Grain Bin Level Monitoring

Industrial Background

Grain is one of the most important supplies in human life. To ensure its quality and safety, we have strict requirements on its storage and management. Therefore, it is particularly important to monitor level of the grain bins. This can not only help operators aware liquid level changes in time, but also ensure a smooth working process of grain storage and management. The grain bins usually have large capacities, and traditional grain level monitoring needs manual inspection and mechanical equipment measurement. It has low work efficiency and there are certain safety risks. Using radar technology to monitor grain level can realize remote and non-contact monitoring, which can increase monitoring efficiency and safety.

Product Introduction

GLT742 radar level meter is a frequency modulated continuous wave (FMCW) radar product operating at 76-81GHz, which operating principle is based on reflection and reception of electromagnetic waves. It realizes objects detection and ranging by using the reflection of electromagnetic waves. Due to its high frequency characteristics, 80G radar level meter has relatively high resolution and detection capability, is suitable for the complex applications that requires high accuracy ranging. It can provide accurate level measurement data and contribute to industrial automatic control.

Introduction to Silo Level Measurement Solution

The medium are basically solid particles or powdered materials when monitoring silos level measurement. It faces the problems of uneven materials and dusty environment. To monitor grain level of silos, we can install 80G radar level meter at the top of it. The data can be transferred to PLC/DCS controller through analog or digital signals. The processed signals are displayed in the control room through the configuration screen, or uploaded to the cloud platform through wireless module and realize data remote terminal.

Application Case

Customer Background

A large livestock farm in New Zealand breeds dairy cows. Usually, there are two grain silos in different places to storage feed to prepare for breeding needs. Daily grain level monitoring relies on workers to conduct daily inspection. They climb up the silos for manual inspection, and when the storage is insufficient, the farmers will be called to rationing. This method has poor reliability, high risk to personnel, and is not conducive to production control. Therefore, the customer decides to conduct intelligent monitoring to the grain and milk storage tanks and improve management abilities.

Facing Problems

1. Height of the silos are between 5~10m, and the storage materials are feed powder for breeding and unprocessed corn and other granular materials. Because powder and materials characteristics, it is unknown on how to choose Material level monitoring instrument.

2. How to transfer grain level signals to Workers Duty Room, and make works pay attention to grain consumption of each barn at any time?

3. How to resolve monitoring problems of milk storage tanks, and how to deal with filled milk storage tanks in time?

Solutions

After sorting out customer’s product requirements, and combined with previous project experiences, we recommended customer using radar level meter to resolve present level monitoring requirements. The detail solutions are as follows,
1.We recommended customer using our 80G radar level meter for the customer’s grain bin. Choosing lens antenna can avoid powders influence on measurement. It is Installed on the top of the grain bin 1/3 from the edge to prevent the cone shape of the material from affecting measurement and data accuracy. Small size radar level meter can be used to monitor milk storage tanks, it can eliminates blind spots and bubble effects.
2.The collected liquid level data is transferred to customer’s Workers Duty Room, connected with PLC and host computer to monitor real time liquid level monitoring.

Solution Effect

Through this customer’s farm transformation, it largely improves production efficiency, and reduces manual faults and waste, decreases labor costs and energy consumption, and thereby reducing production costs. The potential danger can be discovered in time by monitoring production environment and equipment status, and measures can be adopted in time, which can improve production safety. It brings more efficient, safer and higher quality production methods to customers.

80G Radar Level Meter Installation Pictures