Remote Particle Sensor
Selection Guide
CL1
Cost per sensor versus installation costs
When planning a new continuous monitoring system the first task is to
evaluate the advantages and disadvantages of the traditional small remote
sensor approach, compared to the advantages of the self-contained sensor
approach offered by Climet’s CI-3100 OPT What to consider:
sensors.
1. Price per sensor versus
infrastructure costs
The advantage of the traditional approach,
2. Ease of validation
represented by Climet’s CI 3100 RS sensors, is 3. How the sensor will
the cost per sensor. The cost per sensor is much communicate with the
lower than our OPT sensors, which have a built- computer:
in power supply and vacuum source. But o Ethernet Modbus?
o RS-485 Modbus?
because the traditional sensor does not have
o Scaled 4–20 mA?
its own power source and vacuum source,
there are additional costs.
The vacuum pump for RS sensor installations
A large vacuum pump will be needed to draw air through the sensors. The
size of the pump will be determined by flow rate—normally 1 CFM—and
number of sensors.
The pump will eventually fail and need to be repaired or replaced. The
down time could be weeks, so it is prudent to have a backup pump that
can be swapped in by closing a valve accessing the one pump, and
opening a valve to access the back-up pump. This adds to the cost of the
system.
Additional infrastructure installation for RS sensors
The installation is an additional cost. A location will need to be found for the
vacuum pump, somewhere where the noise will not be a problem. It will
need to be wired into the electrical system. Some pumps will need a water
supply that will have to be plumbed in. A maintenance program must be
established to assure optimum pump life.
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Remote Sensor Selection Guide
The next step is to run large diameter piping from the pump to the room or
rooms where the sensors are located and from there to smaller pipes and
flexible tubing to connect each sensor to the vacuum system. The
infrastructure makes it more difficult to reconfigure the room or sampling
locations, or to add on to the system.
In addition to the vacuum system plumbing, a DC power supply will be
needed to run power to each sensor, using the cabling that provides
communication with the computer.
OPT sensor installation
The CI-3100 OPT sensors contain an internal power supply and a blower
(internal vacuum source), so the only installation consideration is finding an
AC outlet to plug the sensor into, and routing cabling from the sensors to the
computer. (For special applications, a DC version of the OPT is available.)
With traditional sensors that use an external vacuum source, when the
exhaust pump fails, the entire system is down until the pump is replaced,
unless a back-up pump is available. With the OPT sensor, only the sensor with
the failed pump is down. With an internal vacuum source, it is easy to add
on sensors or to reconfigure a room, since there is no infrastructure to
change.
Much less planning has to go into an OPT system than into the traditional
remote monitoring system. Planning is a hidden cost that is not always
factored into the evaluation of which system is most suitable.
How will you communicate with the computer?
4 – 20 mA systems
There are different ways to communicate with a computer. The oldest,
and at one time the most popular way was through a 4 – 20 mA loop.
Facilities monitoring—monitoring temperature, humidity, differential
pressure and other parameters using sensors—typically used a 4 – 20 mA
system, and particle counter sensors were viewed as just another type of
sensor to add to the system.
The current signal from the sensor is applied to a PLC, which turns the
current into a voltage, and converts the voltage into a digital value that
can be communicated to the computer.
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Remote Sensor Selection Guide
But particle counters are not just another sensor; cleanroom classes cover
a broad range of count limits, and for a particle counter to work, the
output of the sensor has to be scaled to the room class, and the software,
normally supplied by the PLC manufacturer or the company that installs
the system, has to scale the full scale value in the software to match each
sensor location.
A matching 7-pin DIN connector is supplied with each unit. The installer
can follow the drawing and table in the manual to wire the connectors
with the appropriate lengths of the recommended cabling.
The 4 – 20 mA interface is available in both RS and OPT sensors.
9531003158 RS external 24 Vdc
9531012x44 OPT For x: 0 = external 24 Vdc; 1 = 120
VAC; 2 = 230 VAC, DIN cord; 3 = 230
VAC, UK
RS-485 Modbus®
RS-485 is another method of transmitting data over greater distances, and
Modbus® is a popular protocol for transmitting the data. Because the
data is digital, it does not require scaling like the 4 – 20 mA interface. RS-
485 Modbus® is only available in the RS version of the CI-3100: 9531006158.
Ethernet Modbus®
Ethernet Modbus® makes the data from the instrument available on the
facility’s Ethernet network. A department manager can call up a
webpage for a given sensor on the office computer. Ethernet is only
available with the CI-3100 OPT:
9531021x26 0.5–5.0 For x: 0 = external 24 Vdc; 1 = 120 VAC;
µm 2 = 230 VAC, DIN cord; 3 = 230 VAC, UK
If Ethernet connections are already available in the cleanroom, the
particle counter installation is limited to plugging in the power cord and
the Ethernet cable.
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Remote Sensor Selection Guide
Validation
Validating a continuous monitoring system is time consuming. Companies
have taken a year or more to validate a system from other manufacturers,
or even failed to validate the system. The CI-3100 Ethernet OPT has a
patented capability to work with an optional Validation Utility program that
simplifies the validation process. This feature allows the Validation Utility to
apply known counts to the instrument, and quickly verify that outputs to the
web page or a facilities monitoring program mirror the value applied.
Software
As noted above, software for 4 – 20 mA models is supplied by the installer or
the PLC manufacturer. RS-485 Modbus® sensors are normally used with
programs such as Labview®. Climet offers DataPro 3 for the CI-3100 Ethernet
sensors.
DataPro 3
DataPro 3 is a standalone program that is 21 CFR, Part 11 compliant, with
password protection. It has reporting capabilities and receives data at the
end of each sample period from the sensor.
DataPro 3 will generate a variety of standard reports defined by industry
standards, such as EU GMP Annex 1 (2008), ISO 14644-1, or FS 209E.
DataPro 3 also generates graphs.
CI-309 Alarm tower
The CI-309A Alarm Tower can be used with DataPro 3 to receive
alerts and alarms from the Ethernet OPT. The light tower is
powered by Power Over
Ethernet (POE), but an
optional power injector can
be used if the customer’s
system does not have POE
capability.
The alarm tower works through
an Ethernet connection with
DataPro3 to signal alarms. The
alarm tower can be placed anywhere there is an Ethernet connection,
even outside the cleanroom.
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Remote Sensor Selection Guide
The light tower offers an audible alarm, in addition to the three status lights.
The loudness of the alarm can be controlled with a mechanical, rotating
baffle. A Silence Alarm command can be sent via Ethernet to silence an
alarm, or the button on the front of the alarm tower can be used to
manually silence the alarm.
About calibration
New sensors are calibrated to Climet standards, which includes count
efficiency, resolution, and false count rate tests prescribed by ISO 21501-4. At
the calibration interval, customers may request a standard calibration or an
ISO calibration, which includes the standard calibration and the additional
count efficiency and resolution testing specified by ISO 21501-4.
At the regular calibration intervals, sensors can be sent to Climet for
calibration, or on-site calibrations can be arranged by contacting Climet
Service.
All calibrations comply with ISO 21501-4 and ANSI Z540, and therefore
include as found and as left measurements, and include the calibration
tolerances.
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