Bus Duct Heat Sensor Assembly for Compromised Joint Detection
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing power distribution systems using bus ducts face issues with heavy components, compromised joints due to structural movement, leading to undetected heat generation and potential catastrophic failures, with current monitoring methods being expensive, complex, and unsuitable for detecting compromised joints.
Innovation Solution
A heat sensor assembly with multiple heat sensors spaced along the cable, connected to a controller that compares temperature signals to detect deviations from a predetermined threshold, generating an alarm for compromised joints, allowing for quick fault detection and prevention.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Measurement precision
If fibre optic technology is used for temperature monitoring, then temperature detection capability is improved, but system cost and complexity increase significantly
Solution Approach 1:
The patent replaces expensive fibre optic technology with inexpensive temperature sensors that can be easily replaced. Multiple low-cost sensors are distributed along the bus duct, each monitoring specific sections. This approach trades the longevity and precision of fibre optics for cost-effectiveness and simplicity, allowing individual sensors to be replaced without affecting the entire monitoring system.
Solution Approach 2:
The monitoring system is divided into multiple independent temperature sensors positioned at different locations along the bus duct. Each sensor operates independently and can be individually replaced or calibrated. This segmentation allows the system to achieve comprehensive coverage without requiring a single complex fibre optic system, thereby reducing overall system complexity and cost.
2Measurement precision
If fibre optic technology is used for temperature monitoring, then temperature detection capability is improved, but system cost increases to approximately $40,000 for 1000 metres
Solution Approach 1:
The patent employs multiple inexpensive temperature sensors instead of expensive fibre optic cables. Each sensor costs a fraction of what fibre optic technology would cost for the same monitoring distance. The low individual cost of each sensor allows comprehensive coverage of 1000 metres of bus duct at a fraction of the $40,000 price tag of fibre optic systems.
Solution Approach 2:
Rather than using a single expensive fibre optic system, the patent uses multiple copies of simple temperature sensors distributed along the bus duct. This approach achieves the same temperature detection capability through replication of simple, cheap components rather than deployment of expensive, complex technology.
3Ease of operation
If visual inspection is used to detect compromised joints, then inspection simplicity is maintained, but detection accuracy and reliability decrease
Solution Approach 1:
The temperature sensors continuously monitor the bus duct joints and automatically detect temperature anomalies that indicate compromised connections. The system serves itself by providing continuous automated monitoring without requiring manual inspection, thereby maintaining operational simplicity while dramatically improving detection accuracy through objective, data-driven monitoring.
Solution Approach 2:
The system provides continuous feedback through temperature measurements from multiple sensors positioned at different locations. When a joint becomes compromised, the temperature increase is immediately detected and reported, providing real-time feedback that enables prompt corrective action. This continuous feedback loop replaces the periodic, subjective nature of visual inspection with objective, real-time data.
4Reliability
If multiple temperature sensors are positioned at different locations, then detection coverage is improved, but system complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The bus duct is divided into multiple monitoring sections, with temperature sensors positioned at key locations including joints and potential failure points. Each sensor monitors its local section independently, providing comprehensive coverage without requiring complex inter-sensor communication or coordination. This segmentation approach improves reliability through distributed monitoring while keeping each sensor unit simple and independent.
Solution Approach 2:
The temperature sensors serve multiple functions: detecting compromised joints, monitoring overall system temperature, and providing early warning of potential failures. This multi-functionality allows the system to achieve comprehensive detection coverage with a relatively simple sensor array, as each sensor contributes to multiple monitoring objectives simultaneously rather than requiring specialized sensors for each function.
Applied Scientific Principles
This section explains which scientific principles are used to turn an abstract innovation direction into a practical engineering solution.
Function Achieved in This Case
Provides a cost-effective, easy-to-install solution for monitoring bus duct systems, enabling immediate detection of compromised joints and preventing costly downtime by alerting operators to faults.
Implementation Method 1
a cable, containing a plurality of at least three heat sensors arranged along the length of the cable, each of the heat sensors being spaced from the next by an interval
Data Source
Figure 1~2
Figure 3
Figure 4A~4B
AI summary
A heat sensor assembly for a power distribution system is disclosed. The assembly comprises: a cable, containing a plurality of at least three heat sensors arranged along the length of the cable, each of the heat sensors being spaced from the next by an interval; an end module at a first end of the cable, the end module having a corresponding plurality of terminal pairs, each terminal pair being dedicated to one of the heat sensors; circuitry inside the cable, connecting each of the heat sensors across a corresponding one of the terminal pairs such that each terminal pair outputs a temperature signal indicative of the temperature sensed by the corresponding heat sensor; and a controller configured to receive the temperature signal from each terminal pair and to compare the temperature signals against one another to determine whether the temperature sensed by any one of the heat sensors differs from that sensed by the other heat sensors by more than a predetermined threshold (ΔTALARM), and if so to generate an alarm signal.