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New SmartTrak® 2 with Compod™ Carries on Sierra’s Tradition of Winning Innovation
Sierra Instruments is proud to announce that our SmartTrak® 2 with Compod™ has taken mass flow control and PLC technology and elevated it to the next level. The result of over five years of customer feedback, SmartTrak® 2 with Compod™ simplifies basic flow control installations, permits networking of multiple instruments using open-source MODBUS RTU protocol while giving unprecedented control, independence and flexibility.
Streamline, Simplify and Save
Smart -Trak® 2 is the next generation of Sierra’s flagship Model 100 line of mass flow meters (MFM) and controllers (MFC). Building upon the unprecedented performance, user-friendliness and flexibility end-users have come to enjoy with the original SmartTrak®, SmartTrak® 2 gives users the world's most linear sensor, smoother control valve operation, more robust electronics and even more control over a wide range of functions.
With its advanced capabilities, the SmartTrak 2®, coupled with Sierra’s new Compod™, becomes a truly intelligent flow controller, greatly simplifying basic flow control installations and permitting networking of multiple instruments using open-source MODBUS RTU protocol. A SmartTrak® with Compod™ can replace much more expensive DCS or PLC systems, allowing end users to automate a wide variety of processes. Two digital outputs and one analog input can be configured by the end user, while the Compod™ monitors the functionality of the MFM or MFC and provides diagnostics, notifying users of faults or system upsets.
Improved Technology Takes Programmable Control to a Whole New Level
Smart -Trak® 2 is designed so that the physics are correct. Excellent performance results from a patented, inherently linear Laminar Flow Element (LFE) design, advanced platinum sensor technology, and Sierra's proprietary frictionless-hovering control valve. Because of its linearity, the user can adjust the calibration in the field with the ability to set zero, span and full scale for each of 10 different gases independently.
With the addition of Sierra’s innovative Compod™, the SmartTrak® 2 becomes a fully network-enabled MODBUS RTU device, allowing users to perform the same functions as much more complex PLC or DCS-based systems for a fraction of the cost. Users can automate complex gas processes, daisy-chain multiple MFC’s on a single network, send and receive data, alarms and commands, and perform remote diagnostics and data logging.
Control, Independence and Flexibility
With SmartTrak® 2, users can measure and control gas mass flow rates up to 1000 slpm. The product is ideal for OEM, industry or research applications. The Smart- Trak® 2 offers true linear performance and provides high accuracy and great flexibility in multiple gases. With Dial-A-Gas™ technology, users can select from up to ten pre-programmed gases or substitute their own. Each gas can then be individually field-adjusted for zero, span and full scale, making field calibration a reality.
The Compod™ mounts to any Sierra SmartTrak® 100 Series and adds multi-drop RS-485/MODBUS RTU networking capability. Each instrument becomes a node on the MODBUS network, capable of sending commands and receiving data and allowing users to control simple processes without the need for external PLCs or computers. It is also available with an LCD Display for local monitoring. A SmartTrak® 2 with Compod™ becomes a vital link in a complex process control network, providing alarms, monitoring and control functions far beyond a simple flow meter.
SmartTrak® 2 with Compod™ Proven Success in a Variety of Applications
Compod-enabled Smart Trak 2's have been used in many different processes:
• Gas mixing and blending
• Batch control
• Leak Testing
• Process monitoring
• Physical Vapor Deposition (Sputtering)
• Pressure monitoring and control
• Gas ratio control
• Internal performance monitoring
• Triggering alarms
• Starting or stopping gas flows automatically under user-defined conditions
• Gas flow totalization with adjustable pulse output
• And many more…
Finding the Leaks and Saving Money
A manufacturer of medical devices must check heart stents for leakage. The process needed to be automated. Expensive PLC-based solutions were proposed, but Compod-enabled Smart Trak 2's proved a much more economical solution. The regulator R1 is set manually to the leak-test pressure. This is usually a pressure above operating pressure of the DUT (device under test). A SmartTrak® MFC is given a setpoint appropriate to fill the DUT at a moderate rate. The MFC’s Compod™ monitors the flow rate. When the flow rate drops to zero, the pressure in the DUT is equal the pressure of R1. The internal software in Compod™ senses that the flow has stopped and the Compod™ closes the valve in the MFC and trips an alarm (light) for the operator telling him the DUT is pressurized and the leak test is ready to begin. The operator sees the alarm light and opens the ball valve V2 manually. The leak test begins and the mass flow meter measures the flow rate. So long as the flow rate is below a pre-determined levebelow level (flow noise), the DUT passes the test. If the flow rate is above this defined level, the Compod™ sends an alarm indicating the DUT is leaking and the DUT is failed.
Learn more about the SmartTrak® 2 with Compod™ by visiting http://sierrainstruments.com/st2_compod.html.
Winner of Flow Control Magazine's Innovation Product Award for 2009.
Read Case Study on the SmartTrak® 2 with Compod™
http://www.sierrainstruments.com/prnews/compodcasestudy.html
