Battery Manager Switching Field Devices for Plant Monitoring
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Solution Overview
Problem
In industrial plants, battery-driven field devices used for monitoring and controlling facility operations face challenges with battery life management, particularly in environments where battery replacement is difficult or costly, leading to potential operational disruptions and increased costs due to the need for longer battery life or frequent replacements.
Innovation Solution
A battery management system that switches operational responsibility between field devices within the same group based on battery life information, allowing for extended operation without immediate battery replacement, thereby reducing battery consumption and maintaining facility monitoring and control functionality.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Duration of action of moving object
If the battery capacity is increased to extend battery life, then the operational duration is improved, but the device size and cost increase
Solution Approach 1:
The system divides the field devices into multiple groups and segments their operational roles. By switching between standby and active states across different groups, the system extends overall operational duration without requiring each individual device to have large batteries. This segmentation allows smaller batteries to suffice while maintaining extended operational capability through coordinated group switching.
2Reliability
If battery replacement is enabled, then the operational continuity is improved, but the ease of operation deteriorates due to restricted replacement locations
Solution Approach 1:
The system performs preliminary actions by pre-positioning standby field devices in locations where battery replacement is accessible. When active devices need battery replacement, the system has already prepared standby devices that can immediately take over. This preliminary preparation ensures operational continuity while allowing battery replacement to occur at convenient, accessible locations rather than at difficult-to-reach installation sites.
3Reliability
If the number of field devices is increased to ensure operational coverage, then the reliability is improved, but the device complexity and cost increase
Solution Approach 1:
The system implements dynamic role assignment where field devices can switch between active and standby states based on operational needs and battery status. This dynamic configuration allows the system to maintain reliable operational coverage with fewer physical devices compared to a static redundant system. The battery manager dynamically switches groups of devices, enabling operational continuity without requiring a permanently active backup for every device, thereby reducing overall system complexity.
Data Source
AI summary
A battery management device according to one aspect of the present invention for managing a plurality of field devices of a battery-driven type, the plurality of field devices being associated with a facility disposed in a plant and being defined as belonging to a same group includes a battery manager that, in a case receiving battery life information representing approach to a battery life of an installed battery from a first field device that is one field device currently operating among the plurality of field devices, switches the operating field device to a second field device that is another field device belonging to the same group, an operation of the second field device being stopped.