Mobile machinery is often exposed to harsh working and environmental conditions, and smooth operation is essential. For this reason, both process and condition monitoring of critical components is essential. Vibrations and changes in temperature are decisive features that provide early warning of damage to rolling bearings, dirt deposits on rotating components, insufficient lubrication and other machine problems. The new VMB vibration sensor from ifm, which has been specially designed for mobile machines thanks to the CANopen protocol, can help to detect impending, costly machine downtime at an early stage and reliably prevent it.

The VMB condition monitoring sensor continuously records vibrations in all three spatial directions. From the measured values recorded, the sensor calculates proven condition indicators for evaluating the machine condition: information on fatigue (v-RMS), mechanical friction (a-RMS), shocks (a-Peak), early detection of bearing wear (Crest factor), real-time bearing analysis (BearingScout) and dynamic imbalance analysis with the speed of the driven machine. The surface temperature is also transmitted as an additional wear indicator. The smart sensor therefore offers integrated and high-performance condition monitoring in a compact device. Communication with the higher-level control hardware takes place via CANopen. For communication between machines and a cloud solution, ifm offers a unique product portfolio for the mobile market to send data from the remote machine directly to the cloud. The VMB is said to be optimally equipped for the harsh environmental conditions that prevail in many applications. The measuring cell works at ambient temperatures between minus 40 degrees Celsius and plus 80 degrees Celsius and meets the high protection classes IP6K7, IP6K8 and IP6K9K. The sensor also has E1 vehicle approval.

Condition monitoring in mobile machines is also becoming increasingly relevant due to the use of new technological milestones. Autonomous operation of mobile machines for agriculture, municipal technology or the construction sector is increasingly becoming the standard, increasing cost efficiency and precision and reducing the operator's workload. There is no longer a machine operator on site to detect sudden faults or unexpected events at an early stage. And innovative drive concepts, such as electric drives or hydrogen drives, also place new demands on the intelligence of the machine. These drive technologies are generally more sensitive to shocks and vibrations than robust diesel engines and should therefore be monitored with a modern condition monitoring system. New business models, in which machines are rented out or the performance of a machine is offered as an "as-a-service model", also require sophisticated fleet management and continuous remote access in real time - according to ifm, the new condition monitoring sensor is the watchful eye on site for the service technician.

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