Belt conveyor detection: sensor exposes idler roller failure

Predictive maintenance through wireless sensors for vibration and temperature monitoring makes it possible to anticipate the detection of various anomalies in different assets. From wear on some components to overheating and other conditions that require immediate or scheduled maintenance action. For belt conveyors, this is not different.

In this success case, it is possible to observe how the DynaPredict solution acted in the detection of wear in a conveyor belt roller. The goal was to reduce time and expense of sudden stops and avoid a manual process that was not NR12 compliant (regulatory standard that defines principles and measures of protection in the workplace). To that end, wireless vibration and temperature sensors were installed on the conveyor belt idlers.

The decision to install these sensors on the conveyor belt idlers is justified by the fact that placing them in this location would facilitate an eventual replacement of the rollers, without the need to remove or reinstall the sensors on the asset.

Once the sensors were attached to the machinery, data collection was started. Through a Gateway installed in the vicinity, this information is sent to the cloud platform. Thus, a level A2 alert was observed, classified as being of high criticality by the system.

In order to provide visual management of the numerous sensors installed on the conveyor, a specialized dashboard was developed for the belt conveyor in question. Furthermore, this made it possible to visualize where the sensors were installed and map the alert points.

With the data being automatically collected by the Gateway, the DynaPredict system identified a rise in the overall vibration values and generated an alarm on February 25^th. At this point, a warning e-mail was sent to the responsible technicians.

During the inspection, the professionals identified wear in the central roller and concluded that this was the reason for the alert issued by the system. Then, an intervention to solve the failure was scheduled, replacing the defective roller before a more serious accident occurred, which could compromise the asset and impact production.

Thanks to remote predictive monitoring with wireless vibration and temperature sensors, the risk of production interruption due to unexpected and more catastrophic failures, such as fires, for example, has been avoided.

In the following video, it is possible to follow in more detail the entire process involving conveyor belt roller failure detection with wireless vibration sensors:

Interested in this success case? Read this article about the main causes of fire in conveyor belts.