Measuring Device And Method For Measuring At Least One Environmental Parameter

• US 20080040041A1
• Filed: 07/08/2005
• Published: 02/14/2008
• Est. Priority Date: 07/12/2004
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: mlu-recordum Environmental Monitoring Solutions GmbH
• Original Assignee: MLU-Monitoring fur Leben und Umwelt Ges.m.b.H. (Knünz GmbH)
• Inventors: Kilgus, Traugott
• Granted Patent: US 7,756,683 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 702/2
• CPC Class Codes: G01N 33/0009 General constructional details of gas analysers, e.g. portable test equipment devices for withdrawing samples in the gaseous state G01N1/22
• CPC Class Codes: G01N 33/0075 for multiple spatially distributed sensors, e.g. for environmental monitoring

Abstract

A process for measuring at least one environmental parameter with at least one sensor (7.1, 7.2, . . . ), wherein environmental parameters detected by the sensor are converted into measured values of physical variables and are retrievable via a long-distance data connection, is characterized in that the environmental parameters detected by the sensor (7.1, 7.2, . . . ) are taken over in the form of voltage signals from a processor system of a data acquisition and processing unit (6) which calculates therefrom physical measured values in two steps while taking into account the progressions of calibration, stores said calculated measured values in database form along with the voltage signals, preferably making them available via a web server function, wherein, in a first step, voltage values which have been digitized and, possibly, have been preprocessed by statistical arithmetic operations are made available and, in a second step, the measured values are calculated therefrom (FIG. 1).

Claims

1. A process for measuring at least one environmental parameter with at least one sensor, wherein environmental parameters detected by the sensor are converted into measured values of physical variables and are retrievable via a long-distance data connection, the environmental parameters being detected by the sensor are taken over in the form of voltage signals from a processor system of a data acquisition and processing unit which calculates therefrom physical measured values in two steps while taking into account the progressions of calibration, stores said calculated measured values in database form along with the voltage signals, preferably making them available via a web server function, wherein, in a first step, voltage values which have been digitized and, possibly, have been preprocessed by statistical arithmetic operations are made available and, in a second step, the measured values are calculated therefrom.

2. A process according to claim 1, wherein voltage signals of two or more sensors are taken over by a single processor system.

3. A process according to claim 2, wherein the calculation and storage of measured values and the output as a web server occur in the second step with the processor system for all sensors.

4. A process according to claim 1, wherein the measuring signals are detected continuously.

5. A process according to claim 1, wherein the voltage signals are processed with a temporal resolution.

6. A measuring device for measuring at least one environmental parameter according to a process according to claim 1, comprising a closed casing, a central current supply and at least one sampling and an associated pump and at least one sensor a data acquisition and processing unit having a modular design and comprising at least one signal processor for receiving the measuring signals of at least one sensor and converting them into voltage values, wherein the signal processor is coupled to a central processor for converting the voltage values into measured values of physical variables, which central processor is coupled to a local memory of measured values.

7. A measuring device according to claim 6, wherein an interface for a long-distance data transmission unit is associated to the central processor.

8. A measuring device according to claim 6, wherein the central processor has a web server function.

9. A measuring device according to claim 6, wherein a temperature control means is provided for the interior of the casing.

10. A measuring device according to claim 6, wherein at least one controlled Peltier element mounted to an outer wall of the casing is included as a temperature control means.

11. A measuring device according to claim 6, wherein a micro air conditioning system embedded in the outer wall of the casing is used as a device for temperature control.

12. A measuring device for measuring at least one environmental parameter according to a process according to claim 1, comprising a closed casing, a central current supply and at least one sampling and an associated pump and at least one sensor, the interior of the casing being divided, in terms of thermal control, into a merely force-ventilated supply room and a measurement room provided with controlled measuring conditions and that sensors emitting waste heat or their subcomponents, respectively, such as catalysts are shielded individually from the measurement room via thermal insulation.

13. A measuring device according to claim 12, wherein a compression air conditioning system is included as an active cooling means.

14. A measuring device according to claim 12, wherein at least one force-ventilated Peltier element is included as an active cooling means.

15. A measuring device according to claim 12, wherein the temperature of the components beneath the insulations can be monitored in terms of their temperature by means of temperature sensors.

16. A measuring device according to claim 12, wherein in case the admissible operating temperature of the sensors or sensor components, respectively, beneath the individual insulations is persistently exceeded, these can be switched off via the central data acquisition and processing unit.

17. A measuring device according to claim 6, wherein subunits operating according to common physical measuring methods selected from a group consisting of NDIR, NDUV, PID, FID, chemiluminescence, and UV absorption are included as sensors for the determination of gas concentrations.

18. A measuring device according to claim 6, wherein subunits operating according to the electrochemical principle with zirconium oxide or according to the paramagnetic principle are included as sensors for measuring the oxygen concentration in gases.

19. A measuring device according to claim 6, wherein subunits composed of at least one semiconductor sensor are included as sensors for the determination of gas concentrations.

20. A measuring device according to claim 6, wherein subunits composed according to the electrochemical principle are included as sensors for the determination of gas concentrations.

21. A measuring device according to claim 6, wherein one additional subunit is provided for measuring the particle concentration in gases by means of known methods selected from the group consisting of microbalance, light scattering, and absorbance.

22. A measuring device according to claim 6, wherein additional sensors for wind velocity, wind direction, air temperature, air pressure and air humidity, which are embedded in the system, are provided.

23. A measuring device according to claim 6, wherein one additional subunit is provided for the measurements of noise parameters such as acoustic pressure.

24. A measuring device according to claim 6, wherein sensors for determining the contents of harmful substances in fluids are provided as subunits which operate according to coloumetric methods.

25. A measuring device according to claim 6, wherein sensors for determining the contents of harmful substances in fluids are included as subunits which operate according to electrochemical methods, using in particular also ion-selective membranes.

26. A measuring device according to claim 6, wherein sensors for determining the contents of harmful substances in fluids are included as subunits which operate by determining the electrical conductivity.

27. A measuring device according to claim 6, wherein sensors for determining the contents of harmful substances in fluids are included as subunits which operate according to photometric methods.

28. A measuring device according to claim 6, wherein sensors for determining the contents of harmful substances in fluids are included as subunits which determine the TOC (Total Organic Compounds) content via methods of decomposing organic substances by conversion into carbon dioxide, applying at least one of a high-temperature treatment and using chemical reagents such as boric acid.

29. A measuring device according to claim 6, wherein at least one sensor for determining the pH-value of fluids is included.

30. A measuring device according to claim 6, wherein at least one sensor for determining the BSB (biological oxygen demand) of fluids is included.

31. A measuring device according to claim 6, wherein it is integrated into a public facility such as an advertising medium including at least one of an advertising pillar, a large-scale display, into a telephone box, and a bus stop.