Emerson Process Management unveils full redundancy for Smart Wireless monitoring and control applications, to further wireless adoption on all capital projects

Phil Black - PII Editor 20/11/2009

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Wireless control proven in installations using 1-second updates, enhanced PID, battery management, and WirelessHART™ network

Responding to end-user requirements, Emerson has announced a unique approach to redundancy for Smart Wireless monitoring and control solutions. Available with the DeltaV™ S-series digital automation system, full redundancy protects the wireless network from any single point of failure by allowing primary failover to ensure that data is always delivered even if there is a malfunction.

The enhancements include redundant Wireless I/O, power and communications and a redundant Smart Wireless Remote Link. The Remote Link can be mounted in class 1/Div 1/zone 0; it easily links the wireless field network into a DeltaV system which makes an optimised PID available for wireless control. The new full redundancy increases the strength of Smart Wireless technology as a complement to wired and bus approaches on capital projects.

“As plant studies have shown, reliable robust wireless technology should be a key component of all capital projects,” said Bob Karschnia, vice president Wireless for Emerson Process Management. “Plants using wireless realise savings and become smarter through simpler engineering and construction, flexible start-up, faster deployment and project completion, and changing automation needs. Today, wireless is readily deployed for monitoring, and customers have asked for redundancy for control as well as for critical monitoring points.

“Further, customers need proof that control with wireless is viable,” continued Karschnia. “We’ve responded with real-world Smart Wireless installations using 1-second updates, enhanced PID, battery management, and WirelessHART™. We’re excited about the expansion of benefits that these new user-driven solutions offer.”

Thousands of Smart Wireless installations are successfully operating globally in demanding environments industry-wide. The new wireless network redundancy and robustness enables customers to now confidently extend use to critical monitoring and control applications with the same flexibility and ease of use of the entire Smart Wireless platform.

Smart Wireless is based on the WirelessHART standard, which is designed for control and monitoring applications. Smart Wireless devices based on the WirelessHART standard deliver 99.9% reliability because of the self-organising nature of the network. This ensures that data is always delivered reliably and is never lost. This level of reliability is a prerequisite to using wireless technology for any critical monitoring or control application. Devices that conform to the WirelessHART specification can sense measurements at update rates up to once per second. WirelessHART also allows exception reporting for network efficiency; devices only communicate a measurement value if it has changed significantly since the last communication or if the time since the last communication has exceeded a required reporting time, optimising battery life.

Two recent installations have demonstrated the effectiveness of Smart Wireless for control over WirelessHART networks. At bioprocess technologies supplier Broadley James, WirelessHART pH and temperature transmitters control a single-use disposable bioreactor. “We conducted batch runs using mammalian cell culture,” said Scott Broadley, president of Broadley James. “The observed pH and temperature control using wireless measurements was equivalent to that achieved using wired transmitters.”

Similar results were seen at another installation at the University of Texas where Stripper and Absorber Control is done using WirelessHART transmitters. Column pressure control and heater stream flow control using WirelessHART transmitters provided the same dynamic response and comparable performance to that achieved using wired transmitters.

Both installations use an enhanced PID algorithm available with the DeltaV S-series. This PID algorithm for wireless devices delivers high accuracy control in an exception reporting environment. It is a perfect complement to maximise control performance with wireless technology.

In addition to the new redundancy capability, Emerson offers a wide range of wireless field instrumentation and plant operations equipment, including Emerson Smart Wireless Gateways with redundancy, THUM™ adapter, Fisher® position monitors, Rosemount® transmitters, Rosemount Analytical and Machinery Health™ Management devices, and native wireless interfaces to AMS™ Suite predictive maintenance software, DeltaV™ and Ovation® digital automation systems, and wireless SmartStart™ Services. Smart Wireless is an extension of Emerson’s PlantWeb® digital plant architecture.

For more information about Smart Wireless, visit www.EmersonProcess.eu/SmartWireless, and for videos go to www.EmersonSmartWireless.com/Videos.

For further information please contact;

Emerson Process Management
Blegistrasse 21
6341 Baar
Switzerland

E-mail: infocentral@ap.emersonprocess.com
Web: www.EmersonProcess.eu