In 2021, a supermajor with a refinery in the far northern continental USA, came to us looking for a solution to their need to install two Non-Intrusive Pig Signallers. One was to be installed just inside the fence of the facility and was to be powered by local 24VDC. The other unit was outside the fence of the facility and was to provide warning of the approach of the pig. The second unit was too far away to be powered economically and needed to be able to communicate with their local PLC.
The 4003 Pig Signaller was the ideal fit for the application. The 4003 low power consumption, easy field programmability of over twenty parameters and many modes of communication interface fit the bill. Both units were supplied with remote sensors for burial below ground.
Our American subsidiary, Online Pipeline Solutions (OPS) investigated a solar powered option to fit their remote power requirements. After reviewing temperature, weather conditions, average days of sunlight during the winter and peak load requirements with number of backup days in the battery bank, we selected a system that met their needs and fed directly into our 24VDC supply. The system came complete with solar panel, panel mounting kit, Control cabinet, and an integrated charge controller.
To meet their needs our Special Projects personnel provided information that was later used to interface the unit with a radio interface familiar to the client.
Upon installation the client discovered ambient noise that caused false indications of passage. By reviewing the event log the client was able to determine the gauss level of the interference and was able to determine the typical gauss level of the magnet equipped pigs as they passed. The pigs passed by with significantly more gauss than the false signal and the client simply adjusted the threshold level of the device to ignore the false signals and solved the problem.
The system worked so well that they later bought a third unit for another line entry into the facility.