Connected air filters ensure a healthy working environment

Absolent is a world-leading company in equipment for cleaning process air. For over 25 years, they have cleaned polluted industrial air from various processing machines that generate oil mist, oil smoke or dust. All control of the filter quality has previously taken place in direct connection to the filter unit. Dalelven was tasked with developing an IoT solution to connect their filter units and thus enable remote monitoring, control and maintenance planning.

The assignment became a total commitment from Dalelven, where our team of product developers in project management, design, mechanics, electronics, software, prototypes and testing worked together on the project. By designing and developing one and the same enclosure for all devices but equipping them differently depending on function, the number of design files could be minimized and production costs was reduced. For data communication, technology from Lumenradio was chosen to create a reliable mesh network that can also handle tougher work environments.

The solution was four units for Absolent’s system for IoT products A•smart – Sense, Gateway, Connect and Ambient. Each filter unit is monitored by A•smart Sense which measures the pressure drop across the filter module. It collects data and alerts when the filter needs supervision and sends data via the A•smart Gateway to Absolent’s secure IoT cloud. If the distance from A•smart Sense to A•smart Gateway is too great or if there are walls that weaken or block radio signals, A•smart Connect is used. It amplifies and improves the signal from one or several A•smart Sense devices to the A•smart Gateway. A•smart Ambient measures the air quality in the premises to ensure a good working environment and monitors the performance of the air filter.

All data is collected, analyzed and presented in the A•smart Dashboard. Performance deviations can be addressed early, which makes it possible to lower maintenance costs, improve production quality and plan and reduce the number of downtimes. Absolent’s customers get cleaner air and healthier employees.