US-20260129271-A1 - Analog-to-Digital Wireless Gauge Reader

US20260129271A1US 20260129271 A1US20260129271 A1US 20260129271A1US-20260129271-A1

Abstract

A wireless gauge reader with a central body and legs mounts over an analog gauge in such a way that it does not block physical reading of the gauge face itself. The reader uses an algorithm developed to perform image extraction in order to convert the analog hardware reading to a digital data value. The telescoping feature of the device itself allows the device to be mounted on a wide range of gauge diameters, and the leg contraction system allows a synchronous movement of the legs that converge onto the perimeter of the gauge. The device can perform near real-time reading, and consume relatively low energy while it is asleep in order to maintain battery longevity. The device does not block direct visual reading of the analog gauge, thereby allowing for compliance with applicable regulations in certain industries.

Inventors

Jacob Michael Claes
Julio Eduardo Diaz
Billie Wayne Henstley

Assignees

ENTERGY CORPORATION

Dates

Publication Date: 20260507
Application Date: 20241101

Claims (20)

1 . A wireless gauge reader, comprising: a housing; a camera mounted within the housing; a microcontroller coupled to the camera; at least three telescoping legs hingeably connected to the housing, wherein each of the at least three telescoping legs comprises a leg cam extending from an underside of each such leg; and a leg adjustment mechanism configured to synchronously adjust the three telescoping legs, wherein the leg adjustment mechanism comprises a leg adjustment ring threaded to the housing at a gauge side of the housing and engaging with the leg cam on each of the at least three telescoping legs, wherein the reader is configured to mount on an analog gauge and capture images of the analog gauge face for digital processing.
2 . The wireless gauge reader of claim 1 , wherein each of the at least three telescoping legs comprises: an upper leg portion; a lower leg portion; and a locking nut connecting the upper leg portion and the lower leg portion, the locking nut configured to adjust a total length of each of the at least three telescoping legs.
3 . The wireless gauge reader of claim 2 , further comprising a foot attached at the end of each of the at least three telescoping legs, the foot configured to engage with an edge of the face of the analog gauge.
4 . The wireless gauge reader of claim 3 , further comprising a window positioned between the camera and the face of the analog gauge to protect the camera.
5 . The wireless gauge reader of claim 4 , further comprising a housing cap movably attached to the housing to provide access to the microcontroller.
6 . The wireless gauge reader of claim 5 , further comprising an antenna channel housing an antenna attached to the microcontroller for wireless communication between the microcontroller and a remote device.
7 . The wireless gauge reader of claim 6 , further comprising a connection port in the housing allowing direct wired connections to the microcontroller from outside of the housing.
8 . A method for reading an analog gauge using a wireless gauge reader device, the method comprising: capturing an image of an analog gauge face of the analog gauge using a camera mounted within the wireless gauge reader device; identifying a center calibration point, a maximum calibration point, and a minimum calibration point on the analog gauge face; detecting a position of a needle on the analog gauge face; determining a gauge reading based on the detected needle position relative to the calibration points; and wirelessly transmitting the determined gauge reading to a remote device.
9 . The method of claim 8 , wherein the step of identifying the center calibration point comprises the steps of: collecting a plurality of images of the analog gauge face; detecting circular features within each image; identifying at least one predetermined calibration feature from among the detected circular features; and determining the most stable and reoccurring predetermined calibration feature as the center calibration point.
10 . The method of claim 9 , wherein the step of identifying the maximum and minimum calibration points comprises the steps of: capturing a color image of the analog gauge face; converting the color image to a black-and-white image; and performing iterative thresholding on the black-and-white image.
11 . The method of claim 10 , wherein the step of identifying the maximum and minimum calibration points further comprises the steps of: detecting rounded features at each of a plurality of threshold levels; identifying features with center pixel values corresponding to predetermined colors in the color image; and determining the most frequently occurring coordinates for each predetermined color as the maximum and minimum calibration points.
12 . The method of claim 11 , wherein the step of detecting the position of the needle comprises the steps of: performing radial sampling from the center calibration point to detect linear features; performing angular sampling to count detected pixels at different angles; generating a pixel count versus angle spectrum; identifying a range of angles containing the largest area under the spectrum curve; and determining the needle direction based on the identified range of angles.
13 . The method of claim 12 , further comprising the steps of: obtaining multiple gauge readings; rejecting outlier readings based on predetermined tolerance criteria; averaging the remaining gauge readings; and wirelessly transmitting the averaged gauge reading.
14 . A system for remotely monitoring analog gauges, comprising: a plurality of wireless gauge readers, each wireless gauge reader comprising: a housing; a camera mounted within the housing; a processor coupled to the camera; a plurality of telescoping legs connected to the housing; a leg adjustment mechanism configured to synchronously adjust the plurality of telescoping legs; and a wireless communication module connected to the processor; wherein each wireless gauge reader is configured to mount on an analog gauge, capture images of a gauge face of the analog gauge, process the images to determine a gauge reading, and wirelessly transmit the gauge reading; and a remote monitoring station configured to receive and display the gauge readings from each of the plurality of wireless gauge readers.
15 . The system of claim 14 , wherein the processor in each of the plurality of wireless gauge readers comprises programming configured to: identify a plurality of calibration points on the gauge face; detect a position of a needle on the gauge face; determine a gauge reading based on the detected needle position relative to the calibration points; and control the wireless communication module to transmit the determined gauge reading.
16 . The system of claim 15 , wherein the remote monitoring station is further configured to: store historical gauge readings from each wireless gauge reader; analyze trends in the historical gauge readings; and generate alerts based on predetermined criteria.
17 . The system of claim 16 , wherein each of the plurality of telescoping legs comprises a leg cam, and further wherein the leg adjustment mechanism engage with the leg cam on each of the plurality of telescoping legs.
18 . A method for reading an analog gauge using a wireless gauge reader device, the method comprising: capturing an image of an analog gauge face using a camera mounted within the wireless gauge reader device; performing an iterative threshold to identify at least one most prominent line feature in the image; estimating a minimum distance from a center of the at least one most prominent line to a center point of the analog gauge; filtering for a direction of the at least one most prominent line by applying a radian constraint; estimating an average-projected point to produce a reading; and returning the reading to a remote device.
19 . The method of claim 18 , wherein the step of performing an iterative threshold to identify at least one most prominent line feature in the image comprises the steps of: estimating a minimum distance from the at least one most prominent line to a center point of the analog gauge; if the minimum distance is below an imposed threshold, storing the minimum distance; if the at least one most prominent line does not compose at least two most prominent lines, decreasing the imposed threshold and repeating the step of performing an iterative threshold to identify at least one most prominent line feature in the image; applying a weighting function to penalize background pixels; and determining at least one prominent line feature using arc intervals and a highest coincidence.
20 . The method of claim 19 , wherein the step of filtering for a direction of the at least one most prominent line by applying a radian constraint comprises the steps of: if the at least two most prominent lines are not parallel, estimating a set of intersection points between the at least two most prominent lines; estimating an average convergence point for the at least two most prominent lines; applying the set of intersection points of the at least two most prominent lines onto a mask of the analog gauge in the direction of the average convergence point; and checking if a line at a center of the average convergence point matches a needle color.

Description

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION Most of the plants forming the American Nuclear Power Plant (NPP) fleet were constructed in the time period between 1970 to 1996. At the time, these engineering marvels were an example of state-of-the-art technology, much of it being reliable analog in nature. Unfortunately, the industry did not keep up the pace with the significant technological advancements over the past twenty years, particularly the digital revolution. As a result, much of the technology has become obsolete, and the operations of NPP's remains manually intensive and outdated. The same problem exists in a number of other industries, with vast quantities of analog gauges still in use that require constant monitoring by personnel who must physically be present at the location of the gauge in order to record a reading. As NPPs move into the digital age, increases to monitoring capabilities is a vital first step. However, many of the analog indicators located throughout the NPP are read by operations personnel during regulatory required rounds. Unfortunately, this data collection can become a distraction to operations teams and are not performed on a high enough frequency to get the granularity necessary to perform maintenance predictions and performance optimization. Additionally, regulations applicable to the nuclear industry require decisions to be made from the non-wireless indications, which are often analog, so it is vitally important that any technological solutions not hinder this, nor tempt personnel to forego reading of the analog gauge in person as required by regulation. Moreover, the cost to replace the analog indicator with a digital variant is cost prohibitive, in the nuclear field and in many other fields as well. SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION The invention is directed to a wireless gauge reader, which uses an algorithm developed to perform image extraction in order to convert the reading from the analog hardware to a digital data value. In certain embodiments, the telescoping feature of the wireless gauge reader itself allows the device to be mounted on a wide range of gauge diameters, and the leg contraction system allows a synchronous movement of the legs that converge onto the perimeter of the gauge for secure mounting. The device in such embodiments can perform near real-time reading, and consume relatively low energy while it is asleep in order to maintain battery longevity. In certain embodiments, the device is powered from off-the-shelf batteries, eliminating the concern of proprietary battery technology which can be otherwise costly. Ultimately, the readings from this device in certain embodiments can be used to decrease the time burden that nuclear power plant operators undergo to collect data from the analog hardware to satisfy regulatory requirements. Additionally, the relatively low-cost implementation of these devices according to certain embodiments provide an alternative option to obtain the data in a digital format for remote monitoring purposes. This allows the construction of more complex models through the remote monitoring centers for operational predictability and equipment health trending. Furthermore, this technology can be beneficial to any industrial setting which deploys analog hardware and is not able to deploy digital hardware due to its high cost. Therefore, an object of the invention is to reduce operator burden from data collection. A further object of the invention is to provide data-driven operational performance improvement and maintenance optimization. A still further object of the invention is to not visually obstruct analog gauge indications, so that those gauges may still be read in a conventional fashion as and if required by applicable laws, regulations, rules, or best practices. These and other features, objects and advantages of the present invention will become better understood from a consideration of the following detailed description of the preferred embodiments and appended claims in conjunction with the drawings as described following: BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF DRAWINGS FIG. 1A is a perspective view of a device according to an embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 1B is a detail view inside the housing cap of a device according to an embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 1C is a detail view of the camera aperture of a device according to an embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 1D is a detail view showing engagement between a leg cam and the leg adjustment ring according to an embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 2 shows an analog gauge with calibration points added according to an embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 3 show an analog gauge image with an applied mask according to an embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 4 shows an analog gauge image for application of the minimum calibration point and maximum calibration point subroutine according to an embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 5 shows a first method of detecting radi