Handheld acquisition takes on wireless sensors

Edited by the Engineeringtalk editorial team Mar 10, 2003

Datastick Connection Plus BT for ICHM software communicates with Oceana Sensor's Bluetooth enabled ICHM 20/20 module to enable users to receive sensor-based information on Palm handhelds.

Datastick Connection Plus BT for ICHM software that communicates with Oceana Sensor's Bluetooth enabled ICHM 20/20 module now enables users to receive sensor-based information on Palm handhelds.

The Bluetooth enabled Oceana ICHM 20/20 smart sensing module collects data from various sensors, converts analogue signals to digital, and performs an array of signal processing and embedded software functions.

The information is transmitted wirelessly to the Palm handheld, where it is received by Datastick Connection Plus BT for ICHM software and displayed on the handheld in real time.

The software provides bargraph, line graph, gauge, and numeric views of data at sample rates up to five samples per second or faster, depending on the model of Palm handheld being used.

Up to four analogue inputs can be shown on up to eight display channels, with separate linearisation on each.

"Datastick software brings portability to conditions-based maintenance applications such as machine health monitoring, A user can walk from place to place, inspecting visually while viewing data coming in wirelessly on a handheld, rather than leaving the work area to travel back to a desktop computer to collect the sensor data", said Michael Scandling, Vice President of Marketing for Datastick Systems.

The joint technology is currently being deployed on the Nimitz-class nuclear aircraft carrier USS Carl Vinson (CVN70) as part of a cost-effective, wireless networked monitoring system for ventilation systems using sensors that measure pressure, temperature, and vibration, to provide a true condition-based maintenance (CBM) system.

The end-to-end solution interfaces Oceana Wireless e-Diagnostics technology with a third-party scheduling maintenance software package.

"Previously, most maintenance of industrial machines has been based on a time-based schedule, said Steve Sabram, President and Chief Technology Officer of Datastick Systems.

"Oceana Sensor's technology enables maintenance to be done based not on hours of service, but on the true condition of a system.

Now users can see the condition of their systems on a handheld, enabling them to be much more mobile".

"At Oceana Sensor there is a strong belief that wireless PDA access to sensor data is pivotal to an effective implementation of our Wireless e-Diagnostics machinery monitoring.

Our partnership with Datastick helps achieve our customers' goals for implementation and cost savings", said Alex Kalasinsky, Director of Strategic Marketing for Oceana Sensor Technologies.

Datastick Connection Plus BT for ICHM runs on Palm's Tungsten handheld or Palm m-500 series handhelds with Palm's Bluetooth SDIO card.

Users not requiring a wireless capability can use the Datastick DAS-1245 data acquisition system that consists of the DAS-1245 snap-on module and one of three Datastick Connection software packages.

Sensors can be plugged into the module or into one of Datastick's accessories that expand the range of sensors and applications for the system.

Once the data is recorded on the handheld, it can be transferred to a desktop computer in a Palm HotSync operation.