Embedded system for diagnostics and prognostics of conduits

• US 7,356,444 B2
• Filed: 06/26/2006
• Issued: 04/08/2008
• Est. Priority Date: 09/28/2000
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Kkb Technologies LLC
• Original Assignee: Kenneth Gerald Blemel
• Inventors: Blemel, Kenneth Gerald
• Primary Examiner(s): Barbee; Manuel L.
• Application Number:
  US11/474,967
• Publication Number:
  US 20070021941A1
• Time in Patent Office: 652 Days
• Field of Search: 702 34- 36, 702 38- 40, 324/539, 324/541, 324/544, 324/551, 324/557, 73/495, 73/496, 735/92, 340/647, 138/36, 406/34
• US Class Current: 702/183
• CPC Class Codes: D07B 1/145 comprising elements for indicating or detecting the rope or cable status
• CPC Class Codes: F17D 5/02 Preventing, monitoring, or locating loss
• CPC Class Codes: G01M 5/0091 by using electromagnetic excitation or detection

Abstract

An apparatus providing a means for assessment of the integrity of insulated conduits, harnesses, cables, pipelines and other interconnection systems constructed with integral sensitized media, discrete sensors, and electronics providing a means for transforming sensed data into information and a means for communicating information for the purpose of understanding the location, degree and risk of damage and deterioration, and the probable causes thereof.

Claims

1. A distributed system for monitoring a health status and integrity of at least one conduit, the system comprising:

a plurality of local health status and integrity monitoring devices each capable of inspecting the status of local individual conduits and conduit components, each local monitoring device coupled to a central processor by wired or wireless means, the central processor for receiving from each local monitoring device the local data concerning its associated conduits, for generating a set of data for each local conduit monitoring device, and for communicating the set of data to each local conduit monitoring device; and

each local monitoring device having a local processor for receiving the set of data, collecting data regarding the at least one local conduit and analyzing the local data using the set of data for local health monitoring purposes; and

a set of sensors having outputs coupled to the conduit monitoring device, at least one sensor being an environmental sensor for providing environmental information indicative of the local environmental condition, and sensors that are strips or strands of heterogeneous sensitized medium;

said medium essentially opaque to a signal being transmitted through the set of local conduits selected from the group of mediums that are capable of supporting or conducting an electrical current and voltage, an electromagnetic signal, an optical signal, an audio signal, and an indicating substance with the purpose to provide sensor information indicative of damage to the sensitized medium;

with each sensor or strand of sensitized medium being positioned with respect to the conduit to provide information concerning the environment and damage and deterioration to the conduit; and

at least one of the monitoring devices for use in monitoring at least one conduit with at least one conductor for diagnostic purposes, the monitoring device comprising;

at least one programmed microcontroller or other programmed processor for the purpose of acquiring the sensor information from a set of sensors and sensitized medium, conditioning and normalizing the sensor information based on parameters and environmental condition of the conduit, and processing the normalized information to provide an output signal indicative of the diagnostic condition and the prognostic estimate of remaining useful life of the conduit(s) and conductor(s) it monitors.