Wireless sensors make sense in many monitoring and even some control applications. In a Food Engineering article, Making the argument for wireless temperature solutions, experts from several instrumentation and control suppliers offered their thoughts on where wireless temperature devices make sense. Emerson’s Kevin Stultz was one of these experts who shared his thoughts.
Kevin first explained that:
…Rosemount temperature transmitters offer single point measurement solutions such as transmitters with Rosemount X-well Technology…
He noted that the:
…Rosemount 848T wireless temperature transmitter can accept up to four independent temperature inputs and combine them into one wireless output to be received at the wireless gateway. This is beneficial when there are space constraints in the process due to high measurement density applications, and to alleviate strain on the gateway itself, as gateways have a limit to the number of inputs to which they can connect.
When discussing the challenges of temperature variation within a truck reefer (refrigerated trailer), Kevin shared that if:
…you do a mapping study, you will see that within a trailer or cargo container there can be many different temperature zones.
He explained:
For example, the readings can be very different if the device is placed next to an air chute (where cold air is blowing), as compared to next to a trailer wall where insulation may have degraded… Also, it is really important that cargo is loaded correctly to promote optimal air flow. If you are only going to use one device, we recommend it be placed two-thirds back on the top pallet. Some end users deploy multiple devices—placed front, middle, and back—for increased granularity.
On real-time temperature monitoring, Kevin highlighted that single- and multi-use GO Real-Time Trackers can:
…collect a data point as frequently as every 6 minutes, with transmission every 18 minutes. The Oversight cloud portal is used to program alert parameters. If an alert condition occurs, a warning is triggered, and the end user is alerted so they can take real-time action. End users are deploying these devices and services to track cold chain information, and to also understand location of product in transit in real-time, enabling them to determine if product will be delivered on time.
Visit the Emerson.com site for more on the Rosemount X-Well technology, Rosemount 848T wireless temperature transmitter, and GO Real-Time Trackers & Oversight online portal. You can also connect and interact with other temperature measurement experts in the Measurement Instrumentation group in the Emerson Exchange 365 community.
