Wireless Tank Monitoring for Automatic Chemical Compatibility Alerts
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Solution Overview
Problem
Current methods for evaluating chemical compatibility of products in tanks are prone to human error due to reliance on visual markings, which can become unreadable under exposure to sunlight, rain, or rough handling, and do not provide for automatic evaluation.
Innovation Solution
A tank monitoring device equipped with wireless communication circuitry and a controller to receive and evaluate chemical compatibility information from other tanks, providing automatic evaluation and alerts for incompatible products, using both long-range and short-range communication protocols to ensure frequent data exchange.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If visual markings on tanks are used for chemical compatibility evaluation, then the evaluation method is simple and requires no additional devices, but the evaluation is prone to human error and markings may become unreadable due to exposure to sunlight, rain, or rough handling
Solution Approach 1:
The patent replaces the mechanical/visual system of tank markings with an electronic/digital system consisting of monitoring devices equipped with sensors, processors, and communication modules. These devices automatically read product information from tanks, evaluate chemical compatibility through software algorithms, and transmit alerts wirelessly, thereby eliminating human error and degradation issues associated with physical markings.
Solution Approach 2:
The monitoring devices are designed to autonomously perform the complete evaluation process: automatically detecting product information from tank identifiers, independently evaluating chemical compatibility using stored compatibility data, and self-initiating alert transmissions when incompatibility is detected, without requiring continuous human intervention or interpretation of visual markings.
2Ease of operation
If automatic evaluation using monitoring devices is implemented, then human error is eliminated and real-time alerts are provided, but the device complexity and cost increase
Solution Approach 1:
The monitoring devices are designed as multi-functional units that combine product identification capabilities, chemical compatibility evaluation algorithms, wireless communication modules, and alert generation functions within a single integrated device. This allows one device to perform multiple tasks that would otherwise require separate systems, thereby reducing overall system complexity despite the advanced capabilities.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent introduces wireless communication modules as intermediaries between the monitoring devices and central control systems or other tanks. These modules enable automatic data exchange and coordination without requiring direct physical connections or complex manual intervention, simplifying the operational interface while maintaining system intelligence.
3Productivity
If frequent wireless communication is used for data exchange, then real-time compatibility assessment is achieved, but the energy consumption increases
Solution Approach 1:
The monitoring devices implement periodic communication cycles where data transmission occurs at predetermined intervals rather than continuously. The devices assess compatibility locally and only initiate wireless communication when changes in tank proximity or product configuration are detected, thereby reducing overall energy consumption while maintaining timely detection capabilities.
Solution Approach 2:
The communication frequency of the monitoring devices is made dynamic rather than static. The devices automatically adjust their communication intervals based on operational conditions such as tank proximity, detected changes in product information, or alert states, increasing assessment frequency when needed and reducing it during stable conditions to conserve energy.
Data Source
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AI summary
A tank monitoring device (9a) for monitoring a first tank (5a) containing a first product, the tank monitoring device (9a) comprising a memory (24) configured to store chemical compatibility information about the first product; wireless communication circuitry (25); and a controller (27) configured to: receive, using the wireless communication circuitry (25), from a tank monitoring device (9b) monitoring a second tank (5b), chemical compatibility information about a second product contained in the second tank (5b); retrieve, from the memory (24), the chemical compatibility information about the first product; determine, based on the chemical compatibility information about the first product and the chemical compatibility information about the second product, that the first product and the second product are chemically incompatible; and provide an indication that the first product and the second product are chemically incompatible.