IEN: How are manufacturers using existing technologies in new ways?

Crossbow Technology: Sensors are evolving to do more in many new applications -- in fact, they are becoming ubiquitous. One significant new use is in new kinds of wireless sensor systems that use the wireless specification, known as Bluetooth, in factory floor settings for data acquisition, machine health monitoring, industrial control, and other applications. Bluetooth is a global standard using the 2.4GHz radio frequency spectrum, and devices built on it have the potential to replace RS232, parallel, and other types of cables with a single standard wireless connection.

IEN: What are the major concerns facing this sector in the next few years?

Crossbow Technology: Two significant and related issues are continued productivity increases, and cost efficiencies.

The need to increase productivity continues on in all manufacturing situations. The implementation of intelligent, digital sensor technology can assist productivity by maintaining constant temperature, pressure, or other desired conditions, without the requirement of constant human intervention on a production floor.

Bluetooth-based wireless sensor systems can speed up implementation of new product test and development or alleviate the need for expensive wiring or rewiring in locations that can be difficult and expensive to reach.

IEN: What innovations are in store for users?

Crossbow Technology: The use of Bluetooth-based wireless technology is going to vastly improve communications between and among specialized nodes in industrial locations where data can now be collected with a minimum of human intervention; wireless sensor technology reduces or eliminates the risk of injury, error or interpretation of data, and does not require installation of new wiring or repair of existing wires.

The benefits of a low cost wireless solution are especially interesting in locations where frequent reconfigurations of wired test setups impinge on productivity and add cost or even put employees in hazardous situations. It may be as simple as the fact that running measurement or data acquisition cables around a factory floor to monitor environmental conditions, energy use, or security can be just too expensive to achieve. The promise of Bluetooth-based wireless sensors incorporates a cost element that accrues long term benefits.

Also, in some industrial applications, it is not even possible to use wires, because wires can distort measurements or become entangled in machinery operation. Bluetooth-based wireless sensor set-ups can eliminate those limitations and enable cost-effective, low-hazard measurements and serve the requirement among manufacturers for "leaner" staffing or equipmentallocations.

The same is true for environments that are very cold, very hot or involve high humidity that can corrode wiring or stationary systems.