The Construction | Mining category contains case studies and blogs related to ITM’s engineering and testing services for the mining and construction industry.
This video shows how to install a strain gauge on a curved surface using M-Bond AE-10 two part epoxy. Watch an ITM test technician walk through each step of the M-Bond AE-10 strain gauge installation procedure.
ITM delivers mobile data acquisition solutions to capture real-time feedback under actual conditions
Whether we are testing a new component on a truck thatās a thousand miles away or putting an off-highway vehicle through its paces right in front of us, itās our mobile data acquisition products that often lead to ITMās successes.
How have ITM engineers employed mobile data acquisition to create successful tests and find solutions for their clients? Here are two recent examples:
Example 1: Custom in-vehicle data logging solution captures CAN bus information alongside analog sensor data
The R&D office was filled with our clientās application engineers as they eagerly awaited a first-ever view of their product ā a fan driveā as it performed under the hood of a commercial truck more than a thousand miles away.
A display of gauges, needles and dials showed precisely how our clientās product performed during everyday over-the-road stresses. The mobile data acquisition feeds showed fan speed, temperatures around the fan drive, and CAN bus data including engine speed and torque along with coolant, air and oil temperatures. It was an impressive view they had never seen before.
For years this global powertrain technologies company has turned to ITM to gather data for engine-cooling components. Thanks to software innovations at ITM, the firm has taken mobile data acquisition to the next level. Important vehicle information from the CAN (Control Area Network) bus alongside sensor data can be collected and shared real-time, which allows their client to remotely monitor tests as they happen.
āNot only are we correlating information that is broadcast by the vehicle with analog sensor information,ā says ITM VP of Operations Ryan Welker, āwe can gather data and feed it back to our customer in a way that is configurable to their needs. We can also incorporate GPS technology, which is very valuable. Now they can see if a vehicle is traveling up and down steep hills and see what influence it has on duty cycles of their product.ā
To perform the tests, ITM used a RAC-88 data acquisition package that consists of a National Instruments cDAQ chassis and associated hardware as well as an embedded PC that runs ITMās off-the-shelf iTestSystem DAQ software application. The package is equipped with a broadband router and cellular air cards for remote data connectivity and transmission.
From a pragmatic perspective, Welker points out that the constant monitoring also allows for a far more efficient testing process. Not only do their customers get data quickly (instead of waiting months until a test is complete to begin analysis), but also, any issues that disrupt data collection are brought to light immediately.
Beyond having the ability to build more efficient tests, Welker reiterates the importance of being able to gather more complete data by accessing the vehicleās CAN bus network.
āThis opens the doors to a lot more opportunities for customers that build engines and components,ā he says. āThose vehicles are spitting out all kinds of valuable information over the CAN system that we can now correlate with analog signal test data. This allows us to provide customers with a far more accurate picture of exactly what is going on with their equipment.ā
Example 2: In-vehicle testing employs mobile data acquisition to assess exhaust system
ITM was challenged with creating a rugged and flexible in-vehicle testing solution to determine the vibration levels of an on-highway vocational vehicleās exhaust system during operation.
ITM engineers chose the high-performance and rugged NI cDAQ-9139 stand-alone system with NI C Series modules along with our LabVIEW-based data acquisition software, iTestSystem, to create a rugged, high-performance and portable exhaust test system for large vocational vehicles. Our solution provided a wireless interface to the stand-alone NI CompactDAQ system to allow the operator remote control and monitoring of the embedded acquisition and logging system.
āThe new stand-alone NI CompactDAQ system provides a high-performance and portable system for demanding in-vehicle testing applications,ā says Mark Yeager, ITM engineer and lead programmer. āOur iTestSystem software, based on NI LabVIEW, combined with stand-alone NI CompactDAQ allows us to build flexible mobile data acquisition systems faster than using traditional logging systems.ā
ITM has used USB and Ethernet-based NI CompactDAQ systems, and its iTestSystem software, based on NI LabVIEW, for years to build high-performance mobile data acquisition and test systems for our customers in the transportation and in-vehicle space. The stand-alone NI CompactDAQ systems provide a new line of portable and flexible hardware from National Instruments by combining an embedded processor with the modular NI CompactDAQ platform.
Since these new NI cDAQ-913x systems can be used with the same NI LabVIEW system design software, NI DAQmx driver and 50+ existing NI C Series modules, ITM can build new flexible logging solutions for its customers in a very short amount of time.
Designing a Flexible Logging Solution for Exhaust Testing
For this mobile data acquisition application, ITM engineers chose the high-performance and rugged NI cDAQ-9139 stand-alone system with seven NI 9234 accelerometer modules and one NI 9229 module to interface directly to the sensors we leveraged in this application. The standalone cDAQ-9139 was bundled with a cellular network interface and packaged inside a rugged carrying case. For the sensors, ITM mounted 28 piezoelectric accelerometers to the exhaust system and connected them to the seven NI 9234 accelerometer modules. Engineers also installed a magnetic pickup sensor and connected it to the simultaneous, differential NI 9229 analog module to determine rotational speed that would be used later in a post processing order analysis algorithm.
Yeager says they leveraged the Windows Embedded OS running on the NI cDAQ-9139 to make the transition from using NI CompactDAQ USB-based systems connected to a laptop or PC a seamless process. The team used ITMās iTestSystem software, based on NI LabVIEW system design software, to stream data from staged events and operation directly to the NI cDAQ-9139ās non-volatile hard drive in a TDMS file format. They were able to control and monitor the daq systems remotely via Remote Desktop by connecting the cDAQ-9139 to a Wi-Fi network using a high speed cellular broadband modem and router with Wi-Fi.
After conducting the mobile data acquisition, all of the TDMS data files were transferred to a computer for post processing and analysis. The analysis for this project included calculating the overall vibration levels for each accelerometer using the order analysis plug-in for iTestSystem software that leverages the built-in analysis functions within NI LabVIEW. Additionally, with the iTestSystem software, they were able to provide the customer with a professional report containing overall vibration levels and order analysis graphs that identified which sensor locations failed or met the design criteria.
Leveraging the stand-alone CompactDAQ systems andĀ Ā iTestSystem software for this project was a huge success, and the customer was amazed at how quickly ITM was able to integrate new technologies including both NI and third-party hardware and software. With this system, ITM was also able to reduce the overall cost of their test by reducing the manpower needed to perform the test and providing them with instantaneous feedback of the system functionality by utilizing new technologies.
In the end, the customer liked the mobile data acquisition system so much that instead of sending the system back to ITM, they redeployed it onto another on-highway vehicle to solve a different problem.
Contact Ryan Welker via email at ryan.welker@itestsystem.com for more information about our mobile data acquisition products or iTestSystem.
Faced with the challenge of testing a large and complex onāhighway vehicle, engineers from Integrated Test & Measurement knew it would take hundreds of channels…
Whether manufacturing vehicles, mining natural resources or operatingĀ machineryĀ on a construction site, a single common factor can bring your operation and productivity to an absolute halt.Ā
That factor is noise.Ā
In a world where precision and performance rule, measuring and controlling sound levels can be crucial to the success of your product or project. The team at Integrated Test & Measurement (ITM) have developed a customized solution that not only measures and collects sound-level data, but will help your team identify the specific components causing all that noise.Ā
On-Site Sound Testing CapabilitiesĀ
ITM can assist with all types of sound testing on site including:Ā
In each of these instances, their engineers will be packing a custom Sound Level Test Kit full of data acquisition hardware, microphones and more. The key to their equipment, however, is that each kit includesĀ ITMāsĀ proprietaryĀ iTestSystemĀ software, an intuitive sound-level human machine interface (HMI) that allows for sound-level recording and reporting.Ā
Mark Yeager, ITM Lead Programmer, says building the capability withinĀ iTestSystemĀ to measure microphone data now allows customers to look at a real-time display of sound-level measurements.Ā
Yeager says their crew can build out tests on site to do such things as measure pass-by noise, a process by which the team arranges mics inside a vehicle and along both sides of a 40-yard stretch then capture, monitor and analyze a vehicleās sound and compare it to acceptable standards. By breaking apart the frequencies of components, they can even zero in on trouble spots such as a turbocharger on a car or a loud cooling fan on a piece of construction equipment.Ā
Measuring Dangerous SoundĀ
Yeager also points out the need to measure sound in places like construction sites or mines, where there may be concern over hearing loss for operators. According to the Centers for Disease Control, hearing loss can result from a single loud sound (like firecrackers) near your ear. Or, more often, hearing loss can result over time from damage caused by repeated exposures to loud sounds. The louder the sound, the shorter the amount of time it takes for hearing loss to occur. Sound is measured in decibels (dB). A whisper is about 30 dB, normal conversation is about 60 dB, and a motorcycle engine running is about 95Ā dB.Ā The CDC advises that noise above 70 dB over a prolonged period of time may start to damage your hearing, and loud noise above 120 dB can cause immediate harm to your ears.Ā
Test-Ready Sound Level KitsĀ
If you have test engineers on-site and simply need the equipment to help you get to the bottom of your sound issues, ITM will ship their test-ready kit that includes a pair of pelican carrying cases packed with the following components:Ā
Whether your needs include on-site sound testing and analysis or you simply need the crucial equipment to measure sound and vibration levels yourself, ITM can help.Ā
ITM is a structural test & measurement engineering service and software company located in Milford, Ohio, that helps companies reduce costs and improve efficiencies in their product development, manufacturing, and production activities. ITM is a recognized NI Gold Alliance Partner that provides software development, structural and mechanical testing services, industrial monitoring, strain gauging, and data analysis solutions to clients around the globe.
For more information about sound and noise level testing or our sound level test system or other data collectionĀ solutions, contact Ryan Welker via email at ryan.welker@itestsystem.com or phone at (844) 837-8797 x702.
A case study describing a strain gauge DAQ system used to validate several new designs of a heavy lift lattice boom crane to comply with SAE J987 standards.
At ITM, we understand that our customers do not settle for good enough. When it comes to measuring and capturing data for real-world applications and structural analysis, you cannot compromise, so neither can we. Instead of having to pick and choose the most critical locations to measure, we ensure that you can capture every piece of data you need, simultaneously. Whether that is a single strain bridge, or thousands of strain channels, we make your data logging project a success.
On past projects, we have worked with our customers in the manufacturing industry to test the structures of their aerospace, mining, construction and other transportation equipment.Ā Some of these applications not only needed to collect strain, vibration, voltage, and other signals simultaneously but also required well over a thousand total sensor channels.Ā Network synchronization technology embedded within the NI cDAQ chassis allow users to account for the sheer number of channels during these structural tests. The true secret to our success in these high-channel jobs has been our iTestSystem software which leverages the cDAQās synchronization technology while providing an intuitive data acquisition and sensor configuration and setup.
iTestSystem is far more than just a barebones data collection software. It can be a time saver to our engineers by helping to sort channels, keep various tasks organized, and even provide an easy and quick way to view results with the integrated TestView Plus Application (shown below).
The mining shovel pictured below, which is similar to other equipment that ITM has instrumented in the past, illustrates a distributed data acquisition system for collecting data. Using iTestSystem, we can implement a modified tree synchronization topology to collect data from over 20+ cDAQ chassis simultaneously.Ā Data can be collected in one giant file containing all sensor channels or saved into separate files based on location.Ā In past projects, we saved over 1000 channels from strain, acceleration, and voltage sensors into a new file every 10 minutes.Ā We added the sensor location to the sensor description, including the Boom, Operator Cab, Main Frame and Base. This allowed us to easily sort data both during and after the collection.
Our goal at Integrated Test & Measurement is to provide efficient testing solutions and services to address your companyās needs.Ā If you need to measure high channel counts, or have questions about our rugged DAQ systems, software, rental equipment or testing services, then please contact ITM by phone or e-mail.
Contact Information: For more information on this Article, please visit iTestSystem.com or contact: Ryan Welker ā Integrated Test & Measurement (ITM), LLC ā ryan.welker@itestsystem.com or (844) 837-8797
If the COVID-19 pandemic has proven anything, it is that we live in a business climate where efficiency and accuracy have never been more important. In other words, none of us can afford to make costly mistakes.
With that in mind, Iād like to share some tips for you to consider when it comes to this important question: How Do You Estimate Test Engineering Services Costs?
For engineers, testing engineers and managers who find themselves estimating jobs, getting this step right will prove crucial not only to the success of your projects and bottom line, but also to the trust you build with your clients.
The most important requirement is to properly define the project scope of work. This will not only help you determine the necessary hardware, software, and resources required, but it will also help you identify the customerās expectations and project deliverables. Properly defining the scope of work will help eliminate or minimize overall project time, as it will prevent delays both during the preparation phase and testing phases. Defining the scope of work will require a deep-dive discussion with your client to fully understand their challenges and goals. Remember not to leave vague language in your proposals. In other words, be sure to define who is responsible to provide all that will be needed to fulfill the project. Without a clear definition of the requirements and deliverables, it leaves a lot open for misinterpretation and expectations.
With a properly defined scope, we next must determine what, if any, materials we need to procure. These include sensors, DAQ hardware and other installation supplies. Donāt forget to include the amount of time that will be required to prepare all the materials and hardware. Think through such things as what it will take to package the DAQ hardware for any special environmental requirements. Also, be sure to consider the time it will take you to set up the software configuration file and test all the hardware and sensors prior to deployment.Ā
We also need to consider the onsite testing requirements and location specifics. Costs can mount quickly to cover general travel and living expenses, particularly when the job will take your team to remote places for extended periods of time. You need to think about daily commutes to and from the facility as well as the cost variance for different geographic locations. Flights, vehicles, hotels and meals are crucial to estimate as accurately as possible, and thatās going to take extra research on your part. Keep in mind that travel costs are NOT one-size-fits-all.
Some projects require analysis support and some do not. It all depends on the customersā resources and requirements. We serve customers by providing raw data files and allow them to perform their own analysis, but we also have experience providing a complete turnkey solution including data analysis. This requirement obviously needs to be defined up front in order to accurately estimate the opportunity.
You need to consider everything when estimating a project, and this commonly involves āaccess to the instrumentation areasā for our projects. We typically work on large, complex equipment that sometimes require additional tools and resources to access the sensor locations. This could include manlifts, scissor lifts, cranes, rope access and scaffolding. Since the equipment is quite large, you need to think about the amount of signal cable required and evaluate that against deploying a network of DAQ chassis which may be a cheaper solution than routing all sensors back to a single DAQ system. It will also be key to build in language and costs in your estimates to address unforeseen delays. For example, include factors that lie outside of your teamās controlĀ ā resources not being available, no access to equipment, or even poorly performing equipment that will not allow your team to record good data.
Sensor installation can vary from a couple minutes to a couple hours depending on the application. The same is true of strain gauges. Depending on the testing environment, strain gauges can be installed quickly or become an arduous task. Some applications involve very high temperature and moisture concerns and may also need to survive for long periods of time, which may require a more robust epoxy that requires a heat cure before data can be recorded from the strain gauges. Some applications involve no environmental concern and are only needed for a very short duration. In these cases, the gauges can be installed quickly after surface prep using an industrial type fast curing epoxy.Ā Similarly, some applications may benefit from using weldable gauges that can simply be tack welded to the specimen. This eliminates any challenges and reduces installation time by using special epoxies. These are typically much more expensive, so you must evaluate the economics of this option. In either case, the surface must be properly prepped (ground, sanded, polished) to the base material to ensure a good bond to the test piece.
Our labor rates vary by skill level. Senior engineering and programming labor, for example, costs more per hour than our regular engineering and programming labor. Similarly, sending a senior technician will cost more per hour than a technician. Finally, as is common, materials and expenses are estimated at cost plus 10%. Labor Rates Link
For more information about our testing services, contact Ryan Welker @ (844) 837-8797 x702.
Ryan Welker is a 25-year veteran in engineering, procurement and project management. Ryan currently serves as a Vice President of Operations at Integrated Test and Measurement (ITM) in Milford, Ohio. In this role, he oversees the daily operations and monitors all phases of project fulfillment, including customer inquiries, proposal development, scheduling and manpower, employee training, on-site installations, customer follow-up, and support.
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Choosing an accelerometer for rotating machinery vibration measurements can be a daunting task since there are so many options available. This blog outlines the characteristics you should consider when choosing a piezoelectric single axis accelerometer for general purpose vibration measurements and presents some accelerometers to consider.
When measuring vibration on rotating equipment such as motors, pumps, and generators, the most common measurement location(s) are on the shaft bearing housing(s) at the shaft centerline. At this location, typical vibration levels perpendicular to the shaft are < 100 g and the frequency range of interest is < 5000 Hz. Ā A general purpose single axis piezoelectric accelerometer with either a 10 mV/g or 100 mV/g sensitivity fits this criteria.
Other characteristics to consider are size, mounting options, cable connections, grounding, and cost. Several mounting options are available. They include magnetic bases, adhesive bases and stud mounts. The mounting option you choose affects the frequency range of your accelerometer measurements. The table below shows typical frequency limits for accelerometer mounting methods.
| Mount Type | Typical Frequency Limit |
| Magnet | 2,000 Hz |
| Adhesive | 5,000 Hz |
| Stud | 6,000 Hz |
The table below shows some examples of stud mounted general purpose piezoelectric accelerometers. These accelerometers all have a female 10-32 coaxial / microdot connector.Ā It is important to note that this is not a complete list of accelerometers and there are many options available from each manufacturer. I would encourage you to go to the websites linked in the table and see whatās available.
| Ā |  |
 |
 |
 |
 |
| Manufacturer | PCB | Dytran | BRĆEL & KJĆR | Endevco | Kistler |
| Model # | 353B03 | 3055D1 | 4533-B | 256HX -10 | 8702B500-M1 |
| Sensitivity | 10 mV/g | 10 mV/g | 9.8 mV/g | 10 mV/g | 10 mV/g |
| Frequency Range | (Ā±5%) 1 to 7000 Hz | (Ā±5%) 1 to 5000 Hz | (Ā±10%) 0.2 ā 12800 Hz | (Ā±10%) 1 to 10000 Hz | (Ā±5%) 1-10000 Hz |
| Temperature Range | -65 to +250 Ā°F | -67 to +250 Ā°F | ā67 to +257 Ā°F | -67ĖF to +257ĖF | -67ĖF to +257ĖF |
| Height | 0.88 in | 0.64 in | 0.54 in | 0.55 in | 0.67 in |
| Weight | 0.38 oz | 0.35 oz | 0.3 oz | 0.14 oz | 0.32 oz |
| Housing Material | Titanium | Titanium | Titanium | Titanium | Titanium |
| Electrical Connector | 10-32 Coaxial (side) | 10-32 Coaxial (side) | 10ā32 Coaxial (side) | 10ā32 Coaxial (top) | 10ā32 Coaxial (side) |
| Mounting Thread | 10-32 Female | 10-32 Female | 10-32 Female | 10-32 Female | 10-32 Female |
For more information about collecting vibration data, accelerometers, iTestSystem, or test equipment rental, contact Mark Yeager @ (844) 837-8797 x701.
Last week our team successfully and safely installed another Boiler Monitoring System (BMS).Ā This system, a Sootblower Fouling Detection (SFD) system, monitors structural and vibration sensors that quantify the boilerās response to sootblower operations. The SFD system analyzes the boiler response data and outputs Key Performance Indicators (KPIs) such as fouling level, sootblower efficiency, and sootblower health to automated boiler cleaning systems.
This boiler uses over 50 sootblowers located at different elevations to clean soot build-up from boiler steam tubes.Ā Since the vibration measurement locations are relatively far apart, the SFD system requires a distributed monitoring system consisting of several junction Ā boxes that monitor and process data for groups of sensors.Ā One team of engineers mounted the vibration sensors to the sootblowers and confirmed communication back to a local junction box containing the National Instruments condition monitoring hardware.Ā The other team installed the junction box panels and terminated the sensor cables.
After all the sensor installations and terminations were completed, each sensorās location and calibration were verified.Ā While the sensor verification was being completed, one engineer worked with the mill IT department and the controls engineer to establish remote connection to the system and confirm communication with the millās automated cleaning system.
After commissioning the system and returning to our home base, our engineers are now monitoring the system through a VPN connection and assisting boiler operators with optimizing their cleaning process.
For more information about our ryan.welker@iTestSystem.com or phone @ 1.844.837.8797 x702
Over the years we have been tasked with identifying the root cause of machine structural failures. In many cases, we can determine the failure mode through strain and vibration testing, order analysis, modal analysis, and operating deflection shape analysis.Ā What tests can you run when the damaging conditions are intermittent and not easily identified?
In these cases, we like to install a cellular networked temporary data acquisition (DAQ) system that can autonomously log vibration and strain data along with machine status data. We have deployed two types of DAQ systems to collect data remotely. Ā An interactive system that includes an industrial PC running our iTestSystem software and National Instruments (NI) Compact DAQ hardware and a headless system that utilizes NI Compact RIO hardware.Ā Our test engineers prefer using the interactive solution for troubleshooting because they can view real-time signal waveforms and collected data files, and then adjust the test parameters accordingly without having to reprogram the hardware.
When potentially damaging events are identified in the vibration and strain data collected by these systems, it is important to know the machineās operating status. Collecting the machine status information is just as important as collecting the structural data.Ā Many machines transmit these operating variables and operating stages over their network/bus.Ā Recently we have recorded process data from Allen Bradley Control Logix PLCs via Ethernet/IP, mining machine data from a Siemens controller via proprietary TCP/IP protocol, boiler condition data from a DCS via Modbus TCP,Ā machine pressures from PI historian via the UFL connector (TCP), and vehicle speeds and pressure via CAN.Ā Fortunately, we were able to use and adapt LabVIEW communication protocol tools to build applications and addons that allow this network tag data to be collected along with structural data.
After the data collection phase, our engineers perform statistical analysis on the sensor and status channels in all data files and aggregate the results into a database for searchability. To identify the root cause probabilities, you can process the channel statistics data using your favorite correlation algorithm or application.Ā The image below shows an example data set containing related sensor data that was processed using a LabVIEW correlation test tool.
Contact Information: For more information about our remote data acquisition service, our LabVIEW development service, or iTestSystem contact:
Mark Yeager – Integrated Test & Measurement (ITM), LLC.Ā Email: mark.yeager@itestsystem.com or Phone: 1.844.TestSys
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ITM provides software development, structural and mechanical testing services, industrial monitoring, strain gauging, and data analysis solutions to clients on six continents. ITM is a recognized National Instruments Gold Alliance Partner.
