Field device and cover for a field device

Abstract

Field device (1) of automation technology with a housing (3), an electronics unit (5) arranged in the housing and a cover (7), characterized in that display and operating elements (9) are integrated in the cover (7) and the cover (7) has a circumferential capacitive operating field (93) integrated in a side wall (71), which enables continuous operation in the manner of a slide or rotary switch.

Description

[0001] The present application relates to a field device of automation technology according to the preamble of patent claim 1 and a cover for such a field device according to the preamble of patent claim 8.

[0002] Field devices comprising a housing, an electronics unit arranged in the housing, and a cover are known from the prior art, such as DE 10 2012 102 517 A1, DE 10 2015 122 278 A1, and EP 2 239 546 A1. These devices are frequently used in automation technology. Such field devices frequently have display and / or operating devices that are electrically connected to the electronics unit and arranged with it in the housing. The display and / or operating devices are frequently arranged in the housing in such a way that they can be read through a viewing window formed in the cover of the housing. Operation, i.e. in particular manual input, is only possible without removing the cover using aids, e.g., using magnetic pens or external operating units connected via a radio interface. This is frequently perceived as a disadvantage, since, for example,In a potentially explosive atmosphere, the cover of the field device cannot be removed without completely deactivating the field device.

[0003] The object of the present invention is to further develop a field device in such a way that operation is possible without removing the cover. Furthermore, it is an object to provide a cover for a field device that also enables such operation for existing devices.

[0004] These objects are achieved by a field device having the features of patent claim 1 and a cover for a field device having the features of patent claim 8. Advantageous further developments are the subject of dependent patent claims.

[0005] A field device according to the invention for automation technology with a housing, an electronic unit arranged in the housing and a cover is characterized in that display and operating elements are integrated into the cover.

[0006] In the context of this patent application, "integrated" means that the display and operating elements are integrally formed with the cover. This means that the display and operating elements and the cover are manufactured during the production process into a single component that cannot be disassembled into its individual components, display and operating elements and cover, without causing damage. This means, in particular, that it is not possible to separate the display and operating elements and the cover without causing damage. In addition, the cover has a circumferential capacitive control panel integrated into a side wall, which enables continuous operation similar to a slide or rotary switch.

[0007] In the sense of the present application, display and operating elements are all possible types of input devices, such as buttons, pressure switches, capacitive operating elements, in particular capacitive switches and capacitive fields, optical input means, etc. and all possible types of display devices, such as displays, LCD displays, OLED displays, lighting devices, light strips, LEDs, OLEDs, AMOLED displays, TFT displays, electrophoretic displays, 7-segment displays and the like.

[0008] A cover within the meaning of the present application is an element that closes and seals the housing of the radar level measuring device according to a specified protection class. In particular, display and control elements that are merely inserted into the housing but do not seal it are not considered covers within the meaning of the present application.

[0009] The display and control elements do not need to be mounted as separate components in the housing, but can be integrated into a housing wall. This allows for more compact dimensions. Production is more cost-effective due to the fewer individual parts of the field device. At the same time, this design also enables high-volume production and allows for retrofitting into housings that do not have space for display and control elements.

[0010] In a preferred embodiment of the field device, the display and control elements can be connected to the electronics unit of the field device for data transmission. Connectable in this sense means that a connection for the transmission of data is possible, be it wired or wireless, for example via radio or optical data transmission. With a wired connection of the display and control elements to the electronics unit, the provided lines, e.g. cables or printed circuit boards, can simultaneously supply the display and control elements with power alongside data transmission. With a wireless connection of the display and control elements to the electronics unit, e.g. via a radio interface, retrofitting is particularly easy. Here, too, it is possible to supply energy wirelessly, e.g.to be transmitted via an inductive coupling from the electronics unit to the cover with the display and operating elements.

[0011] One embodiment provides for the cover to have an energy storage device, in particular a battery or a storage capacitor, and / or an energy harvesting device, in particular solar cells, to supply power to the integrated display and control elements. A dedicated power supply makes retrofitting particularly easy. For example, if the electronic module already has a wireless interface, retrofitting a corresponding cover can significantly increase operating convenience.

[0012] Preferably, the energy harvesting device, especially the solar cells, is integrated into the cover. Through appropriate integration according to the above definition, the cover with the display and control elements is transformed into a self-contained unit, further simplifying retrofitting. Furthermore, the self-contained device significantly expands the application range of the electronic device, as no stationary power supply is required.

[0013] Preferably, all of the aforementioned components are injected into the cover and thus integrated into it. In this sense, "injected into the cover" means that the injected elements have been embedded in the material of the cover, for example a polymer or any other type of material such as glass or metal. Production can generally be carried out using molding processes, in particular using the Injection Molded Structural Electronics (IMSE) manufacturing process. For this purpose, components of the display and control elements can be applied to a plastic base. The plastic base can then be encased in a plastic matrix using an injection molding process, whereby the display and control elements remain accessible and functional, i.e. in particular, readable and operable.

[0014] A cover according to the invention for a field device with a housing, wherein the field device has an electronics unit arranged in the housing with an interface to display and control elements, is characterized in that the display and control elements are integrated into the cover. The cover has a circumferential capacitive control panel integrated into a side wall, which enables continuous operation in the manner of a slide or rotary switch.

[0015] The cover preferably has a radio interface designed to communicate with an electronic unit of the field device. Additionally, the cover can have a radio interface that can communicate with external / other devices, such as smartphones, laptops, or tablet computers.

[0016] The cover can have an energy storage and / or an energy harvesting module to supply the display and control elements with energy, thus creating an energy-autonomous module.

[0017] The cover can be designed so that the display and control elements are integrated into a cover and / or outer surface of the cover. This allows for easy readability of the display elements and good accessibility of the control elements, depending on the application, for example, from different viewing angles of the device.

[0018] In a further preferred embodiment, the cover and / or the housing can be made of a thermoplastic, in particular an injection-moldable plastic. The advantage here is that the display and operating elements can be incorporated directly into the plastic using a printing process and an injection molding process. For example, the plastic can be made of polyamide (PA) or acrylonitrile-butadiene-styrene copolymer (ABS). Both materials offer good mechanical properties. ABS also offers high dimensional accuracy. Furthermore, polycarbonate (PC), polybutylene terephthalate (PBT), PC-PBT blends, i.e. mixtures of polycarbonate and polybutylene terephthalate, polymethyl methacrylate (PMMA), polyvinylidene fluoride (PVDF), polyetheretherketone (PEEK), polyoxymethylenes (POM), as well as all of these and the aforementioned plastics with fiber reinforcement, e.g., glass fibers or carbon fibers, can be used.

[0019] The present invention is explained in detail below using exemplary embodiments. They show: Fig. 1 a radar level measuring device with a first embodiment of a cover with display and operating elements integrated into a cover surface of the cover, Fig. 2 a second embodiment of a lid with display and operating elements integrated into a side wall of the lid, Fig. 3 a longitudinal section through a third embodiment of a lid with display and operating elements integrated into the side wall and the cover surface, Fig. 4a) a longitudinal section through a fourth embodiment of a lid with a capacitive control panel integrated into the side wall of the lid and Fig. 4b) a cross section through the embodiment of Fig. 4a).

[0020] Unless otherwise stated, the same reference symbols in the figures refer to the same elements with the same function.

[0021] Fig. 1 shows a field device 1, which is designed as a radar level measuring device.

[0022] In the present embodiment, the radar level measuring device 1 has a housing 3 with a cover 7, wherein in the housing 3 - not shown here - an electronic unit 5 is provided for signal processing, communication with a higher-level unit and for supplying energy to the installed components.

[0023] The radar level measuring device 1 can be connected to a process environment via a process connection designed as a flange 31, so that a horn antenna 32 of the radar level measuring device 1 can be arranged in a container with a medium whose level is to be measured.

[0024] In the present embodiment, the cover 7 of the radar level measuring device 1 is pot-shaped, i.e., it has a circular cover surface 70 and a side wall 71 running around the circumference of the cover surface 70. In the present embodiment, various display and operating elements 9 are integrated into the cover 7. In the embodiment shown, LEDs 90 and a 7-segment display 91 are integrated into the cover 7 as display elements, as well as capacitive buttons 92 as operating elements.

[0025] In the illustrated embodiment, both the display and control elements 9 are designed as injection-molded structural electronics (IMSE). For this purpose, the individual display and control elements 9 are mounted on a plastic base and are embedded in the material of the cover 7 during injection molding of the cover 7, thus forming an integral part of the cover 7.

[0026] The display and operating elements 9 are designed and arranged in such a way that the display element 9 can be read from the outside and the operating elements 9 can be operated from the outside, ie from the surface of the cover 7.

[0027] In the Fig. In the embodiment shown in Figure 1, official display and operating elements 9 are integrated into the cover surface 70 of the lid 7.

[0028] Fig. 2 shows a second embodiment of a cover 7 with display and operating elements 9 integrated in the side wall 71 of the cover 7.

[0029] In the present embodiment, a strip of a plurality of LEDs 90 as display elements 9 and capacitive buttons 92 arranged below the LEDs 90 as operating elements 9 are integrated into the side wall 71. The LEDs 90 can, for example, optically signal the fill level of a medium in the container in the manner of a bar display.

[0030] Fig. 3 shows a longitudinal section through a field device 1 with a third embodiment of a cover 7 with display and operating elements 9 arranged in the side wall 71 and the cover surface 70.

[0031] In the presentation of the Fig. 3 clearly shows that the cover 7 engages a second thread formed on the housing 3 of the field device 1 via a thread 72, which in the present embodiment is designed as an internal thread, and can thus be screwed thereto. In the illustrated embodiment, display and control elements 9 are arranged in both the cover surface 70 and the side wall 71 of the cover 7.

[0032] In the Fig. In the sectional view shown in Figure 3, three capacitive buttons 92 can be seen, one of which is arranged in the side wall 71 and two in the cover surface 70. Furthermore, two 7-segment displays 91 and a plurality of LEDs 90 can be seen as display elements 9. The LEDs 90 are arranged both in the cover surface 70 and in the side wall 71 and can optically output a status of the field device 1, for example, according to the NAMUR standard.

[0033] In the Fig. 3 also shows the electronics unit 5 arranged in the housing 3. The electronics unit 5 is in the Fig. 3, the control unit is connected to the cover 7 and the display and operating elements 9 arranged in the cover 7 via an electrical connection 74, which in this case is designed as a wired connection.

[0034] As an alternative to a wired connection between cover 7 and electronics unit 5, a radio-based connection, for example, according to the Bluetooth low energy standard or another short-range radio standard, is also conceivable. In this case, a power supply for the display and control elements 9 can also be arranged in the cover 7. Alternatively, wireless power transmission, for example via an inductive coupling between the electronics unit 5 and the cover 7, is also conceivable.

[0035] Fig. 4a) shows a longitudinal section through a fourth embodiment of a cover 7 with a capacitive control panel 93 integrated into the side wall 71 of the cover, which enables continuous operation in the manner of a slide or rotary switch. The capacitive panel 93 is, as Fig. 4a) can be integrated into the side wall 71 of the cover 7 and, as can be seen from Fig. 4b), is designed all the way around.

[0036] The Fig. The capacitive input field 93 shown in Figure 4 can be clearly combined with various display elements 9. List of reference symbols 1 field device 3 housings 5 Electronics unit 7 lids 9 Display and control element 31 Flange 32 Horn antenna 70 deck area 71 Side wall 72 threads 74 electrical connection 90 LEDs 91 7-segment display 92 capacitive buttons 93 capacitive field

Claims

[1] Field device (1) of automation technology with a housing (3), an electronic unit (5) arranged in the housing and a cover (7), characterized by that display and operating elements (9) are integrated into the cover (7) and the cover (7) has a circumferential capacitive operating field (93) integrated into a side wall (71), which enables continuous operation in the manner of a slide or rotary switch. [2] Field device (1) according to claim 1, characterized by that the display and control elements (9) can be connected to the electronic unit (5) of the field device (1) for data transmission. [3] Field device (1) according to claim 2, characterized by that the display and control elements (9) can be connected to the electronic unit (5) via a cable. [4] Field device (1) according to claim 2, characterized bythat the display and control elements (9) can be connected wirelessly to the electronic unit (5), in particular via a radio interface. [5] Field device (1) according to one of the preceding claims, characterized by that the cover (7) has an energy storage device, in particular a battery or a storage capacitor and / or an energy harvesting device, in particular solar cells, for supplying energy to the integrated display and control elements (9). [6] Field device (1) according to claim 5, characterized by that the energy harvesting device, in particular the solar cells, are integrated into the cover (7). [7] Field device (1) according to one of the preceding claims, characterized by that the display and operating elements (9), the energy storage device and / or an energy harvesting device are injected into the cover (7). [8] Cover (7) for a field device (1) with a housing (3), wherein the field device has an electronic unit arranged in the housing (3) with an interface to display and operating elements (9), characterized by that the display and operating elements (9) are integrated into the cover (7) and the cover (7) has a circumferential capacitive operating field (93) integrated into a side wall (71), which enables continuous operation in the manner of a slide or rotary switch. [9] Cover (7) according to claim 8 for a field device (1), characterized by that the cover (7) has a radio interface which is designed to communicate with an electronic unit (5). [10] Cover (7) according to one of claims 8 or 9 for a field device (1), characterized by that the cover (7) has an energy storage and / or an energy harvesting module for supplying the display and control elements (9) with energy. [11] Cover (7) according to one of claims 8 to 10 for a field device (1), characterized by that the display and operating elements (9) are integrated in a cover and / or shell surface (70,71) of the cover (7).

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