Pepperl+Fuchs Blog

Hygienic Ultrasonic Sensors for the Food Industry

The food and beverage industry imposes extremely strict regulations on the design of machines and their components. According to EHEDG hygienic design principles, machines and their components must be:

In a typical day, a garbage truck visits over 800 homes and collects up to 14 tons of waste. These trucks usually operate up to 16 hours a day for six days a week and ultrasonic sensors are installed to enhance waste collection processes. Using high-frequency sound pulses, the sensors effectively detect fill level, distance, position, and presence while being unhindered by smoke, dust, light, and color. 

Are unexpected issues often determining your schedule? Have you recently had to push back a project because of recurring problems? Having to respond to unplanned issues may seem like an inevitable cost of doing business, but it is becoming harder and harder to settle for a reactive approach to plant management and remain competitive at the same time.

Large paper, plastic, textile, and sheet-metal rolls typically consist of multiple segments that are connected or spliced together. When the roll is unspooled and transformed into the finished product, these splices must be identified and removed. Depending on the spooled material’s properties, different sensors are required to detect the splice and stop the feed.

The speed of sound depends on ambient temperature. As temperature rises, the speed of sound increases. As it gets colder, the speed of sound decreases. For ultrasonic sensors, this variance can affect accuracy, since a faster or slower echo return will make a stationary target appear closer or farther away.

Our UC-F77 ultrasonic sensor is easy to set up and program using PACTware Connection Wizard software. In the video below, I'll show you how to configure the sensor and also demonstrate some of its unique features. One of my favorite new features is that it solves a common problem for ultrasonic sensors: It allows suppression of echoes from false targets.

Ultrasonic sensors are non-contact devices used for object detection or level measurement. They operate on the principle of sound traveling through a medium, where a transducer emits a sound wave at a specific frequency. Based on the time it takes the reflected sound pulse to reach the transducer, the sensor’s internal logic determines if the object is within the nominal sensing range and generates an output signal.

This episode of Ask an Expert for industrial sensors examines and provides answers to interesting sensing questions we've received from customers just like you. We explore and answer these questions:

1. What load does a proximity switch need to sense for bench testing?
2. Does the SJ5-N inductive slot sensor need an intrinsic safety barrier?
3. Should I use a fiber optic sensor for injection molded parts detection?
4. Are the components in an AS-Interface circuit board module epoxy encapsulated or sealed?
5. Do you have a handheld solution to identify nonworking RFID tags?

Every sensing technology has its own set of unique capabilities that allow it to perform reliably in certain areas. In dirty environments, a photoelectric sensor’s light beam may fail to return to the receiver due to a covered lens or reflector. However, ultrasonic sensors thrive in dirty and dusty environments, since sound waves are unaffected by dust particles floating in the air or adhering to the sensing face. Industries that commonly use ultrasonic sensors include agriculture, food and beverage, and packaging. The following key attributes will help you select the right ultrasonic sensor for your application.

This episode of Ask an Expert for industrial sensors examines and provides answers to interesting sensing questions we've received from customers just like you. We explore and answer these questions:

1. Do you have non-incendive inductive proximity sensors?
2. Diffuse mode photoelectric sensors - what are the adjustment ranges?
3. Do you have a steel-sensing sensor that can withstand temperature extremes, shock, and vibration?
4. Can the inductive sensor NJ8-18GK-SN be ordered with terminal connections instead of leads?