In Remote Monitoring with Telemetry: Part 1, we reviewed the top 10 advantages of using radio telemetry for remote monitoring. Those benefits included faster response time, lower cost, security, low maintenance, ease-of-use, and more. But there's also more to telemetry than the basics. In Part 2, we'll take a look at transmission distance and signal power for use of telemetery in automation solutions.
How many blinking lights register as background noise for the operator on your plant floor?
In the design or planning phase of a project, alarms may be touted as central to the safety and efficiency of a process. But without considering the realistic use for an alarm and taking steps to ensure truly effective reactions, alarms may do more harm than good.
The real danger is that important alarms will get lost in the static. Known as "alarm fatigue," it can dull an operator's sensitivity to alarms when a dangerous or costly situation occurs.
“Please turn off all personal electronic devices, including laptops and cell phones. Thank you!”
Many of us who have boarded a commercial flight are familiar with this quirk of air travel. If you own a smartphone, it likely features a toggle called “Airplane Mode” somewhere in your settings. Why? And what does it have to do with manufacturing?
The answer is Electromagnetic Interference, or EMI.
Historically, cell phones are considered a culprit of EMI, which can impact the performance of navigation instruments in a plane. In manufacturing, EMI plays an even bigger role in producing “dirty power” that can pollute an electrical system.
This could be a major factor behind your factory’s unplanned downtime when equipment falters or the entire system shuts down.