Regular testing and maintenance guarantee a most service life and functional and failure-related security of technical appliances. The similar applies to foam-based fireplace extinguishing techniques and the foam proportioners put in in them.
Up to now, such testing and upkeep have required the presence of personnel on-site. However, ส่วนประกอบpressuregauge would be simpler and more cost-efficient for extinguishing system operators if this was attainable in a fully automatic and remote-controlled method. For example, this is ready to additionally make common maintenance personnel journey to remotely located proportioners redundant. In addition, this may be positive that necessities by the producer, requirements and units of regulations are noticed without any practical deviations and unsuitable time intervals.
The remote testing system within the ‘Smart Proportioner’ development framework has been created just for this purpose. It is an development of the distant monitoring system.
Brief overview of the remote monitoring system
The remote monitoring system is used for proportioner monitoring in testing mode throughout upkeep and live firefighting operations.
In the course of distant monitoring, the proportioning price and other working parameters are decided, recorded and forwarded to the system operator if essential. Thus, the sleek performance and operational readiness of the system are monitored and ensured this way.
A distant monitoring system consists of a management system, together with an elective local show unit (HMI) if relevant, and sensor expertise. The sensor know-how consists of, at the least, the possibility to discover out the water motor’s variety of revolutions and to determine the foam agent flow price. These values are used to calculate the proportioning price. This figure is the core attribute in the course of the operation and testing of a foam proportioner. Further sensor know-how is on the market on an optionally available basis.
The distant monitoring system supports the working and service personnel on-site. It is also suitable for remote monitoring of the foam proportioner.
However, it is a primary fact that personnel are always essential to carry out the maintenance work or the proportioning fee testing on-site because the system plays a monitoring position only. It does not actively interact with the functioning of the proportioner.
In the course of remote monitoring, the proportioning rate and different operating parameters are determined, displayed and forwarded. Images supplied by Author / Contributor
Evolution – from distant monitoring to remote testing
The question is how to additional reduce the upkeep effort on foam proportioners.
The resolution lies in the distant testing system, the following step of the intelligent FireDos proportioners. The distant testing system permits monitoring of the proportioner and individual upkeep, including proportioning fee testing.
The condition of the proportioner may be checked with out having to begin out up the hearth extinguishing system. No personnel are required on-site. Proportioners in a distant place or that are solely not often inspected by personnel on-site may be checked with out upkeep employees and related expenses, such as journey expenditure. In specific, growing the testing interval is feasible with out extra efforts. The instruction guide for FireDos proportioners requires regular starting-up, utilizing the service crank manually as a minimum. This is meant to stop deposits inside the equipment, impairing its ease of motion and thus conserving the proportioner’s functionality. The distant testing system can adopt these common actions and take a look at the proportioning fee, growing the service life and functional safety of the proportioner.
What is the design of a distant testing system?
The remote testing system is usually based mostly upon the remote monitoring system. It is, nevertheless, significantly prolonged by way of actuators. This is because they allow the completely unbiased operation of the distant testing system; i.e., the proportioning price of the proportioner is examined with out activating the water pumps of the hearth extinguishing system.
The core elements include a central management system, with an optionally available HMI, sensor expertise, electrical ball valve drives, an electrical drive for the proportioner and a bypass line past the water motor.
The connection of the electrical drive and the proportioner is designed in order that the electrical drive will have no interference with the proportioner’s functionality in the case of a fireplace. This method, the benefits of the mechanical proportioning principle are preserved.
How does the distant testing system work, and how can the proportioning fee be checked without activating the water pumps?
If in ready-to-operate mode, the proportioner is always within the proportioning position. Upon initiation of an automatic testing process, irrespective of if after an outlined time interval, upon request by way of a cloud resolution or from the fireplace extinguishing system/a local operator, the proportioner is put into testing operation. Specifically, the control system puts the proportioner into testing operation using an electrically actuated ball valve drive while the foam agent isn’t blended into the extinguishing water but returned to the foam agent tank. At the identical time, it opens the electrically actuated ball valve within the bypass line past the water motor. Next, the electric drive of the proportioner is activated, driving the entire proportioner at its start-up flow rate. The start-up circulate fee is the bottom working point of a proportioner to reach its nominal proportioning fee.
Due to the exterior electrical drive, the water motor works like a pump and generates a water circulate by way of the bypass from the water motor’s outlet to the water motor’s inlet. The operation causes no change of stress within the extinguishing water line. เกจวัดแรงดันลมขนาดเล็ก extinguishing system is subsequently not influenced when the proportioner is tested.
As the extinguishing water flow rate simulated by the exterior drive can additionally be known as a end result of identified ratio of the water motor’s number of revolutions and the water move rate, simply the foam agent circulate rate must be determined to allow the next calculation of the proportioning fee. This is finished by a volumetric circulate meter between the proportioning pump’s outlet and the ball valve, which switches between returning and proportioning mode. This allows dedication of the foam agent flow rate, each in testing mode and while proportioning in case of an alarm.
The proportioning rate is decided based on the method as required in the requirements and laws EN 13565-1, NFPA 11, FM 4-12, and the Nordtest NT Fire 042 technique.
Foam agent move price [l/min]
(Extinguishing water move fee x 100 = proportioning fee %+ foam agent circulate rate) [l/min]
After completion of the testing process, the electric drive of the proportioner stops, the bypass line is closed, and the proportioner is returned to proportioning mode.
Sensor know-how installed as an extra choice or inside the electrical drive permits acquiring further info and conclusions concerning the state and condition of the respective unit. It is checked, for instance, whether the ball valves are of their correct positions or enough oil is within the crankshaft housing of the proportioning pump. In addition, the stress values at the pump inlet/outlet and the strain at the water motor are recorded. Finally, measuring the whole system’s torque and the flow fee contained in the bypass line permits checking the general condition of the proportioner.
The data may be displayed regionally or by way of a cloud resolution. Controlling the maintenance operation can be possible by way of both interfaces.
What if there could be an alarm during a testing process?
An necessary question is: Does the proportioner work with none limitations and as traditional if there might be an alarm? The reply is: Yes!
The remote testing system is designed in such a method that extinguishing water can flow via the water motor and start it up at any time, even when the electrical drive is working at the identical time. In addition, a singular, absolutely automatic and purely mechanical decoupling mechanism ensures that the electrical drive doesn’t intrude with the proportioner’s functioning and readiness to function.
In case of an alarm, the ball valves in the bypass line and people for switching between returning and proportioning are immediately switched so that the proportioner is in proportioning mode for firefighting. Thus, the control system is put into alarm mode on this case. This alarm mode causes the disabling of all capabilities not essential at that second and all ball valves to be set to their appropriate position.
Therefore, in case of an alarm throughout testing operation, the ball valves switch to their correct position fully automatically and the electric drive is switched off. Even if the electrical drive is still running or coming to a stop, the extinguishing water can move via the water motor and drive the proportioning pump with out limitations. The alarm mode of the management system prevents re-activation of the electric drive or any unintended ball valve switching.
What benefits does a remote testing system provide?
Compared with normal proportioners and people outfitted with a distant monitoring system, a remote testing system supplies varied benefits. They feature the next:
ν Proportione
Display view for testing operation of the FireDos remote testing system. Images supplied by Author / Contributor
cian have to be on-site.
Regular proportioning fee testing: Regular proportioning fee testing ensures optimum functioning of the proportioner in case of a fireplace. If the proportioning rate is too low, the extinguishing success can be compromised. Overdosing causes the foam agent to be consumed faster than supposed, leading to the untimely ending of the foam operation.
Increasing practical and failure security because of increased testing intervals: An elevated check interval causes the proportioner to be examined totally automatically at shorter intervals of time. This notably reduces the risk of a failure remaining undetected for an extended period of time. In addition, extra frequent testing prevents the formation of deposits inside the water motor.
Early fault detection and diagnostics: Faults within the proportioner or parts of the extinguishing system, instantly affecting the proportioner’s performance, can be recognized at an early stage of time. This consists of, for instance, stress variations in the extinguishing water line or a jammed suction line.
Inclusion of all capabilities and advantages of the distant monitoring system: All capabilities and advantages of the distant monitoring system are also present within the remote testing system, i.e. all related working parameters are recorded and processed repeatedly and accurately as properly as documented in a log file. In addition, all information are displayed by a visualization.
Reduction of prices: Regular practical testing makes it possible to detect faults even earlier. This means, upkeep and repairs can take place earlier than any more critical harm occurs. The elevated functionality and fault security of the proportioner ensures that the service life of the proportioners is maximized and the probability of a failure is minimized. As a outcome, lowered service and operating workforce on-site reduce costs significantly, notably if the proportioner is situated in a distant place. In addition, functional testing of the proportioner allows early identification, evaluation and probably limiting a fault remotely. This makes service visits more environment friendly and due to this fact more cost-effective.
Summary and prospect
The distant monitoring system already supplies varied advantages and helps reduce costs, however it cannot scale back the workforce required on-site.
The remote testing system is an answer for decreasing upkeep requirements. It is the next evolution in the middle of developing clever FireDos proportioners.
The remote testing system allows reducing the workforce required on-site to a minimal, along with shorter testing intervals and increased failure safety. This increases the proportioner’s service life.
If the proportioner is in a fault-free state, no further maintenance by personnel on-site is necessary, aside from an oil change. The oil change may be carried out by the operator’s personnel, too, simply and with none deeper knowledge of the working precept of proportioners. If a service go to or repair ought to still become necessary, distant monitoring and early fault detection will make the planning and completion of such work extra efficient.
Like the remote monitoring system, the distant testing system is an optimum symbiosis of mechanical proportioners and an intelligent digital improve. Thus, the benefits from both expertise fields are combined with out compromising the functionality of mechanical FireDos proportioners.
For more info, go to www.firedos.com
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