Wirelessly communicating devices have changed our everyday lives. One only needs to think of cellphones or WLAN. For quite some time already, the topic ‘wireless’ has been the talk of the town, and also in the industrial world. One could almost get the impression that, in the future, every sensor should be operated wirelessly. Wireless communication certainly has great potential, e.g. to solve application problems that were considered unsolvable in the past. It also plays an ever more important role in logistics processes around the globe, and last but not least, modern wireless technologies are opening up new perspectives and serving as a source of inspiration for new ideas.
The successes of PlicsRadio, the first radio-based communication solution from Vega, also show that customers are sensitised to this topic. Recently the company launched PlicsMobile, another component for wireless communication on the market. Together, the two devices make customised, and thus cost-effective, wireless solutions possible.
Replete with advantages
Wireless communication offers far more advantages than just the reduction of wiring and installation costs. Users also benefit from simpler planning, substantially faster setup and commissioning and more effective servicing and diagnosis options – not to mention greater flexibility and mobility.
Beside time required for instrument installation, radio-based solutions also reduce maintenance and idle time. All in all, considerably less preparatory work is required and the simple topology makes later modifications easier and minimises wiring errors.
The ‘cable substitute’
In the 2,4 GHz standard version, PlicsRadio transmits 4-20 mA/HART signals as well as switching states wirelessly over short distances. All sending units are available with ISM modules (Industrial, Scientific and Medical Band) in a licence and registration free radio band. Transmission ranges with line-of-sight connection amount to about 1000 m.
Vega deliberately decided against using a commercial radio band, this way, the user has to neither register the device nor pay for a licence. The range is usually quite sufficient for transmission within a company’s premises. PlicsRadio is a simple and clever solution if laying a signal line from the sensors to the processing system is too expensive or totally impossible. This is usually the case when obstacles such as railroad tracks, roads or rivers have to be overcome. Further typical examples in which wireless could pay off include extensions of existing systems, mobile system components (e.g. conveyor belts), temporary installations, high silos, plants with widely scattered sensors and pilot plants that are frequently modified.
The ‘logistics expert’
Unlike PlicsRadio with its limited range, the new PlicsMobile can transmit data from all over the world. Measurement data, especially of levels, are increasingly forming the basis for a wide variety of tasks including registration and archiving as well as supply chain management. Areas of application are primarily those in which measurement and evaluation are located far away from each other, making cable-bound solutions virtually impossible, e.g. mobile transport containers, deep wells, tall silos, precipitation measuring stations, waste oil gathering points or river and sea level measurements.
The module nicely complements existing solutions with signal conditioning instruments, especially in the area of remote data transmission and silo and tank management by suppliers. In combination with the visualisation software WEB-VV as interface between measurement technology and user, it allows simple and reliable inventory management both in local networks and around the globe via the Internet.
The right solution for every application
Just like PlicsRadio, the transmitting and receiving unit PlicsMobile fits perfectly in Vega’s modular instrument concept plics. It is available either as an integrated auxiliary module or as the stand-alone module PlicsMobile T61.
The compact solution lends itself well for measurement setups where power is available via mains adaptor or external battery, e.g. in stationary applications like water level measuring points, waste oil gathering points or deep wells. With the detached version, the mobile radio unit is located in a separate housing and connected to the sensor via cable. This version is especially suitable for applications that do not require long periods of battery operation.
PlicsMobile and PlicsRadio as well as all signal conditioning instruments and connected field devices can be operated, comprehensively and transparently via the universal configuration tool PACTware based on FDT technology. Unrestricted access to sensors with HART, Profibus PA or Foundation Fieldbus interface is thus possible from a distance, from parameterisation, configuration and commissioning right through to diagnosis and maintenance. This also applies to sensors from other manufacturers.
Both are a valuable addition to Vega’s portfolio. The one displays its prowess particularly as a ‘problem solver or ‘cable substitute’ in difficult applications. The other paves the way for efficient logistics processes, e.g. Vendor Managed Inventory. With these two complementary components in hand, Vega is well prepared for current and future developments in wireless applications.
For more information contact John Groom, Vega Instruments SA, +27 (0)11 795 3249, john.groom@vega.com, www.vega.com
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