Bin Level Measurement Transformed by IoT

Remote monitoring software benefits include improved processing efficiency, smarter ordering, optimized delivery schedules, and reduced carrying costs. Monitoring bin levels while on-site or off-premises boosts visibility throughout the company. Automated high- or low-level alerts via text or email allow for proactive action that can add to a mill’s bottom line.

Level Sensors Play a Leading Role

Cloud-based programs are compatible with a wide range of sensors and measurement technologies. Their versatility lends them to use with bins, tanks, or silos of different shapes and sizes, storing all types of grain, feed, ingredients, fertilizers, or fuels.

Replacing a manual measurement with an automated level sensor leads to:

• Better Accuracy: Most level sensors are accurate within 0.2”
• Improved Safety: Automated measurements eliminate the need for climbing ladders
• Time-Saving: More measurements can be done with less manpower, requiring fewer people

Non-Contact Radar

80 GHz non-contact radar provides superior level measurement in extremely dusty conditions. Models designed for liquids perform in excessive steam, condensation, vapor, and surface foam.

3DLevelScanner

Ideal for large bins or materials that pile unevenly, this non-contact technology measures and maps multiple points on the material surface and accounts for irregularities in calculating volume. A specialized software program provides a 3D visualization of the topography and multiple-bin monitoring.

SmartBob®

Working like an automated tape measure, the SmartBob sensor drops a weighted cable to a solid material surface at timed intervals. It can also measure the level of submersed solid material settled below a liquid surface.

Laser

Measuring in a tight beam, lasers are suited for feed bins and narrow vessels with lower or no-dust environments. Battery-powered models reduce wiring costs and allow for installation where power is limited or unavailable.

User-Friendly Software Platforms

As far as inventory monitoring is concerned, you can choose from software installed on your local area network (LAN) or a cloud-based software-as-a-service (SaaS) that is accessed from the internet on a phone, tablet, or PC.

Both are highly affordable and easy to work with. BinMaster`s LAN-based software program, Binventory®, is installed on your local network and is a one-time software purchase per location. The software accommodates up to 120 silos. Cloud-based software-as-a-service (SaaS) programs, like BinCloud®, are subscriptions based on the number of bins you are monitoring. The cost is several dollars per month per bin, plus a cellular program if one is needed.

Unlike locally installed programs, cloud-based software does not require an IT expert to install or manage the program. Updates to the software are provided by the host company, which will also provide the necessary training and ongoing support.

LAN and SaaS programs offer similar features. Both have easy-to-use graphical interfaces. Bins can be sorted by type, material, and alert status. An administrator can control who has access to the program and what information is available to them. Historical reports for specific time periods can quickly be downloaded.

Perhaps the most attractive feature of inventory management SaaS is automated alerts. Sent via text or email, these alerts help ensure that bins or hoppers do not run empty and potentially interfere with production. When used in tandem with purchasing, orders can be placed in a timely manner and deliveries scheduled so as not to interfere with production.

Specialized Programs for Feed and Milling

BinMaster’s BinCloud® platform is an integrated cloud foundation for monitoring inventory contained in bins, tanks, and silos. It enables on-site and remote workers to work via the cloud from wherever they are. There are specialized SaaS offerings suited for grain storage operations, animal feed manufacturers, flour mills, and swine, poultry, or cattle farms.

BinView® is used in agriculture and food processing to monitor all types of solids, powders, and liquids. It is highly scalable to any number of vessels and locations. BinView can be used with all types of level sensor technologies, including non-contact radar, 3DLevelScanner, SmartBob, and laser level transmitters.

FeedView® is customized for livestock farmers raising swine, poultry, or cattle. This comprehensive feed management solution combines wireless, battery-powered laser-level sensors with simple-to-use software. It automatically measures bin levels, projects feed needs using historical consumption rates, records the use of medicated feeds, and lets farms place orders directly with the feed mill.

Automated alerts ensure farms know when to schedule deliveries, preventing feed shortages and eliminating late delivery charges. Allowing the feed mill access to FeedView allows the mill and the farms to better coordinate production and delivery. When farms order the right amount of feed, they also reduce the amount of feed left over when animals are sent for processing. This reduces wasted feed, vacuuming, and disposal charges.

How Cloud Computing Transforms Inventory

Combining cloud-based SaaS and advanced level sensor technology makes inventory and supply chain management easier.

• Accessibility: Information is portable and available anywhere there is internet access from a phone, tablet, or PC.
• Accurate Information: Total transparency, fewer discrepancies, and more information leads to better decisions. Know what to buy and when to order it.
• Better Control: Automation brings centralized digital control, minimal human intervention, and timelier outputs.
• Cost Containment: Direct and indirect. Less overtime, automation of daily tasks, fewer inefficiencies, and no emergency or late delivery charges. Reduced disposal and vacuuming charges.
• Historical Reporting: Manage and segregate high-turn, long lead time rations, and ingredients with strict reporting requirements.
• Improved Monitoring: Real-time reports of on-hand supply; data is continuously updated effortlessly.
• Job Satisfaction: Less mundane work, more time for planning and problem solving.
• Optimize Production Processes: Streamline vital communication between people and devices to get everyone on the same page.
• Process Improvements: Reduce material outages and production stoppages due to shortages; fewer batch processing errors lead to better quality.
• Security: Data—both past and present—is stored securely.
• Simplicity: No servers, no IT department,  no need-to-know programming to use software; programming updates done by host provider.
• Time Savings: Less time on the phone or managing spreadsheets, fewer trips to the control room, and less time doing routine or redundant tasks.
• Vendor Managed Inventory: Ingredient suppliers can be assigned login credentials and viewing rights to monitor inventory in tandem with the mill.

Three Steps to Specifying a System

1. The Type, Size, or Number of Bins You Have

If there is material in a bin, tank, or hopper, there is a sensor to measure it. Begin designing your system by creating a list of the vessels, their dimensions, the type of material stored inside, and any existing equipment installed or used on the bin like a temperature cable, ladder, or sweep. This ensures the sensor can be matched to its job. Nuances such as access to or structures in the vessel may be contributing factors to sensor specification.

Also, note if the bins are grouped in any way by location. Bins grouped together physically can be addressed with wiring configurations such as daisy-chaining, which can save on wiring costs. Bins distanced further from power can be good candidates for battery-operated sensors and wireless devices.  An inventory management system can be used across multiple plants or corporately for hundreds of silos.

Dryers, day bins, and fuel and chemical tanks are also candidates for level sensors and inventory monitoring. They can be easily added to the same system as bins.

1. Frequency of Measurements

Consider if you want measurements updated constantly or readings at intervals throughout the day. Continuous-level sensors do as their name implies, they update continuously and in real-time. Readings taken at preset time intervals or on-demand may also work for your plant. Technologies such as radar update in just seconds, while the wireless laser is best for intervals every hour or three or four times a day to conserve battery life.

A SmartBob can be programmed at set time intervals, such as marking the beginning or end of a shift. Bobs also can take a measurement on demand with the push of a button.

1. Where Workers See the Data

From a communications standpoint, determine where people need to access the data. Solutions can be designed for visibility in a control room or office, a remote location such as corporate headquarters, or from home. SaaS offers the option to log in to view inventory anywhere you have an internet connection.

Another common device to provide convenience in the plant is a control console or digital panel meter. These can be installed for walk-up or drive-up access, both indoors or outdoors. For example: a driver delivering grain should check the bin level before they start filling it to confirm the entire load will fit into the bin, preventing the risk of overfilling. These push-button devices are easy to use and can be used for view-only access to data on the plant floor.