide Harmonised Light Vehicle Test Procedure (WLTP) was introduced.  This lab test required the assessment of fuel consumption as well as CO2 and pollutant emissions from cars during
• Test cycles based on real-driving data
• Test cycles based on a variety of driving phases
• Test cycles using both heaviest and lightest power-train configurations

Facilities that provide these tests and have access to suitable test tracks are increasingly in high demand. Prior to testing cars must be preconditioned at specific environmental
conditions and during lab testing these conditions are replicated.

WLTP

The Application

In order to meet ongoing quality demands and compliance to the latest Vehicle Emissions Regulations (WLTP), our client required a solution to improve and enhance their monitoring capability in several key test areas. Latest standards required more frequent ambient measurements as well as five-minute rolling averages. Engine testing is undertaken in multiple soaking areas operating at different temperatures, ranging from -20 °C to +50 °C, requiring numerous temperature and humidity sensors monitoring different parts and areas of the test vehicles.

The Challenge
It is no longer practical to use a range of different monitoring platforms for every specific application. For the automotive industry the growth of the latest 5G and electric car technology provides new validation and testing challenges, a monitoring platform must be able to adapt to meet these new requirements easily. For our client the system had to be centrally managed with all data accessible from anywhere on site. Reporting, alarming and a clear audit trail were vital. Already having experience with a range of hardware and software it was clear that the system had to utilise standard IT infrastructure and software platforms.

car
Rolling road for vehicle testing

Hardware Integration and Standardisation

Investing in a monitoring system traditionally locked customers in to one supplier. Where possible, RMS has been designed to support Industry 4.0 open integration and interoperability. As such, RMS software is built as a standard web service. All data sits on a standard SQL database. Industrial device interoperability is never easy, RMS provides
options via simple APIs for many applications and analogue input modules for existing analogue hardware. When a robust and secure integration solution for digital hardware is required it can be professionally integrated using our RMS-Convertor module.

The result is that end users can add supported 3rd party devices with a few clicks. These devices benefit from secure data backup and auto-recovery of data in the event of any system downtime, as well as all the normal charting, reporting and alarming features RMS offers.

Project Overview

Our client engineers favoured Red Lion E3 modules, a proven industrial I/O device from Red Lion Controls. The E3 range includes 16 channel thermocouple devices, ideal for automotive testing. Integration was achieved in partnership with Rotronic R&D. Using a trial Red Lion E3 device Rotronic was able to fully integrate the unit. Final testing was undertaken by the client to confirm that the devices performed as required.

A key feature was that the Red Lion E3 modules have the ability to daisy chain Ethernet devices. Therefore, using a single port the 16x channel Red Lion module was networked along with a high accuracy humidity and temperature RMS LAN logger to every engine test cell providing a robust, elegant solution for this industrial application.

Millbrook

Product Focus – Rotronic Monitoring System (RMS)

High accuracy and high frequency multi parameter monitoring including temperature, humidity, pressure and dew point.
• On premise or cloud software solution
• Support for wired and wireless data loggers
• No local end user software required just a web-browser
• Full historic record and summary reporting
• High accuracy and high frequency ambient temperature and humidity monitoring
• Ability to calculate and record 5 minute rolling averages with alarms
• Extensive support for 3rd party devices and data streams

Read the case study from Red Lion on this project here; https://www.redlion.net/resources/millbrook-technology-park-case-study 

Contact us to discuss your monitoring requirements be they GxP, Industrial or Commercial.

Dr Jeremy Wingate
Rotronic

News, Sensors

Critical monitoring of wind turbines

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The future is very encouraging for wind power. The technology is growing exponentially due to the current power crisis and the ongoing discussions about nuclear power plants. Wind turbines are becoming more efficient and are able to produce increased electricity capacity given the same  factors.

Picture2
Worldwide installed wind power per year in MW. (Source GWEC)

Converting wind power into electrical power:

A wind turbine converts the kinetic energy of wind into rotational mechanical energy. This energy is directly converted, by a generator, into electrical energy. Large wind turbines as shown in the picture, typically have a generator installed on top of the tower. Commonly, there is also a gear box to adapt the speed. Various sensors for wind speed, humidity and temperature measurement are placed inside and outside to monitor the climate. A controller unit analyses the data and adjusts the yaw and pitch drives to the correct positions. See the schematic below.

Wind Turbine
Schematic of Wind Turbine Systems

The formula for wind power density:

W   = d x A2 x V3 x C  where :

d: defines the density of the air. Typically it’s 1.225 Kg/m3 This is a value which can vary depending on air pressure, temperature and humidity.

A2: defines the diameter of the turbine blades. This value is quite effective with its squared relationship. The larger a wind turbine is the more energy can be harnessed.

V3: defines the velocity of the wind. The wind speed is the most effective value with its cubed relationship.

In reality, the wind is never the same speed and a wind turbine is only efficient at certain wind speeds. Usually 10 mph (16 km/h) or greater is most effective. At high wind speed the wind turbine can break. The efficiency is therefore held to a constant of around 10 mph.

C: defines the constant which is normally 0.5 for metric
values. This is actually a  combination of two or more constants depending on the specific variables and the  system of units that is used.

 Why measure the local climate?

To forecast the power of the wind over a few hours or days is not an easy task.

Picture3
Off shore wind farms

Wind farms can extend over miles of land or offshore areas where the climate and the wind speed can vary substantially, especially in hilly areas. Positioning towers only slightly to the left or right can make a significant difference because the wind velocity can be increased due to the topography. Therefore, wind mapping has to be performed in order to determine if a location is  correct for the wind farm. Such wind maps are usually done with Doppler radars which are equipped with stationary temperature and humidity sensors. These sensors improve the overall accuracy.

Once wind mapping has been carried out over different seasons, wind turbine positions can be determined. Each turbine will be equipped with sensors for wind direction and speed, temperature and humidity. Using all these parameters, the turbine characteristics plus  the weather forecast, a power  prediction can be made using complex mathematics.

The final power value will be calculated in “watts” which will be supplied into power grids, (see schematic on the right).  Electricity for many houses or factories can be powered by the green energy.

Picture4
Not ideal energy generating conditions!

Why measure inside a wind turbine?

Wind farms are normally installed in areas with harsh environments where strong winds are common. Salty air, high humidity and condensation are daily issues for wind turbines.

Normal ventilation is not sufficient to ensure continuous operation. The inside climate has to be monitored and dehumidified by desiccant to protect the electrical components against short circuits and the  machinery against corrosion. These measurements are required to ensure continuous operation and reduce maintenance costs.

What solutions can Rotronic offer?

Rotronic offers sensors with  exceptional accuracy and a wide range of products for meteorological applications and for monitoring  internal conditions.

Low sensor drift and long-term stability are perfect in   wind energy applications where reduced maintenance reduces operational costs.

The wide range of networking possibilities including RS-485, USB, LAN and  probe extension cables up to 100 m allows measurements in remote or hard to reach places. Validated Rotronic HW4 software makes it easy to analyse the data or it can be exported into MS Excel for  reporting and further processing.

The ability to calibrate  accurately using humidity standards and portable generators on site ensures continued sensor performance!

Comments or queries? Please do get in touch!