WO2000028286A1 - Systeme de surveillance - Google Patents

Systeme de surveillance Download PDF

Info

Publication number
WO2000028286A1
WO2000028286A1 PCT/GB1999/003709 GB9903709W WO0028286A1 WO 2000028286 A1 WO2000028286 A1 WO 2000028286A1 GB 9903709 W GB9903709 W GB 9903709W WO 0028286 A1 WO0028286 A1 WO 0028286A1
Authority
WO
WIPO (PCT)
Prior art keywords
vessel
monitoring unit
sensors
transmission signals
sheet
Prior art date
Application number
PCT/GB1999/003709
Other languages
English (en)
Inventor
Brian Stewart Hoyle
Reginald Mann
Bruce Donaldson Grieve
Trevor Andrew York
Original Assignee
Process Tomography Foresight Technology Limited
Priority date (The priority date is an assumption and is not a legal conclusion. Google has not performed a legal analysis and makes no representation as to the accuracy of the date listed.)
Filing date
Publication date
Application filed by Process Tomography Foresight Technology Limited filed Critical Process Tomography Foresight Technology Limited
Priority to EP99954173A priority Critical patent/EP1129323A1/fr
Priority to AU10599/00A priority patent/AU1059900A/en
Publication of WO2000028286A1 publication Critical patent/WO2000028286A1/fr

Links

Classifications

    • G—PHYSICS
    • G01—MEASURING; TESTING
    • G01D—MEASURING NOT SPECIALLY ADAPTED FOR A SPECIFIC VARIABLE; ARRANGEMENTS FOR MEASURING TWO OR MORE VARIABLES NOT COVERED IN A SINGLE OTHER SUBCLASS; TARIFF METERING APPARATUS; MEASURING OR TESTING NOT OTHERWISE PROVIDED FOR
    • G01D11/00—Component parts of measuring arrangements not specially adapted for a specific variable
    • G01D11/24—Housings ; Casings for instruments
    • G01D11/245—Housings for sensors
    • G—PHYSICS
    • G08—SIGNALLING
    • G08C—TRANSMISSION SYSTEMS FOR MEASURED VALUES, CONTROL OR SIMILAR SIGNALS
    • G08C17/00—Arrangements for transmitting signals characterised by the use of a wireless electrical link
    • G08C17/04—Arrangements for transmitting signals characterised by the use of a wireless electrical link using magnetically coupled devices
    • G—PHYSICS
    • G08—SIGNALLING
    • G08C—TRANSMISSION SYSTEMS FOR MEASURED VALUES, CONTROL OR SIMILAR SIGNALS
    • G08C23/00—Non-electrical signal transmission systems, e.g. optical systems
    • G08C23/04—Non-electrical signal transmission systems, e.g. optical systems using light waves, e.g. infrared
    • G—PHYSICS
    • G08—SIGNALLING
    • G08C—TRANSMISSION SYSTEMS FOR MEASURED VALUES, CONTROL OR SIMILAR SIGNALS
    • G08C2201/00—Transmission systems of control signals via wireless link
    • G08C2201/50—Receiving or transmitting feedback, e.g. replies, status updates, acknowledgements, from the controlled devices
    • G08C2201/51—Remote controlling of devices based on replies, status thereof

Definitions

  • the present invention relates to a system for monitoring conditions within a vessel a wall of which defines an enclosed space and a sensor array for mounting vvithin such a vessel.
  • Process tomography systems have been designed which can obtain valuable information about process conditions within vessels. In many situations however it is undesirable or unacceptable to penetrate a process vessel with cables to enable communication with sensors located within that vessel. Typical situations in which such restrictions apply are stirred tank reactors, fluidised beds, separators, cyclones, hydraulic and pneumatic conveyors, crystallisers and the like. Particularly in the case of bioreactors where sterility is an essential requirement, or pharmaceutical manufacturing where high integrity containment is required to guarantee an uncontaminated workplace and product, it is highly undesirable to have cables penetrating the walls of process vessels.
  • Typical tomography systems require a symmetrically distributed set of transducers from which sample data produces a set of "projections" through the process. These are then "reconstructed” to form an estimate of the cross-section interrogated by the sensor array in terms of the parameters sensed by the transducers. A range of process information may then be estimated, for example volume fraction in a flowing mixture, solids concentration in stirred reactors, density distribution in a product and the like.
  • transducers are arranged either singly or in pairs or in groups to measure a range of parameters. Examples are . electrical capacitance measuring systems, electrical resistance measuring systems, electromagnetic inductance measuring systems, acoustic and ultrasound reflection and transmission measuring systems, X-ray transmission measuring systems, and nuclear magnetic resonance measuring systems. In some processes two or more types of transducers are used in order to gain sensitivity to a range of materials within the process. Such applications are typically described as multi-modal tomography applications.
  • each transducer comes into close contact with or proximity to the process at a particular geometric position.
  • each transducer may make such contact through a hole or opening formed at an appropriate location in a process vessel wall.
  • a further problem which can be encountered when seeking to fit tomographic sensors within a process vessel is that of appropriately positioning sensors on the inside of a process vessel wall, particularly in situations where it is inappropriate to make connections to the sensors directly through that wall.
  • the process vessel includes mechanical structures such as stirrers which prevent the surface mounting of bulky sensor assemblies on the process vessel wall. This makes it very difficult in many circumstances for tomography sensors to be retro-fitted to existing process vessels.
  • the present invention provides a sensor array for mounting within a vessel to enable conditions within the vessel to be monitored, comprising a sheet which may be mounted on a support within the vessel, the sheet carrying an array of sensors and conductors connecting the sensors to at least one output through which signals may be transmitted which are representative of conditions to which the sensors are exposed.
  • the invention as defined in the preceding paragraph makes it possible to readily position sensors suitable for connection to for example a tomographic imaging system inside a process vessel without requiring significant clearance above the original process vessel wall surface, the relative positioning of different components of the sensor array being determined by the position of the components on the sheet.
  • the sheet may be a laminar construction with the conductors defined by conductive tracks deposited on an insulating substrate.
  • the conductors may be defined by conductive elements supported within the sheet.
  • the conductive tracks may be covered with an electrically insulating layer, and the sensors may also be covered with the electrically insulating layer.
  • the sheet may be flexible.
  • the sheet may comprise a series of sections which are interconnected such that at least some of the conductive tracks extend across the interconnections between the sections
  • a system for monitoring conditions within a vessel comprising a plurality of sensors which in use are distributed within the vessel, a first monitoring unit located vvithin the vessel and connected to each of the sensors, and a second monitoring unit located outside the vessel, the first monitoring unit comprising means for converting sensor output signals into transmission signals which are transmissible through the vessel wall, and the second monitoring unit comprising means for detecting the transmission signals outside the vessel wall and deriving data representative of conditions within the vessel from the transmission signals.
  • the invention as defined above makes it possible to avoid penetrating a process vessel wall with any cables even in the event that for example a tomographic sensing system incorporates a large number of sensors.
  • means are provided for transmitting a power signal from outside the vessel to the first monitoring unit, the first monitoring unit comprising a detector arranged to detect the power signal and a power supply energised by the detected power signal.
  • the first monitoring unit may comprise an antenna and an associated detector circuit tuned to a predetermined frequency, and the power signal may be transmitted at the predetermined frequency.
  • the vessel may incorporate a window, and the first monitoring unit may be arranged to transmit optical transmission signals through the window to the second monitoring unit.
  • the first monitoring unit may comprise a laser to generate the optical transmission signals.
  • the optical signals may be infra-red signals.
  • the transmission signals may be radio telemetry signals to which at least a part of the vessel wall is transparent.
  • Figure 1 is a vertical section through a process vessel incorporating a tomographic sensing system in accordance with the present invention
  • Figure 2 is a plan view of a flexible sheet supporting a single electrode which is incorporated in the process vessel of Figure 1;
  • Figure 3 is a plan view of part of a further sheet carrying two electrodes also incorporated in the process vessel of Figure 1;
  • Figure 4 is a section on the line 4-4 of Figure 2.
  • the illustrated process vessel has a wall 1 which completely encloses a space 2 within which for example a fermentation process is to be carried out.
  • the vessel 1 has a steel wall in which a glass window 3 is provided, such windows being commonplace in process vessels to enable a visual inspection of the vessel contents.
  • a first monitoring unit 4 is secured to the inside surface of the window 4 and a second monitoring unit 5 is secured to the outside surface of the window 4.
  • the first monitoring unit 4 is connected by a multi-way cable 6 to an electrode assembly which extends around the inner surface of the process vessel.
  • the electrode assembly is made up of a series of units three of which are shown in Figure 1, that is units 1, 8 and 9. Each of the units is in the form of a flexible sheet adhered to the inner surface of the process vessel, the units being interconnected end to end.
  • Figure 2 is a plan view of a sheet which can be used as the unit 7 or 8 in Figure 1.
  • Figure 3 is a plan view of a sheet which can form the unit 9 of Figure 1.
  • Figure 4 is a section through the sheet of Figure 2 in the direction of lines 4-4 in Figure 2.
  • the illustrated unit comprises a flexible electrically insulating substrate 10 upon which a copper electrode 11 and a series of conductive tracks 12 have been printed.
  • An insulating layer 13 covers the conductive tracks 12 but does not cover the surface of the electrode 11 which is on the far side of the substrate 10 from the vessel wall 1. Accordingly resistance measurements may be made between any one electrode and one or more of the other electrodes in the array which are spaced around the process vessel.
  • Each of the electrodes 11 is connected by a respective pair of tracks 12 to a terminal in a terminal array 14 provided on the electrode unit 9 ( Figure 3).
  • Each of those terminals is in turn connected by the cable 6 to the first monitoring unit 4.
  • Data derived from the electrodes 11 is optically coupled through the window 3 to the second monitoring device 5.
  • the signals coupled through the window 3 may simply directly represent outputs derived from the electrodes 11, or those outputs may be processed in the first monitoring unit 4 before transmission to the second monitoring unit 5.
  • large amounts of data may be picked up by the electrode array and transmitted to the exterior of the process vessel without it being necessary for the process vessel wall to be penetrated in any way.
  • the electrode array is robust and can be readily cleaned.
  • the electrodes 11 are mounted on an insulating substrate 10 which extends to a substantial distance away from the edges of the electrodes 11, electrical fields which can be generated within a process fluid within the process vessel are not shorted out to the process vessel wall at positions close to the electrodes. Thus electrical fields emanating from the electrodes 11 can extend a substantial distance into the body of the fluid contained by the vessel. Useful data can be obtained using conventional resistance tomography techniques.
  • Electrode arrays may be made up from a number of the individual units such as those illustrated in Figures 2 and 3 so as to make it possible to fit electrode arrays in process vessels of different sizes using essentially standard components. Individual electrode array units may be connected end to end using the end-connectors shown in Figures 2 and 3.
  • the electrode arrays are thin and therefore can be readily shaped so as to be adhered closely to the walls of a process vessel, enabling their use in applications where the electrode arrays cannot project substantially from the internal wall of the vessel, for example when retro-fitting electrode arrays to vessels in which stirrers are provided which sweep across the inner surface of the vessel walls. It is a relatively easy matter to produce electrode assemblies with an installed thickness of less than one millimetre.
  • the electrodes 11 are not insulated from the process fluids. This is appropriate in the case of an electrode array used for resistance measurements. Other tomographic configurations are however possible, for example systems based on capacitance measurement. In the case of a system used for capacitance measurements, the electrodes 11 may or may not be covered by the insulating layer 13.
  • the first monitoring unit 4 may be energised using a remote link relying upon for example inducing electrical energy by transmitting a power signal from the second monitoring unit to the first, the first monitoring unit being provided with an antenna and a detector tuned to detect the power signal, and the detector providing an output to an appropriate power supply.
  • data is transferred between the first and second monitoring units using an optical link, for example relying upon a laser or other simple optical transmission and reception systems.
  • optical link for example relying upon a laser or other simple optical transmission and reception systems.
  • Other non-contact telemetry options are available however, for example infra-red systems and radio telemetry links.
  • the sensor array is supported on the inside surface of a side wall of a vessel. It will be appreciated that the sensor array could be mounted at any appropriate position in the process vessel, including the top wall, the bottom wall or floor, or on a support surface within the vessel, for example on an impeller blade of a stirrer assembly or a support base of a filter which does not itself form part of the containment wall.
  • the sheet is a laminar structure with the conducting electrodes and connections deposited on an insulating substrate.
  • Other structures are possible, for example a filter cloth in which the cloth supports the conducting electrodes and connections on a suitably insulating substrate, or the electrodes and connections are deposited directly on the cloth e.g. by painting, or the electrodes and/or connections are inco ⁇ orated as conductive elements or threads within the cloth.

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  • Physics & Mathematics (AREA)
  • General Physics & Mathematics (AREA)
  • Engineering & Computer Science (AREA)
  • Computer Networks & Wireless Communication (AREA)
  • Investigating Or Analysing Materials By Optical Means (AREA)

Abstract

L'invention concerne un réseau de capteurs destiné à être installé à l'intérieur d'un vaisseau afin que l'on puisse surveiller les conditions dans ce vaisseau. Un réseau de capteurs est disposé sur une feuille qui, pendant l'utilisation, est montée dans le vaisseau, la feuille servant de support au réseau de capteurs et de conducteurs reliant les capteurs à une sortie à travers laquelle on peut transmettre des signaux, lesdits signaux étant représentatifs des conditions auxquelles les capteurs sont exposés à l'intérieur du vaisseau. La sortie peut être connectée à une première unité de surveillance disposée à l'intérieur du vaisseau. On peut disposer à l'extérieur du vaisseau une deuxième unité de surveillance, la première unité de surveillance convertissant les signaux de sortie des capteurs en des signaux de transmission qui peuvent être transmis à travers la paroi du vaisseau à la deuxième unité de surveillance de manière à permettre à la deuxième unité de surveillance de sortir des données représentatives des conditions à l'intérieur du vaisseau.
PCT/GB1999/003709 1998-11-11 1999-11-10 Systeme de surveillance WO2000028286A1 (fr)

Priority Applications (2)

Application Number Priority Date Filing Date Title
EP99954173A EP1129323A1 (fr) 1998-11-11 1999-11-10 Systeme de surveillance
AU10599/00A AU1059900A (en) 1998-11-11 1999-11-10 Monitoring system

Applications Claiming Priority (2)

Application Number Priority Date Filing Date Title
GB9824689.5 1998-11-11
GBGB9824689.5A GB9824689D0 (en) 1998-11-11 1998-11-11 Monitoring system

Publications (1)

Publication Number Publication Date
WO2000028286A1 true WO2000028286A1 (fr) 2000-05-18

Family

ID=10842236

Family Applications (1)

Application Number Title Priority Date Filing Date
PCT/GB1999/003709 WO2000028286A1 (fr) 1998-11-11 1999-11-10 Systeme de surveillance

Country Status (4)

Country Link
EP (1) EP1129323A1 (fr)
AU (1) AU1059900A (fr)
GB (1) GB9824689D0 (fr)
WO (1) WO2000028286A1 (fr)

Cited By (2)

* Cited by examiner, † Cited by third party
Publication number Priority date Publication date Assignee Title
EP1345009A1 (fr) 2002-03-12 2003-09-17 HAWE Hydraulik GmbH & Co. KG Assemblage hydraulique et barette de connexion
WO2004008566A2 (fr) 2002-07-11 2004-01-22 Deutsches Zentrum für Luft- und Raumfahrt e.V. Systeme et procede pour tester une unite membrane-electrodes

Citations (6)

* Cited by examiner, † Cited by third party
Publication number Priority date Publication date Assignee Title
US3713124A (en) * 1970-07-13 1973-01-23 Beckman Instruments Inc Temperature telemetering apparatus
US4857727A (en) * 1988-05-12 1989-08-15 Honeywell Inc. Optically powered remote sensors with timing discrimination
DE3920207A1 (de) * 1989-06-21 1991-01-10 Endress Hauser Gmbh Co Vorrichtung zum mechanischen, elektrischen und/oder optoelektronischen verbinden von sensoren und/oder aktoren mit einer informationsverarbeitungs- und/oder energieversorgungszentrale
EP0511807A1 (fr) * 1991-04-27 1992-11-04 Gec Avery Limited Appareil et unité capteur pour afficher l'évolution d'une grandeur physique dans le temps
JPH08233845A (ja) * 1995-02-27 1996-09-13 Tokyo Gas Co Ltd シート状流量・温度計
US5832592A (en) * 1991-03-05 1998-11-10 Edentec, Inc. Method of making a respiration sensor

Patent Citations (6)

* Cited by examiner, † Cited by third party
Publication number Priority date Publication date Assignee Title
US3713124A (en) * 1970-07-13 1973-01-23 Beckman Instruments Inc Temperature telemetering apparatus
US4857727A (en) * 1988-05-12 1989-08-15 Honeywell Inc. Optically powered remote sensors with timing discrimination
DE3920207A1 (de) * 1989-06-21 1991-01-10 Endress Hauser Gmbh Co Vorrichtung zum mechanischen, elektrischen und/oder optoelektronischen verbinden von sensoren und/oder aktoren mit einer informationsverarbeitungs- und/oder energieversorgungszentrale
US5832592A (en) * 1991-03-05 1998-11-10 Edentec, Inc. Method of making a respiration sensor
EP0511807A1 (fr) * 1991-04-27 1992-11-04 Gec Avery Limited Appareil et unité capteur pour afficher l'évolution d'une grandeur physique dans le temps
JPH08233845A (ja) * 1995-02-27 1996-09-13 Tokyo Gas Co Ltd シート状流量・温度計

Non-Patent Citations (1)

* Cited by examiner, † Cited by third party
Title
PATENT ABSTRACTS OF JAPAN vol. 1997, no. 01 31 January 1997 (1997-01-31) *

Cited By (4)

* Cited by examiner, † Cited by third party
Publication number Priority date Publication date Assignee Title
EP1345009A1 (fr) 2002-03-12 2003-09-17 HAWE Hydraulik GmbH & Co. KG Assemblage hydraulique et barette de connexion
WO2004008566A2 (fr) 2002-07-11 2004-01-22 Deutsches Zentrum für Luft- und Raumfahrt e.V. Systeme et procede pour tester une unite membrane-electrodes
WO2004008566A3 (fr) * 2002-07-11 2004-12-16 Deutsch Zentr Luft & Raumfahrt Systeme et procede pour tester une unite membrane-electrodes
US7106077B2 (en) 2002-07-11 2006-09-12 Deutsches Zentrum Fur Luft- Und Raumfahrt E.V. Device and method for testing a membrane electrode assembly

Also Published As

Publication number Publication date
AU1059900A (en) 2000-05-29
EP1129323A1 (fr) 2001-09-05
GB9824689D0 (en) 1999-01-06

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