Remote environmental and condition monitoring system

• US 9,239,997 B2
• Filed: 03/17/2014
• Issued: 01/19/2016
• Est. Priority Date: 03/15/2013
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: the united states of america as represented by the secretary of the navy
• Original Assignee: the united states of america as represented by the secretary of the navy
• Inventors: Bobo, Jerry Lee, Powell, Regina Lee, Johnson, Patricia Louise
• Primary Examiner(s): PHAM, TOAN NGOC
• Application Number:
  US14/216,442
• Publication Number:
  US 20140266712A1
• Time in Patent Office: 673 Days
• Field of Search: 340/539.26, 340/588, 340/602, 340/584
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/06 Resources, workflows, human or project management; Enterprise or organisation planning; Enterprise or organisation modelling
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/08 Logistics, e.g. warehousing, loading or distribution; Inventory or stock management
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/087 Inventory or stock management, e.g. order filling, procurement or balancing against orders

Abstract

The present disclosure relates to systems and processes for environmental and condition monitoring of containerized assets. One illustrative system includes containers that are configured to enclose assets that are potentially hazardous and/or potentially sensitive to electromagnetic (EM)/radio frequency (RF) radiation or emissions. The assets may also be sensitive to various environmental conditions such as temperature, humidity, shock and vibration. An exemplary system uses sensors to measure and track these environmental conditions inside a container for up to multiple years. An illustrative system may also use sensors to measure attributes of the asset. An illustrative system is configured to archive and report on the collected data. An illustrative system includes the ability to issue a warning when an asset may have been compromised. Additionally, the collected data may be used in predictive life analyses. More particularly, the collected data may be analyzed and compared to thresholds for container assets to reach deductive or inductive conclusions about the probability of damage, maintenance needs, or replacement needs.

Claims

1. A maintenance system comprising:

a plurality of containers, each of the containers being sealed and receiving a payload, each payload being sensitive to environmental conditions;

a plurality of sensors received within each of the containers;

wherein the sensors are configured to detect temperature and humidity within the container, and the sensors are further configured to detect vibration and shock on the container;

at least one logging device in communication with the sensors and configured to receive readings of detected temperature, humidity, vibration and shock from the sensors;

wherein the logging device is configured to store a plurality of successive readings of detected temperature, humidity, vibration and shock from the sensors for multiple years;

wherein the logging device interfaces with the sensors from each of the containers;

wherein the logging device is configured to output the readings of detected temperature, humidity, vibration and shock from the sensors to a computer program;

wherein the computer program is configured to compare the readings with known allowable levels for the payload in the container and produce a result indicating a likelihood of failure within each respective said payload within each separate container on a real time basis as a status indicator of the respective payload;

wherein the computer program is further configured to display the status indicator of the payload for all of the containers; and

wherein an operator of the computer program determines which payload to utilize based upon the status indicator of the payload.

2. The maintenance system of claim 1, wherein the payload is sensitive to electromagnetic emissions.

3. The maintenance system of claim 2, wherein each of the sensors comprise fiber optic sensors.

4. The maintenance system of claim 1, wherein the known allowable levels are provided by a manufacturer of the payload.

5. The maintenance system of claim 1, wherein the readings of the sensors are configured to be forwarded to those responsible for the payload to allow them to know the likelihood that a payload requires replacement.

6. The maintenance system of claim 1, further comprising a computer, wherein the computer program is executed by the computer, and wherein a self-health monitoring subsystem keeps track of a self-health data associated with said system'"'"'s hardware and computer including operational status of the maintenance system'"'"'s sensors and communication interfaces as well as a logging device interfaces with sensors to receive readings of detected temperature from sensors attached to system hardware;

said self-health monitoring subsystem is further configured for reporting said self-health data back to the computer program.

7. The maintenance system of claim 6, wherein said self-health data further comprises available disk space in a memory to store data comprising said plurality of successive readings and said self-health data.

8. The maintenance system of claim 7, wherein said self-health data further comprises operational status and ability of the computer.

9. The maintenance system of claim 1, wherein said computer program is further configured to selectively generate a user interface to display a self-health data.

10. The maintenance system of claim 1, wherein at least some of said sensors comprise multiple sensors of same type disposed in multiple locations within each said container.

11. The maintenance system as in claim 10, wherein the multiple sensors respectively comprise a plurality of temperature, humidity, vibration, and shock sensors disposed at a plurality of locations within said container.

12. The maintenance system as in claim 11, wherein the multiple sensors comprising the plurality of temperature, humidity, vibration, and shock sensors are respectively disposed in proximity to equipment which has a predetermined and different sensitivity to temperature, humidity, vibration, and shock.

13. The maintenance system as in claim 12, wherein at least some of the multiple sensors are located at a first, second, and third location in said containers.

14. The maintenance system as in claim 13, wherein said first and third locations are at opposing sections of said containers and said second location is disposed between said first and third locations.

15. An environmental and condition monitoring system comprising:

a plurality of containers, wherein each container contains an asset;

wherein the asset is sensitive to the one or more environmental conditions within or impacting one or more said plurality of containers comprising quasi-static environments and dynamic environments;

a plurality of first and second sensors operably coupled to or within each respective container;

wherein the first sensors detect said quasi-static environments in each respective container, wherein said quasi-static environment includes environmental changes having a first rate of change comprising a rate of temperature change and humidity change in the quasi-static environment, wherein said first sensors have a first sensor measurement acquisition rate and a selectively set second measurement output rate that is different than the first sensor measurement rate;

wherein the second sensors detect said dynamic environments impacting on the container, wherein said second sensors'"'"' detection comprises measuring said dynamic environment and outputting a waveform data collection including a plurality of samples taken per unit of time from said second sensors, wherein said per unit of time is at least one thousand times per second;

a first and second measurement devices respectively interfacing with the first and second sensors from the plurality of containers;

a central computer including a computer program stored on and read from a non-transitory machine readable storage device associated with or within said central computer and executed by the central computer and a memory, wherein the first and second measurement devices reports said first and second sensor readings to the central computer for processing executed by the computer program;

wherein the computer program is configured to operate said central computer to respectively compare the first and second sensor'"'"'s readings with previously input and stored preset acceptable levels for each said asset in each said container and produce a result indicating status of the first and second sensors readings on a real time basis;

wherein the computer program is configured to be read by the central computer which executes the computer program to display the status derived from the first and second sensors of all of the containers;

wherein the central computer is configured to read the computer program and execute the computer program to operate the memory of the computer to store the first and second sensors'"'"' readings from the first and second measurement devices for a plurality of years, wherein said central computer reads said computer program and stores said waveform into said memory per a predetermined memory management scheme comprising retention criteria comprising all waveforms, waveforms that exceed a predetermined threshold, a predetermined number of waveforms over a predetermined time frame, a predetermined number of waveforms associated with a highest magnitude sensor measurement from a plurality of the sensor readings, or a combination of said retention criteria;

wherein the computer program is further configured to operate said central computer which then shows historical data of the first and second sensor readings and output from said first and second measurement devices for each container; and

a display configured to output one or more user interfaces generated by said central computer after reading said computer program, wherein said one or more user interfaces are configured to selectively generate said user interfaces to enable an operator of the computer program to output on said display and receive access to one or more real time status of all the containers and to the historical data for each container.

16. The environmental and condition monitoring system of claim 15, wherein each said container is sealed from an environment external to the containers.

17. The environmental and condition monitoring system of claim 15, wherein the quasi-static environmental conditions include temperature and humidity, and the dynamic environmental conditions include vibration and shock.

18. The environmental and condition monitoring system of claim 15, wherein the asset is sensitive to electromagnetic emissions.

19. The environmental and condition monitoring system of claim 18, wherein the first and second sensors are unpowered fiber optic sensors.

20. The environmental and condition monitoring system of claim 15, wherein the second sensors are powered piezoelectric sensors.

21. The environmental and condition monitoring system of claim 15, wherein the preset acceptable levels are known levels provided by an owner of the asset.

22. The environmental and condition monitoring system of claim 15, wherein said system further comprises a remote reporting section configured to selectively send reporting data comprising the stored readings and outputs from said first and second measurement devices to near and remote computer network node sites to display said reporting data to expert personnel that oversee the container asset to be used in making maintenance decisions including another computer and display located at said remote computer network node sites comprising other support areas including damage and maintenance support computer node sites.

23. The environmental and condition monitoring system of claim 15, further comprising:

a third measurement device and a plurality of third sensors associated with the first and second measurement devices and the central computer, said third sensors configured to detect operating parameter condition data associated with the central computer, the first measurement device, and the second measurement device, said operating parameter condition data comprises temperature and humidity; and

an equipment health monitoring subsystem section of said computer program that operates said central computer to receive a plurality of health measurements of environmental and condition monitoring system comprising said operating parameter condition data, power levels of the first, second, and third sensors, a plurality of communication interfaces between one or more components of said environmental and condition monitoring system, active versus failed status of said first, second, and third sensors, available data storage medium space of said non-transitory machine readable storage device, and available said memory of said central computer;

wherein the computer program further is configured to be read by and operate said central computer to receive and store significant system health operating parameters of the central computer, the first measurement device, and the second measurement device associated with operational or system failure comprising online/offline status and online with errors or system degradation of said central computer, said first measurement device, or said second measurement device; and

wherein the computer program is configured to be read and executed by the central computer for comparing the plurality of health measurements of the environmental and condition monitoring system and the system health operating parameters to preset allowable levels to produce a system health measurement status on a real time basis and selectively display said report on said one or more user interfaces.

24. A method of monitoring environmental conditions within a container, the method comprising the steps of:

detecting quasi-static environmental conditions within the container through a first plurality of sensors;

acquiring the detected quasi-static environmental conditions from said first plurality of sensors with a quasi-static measurement unit;

detecting dynamic environmental conditions on the container through a second plurality of sensors;

acquiring the detected dynamic environmental conditions from said second plurality of sensors with a dynamic measurement unit, said acquired detected dynamic environmental conditions data output comprising a waveform data collection including a plurality of samples taken per unit of time from said second sensors;

reporting measurement readings from the quasi-static measurement unit and the dynamic measurement unit to a central computer;

comparing the measurement readings with preset acceptable levels for an asset within each container;

producing a result indicating measurement status on a real time basis;

displaying the measurement status for each of the containers;

storing the detected measurement readings for each container for multiple years;

displaying historical data of the measurement readings for each container.

25. The method of claim 24, wherein the first and second measurement units interface with said first and second plurality of sensors disposed within a plurality of said containers.

26. The method of claim 24, wherein an operator recommends or determines that an asset within said container become inactive based upon the status.

27. The method of claim 24, wherein the asset within each container is sensitive to electromagnetic emissions, and the sensors are unpowered.

28. The method of claim 27, wherein the sensors are fiber optic sensors.

29. The method of claim 24, wherein the second sensors are piezoelectric sensors.

30. The method of claim 24, wherein the acceptable levels of the asset are known levels provided by an owner of the asset.

31. The method of claim 24, further comprising the step of forwarding to expert personnel to oversee the container asset to be used in making maintenance decisions.

32. The method of claim 24, further comprising the steps of:

tracking operating parameters of a computer and measurement units;

comparing the operating parameters to allowable levels to produce an operational status on a real time basis; and

an operator of a computer program deciding whether to perform maintenance on a system for executing said method.

33. A containment system comprising:

a plurality of containers arranged in a group, each container including;

an outer shell defining a chamber to receive an asset; and

a lid operably coupled to the outer shell and configured to cover the chamber;

a sensor suite associated with each of the plurality of containers, the sensor suite including;

a plurality of first sensors to detect quasi-static environmental conditions in each said container, the plurality of first sensors received within the chamber of each said container; and

a plurality of second sensors to detect dynamic environmental conditions on the container, the plurality of second sensors operably coupled to the outer shell and longitudinally spaced along the container;

a controller in communication with the sensor suite, the controller including measurement devices and a central computer having a computer program and a memory, the first and second sensors providing signals to the measurement devices, the measurement devices providing measurement readings to the central computer based upon the signals from the first and second sensors, wherein data output from one of said measurement devices comprising a waveform data collection including a plurality of samples taken per unit of time from said plurality of second sensors;

a user interface including a display in communication with the controller;

wherein the memory includes preset acceptable measurement levels, the computer program configured to compare the measurement readings with the preset acceptable measurement levels for the asset in the container; and

wherein the display is configured to provide a graphical representation of the plurality of containers, each container representation including an indicator representative of measurement status on a real time basis.

34. The containment system of claim 33, wherein historical measurement readings are stored within the memory, the computer program configured to show the historical measurement readings on the display for each of the containers.

35. The containment system of claim 33, wherein the asset within the container is sensitive to electromagnetic emissions, and the sensors are unpowered.

36. The containment system of claim 35, wherein the sensors are fiber optic sensors.

37. The containment system of claim 33, wherein the second sensors are piezoelectric sensors.

38. The containment system of claim 33, wherein the preset acceptable measurement levels of the asset are known levels provided by an owner of the asset.

39. The containment system of claim 33, further comprising a transmitter for transmitting to expert personnel to oversee the container asset to be used in making maintenance decisions.

40. The containment system of claim 33, wherein:

at least one sensor associated with the measurement devices and the central computer, and configured to detect operating parameters associated with the measurement devices and the central computer;

an equipment monitoring measurement unit interfacing with the central computer, wherein the equipment monitoring measurement unit acquires and reports measurements to the computer program;

wherein the computer program tracks significant operating parameters of the central computer;

wherein the computer program compares the measurements and the operating parameters to preset allowable levels to produce an operational status on a real time basis; and

wherein an operator of the computer program decides whether to perform maintenance on the containment system.

41. An environmental and condition monitoring system comprising:

a sensor suite associated with each of a plurality of containers, the sensor suite including;

first sensors to detect quasi-static environmental conditions in the container; and

second sensors to detect dynamic environmental conditions on the container;

a controller in communication with the sensor suite, the controller including measurement devices and a central computer having a computer program and a memory, the first and second sensors providing signals to the measurement devices, the measurement devices providing measurement readings to the central computer based upon the signals from the first and second sensors, wherein data output from one of said measurement devices comprising a waveform data collection including a plurality of samples taken per unit of time from said plurality of second sensors;

a user interface including a display in communication with the controller;

wherein the memory includes preset acceptable measurement levels associated with an asset in the container, the computer program configured to compare the measurement readings with the preset acceptable measurement levels for the asset in the container;

wherein the controller is configured to provide on the display an overview graphical representation of the plurality of containers, the overview graphical representation including an indicator representative of measurement status of each container on a real time basis; and

wherein the controller is further configured to provide on the display a detailed container graphical representation of an individual container, the detailed container graphical representation including status indicators for each sensor associated with the container and detailed measurement readings on a real time basis.

42. The environmental and condition monitoring system of claim 41, wherein the memory of the computer stores the measurements for a plurality of years, the controller being configured to provide on the display a graphical representation including detailed historical measurement readings.

43. The environmental and condition monitoring system of claim 41, wherein the quasi-static environmental conditions include temperature and humidity, and the dynamic environmental conditions include vibration and shock.

44. The environmental and condition monitoring system of claim 41, wherein the sensors are unpowered fiber optic sensors.

45. The environmental and condition monitoring system of claim 41, wherein the second sensors are powered piezoelectric sensors.

46. The environmental and condition monitoring system of claim 41, wherein the preset acceptable levels are known levels provided by an owner of the asset.

47. The environmental and condition monitoring system of claim 41, wherein:

the first sensors are received within an internal chamber defined by an outer shell of the container; and

the second sensors operably coupled to the outer shell of the container and longitudinally spaced along the container.