Thermal imaging has been successfully used in the engineering arena for many years. It assists engineers in conducting tasks ranging from straightforward infrastructure inspection to more challenging applications such as inspection of energised (and often critically important) electrical systems whose enclosures are not allowed to be opened.
Current trends now include attaching thermal imaging equipment to drones to enable the inspection of infrastructure such as power plant chimneys or remote oil & gas equipment that human inspectors with handheld tools can find extremely difficult to access.
As well as application trends, technology advances continue apace, with innovations including smaller (or more mobile) devices, smarter cameras and improvements in infrared (IR) and radiometric imaging technologies.
Big names dominating the thermal imaging product market include the likes of FLIR and Fluke. But before highlighting some of their latest solutions, it is worth discussing the role of other operationally important players in this market; the third-party companies that offer thermal imaging services rather than products.
Thermal imaging equipment does not come cheap. And the data it generates is only of use if it is being sent to and used by qualified personnel. Not every plant is likely to have thermal imaging experts in-house, so the business case for bringing in the experts is evident. Tony Dale, managing director, Geo Therm, is one such expert.
Describing his company’s work, Dale says: “We offer bespoke solutions for maintenance services and industrial plant checks. Contracting our inspection service team to regularly check machine tools and provide condition monitoring report work will highlight electrical deficiencies while aiding production uptime.”
EXPERT ADVICE
What is the benefit to a plant in contracting Dale and his team instead of doing the work in-house?
“Rather than race out to procure the latest thermal camera or ultrasonic test probe, plants should take into consideration the initial equipment start-up costs, specialist PPE, and annual calibration OPEX,” Dale explains.
“Notwithstanding the personnel training requirements and ongoing competency validation make for a rather daunting and cost-prohibitive exercise.
“Our team can perform a plant’s testing needs immediately and at a fraction of the start-up costs, to provide it with real time diagnoses, to permit informed choices, details, risks and benefits to schedule timely repairs before a downtime incident occurs,” he emphasises.
Dale’s particular area of expertise is infrared thermography (IRT), where a thermal imager is used to detect radiation from an object.
“IRT is a reliable diagnostic tool in electrical equipment fault diagnosis and maintenance,” he details. “Our thermographic inspections help maintain viable and safe electrical operations with the ability to visualise overheating equipment or compromised insulation to prevent unplanned shutdowns, electrical fires and energy losses.”
The benefits in terms of maintenance are clear and IRT enables plants to move away from a reactive maintenance approach to a more predictive one (which means that electrical equipment is likely to last longer, too).
On the type of applications IRT can be used for, Dale notes: “Internal and external production equipment such as electrical power panels, switches, transformers, busbars, cable terminations, HV power grids can all be examined safely.
“For instance, by inspecting the thermal gradients of cabling, trained users can effectively spot performance anomalies such as high resistance at individual crimps – due to loose terminations, imbalances and overloading. Should corrective repairs need attention, our qualified electricians can further assist.”
Ultimately, says Dale, thermographic surveys focus on prevention, enabling timely and effective inspections and allowing critical systems to be properly checked: “With this approach, results are obtained safely and immediate ROI savings are achieved.”
MOBILE DEVICES
For those who do wish to invest in their own thermal imaging equipment and deploy it themselves, many different tools are available. Fluke is among the most popular technology vendors here and its latest announcement is the launch of a compact, versatile mobile thermal camera for safe and accurate electrical inspection on the go.
The iSee mobile thermal camera is a pocket-sized, portable thermal camera with the resolution to deliver detailed image quality comparable to professional cameras, with full temperature range analysis.
Used by inserting the hardware into a smartphone, the iSee camera detects heat output, which can highlight abnormal temperatures easily and efficiently. Aiming to prioritise the worker, the portability of the camera is particularly beneficial for roles that require accurate thermal imaging from a safe distance or on the go.
“We designed the iSee camera to bring safety and convenience to thermal inspections without compromising the power and precision professionals need to do their jobs,” says Hector Martinez, product manager, thermal imaging, Fluke.
“The new resolution in iSee allows users to check panels and other connections for abnormal heating from a safe distance without putting themselves at risk. This will be the camera of choice for thermographers who need portability but demand safety and high-quality images.”
The new camera is designed for electrical engineers, HVAC technicians, contractors and other professionals who need an easier way to capture detailed thermal images for accurate temperature readings.
It provides detailed image quality with high resolution, high temperature range, accuracy and a 25Hz frame rate that makes it suitable for use in many applications, including electrical and mechanical inspections, product R&D and quality control.
VISUALISING SUCCESS
FLIR is arguably the biggest global name in thermal imaging cameras. One of its latest launches aims to visualise the pathway to better efficiency and control in papermaking.
The company says that recent developments in thermal signature analytics have expanded the applications of thermal cameras beyond routine troubleshooting; they now contribute to paper machine control, energy usage benchmarking, wet streak detection, and the identification and prediction of certain classes of sheet breaks.
In a recent case study in this area, Industrial Video Solutions (IVS), a US-based specialist in automation for the papermaking industry, is using FLIR infrared (IR) thermal cameras to obtain valuable data from paper machines as part of a system that boosts machine control and efficiency.
The overall solution being deployed is called ThermoVision, which is an IVS-patented system featuring FLIR IR cameras at its core. ThermoVision sees real-time moisture profiles in any paper machine location, mapping them to a multi-functional thermal profiler.
The system can provide real-time, full-width, cross-direction (CD) moisture and temperature profiles, as well as real-time machine direction (MD) profile variations. Moreover, profile analytics provide insights into dewatering and drying efficiency - critical for energy benchmarking.
“Armed with new data for maximising paper machine performance, we estimate substantial savings for ThermoVision users,” says Slawek Frackowiak, president and CEO of IVS. “For example, reductions in energy consumption and paper breaks, alongside increases in productivity, can lead to annual savings in the region of US$1.3 million on one liner-board machine.”
WORKER DRONES
In another new collaboration, Teledyne FLIR has announced that Gremsy, a provider of gimbals and payloads, is participating in the Thermal by FLIR programme. In this project, Gremsy integrated the Boson radiometric thermal camera module as part of its Vio F1 drone payload.
The Vio F1 is an advanced, lightweight electro-optical/infrared (EO/IR) payload for asset and infrastructure inspection, disaster relief, firefighting and public safety applications.
The Vio F1 features a Sony 4K Block Zoom EO sensor with up to 240x zoom and a 640 x 512 radiometric Boson thermal camera with up to 8x zoom. The payload also integrates a 2,400m laser range finder, making it an ideal option for industrial inspections.
With its integrated sensors, users can seamlessly engage the advanced functionalities of the payload through its diverse and intuitive viewing modes, allowing for individual and combined visible-thermal views.
“Working with the global leader in thermal imaging empowered us to drive innovation and get Vio swiftly to market,” comments Vinh Tran, CEO at Gremsy.
“Our goal was to create a payload that is compatible with multiple platforms and to offer an easy-to-integrate solution for any drone maker.”
3D PRINTING HEATS UP
Aconity3D develops and manufactures 3D printers that can be converted using modular platforms, making it possible to adapt them to the needs of the individual user.
The custom 3D printers are used for laser printing of metals in a laser powder bed fusion process. Thermal imaging is used for recording and monitoring temperatures.
As a method of process monitoring, thermal imaging is a new process in this context. Infrared cameras from InfraTec are integrated into the 3D printers for different purposes.
For instance, thermal imaging can be used to visualise and quantify size, velocity, direction and distribution of unwanted and disruptive spatters. The goal is to develop process strategies with reduced spray formation.