How to Intelligently Network Measurement Values ...

Related Vendors

TURCK GmbH

Anton Paar GmbH

ProMinent GmbH

NIVUS GmbH

WAGO GmbH & Co. KG

Standardized Solution, Complex Application

In the majority of the numerous applications used in water and wastewater treatment technology, the focus is on recurring applications. Therefore, Nivus and Wago developed a standardized technology. The Wago-I/O-System 750 with a PFC200 controller thereby takes on the central task of a maintenance-free IoT gateway in the substations. As the “Nivulink-Control”, it ensures the connections between sensors, actuators, and the main control center. Nivus thus unites the automation of the centralized processing facility with the monitoring of decentrally distributed processing areas. The resulting advantages are obvious: There is one central operational guidance down to the lowest levels. Monitoring and controlling the distributed stations is centrally carried out. The centralized visualization of system parts facilitates a fast overview and an efficient monitoring and control of distributed systems.

Gallery

Easily Link in Decentralized Stations

The controllers that are decentrally installed in the aggregated system control both the process and also simultaneously monitor the system. Thus, a pump station can be both linked to and controlled at the central control panel using the PFC200, and continuous system monitoring can also be carried out. In this way, for example, signs of wear or blockages can be identified and alleviated early. With more than 500 function modules, the Wago-I/O-System 750 provides the hardware platform for linking various sensors, measuring technologies and also drives. This allows the process values to be recorded in a targeted way at the substations and then evaluated.

There is a good reason to designate the PFC200 as the “remote brain” that links the compiled sensor information with the control system — and to ideally provide both the sensors and the control system from Nivus. This system solution provides an overview at all times into the the aggregated wastewater treatment facility. This reduces personnel expenses for monitoring and maintenance of the system, while increasing operational safety at the same time.

By using process values measured at the substations, targeted conclusions can be drawn about the state of the system as a whole. The system solution using Nicos and the PFC200, or Nivulink Control, represents an important step towards predictive maintenance for the operators. The general openness of the Wago-I/O-System 750 smooths the path for collecting highly varied analysis values, signal types or data formats using suitable I/O modules, processing the data in the controller, and then forwarding it to the control center as a bundled data packet using TCP/IP

No Limits to the Connections

In addition, the many interfaces included in the I/O-System 750 facilitate communication with adjacent machines and system components. Both analog and digital outputs as well as bus technologies are available for controlling actuators. The measured value memory in the device can be easily expanded using SD cards. Connections to higher-level systems can be established in the traditional way using current data lines, or wirelessly using the 3G version of the PFC200.

By expanding the PFC200 to the Nivulink Control, Nivus has created a solution that can be used independent of local network availability or specific SIM cards. They thus offer a choice between server-based and cloud-based applications. The Nivulink Control, based on the PFC200, is characterized by minimal data volumes, which thus reduces costs for data transmission. Alarm and trigger functions accelerate processes in predefined scenarios. Integrated security features, like OVPN, IPsec, or TLS are used to ensure transmission security. Therefore, the Nivulink Control also complies with the requirements for cybersecurity for critical infrastructure applications.

Conclusion: According to Nivus’ experience, control system manufacturers previously solved the problem of geographic distribution of systems by using heterogeneous system levels. These do not satisfy the requirements for complex, technical subsystems — at least not in a single step. They relied on “remote terminal units” (RTUs) with low levels of automation for external stations, and then combined separately-designed subsystems into the higher-level network control system in a second step. With the Nivulink Control, Nivus provides a single intelligent solution for completely networking sensor-based measuring systems — from a single supplier, in a single step.

* M. Müller is Marketing Manager at Nivus GmbH, Eppingen/Germany, and K. Miller is Global Industry Manager Water at Wago Kontakttechnik GmbH & Co. KG, Minden/Germany.

(ID:45471029)