Ultrasonic Sensor for Smart Meters Aid Conservation
December 23, 2009 by admin
Filed under Flow, Ultrasonic
MTC ElectroCeramics introduced its piezoelectric ceramic components and ultrasonic sensors for flow measurement of utilities, including gas, heat and water. Ultrasonic flow measurement devices can be a key component of “smart meters” designed to display hour-by-hour real time information about energy usage and pricing, facilitating residential and commercial energy conservation efforts.
Smart meters are being promoted by a $3.4 billion Smart Grid Investment Grant under the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act. It will be matched by industry, for a total investment worth more than $8 billion. More than 40 million smart meters are expected to be deployed in American homes as part of this initiative.
MTC ElectroCeramics’ piezoceramic components for measuring flow, distance and level have excellent acoustic sensitivity and mechanical strengths to withstand high pressures. Their tightly controlled resonant frequencies are key to achieving consistently good sensitivity levels. MTC ElectroCeramics offers a range of electrode materials and geometries to help customers with efficient high volume manufacturing.
MTC ElectroCeramics also uses its piezoceramic materials to design and manufacture ultrasonic sensors for metering both gas and liquid flow measurement, taking into consideration customer-specific requirements for sensor housing that operates reliably under high pressure and a wide range of temperatures. The sensors are supplied in custom designed housings complete with acoustic matching layers that enhance sensitivity and also provide the required protection from the environment. MTC ElectroCeramics’ in-house sensor test facilities ensure the best possible design solutions for specific customer needs.
Ultrasonic flowmeters are a solid state technology with no moving parts, making them more reliable than conventional mechanical meters. They suffer no pressure loss, offer nearly maintenance-free operation and are more accurate than many competing systems. In addition, they are more adaptable to the type of useful electronic display of energy use envisioned by champions of smart meters.
MTC ElectroCeramics has been supplying piezoelectric ceramic components and ultrasonic sensors to major utilities conducting ultrasonic measurement of hot and cold water, heat and natural gas flows for nearly twenty years. The use of ultrasonics for metering has been widely adopted, with more than 3 million meters installed annually in the European market.
Baumer Introduces Complete Line of Capacitive Sensors
April 29, 2009 by Editor
Filed under Liquid Level
Southington, Conn. — Baumer has introduced a complete line of Capacitive Sensors capable of penetrating through packaging materials such as plastics, glass, cardboard, foam, and other substrates. These sensors are available in a range of housing sizes and designs, and offer extended sensing distances to facilitate installation.
Installed outside of container walls, Baumer Capacitive Sensors do not require direct contact with the target substrate, a feature that protects the sensor from damage and ensures process safety and sensor life expectancy. This non-invasive method of detection also ensures that the sensor’s housing cannot contaminate the target material.
Baumer Capacitive Sensors are available in cylindrical, rectangular and special designs. Models are available for use in limited space applications, and for performance in ambient and elevated temperatures. Possible target substrates include plastics, glass, ceramics, porcelain, clay, stone, wood, paper, cardboard, pellets, powders, and foods. These sensors are used in packaging, PCB fabrication, printing, rubber/plastics fabrication, robotics and handling, transportation, warehousing, food and drug processing, medical device manufacturing, cosmetic production, wood processing, metalworking, oil and gas processing, water treatment, and textile production.
Baumer
www.baumerelectric.com/usa
Micro-machined Silicon Pressure Transducers
March 25, 2009 by R. Nelson Parrish
Filed under Pressure
Omegadyne announces the most durable version of its high accuracy MM Series micro-machined silicon pressure transducers. The new hermetically sealed version of the MM Series features all welded Stainless Steel construction, 316 wetted parts and glass to metal seals (GMS) at the electrical outlets. This ensures that the unit is hermetically sealed from external environments and the media. Designed for use on automotive and aircraft test platforms and anywhere environmental concerns demand the most durable characteristics.
The sealed MMA500V Series has a micro machined silicon core that provides high accuracy, low drift and excellent long term stability in the harshest environments. Ranges from 100 psi to 5000 psi, accuracies from 0.08% to 0.03% and a variety of pressure and electrical connections make this MMA500V Series Transducer extremely versatile. The temperature compensation range can be as broad as -40 to 200*F (-40 to 104*C) and thermal errors as low as +/- 0.3% over the compensated range. Operating temperature range is -49 to 250*C (-45 to 121*C). The MMA500V Series design is further ruggedized with a secondary containment system in the event of diaphragm rupture. A 5-Point NIST traceable calibration certificate included.
The MM Series pressure transducers offer “Custom Designed” features with fast delivery. Our modular design allows you to construct a pressure sensor to meet your application requirements, with guaranteed fast delivery… typically from stock to 2 weeks. Our product configurator found online at omegadyne.com allows quick and easy configuration of a transducer that meets the exact needs of your project.
Web-Enabled Ultrasonic Sensors
March 18, 2009 by R. Nelson Parrish
Filed under Level
LOGAN, UT – Automation Products Group, Inc. (APG) introduces LOE Web-Enabled Ultrasonic Level Sensors. These self-contained ultrasonic sensors provide a low-cost, tailored sensing solution for monitoring liquids or solids in remote tanks, and can also be used for local tank monitoring applications.
LOE ultrasonic sensors feature Power Over Ethernet (POE) for easy wiring, AutoSense software for hassle-free operation, and can be easily programmed and configured remotely – without requiring any configuration software – via APG’s levelandflow.com website, and locally via the sensor’s embedded web page. Sensor level data is transmitted to a dedicated website that utilizes an open-source MySQL database format to ensure user data is available in any format that might be required of the application.
Three models are available. The LOE-2126 provides a detection range of 1 to 25 ft., the LOE-3136 provides a detection range of 1.5 to 40 ft., and the LOE-6126 provides a detection range of 4 in. to 180 in. The LOE-6126 delivers a best-in-class blanking distance of just 1 in., compared to 4 in. for most other competitive sensors, which uniquely enables a single sensor to monitor the entire tank or vessel range.
Sensor readings are uploaded to a database via a standard Ethernet (TCP/IP) connection, where the level or volume information can be viewed from any computer with internet access, via a password-protected web page. The sensor and/or the web-server can be user-programmed to trigger the website to send an email, text message or both when a predetermined level or volume is reached. These sensors also feature two internal relays that can be programmed to control pumps or activate local alarms.
Sensor parameters and settings can be changed at any time via the sensor’s internal web page, which is readily accessible by simply entering the sensor’s IP address into any internet browser on any computer connected to the same network. The internal web page also displays the level or volume information, effectively turning any computer on the network into a potential remote tank display/monitor.
