July 1, 2019 - Yokogawa Electric Corporation announced that it has developed a wireless noise surveillance system that monitors and maps plant noise levels in real time, and is releasing this as part of its OpreX Measurement lineup. The system will be released first in Europe on July 24, with expansion to other markets following in short order.
This online plant noise surveillance system employs wireless technology and explosion-proof sensors. Even in plants where noise levels change drastically over time, noise mapping can be applied to plan work schedules that will ensure workers do not exceed specified limits for number of work hours in a noisy environment.
Yokogawa began working in 2016 with Equinor ASA Norway, one of the world’s largest offshore oil and gas companies, to jointly develop an online system that monitors workplace noise levels in real time. With Yokogawa’s field wireless technology and expertise and Equinor’s extensive plant operations knowledge, the companies were able to successfully develop this wireless noise surveillance system.
Yokogawa has now acquired a license from Equinor and will begin manufacturing and selling this system.
The principal components of this system are the WN100 wireless noise meter and the WN30 noise mapping software. Compliant with the ISA100 Wirelessnetwork protocol, WN100 sensors can be installed at many locations throughout a plant to measure noise levels and transmit this data in real time to servers via gateway devices such as the Yokogawa YFGW410 field wireless management station. From this data, the WN30 software can then construct in real time a noise map and superimpose this onto an actual map of the plant. Via an Ethernet connection, computers in the central control room and other key locations can then display these graphics in a web browser.