In this video we’re going to introduce
you to a very powerful group of devices
called Smart Sensors.
Alright…let’s go.
The Smart Sensor plays
a very important role
in the Smart Factory of Industry 4.0
which is considered as the fourth
revolution of the manufacturing industry.
The “First Revolution” brought us steam
and water-powered mechanization.
The “Second Revolution” introduced
mass production using electricity.
The “Third Revolution” established
automated manufacturing processes
using computers and robotics.
And now the “Fourth
Revolution” has launched
the Internet of Things or
IoT and the Smart Factory.
What makes a “Base Sensor”
different than a “Smart Sensor”?
Before we get to that question,
let’s review what a base sensor is,
what it does,
and how it is integrated
into process control loops.
A “base sensor” is a device
that “senses” something.
For many years we’ve had
sensors that can see,
feel, hear, smell, and even taste.
In the world of instrumentation
and process control
we define a “Sensor”
as a device that detects
changes in physical properties
and produces an electrical output
in response to that change.
A “Thermocouple” is a temperature sensor
that will produce an
increasing voltage across it
when exposed to an increasing temperature
In industry today,
thousands of thermocouples
are connected to transmitters
in temperature process control loops.
In process control,
we condition the thermocouple voltage
and convert it to an
industry standard signal
that represents our
controlled temperature range.
OK…..so….what if we had a sensor
that did more than sense singular
basic physical properties?
What if we had a sensor that
also performs data conversion,
digital processing,
and can communicate to external
devices and “The Cloud”?
In very general terms
a "Smart Sensor" has a "base sensor",
a “microprocessor”,
is “communication-capable”,
and has some form of onboard diagnostics.
Smart Sensors are capable of a
variety of functions and options.
Smart Sensors can perform
self-assessments and self-calibration.
They can detect issues such
as “sensor contamination”,
“switch failures”, and “open coils”.
Some Smart Sensors are
capable of multi-sensing
and can measure pressure,
temperature, humidity, gas flow and more.
Smart Sensors play a very important role in
the new era of “manufacturing intelligence”.
They will become more and more important
as industry develops increasingly
sophisticated and complex processes.
If you want to learn more,
you might want to review
our other video called
“What is a Sensor? Different Types
of Sensors and Applications”.
You can find the link to this
video in the description.
OK …let’s review…
The Smart Sensor plays a very
important role in Industry 4.0
which is considered as the fourth
revolution of the manufacturing industry.
A Smart Sensor can do more than sense
singular basic physical properties
A Smart Sensor can perform data conversion,
digital processing, and can communicate
to external devices and “The Cloud”.
A "Smart Sensor" has a "base
sensor", a microprocessor,
is communication-capable,
and has some form of onboard diagnostics.
Smart Sensors are capable of a
variety of functions and options.
Some Smart Sensors are
capable of multi-sensing
and can measure pressure, temperature,
humidity, gas flow and more.
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