ENHANCING SYSTEMS WITH CONNECTED AUTOMATION AND SECURITY SOLUTIONS
How the right communication protocols and integrated sensors can help streamline automation, safety, and security
By Jo Fischer
Effective industrial solutions can’t operate solely in a vacuum. Modern day enterprises often tie together multiple complex systems for manufacturing, logistics, security, quality control, safety, and other miscellaneous needs. Businesses rely on the ability for various technologies to operate in tandem and it’s crucial that any new addition to an existing system be easily integrated through common communication protocols and easy installation.
In this article, we’ll provide an overview of a few common protocols used by Flir solutions, their importance in industrial solutions, and how automated cameras can transform production when smoothly integrated into larger systems.
Common Protocols and Their Importance
Communication protocols, in short, are a standardized set of rules that electronic devices follow so that they can exchange data with each other and ensure that devices communicate consistently across industrial networks. When looking for new solutions to incorporate into an operation, a device’s communication protocol may determine how easily it will fit into the existing architecture.
Below are a few of the common communication protocols that Flir cameras use, and their uses in the real world:
- ModBus: Used in industries all over the world, it is vendor neutral and makes for a convenient choice for system integrators to enable communication between sensors and a PLC (Programmable Logic Controller) in an industrial environment. The protocol can be used for controlling equipment and sending sensor data between different devices.
- Rest API: Allows different software systems to communicate with each other over the internet. A client (e.g., a browser) sends a request, and a server then sends back a response. Commonly used by developers to retrieve data from online services.
- MQTT: Used in low bandwidth environments which is often a requirement in IIOT (Industrial Internet of Things) applications. MQTT is used for sending commands to sensors and receiving the sensor data.
Beyond just sharing information, communication protocols assist operations in developing predictive maintenance routines through real-time tracking of production, integration into safety systems, and directly adjusting machinery.
Below are some real-world examples of how these communication protocols interact with systems that collect valuable thermal data.
Quality Control
MoviTHERM, an advanced thermal imaging solution provider, created an automated inspection system for checking cap seals on conveyor belt systems.
Using a Flir A6301, the system installs and integrates with Rest API and can then be used to automatically determine and locate imperfections in bottle cap seals without stopping production flow.
Because of the camera’s cooled system and fast capture speed, the inspection system provides production lines with a 100% inspection rate and log information on every single product that passes through it. The system can then send a rejection signal out and trigger the conveyor belt's removal system.
Want to learn more about how MoviTHERM’s system works? Watch our full webinar covering the safety and cost saving benefits they achieved here!
MoviTHERM system checks for a proper seal on bottle caps.
Eliminating Slow, Manual Work
Ski grinding (sometimes called ski tuning) is the process of grinding, flattening, and restoring a ski’s base to ensure faster, smoother skiing. Grinding is a crucial element of ski maintenance, but the work is both slow and labor intensive, requiring manual visual and tactile inspection.
RELISTE was able to automate both the inspection and grinding process by combining two Flir smart sensor cameras with a Cognex 3D laser-displacement sensor communicating across a PLC. By using these two technologies in tandem, RELISTE was able to determine distinct 3D points at the tips and ends of the skis to guide the automated grinding robot, replacing manual labor and reducing costs.
The combined information from the thermal imaging cameras and three-dimensional laser sensors provides the robotic grinder with precise 3D guidance - ensuring that only the steel edge is ground and not damaging the more vulnerable plastic elements of the apparel.
RELISTE combined Flir thermal imaging with Cognex 3D laser-displacement to improve its ski grinding process.
Sounding Alarms and Adjusting Controls
In natural gas fields, flare stacks burn off unwanted gas byproducts or flammable gasses released by pressure relief valves during unplanned over-pressuring of plant equipment. The flaring process is crucial for energy producers as it’s the last line of defense that prevents dangerous hydrocarbon pollutants from entering the atmosphere.
Flare stack monitoring and pollutant reduction is also mandated by regulations, creating even less room for failure on the production side.
Flare stacks can be much more easily monitored by connecting thermal cameras to safety systems and gas controls. Automated thermal cameras can monitor a flare 24/7 and automatically alert personnel of any issues.
Should incoming data fall outside the user preset limits, cameras can send alarm signals to a control room as well as automatically send numerical data and images for subsequent review. Cameras can also be connected to automatically adjust gas controls to achieve optimal combustion rates; minimizing pollutants escaping into the air and providing significant cost savings by avoiding excessive steam consumption.
Multilayered Security
When creating a security system, it is common practice to see designs that fortify the perimeter; but once that alarm happens, operators need continuous coverage and relevant information to make an informed decision as the potential threat progresses.
Traditionally, creating a detection system's tracking layer and providing complete situational awareness requires a system integrator to coordinate the communication between many different technologies.
Without an overarching communication system, this type of coordination can be quite complicated, requiring the integrator to set up a series of rules to first identify the target, classify it as a threat, locate the physical location, and then track the target as it moves. It's unlikely this potential threat would stay in the field of view of a single sensor, so the integrator would further have to coordinate communications between different sensors to maintain continuity as the target moves.
Often, to execute this level of situational awareness, a customer would need some sort of advanced software that collects the geodata being presented by a variety of different sensors and then coordinate proper handoffs as the target moves.
This is where Flir Nexus comes in. Nexus is a proprietary communication protocol that helps bridge the gap between devices and systems, enabling edge devices to communicate in a server/client format.
By coordinating at the edge, Nexus eliminates the need for additional software or servers, simplifies installation, and provides target identification, location, and tracking across multiple devices. As a potential threat moves through the scene, Nexus-enabled devices communicate the geodata to other Nexus devices and provide seamless handoffs for continuous tracking. This allows an operator to have the relevant information needed to make informed decisions on what is happening, thus providing complete situational awareness. Since all Flir devices have ONVIF drivers, all of the video information can be recorded to any VMS.
Conclusion
No matter your need or application, ease-of-integration is an important factor when making additions to your production or security system. While singular solutions are helpful, having the right connectivity can make your existing solutions even stronger and create a more complete system. Installing solutions that communicate with each other properly means enhanced safety, greater information, and reduced workload.
