Smart Heartbeat Technology Provides Early Warnings of Potential Problems to Minimize Downtime

Burlington, ON – One of the compelling benefits offered by Industry 4.0 is the capability of smart sensors to provide early warnings about potential maintenance issues well before they result in unscheduled downtime. It’s the basis for an effective predictive maintenance program: monitoring anomalies from their appearance so remedial action can be taken if and when necessary, without loss of production. Endress+Hauser has integrated Heartbeat Technology into a wide range of its measurement and analysis instruments to perform smart-sensor-equivalent tasks. Heartbeat-equipped instruments use sensor data apart from the primary measured value to provide diagnostic, verification and monitoring capabilities that give in-depth insights into both the state of the measuring device and the process.

A study conducted by AI specialist Senseye found that large industrial operations lose an average of 323 production hours per year, which represents millions, even tens of millions of dollars of losses per plant. Three out of four companies surveyed have made predictive maintenance an explicit strategic goal. Smart sensors are being utilized help reach such objectives.

Heartbeat Technology is used in measuring instruments for flow, level, pressure, temperature to monitor their function and offer insights into process conditions, says. Daniel Persson, Process & Portfolio Manager Innovation at Endress+Hauser. “With Heartbeat Technology, field instruments monitor their function and offer insights into process conditions. This makes it possible to identify anomalies reliably and take timely actions.” It can even extend the intervals in a preventive maintenance schedule. Heartbeat’s ability to leverage signals apart from the primary measured provides many benefits, such as improved measuring reliability, increased efficiency in operations, achieved regulatory compliance, improved productivity, and reduction of unexpected downtime. With its diagnostic function, devices self-test continuously in the background and report their condition with a high diagnostic coverage of up to 97 per cent. Heartbeat’s Verification function makes it possible to verify the functional integrity of the instrument without interrupting the process. “These self-diagnosis and verification capabilities increase process performance and can help optimize calibration and testing cycles,” says Persson.

Sensor signals yield vastly more information, e.g., if demanding process conditions have a negative effect on the device. “Typical examples include corrosion or abrasion of sensor parts, the occurrence of foam in a tank or build-up on the sensor surface. Heartbeat detects these influencing factors and translates them into understandable information about the device and process,” Persson explains. If plant operators observe these parameters over time, they can recognize unwanted changes quickly and reliably.

For example, analytical sensors (pH, ORP, disinfection, dissolved oxygen, turbidity, photometry and conductivity) and samplers calculate a sensor condition index and performance metrics that operators can use to increase the availability of the measuring point and optimize the maintenance of their system. The sensor status or device status index can also be used to identify sensor aging.

Most of the functions of Heartbeat Technology can be called up directly on the device. However, the full potential unfolds when plant operators integrate it into their infrastructure and/or connect it to the cloud. “In a connected environment, the tasks are not only carried out more efficiently and comfortably, but additional functions are also available. These include the generation of a verification report and the monitoring of Heartbeat Technology parameters,” says Persson.

About Endress+Hauser
Endress+Hauser is a global leader in measurement instrumentation, services and solutions for industrial process engineering. Our products – sensors, instruments, systems and services for level, flow, pressure and temperature measurement as well as analytics and data acquisition – set standards in quality and technology. The company further supports its customers with automation engineering, logistics and IT services and solutions. Founded in 1953 by Georg H. Endress and Ludwig Hauser, the Endress+Hauser Group has been solely owned by the Endress family since 1975. Today, the Group is managed and coordinated by a holding company based in Reinach, Switzerland, employing over 15,000 personnel across the globe. In 2021, the Group generated consolidated sales of about $4 billion. Endress+Hauser’s production centres in 12 countries meet customers’ needs and requirements quickly and effectively, while its dedicated sales centres and strong partner network guarantee competent worldwide support.