A Dive into Our Sensor Arsenal. Analog and Digital Sensors for IIoT monitoring and improvements

At The Smart Pneumatics Laboratory, we take pride in our commitment to innovation and precision in the field of pneumatics. Our laboratory is equipped with a diverse range of sensors that play a crucial role in our research and experiments. In this article, we invite you to delve into the fascinating world of pressure sensors, airflow sensors, air temperature sensors, as well as proximity inductive and magnetic sensors that form the backbone of our experiments.

Aventics AF2

By far our most prized sensor has to be the Aventics AF2. In out configuration using the IO-Link variant it can measure air pressure, air flow and temperature, two at a time. In most of our configurations it is placed right after the air preparation Aventics AS5 unit.

Our biggest project we used it in was to measure the energy of the compressed air entering the system to find out different configurations of pneumatic systems to improve energy efficiency.

Configuration manual: https://www.emerson.com/documents/automation/operating-instructions-flow-rate-sensor-series-af2-aventics-en-6899510.pdf

Aventics PE5

This inexpensive and versatile pressure sensor can be placed anywhere in the pneumatic system to monitor air pressure. It connects using the same IO-Link cable like other sensors.

The biggest project it was used on it served the purpose to see the pressure drop at different points in different configurations of the same system to find the system with the highest efficiency.

Configuration manual: https://www.emerson.com/documents/automation/instruction-manual-pressure-sensor-pe5-aventics-en-6892998.pdf

Aventics SM6

This is a linear sensor that is placed on the side of Aventics PRA Pneumatic Cylinder and it outputs exact position within a 2^15 accuracy range (from 0 to 32767). They are custom selected for the different length of cylinders. We have one 500mm and three 320mm such linear senors.

The biggest project they were used on was to explore the variations in acceleration of cylinders using different configurations. The sensor gave us the exact distance the rod has traveled in a time frame and using the second derivative we could find out the change in acceleration of the rod. Obviously a smoother extension/retraction with close to zero acceleration is ideal.

Configuration manual: https://www.emerson.com/documents/automation/instruction-manual-distance-measuring-sensor-series-sm6-aventics-en-6896734.pdf

Aventics ST6

The Aventics ST6 magnetic sensor is a proximity sensor purpose made to attach to Aventics PRA Pneumatic Cylinder to check the position of the inner magnetic rod. Unlike the other sensors, this one is digital and it is really easy to install.

This sensor has been crucial to first of all drive the cylinder back and fourth. Two of the them are placed at each end of the Cylinder to switch the valves to extend the cylinder or retract it.

In IIoT these sensors are a really simple and inexpensive (monetarily and easy to calculate) solution to find the extension and retraction speed of the cylinder.

Configuration manual: https://www.emerson.com/documents/automation/operating-instructions-sensor-atex-certified-st6-aventics-en-7553694.pdf