Process and devices for monitoring facilities in the chemical industry

• US 6,385,558 B1
• Filed: 05/20/1999
• Issued: 05/07/2002
• Est. Priority Date: 05/27/1998
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: B E B Erdas UN Erdol GmbH
• Original Assignee: BEB Erdas und Erdol GmbH
• Inventors: Schlemm, Friedrich
• Primary Examiner(s): Hoff, Marc S.
• Assistant Examiner(s): TSAI, CAROL S W
• Application Number:
  US09/315,483
• Time in Patent Office: 1,083 Days
• Field of Search: 702/19, 702/22, 702/23, 702/27, 702/28, 702/30-36, 702/39, 702/40, 702/56, 702/54, 702/103, 702/113, 702/114, 702/122, 702/121, 702/123, 702/182-185, 702/187, 702/188, 702/FOR.103, 702/FOR.104, 702/FOR-115, 702/FOR-123, 702/FOR-134, 702/FOR.137, 702/FOR.139, 702/FOR-170, 700/266, 700/274, 348/82, 73/232.4, 73/232, 73/310.6, 73/310.5, 422/90, 422/98, 422/82.02, 340/632, 340/634, 205/787
• US Class Current: 702/182
• CPC Class Codes: G05B 23/0227 Qualitative history assessment, whereby the type of data acted upon, e.g. waveforms, images or patterns, is not relevant, e.g. rule based assessment; if-then decisions
• CPC Class Codes: G05B 23/0272 Presentation of monitored results, e.g. selection of status reports to be displayed; Filtering information to the user

Abstract

The invention relates to processes and devices for monitoring facilities of the chemical industry. It is the task of the invention, to carry out cost-effectively with simple means and in simple manner the monitoring of such facilities under automation and in this way to avoid damages. The invention comprises that by means of microphones or other acoustic sensors, cameras and electronic odor sensors electronic data are generated and these are supplied to an evaluation device with comparison circuitry, memories of electronically acquired data and display as well as report-generating devices, in which the temporary acquired electronic measurement values are compared with measurement values of an initial measurement and/or of the preceding measurement and, in the event given deviation values are exceeded, triggers a report process. For this purpose a device is used comprising microphones or other acoustic sensors, cameras, electronic odor sensors and an evaluation device with comparison circuitry, memories for electronically acquired data and display and/or report-generating devices, wherein the evaluation device comprises comparison circuits in which the temporary acquired electronic measurement values are compared with measurement values of an initial measurement and the preceding measurement and, if given deviation values are exceeded, a report process is triggered. It is in this way possible to carry out the measurements entirely without personnel and to evaluate them completely automatically in an electronic facility.

Claims

1. Process for monitoring facilities of the chemical industry, in which by means of acoustic sensors, cameras and electronic odor sensors electronic data are generated and these are supplied to an evaluation device with comparison circuitry, memories for electronically acquired data and display as well as report-generating devices, in which the temporary acquired electronic measurement values are compared with measurement values of an initial measurement and the preceding measurement and, in the event given deviation values are exceeded, a report process is triggered in which the electronic measurement values obtained f rom the acoustic sensors, cameras and electronic odor sensors, before they are supplied to the evaluation station, are corrected with electronic measurement values obtained from acoustic comparison sensors, cameras and electronic odor sensors.

2. Process as claimed in claim 1,

in which the measurement and evaluation is carried out at specific time intervals, and/or

in which the location of the acoustic sensors, cameras and/or electronic odor sensors is changed after each measurement.

3. Process as claimed in claim 1, in which infrared cameras are used as the cameras and in the evaluation facility locations of increased or decreased temperature are identified.

4. Process as claimed in claim 1,

in which cameras and/or video cameras are used inter alia for identifying outside influences, persons, natural events, fluid accumulations and the like.

5. Process as claimed in claim 1,

in which an artificial head equipped with microphones is applied for the identification of the direction of the sound and/or

in which as acoustic sensors solid-structure microphones are used which are disposed on pipes, machines, bearings, pumps, pressure generators and similar facility parts, and/or

in which as acoustic sensors directional microphones are used which are directed to specific facility parts or whose effective direction extends next to specific facility parts.

6. Process as claimed in claim 1,

in which, upon the report of a spuriousness, the flow of the automatically running measurement process is interrupted and measuring instruments, in particular an infrared and/or video camera, are moved by manual or automatic control to the location which has been reported as suspicious.

7. Monitoring device of facilities of the chemical industry, comprising acoustic sensors, cameras, electronic odor sensors and an evaluation device with comparison circuitry, memories for electronically acquired data and display and/or report-generating devices, wherein the evaluation device comprises comparison circuitry in which the temporary acquired electronic measurement values are compared with measurement values of an initial measurement and the preceding measurement and, in the event given deviation values are exceeded, a report process is triggered with a correction circuit which, on the one hand, is connected to the acoustic sensors, cameras and electronic odor sensors serving for monitoring the facility parts and, on the other hand, to acoustic comparisons sensors, comparison cameras and electronic comparison odor indicators.

8. Device as claimed in claim 7,

with a circuit for initiating the measurement processes at different locations of the facility to be monitored at specific time intervals and/or

with a circuit for the continuously repeated initiation of the measurement cycle.

9. Device as claimed in claim 7,

with movable, displaceable and/or pivotable supports of the microphones, cameras and/or electronic odor indicator and a circuit for changing the measurement locations between each two measurements.

10. Device as claimed in claim 7

with infrared cameras for the identification of sites of increased or reduced temperature in the evaluation facility and/or

with solid-structure microphones which are disposed on pipes, machines, bearings, pumps, pressure generators and similar facility parts, and/or

with an artificial head equipped with microphones for detecting the direction from which the sound comes, and/or

with directional microphones which are directed toward specific facility parts or whose effective direction extends next to specific facility parts.

11. Device as claimed in claim 7, with a circuit in which, upon the report of a spuriousness, the flow of the automatically running measurement process can be interrupted and measuring instruments, in particular an infrared and/or video camera, can be moved by manual control to the site reported as suspicious.

12. Device as claimed in claim 11,

with a memory and an application device for a control substance.

13. Device as claimed in claim 7,

with tracks for vehicles supporting measurement and observation instruments and/or with movable supports of the measurement recorders of the sensors.

14. Device as claimed in claim 7,

in which sensors are disposed in areas endangered by explosions and/or

with visual sensors for detecting persons and objects.