I guess nobody has missed that LumenRadio recently not only outperformed the competition, but also set a new standard for low energy mesh technology. Let us explain in detail what this means for Industry 4.0 and what incredible benefit it may entail for your business.

Real-time condition monitoring of critical equipment is a rule rather than an exception. At the same time less critical functions are disregarded due to cost or complexity aspects. However, sudden failure of these unmonitored assets might cause major damages to equipment, unplanned shutdowns or slowdowns with large expenses as a result. Actually, it is the installation of wireless sensor networks that is predicted to grow at an exponential rate over the next few years and among the fastest-growing sensor types are the simple temperature sensors*.

Many of you reading this are probably familiar with the tough requirements that need to be fulfilled to receive IP, IECEx and ATEX-certification for industrial devices. These certifications defines the essential health and safety requirements and conformity assessment procedures to be applied so that critical applications are protected in demanding environments.

Zero-wire sensor solutions

After these devices are installed and put in operation in Hazardous Locations, they must not be opened or affected – hence changing batteries after a few years in operation is not an option. You don’t want to put anything at risk in an explosive atmosphere and the products need to be designed to withstand extremely harsh conditions during its complete life cycle. This is one of the main benefit with having wireless products running in industrial applications; eliminating the need of changing batteries through the whole lifecycle. A technology which solves this problem is in strong demand and by some it’s considered a dream – we just made it a reality.

By releasing improved ultra-low energy consumption for battery operated solutions, we made it possible for industrial players to break new ground and take the next step within zero-wire sensor solutions.

Low energy mesh for sensor technology

MiraOS v2.1 enables ultra-low energy consumption for battery operated solutions. The current consumption for meshing nodes is now reduced to less than 16uA, which enables more than 15 years operation in routing mode from an AA-sized battery.

MiraOS enables low-powered sensor technology to become smart and connected through large-scale wireless mesh networks. Finally, product manufacturers can get an ultra-reliable and Future-Proof wireless solution with the most resilient technology on the market – justifiable for a much broader range of equipment. Decreased energy consumption means that sensors and devices can be designed for industrial requirements running on small batteries for a complete product lifecycle. Another main driver of low energy mesh technology in battery powered devices is retrofit. Industrial machines are retrofitted with wireless sensors to attain lower installation cost, lower product costs and to have an increased service life of the product.

Low-power radio technology is a fundamental requirement in the design of communication protocol for wireless sensor networks. Only by doing that we can achieve autonomous sensor networks that are flexible and can be installed at low cost.

We have said it before – choosing the right wireless connectivity technology will be crucial for the future success of your business, so don’t settle for mediocre standards.

If you are interested in learning more about wireless technologies for predictive maintenance, please contact:

Christian Sahlin
christian.sahlin@lumenradio.com
+46 (0) 703 40 89 00

Wireless connectivity for Industrial applications was a hot topic at the HANNOVER MESSE 2018 and it is pretty obvious why – the foundation for the digitalization of the manufacturing industry is reliable wireless communication and this is where it all begins.

I’m back from the the world’s leading trade show for industrial technology – the center-of-gravity for the ongoing Industry 4.0 movement and it is clear the next industrial revolution is here.

Industrial IoT and Industry 4.0 was, as expected, the focus of many of the large industry companies and I would say that connectivity was one of the most used words at the tradeshow.

Many large industrial companies and manufacturers are today either already presenting wireless solutions or looking at radio communication as a solution for upgrading their products and services. Now they realize the importance of building their digital solutions on a solid foundation and reliable wireless communication stacks are more important than ever.

The rapid change in the Industry

For a long time the consumer products have driven the innovation and technology development in the market but that is definitely about to change. The industrial actors require high standards and with their challenging technical requirements such as extreme low power consumption, accurate time synchronization, edge computing and ultra robustness they are setting the agenda for the future. With that said, I think that LumenRadio’s Mira solution is very well positioned for realizing all the opportunities that IIoT and Industry 4.0 represent.

Condition based monitoring

What many industrial companies now are realising, is that the right wireless connectivity solution is even more reliable and robust in comparison to traditional wired solutions. Wireless connectivity means simplified installation, lower installation costs, increased flexibility and scalability. And with countless different wireless sensors in meshed network, running on battery power or through energy harvesting technology, predictive maintenance will be applied more widely than ever.

Choosing the right technology

The ability to wirelessly collect and process large amount of data will boost your digital manufacturing offer. But as we all know, once an industrial company has chosen a certain technical platform it becomes very hard to change. From our experience we know that it is a tough decision to make, and that the wireless connectivity technology that you choose will be crucial for future success.

I am proud to present MiraOS for harsh industrial applications, as it offers many unique features tailored for IoT and Industry 4.0. Are you interested in knowing more about our patented technologies, operating system or radio modules for Future-Proof wireless connectivity, then please don’t hesitate to contact me.

Many manufacturers are today looking at the possibilities of implementing predictive maintenance and embracing digitalisation. With this post we want to explain the importance of choosing a wireless connectivity that can take your predictive maintenance solutions to the next level!

Already in the 1950s the concept “condition-based monitoring”, CBM, was introduced in the industry to predict impending failures early enough to save components and over time the concept predictive maintenance has evolved. However, the final target is still to determine the condition of a machine and detect problems before they cause downtime. To me, the big difference between condition based monitoring and predictive maintenance is the amount of gathered data and how the data is used. Simply – The more historical condition based data that is available, the better and more accurate predictive maintenance can be done.

High installation costs

It’s easy to see the beauty in predictive maintenance and one may wonder why the method is not used everywhere when the advantages over planned maintenance are so significant. The simple answer is because of high installation costs. When the decreased maintenance cost is less than the increased installation cost the willingness to invest in new systems is very low.

Until now, wired sensor has been the only reliable alternative but it entails disadvantages such as purchasing of expensive cables, hours of installation work and limitation in scalability.  Not to mention all the instruments equipped with diagnostics about the process that is unused because of the difficulties it implies to install wired connections in the field. I could go on but I guess you got the point.

The right wireless technology

Now imagine if countless different sensors could be mounted wirelessly anywhere in a harsh industrial environment. All connected to each other in a perfectly applied meshed network,  running on battery or energy harvesting technology. Then picture yourself that the wireless connection is even more reliable and robust in comparison to wired solutions.

With LumenRadio’s Cognitive coexisting technology in combination with a meshed network and firmware-over the air updates (FOTA) this scenario is not fictive anymore but rather the reality of today.

With Future-Proof radio technology predictive maintenance will be applied more widely than ever. For the end customer, this means easier installation, lower installation cost, increased flexibility and scalability but also improved profitability as the service life of the machine will be optimally managed.

It is the ability to collect and process large amount of information that will boost your manufacturing. With wireless technology more sensors can be connected gathering more data for your decisions. More connected sensors implies a higher demand for interference management. This is why choosing the right wireless connectivity technology will be crucial for the future success of your business, so don’t settle for mediocre standards.

If there is anything else you’d like to know regarding wireless technologies for predictive maintenance, you can always contact me directly:

Remember to also check out our Whitepaper – Future Proof with Wireless standards, which will give you an overview on the standards that are relevant to consider related to wireless communication and give you guidance and knowledge in choosing a wireless IoT standard.