Ignition Improves Nuclear Measurement System
6 min video / 1 minute readProject Overview
This device runs 24/7, gathering measurement data from two types of detectors that measure radioactivity in the area. It performs sophisticated spectroscopic analysis on the measurements, which both identifies what radioactive isotopes are producing the radiation and how intense the activity is. This data is then sent back to our Horizon supervisory software for recoding in the historical database and display of alarms and data to the user.
One interesting element is that we transmit a large spectra data item as a tag. This is the data used by the device for spectral analysis to identify radioisotopes. This spectrum is displayed in several ways that are useful to the customer. We had to build several specialized controls in Java which allow us to display this specialized data. These controls are then integrated into the Ignition development environment so they can be put onto various screens.
We expect to grow our Horizon product much more. Rather than just monitoring measurement data coming from our instruments, we want to collect maintenance and performance data to evaluate instrument health and identify predictive maintenance that can be performed to prevent instrument downtime. Now that we have a product that can easily be adapted to collect any data the instrument can produce, we are adding useful information to help with this objective.
We also plan to integrate to a GIS system for our mobile instruments, add customizable dashboards so users can build their own summary screens, and utilize analytics on data we collect from the instruments — both for measurement data and for performance and maintenance data. We ship systems worldwide so we are now working to make an interface that allows our global offices and even our customers to translate the system into their own languages.
Project Information
Created By: Canberra
Canberra has been serving the nuclear community for over five decades. The company is the leading provider of innovative and cost-effective nuclear measurement solutions used to maintain safety of personnel, assess the health of nuclear facilities and safeguard the public and the environment. Canberra operates production and engineering facilities worldwide. Our 1000-plus employees are focused on bringing the very best nuclear technology to your operation. Our core radiation detection instruments use high purity Germanium (HPGe) and Si(Li) semiconductor detectors to monitor for the presence of radiation. We built specialized electronics and software to take signals from these detectors and identify what isotopes are involved, and quantify the activity. We are the leading nuclear instrumentation and spectroscopy company, and strive to offer solutions that serve the most demanding requirements of the world's nuclear industries. Website: www.canberra.com
Posted on September 1, 2016
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