Simultaneous Monitoring of Reflow Soldering Temperature Data For Two Manufacturing Plants

CLEVELAND - March 25, 2021 - PRLog -- Intelligent Data Loggers Provide Distributed Monitoring

A manufacturer of custom circuit boards operates solder reflow lines in two manufacturing plants located about a quarter of a mile apart. The plant manager of Plant #1 needed to closely monitor temperatures during the reflow soldering process while sharing recorded data (including temperature, airflow, line speed, etc.), with the manager of Plant #2. The customer had three older 48-channel chart recorders installed in each plant (for a total of 144 channels). The process was managed by exchanging information via email, phone calls, and faxes between the plants; therefore, the managers were required to exchange critical data via a process subject to time-consuming bottlenecks.

Installation

Because the chart recorders were quite old and due for replacement, CAS recommended the customer install a more robust, modern system that accommodated the existing sensors, had room for growth, was self-operational and could share data between the two locations. A dataTaker DT80 data logger was installed in each plant, along with four dataTaker CEM20s (Channel Expansion Modules), bringing the total capacity of each DT80 unit to 162 two-wire differential universal analog inputs. Each dataTaker logger was equipped with a Maple Systems 15″ HMI for local dedicated displays of the data gathered by the sensors attached to the logger.

Both dataTaker DT80s were connected to their plant's internet so any computer on the same network could connect and view the data from either plant. Provisions were also made in the network firewall in each plant to allow remote access to the data share through the company's Internet Service Provider.

Usage

The DT80 Data Loggers offer Ethernet, USB, or RS-232 communication with PCs. Connections can be established locally, remotely, or over the Internet. USB memory stick support is standard, as well as support for serial sensor networks, internal web, and FTP servers. To enable data acquisition from the large number of existing sensors, each of the four CEM20 units feature up to 60 analog inputs.

Benefits

The customer saw communication between the two plants increase immediately after installing the 2 DT80 units to monitor the reflow soldering temperature. All data acquisition in each plant is now managed and organized by one self-contained data logger, which connects to every sensor in the building through its CEM20s.

For more information on dataTaker data loggers, or to find the ideal solution for your application-specific needs, contact a CAS DataLogger Application Specialist at (800) 956-4437 or visit us at https://www.dataloggerinc.com.