Datastick Systems, Inc, industry leader in data acquisition software and peripherals for Palm OS® handhelds, has entered into a software licensing and development agreement with Oceana Sensor Technologies, Inc, a leading manufacturer of OEM vibration sensors and smart, wireless sensing systems for machine health monitoring, to develop a software interface exclusively for Oceana. As a result, Oceana''s ICHM® 20/20 (Intelligent Component Health Monitoring) System will communicate with the Datastick Connection™ software suite via Bluetooth™ wireless technology.
Datastick Connection software records, displays, and stores sophisticated scientific and industrial measurements on a Palm handheld. These measurements can then be downloaded to a personal computer via Palm''s HotSync® technology, for later evaluation and trend profiling.
"By utilizing handhelds running Datastick''s software, we are able to significantly reduce cabling in an ICHM® installation and enormously simplify data collection while increasing reliability," explained Andrew Rabiner, product manager of Wireless e-Diagnostics™. "When you consider that two-thirds the cost of a typical monitoring system is associated with the installation of cable and conduit, plus the added costs and liabilities of cable failure, you can see what a major advance this is in industrial maintenance and process control. In applications where weight is a factor, such as marine and aerospace, you have another significant advantage."
Some of the advantages of combining Datastick with the ICHM include:
- Reduced unscheduled maintenance and downtime: An estimated $115 billion annual savings could be realized by US industry through the reduction of unscheduled maintenance and downtime achievable through effective condition-based maintenance.
- Increased safety: An effective range of up to 10 meters provides a comfortable safety margin for data collection. While standing at a safe distance, simply press a button on the handheld to initiate a wireless handshake with the sensors, and the data is rapidly transmitted to the handheld. Afterward, place the handheld in its cradle and download the sensor data to a personal computer.
- Reduced costs: Less time and fewer personnel are needed to access and collect key sensor data. No physical hookups to components are needed to acquire data. Several points can even be monitored from the same position.
- Feature extraction: ICHM transforms raw data into useful decision-making information "in the box" before wireless transmission to the handheld, where the information can be viewed immediately via Datastick Connection software.
- Enhanced decision making: "Walk around" data has to be interpreted and correctly understood; a lot of available data is never utilized. With ICHM, decision making is based on complete information, and aided by knowledge programmed into the system.
- Economical conversion: With the reduction or elimination of cabling costs, wireless sensing systems become extremely practical and cost-effective for industrial retrofit.
Datastick Connection software will enable wireless communication via a Bluetooth Version 1.1-compliant connection between the ICHM 20/20 data acquisition system and one of three licensed Datastick products: Datastick Connection 2.0, which can read and store four channels of data simultaneously at sample rates of 12 Hz or slower in real time; Datastick Connection Plus 2.0, which adds level-sensitive recording and alarm capabilities; and the newly released Datastick Connection Pro, which can read stored or buffered dynamic data, such as vibration, from an ICHM® 20/20 into the Palm OS handheld for display, review, and storage.
"Our partnership with Oceana represents a milestone in the wireless revolution," explained Steve Sabram, Datastick''s president. "We are very excited, as Bluetooth and other wireless protocols are opening up limitless vistas for Datastick''s core technologies."