Sintering Machine Pallet Air Leak Detection Using Oxygen Prediction

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Solution Overview

Problem

Existing methods for detecting air leakage in Dwight-Lloyd type sintering machines fail to distinguish between variations in oxygen concentration due to operational states or raw material blending from actual air leakage, leading to potential false detections.

Innovation Solution

A method using an oxygen concentration meter and a prediction model trained with machine learning to subtract operational and blending state variations, accurately detecting air leakage by measuring and predicting oxygen concentration changes.

Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles

VSEngineering Contradiction Analysis

1Reliability

If oxygen concentration measurement is used to detect air leakage, then air leakage can be detected, but false detections occur due to operational variations and raw material blending changes

Engineering Contradiction:
Improveair leakage detection accuracyVSAvoidoxygen concentration measurement reliability
Core Design Contradiction:
ReliabilityVSMeasurement precision

Solution Approach 1:

The system continuously measures oxygen concentration and compares it against dynamically updated reference values that account for operational variations. The control unit adjusts detection thresholds based on feedback from multiple measurements across different operational conditions, enabling the system to distinguish between normal operational fluctuations and actual air leakage events.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #23Feedback

Solution Approach 2:

The invention changes the detection parameter from absolute oxygen concentration to relative oxygen concentration deviation. By measuring how much the oxygen concentration deviates from expected values under current operational conditions, the system can account for variations caused by raw material blending and operational state changes while maintaining sensitivity to actual air leakage.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #35Parameter changes

2Device complexity

If simple oxygen concentration monitoring is implemented, then the system remains simple, but it cannot distinguish between operational variations and actual air leakage

Engineering Contradiction:
Improvedetection system simplicityVSAvoidair leakage detection accuracy
Core Design Contradiction:
Device complexityVSReliability

Solution Approach 1:

The invention introduces a control unit that acts as an intermediary between the oxygen concentration sensor and the detection logic. This control unit processes raw oxygen concentration data, compares it against reference values stored in memory, and determines whether actual air leakage is occurring. This intermediary layer adds minimal complexity while dramatically improving detection reliability.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #24Intermediary (Mediator)

Solution Approach 2:

The system creates reference copies of oxygen concentration data collected under known good operational conditions. These reference values are stored and used for comparison during operation, allowing the system to detect deviations without requiring complex real-time analysis of operational parameters. The copying approach simplifies the detection logic while maintaining high reliability.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #26Copying

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

Accurately identifies air leakage in sintering machine pallets, enhancing productivity by minimizing false positives and ensuring timely repairs.

Implementation Method 1

measuring, by using an oxygen concentration meter installed in a wind leg immediately below a plurality of circulating pallets, an oxygen concentration in the wind leg

Methodology Applied
Scientific EffectOxygen concentration measurement:

Data Source

PatentEP4674991A1Method and device for detecting air leak in sintering machine pallet
Publication Date: 2026.01.07 JFE STEEL CORP
  • EP4674991A1 patent drawingFigure 1
  • EP4674991A1 patent drawingFigure 2~3
  • EP4674991A1 patent drawingFigure 4~5

AI summary

An air leakage detection method for a sintering machine pallet according to the present invention includes: a measuring step of measuring, by using an oxygen concentration meter installed in a wind leg immediately below a plurality of circulating pallets, an oxygen concentration in the wind leg for each circulation cycle of each of the plurality of pallets when each of the plurality of pallets passes immediately above the wind leg; a predicting step of calculating a predicted value of the oxygen concentration by inputting information at a time of processing to a prediction model, the prediction model using the information indicating an operation state of the Dwight-Lloyd type sintering machine and a blending state of the sintering raw material as an input variable and the predicted value of the oxygen concentration as an output variable; and a detecting step of detecting a pallet having air leakage using a subtracted value obtained by subtracting the predicted value of the oxygen concentration calculated in the predicting step from the oxygen concentration for each circulation cycle of each of the plurality of pallets measured in the measuring step.