Portable, self-contained data collection systems and methods
First Claim
1. A method of collecting machinery maintenance data from machines, comprising:
- providing a computing circuit comprising a processor, memory, and a card slot, providing one or more analog machine activity sensors for collecting machinery maintenance data from machines, providing an interface card conformed to fit into said card slot for interfacing to said analog machine activity sensors, inserting said interface card into said card slot of said computing circuit, operating said processor to collect first data from one of said one or more analog machine activity sensors via said interface card, and store said first data into said memory of said computing circuit, removing said interface card from said card slot, inserting said interface card into said card slot, and operating said processor to collect second data from. one of said one or more analog machine activity sensors via said interface card into said memory of said computing circuit, and store said second data into said memory of said computing circuit with said first data.
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Accused Products
Abstract
A portable self-contained data collection system for measuring and collecting vibration data from machines includes an accelerometer which is coupled to the analog input of a data acquisition card. The data acquisition card samples and digitizes the analog signal to produce a time domain digital signal. The data acquisition card output is coupled to a battery-powered portable computer. The battery-powered portable computer includes a database having machine identifications and associated measurement parameters. The portable computer processes the time domain digital signal according to the measurement parameters associated with a selected machine identification, and produces a frequency domain digital signal by performing a Fast Fourier Transform and other digital signal processing operations. The frequency domain signal is also analyzed in the portable computer to produce predictive maintenance information. A power supply for supplying power to the accelerometer is also included.
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Citations
41 Claims
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1. A method of collecting machinery maintenance data from machines, comprising:
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providing a computing circuit comprising a processor, memory, and a card slot, providing one or more analog machine activity sensors for collecting machinery maintenance data from machines, providing an interface card conformed to fit into said card slot for interfacing to said analog machine activity sensors, inserting said interface card into said card slot of said computing circuit, operating said processor to collect first data from one of said one or more analog machine activity sensors via said interface card, and store said first data into said memory of said computing circuit, removing said interface card from said card slot, inserting said interface card into said card slot, and operating said processor to collect second data from. one of said one or more analog machine activity sensors via said interface card into said memory of said computing circuit, and store said second data into said memory of said computing circuit with said first data. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20, 21, 22)
one of said one or more analog machine activity sensors, an identification of a machine, and measurement parameters between said memory and said host computer via said connector. -
15. The method of claim 12 wherein said computing circuit comprises a user interface, and further comprising interacting with said processor via said user interface to select a machine identification, and then processing data collected from one of said one or more analog machine activity sensors in accordance with measurement parameters associated with said selected machine identification.
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16. The method of claim 1 wherein said computing circuit further comprises a display.
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17. The method of claim 16 further comprising operating said processor to display data collected from one of said one or more analog machine activity sensors on said display.
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18. The method of claim 16 further comprising operating said processor to perform a frequency transformation of data collected from one of said one or more machine activity sensors and display said frequency transformation on said display.
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19. The method of claim 1 wherein said computing circuit is a portable computer having less than a full set of alphanumeric keys.
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20. The method of claim 19 wherein said computing circuit is a pen-based palmtop computer.
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21. The method of claim 1 wherein one of said one or more analog machine activity sensors is an accelerometer.
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22. The method of claim 1 wherein said interface card comprises an analog to digital converter.
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23. A computer system for collecting machinery maintenance data from machines, comprising:
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a computing circuit comprising a processor, memory, and a card slot, said card slot configured to permit insertion, removal and replacement of an interface card without restarting operation of said processor, and software in said memory for operating said processor to collect data from an analog machine activity sensor as it is sensed by the sensor via an interface card in said card slot, and store said data into said memory of said computing circuit. - View Dependent Claims (24, 25, 26, 27, 28, 29, 30, 31, 32, 33, 34, 35, 36, 37, 38, 39, 40, 41)
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Specification