Endress+hauserse+co. Kg

Christian Strittmatter

Simon Gerwig

Bernd Strütt

Armin Wernet

Harald Schäuble

Kaj Uppenkamp

Sascha D'Angelico

Wolfgang Brutschin

Michael Dötsch

Roberto Lugli

Ralf Leisinger

Andreas Fuz

Christoph Hippin

Florian Asal

Thorsten Siedler

An intrinsically safe field device of automation technology comprises connection terminals via which a current can be supplied; a sensor element and/or actuator element; field device electronics with a current path between the connection terminals and a voltage regulator incorporated into the current path; and an explosion protection unit comprising at least two controllable switching elements, incorporated into the current path in series, and two threshold value circuits designed such that a first threshold value circuit controls a first switching element as a function of a first threshold value, and a second threshold value circuit controls a second switching element as a function of a second threshold value, such that, upon the first and/or second threshold value being reached, the current is limited to the first and/or second threshold value, and the threshold value circuits are connected in parallel to the voltage regulator.

Intrinsically safe automation field device

An electronic unit includes at least one component and a printed circuit board, wherein the at least one component has at least one terminal. The printed circuit board has at least one first contact surface and at least one second contact surface, wherein the at least one first contact surface and the at least one second contact surface are spaced apart from one another. The at least one terminal is joined to the at least two contact surfaces by at least one solder joint. A method for testing at least one state of an electronic unit is also disclosed.

Electronic unit and method for testing at least one state of an electronic unit

A method for determining and/or monitoring a predeterminable fill level of a medium in a container using a vibronic sensor having at least one sensor unit with a mechanically vibratable unit, comprises exciting the mechanically vibratable unit with an excitation signal to produce mechanical vibrations, and receiving the mechanical vibrations in the form of a reception signal, determining an amplitude and a frequency of the reception signal, comparing the frequency and amplitude of the reception signal with a predeterminable frequency limit value and a predeterminable amplitude limit value, and determining a reaching of the predeterminable fill level on the basis of the comparison.

Method for operating a vibronic sensor

An automation field device comprises a first, a second, and a third connection pin; and a field device electronics designed to be operated either in a two-conductor mode or in a three-conductor mode. The field device electronics have an energy supply unit designed to provide internal energy supply exclusively by means of the fed current in the two-conductor mode. In the three-conductor mode, an additional auxiliary current is to be fed to the field device electronics via an additional single-wire line connected to the third connection pin, and the energy supply unit is also designed to provide the internal energy supply via the fed current and the fed additional auxiliary current. Furthermore, the field device electronics are designed to use the additionally fed auxiliary current for internal energy supply only if the current fed by means of the two-wire line is not sufficient for the internal energy supply.

Automation field device with auxiliary current input

An automation field device comprises at least four connection pins for connecting the field device; a field device electronics adapted, in a first operating state, to provide a 4-20 mA signal via a first and second connection pin, in a second operating state, to be supplied with a supply voltage via the first and a third connection pin and via a fourth connection pin to enable an IO-Link communication or to provide a first switch output and supplementally to provide a second switch output on the second connection pin, and, in a third operating state, to be supplied with the supply voltage via the first and third connection pins and via the fourth connection pin to enable the IO-Link communication or to provide the first switch output and supplementally to provide a 4-20 mA current output on the second connection pin.

Automation field device

The invention relates to a level converter for adjusting a first reference potential and/or a first communication voltage of a first component to a second reference potential and/or a second communication voltage of a second component, wherein the level converter is arranged between the first component and the second component, wherein the level converter has a first transistor with a downstream first resistor, wherein the level converter is configured in such a way that the second reference potential drops at the first resistor in a blocked state of the first transistor and that the second communication voltage drops at the first resistor in an open state of the first transistor.

Level converter

A method for monitoring condition of a vibronic sensor for determining and/or monitoring at least one process variable of a medium in a containment and having at least one sensor unit having a mechanically oscillatable unit includes: exciting the mechanically oscillatable unit by means of an excitation signal such that mechanical oscillations are executed, and receiving the mechanical oscillations in the form of a received signal, determining a measured value for amplitude and a measured value for frequency of the received signal, comparing the measured values for amplitude and frequency with reference values for amplitude and frequency, and ascertaining a condition indicator from the comparison.

Method for monitoring condition of vibronic sensor for determining and monitoring process variable of medium in container, involves determining status indicator from comparison measured value for amplitude and frequency with reference value

Disclosed is a field device comprising: a connection terminal; field device electronics; an internal interface for connecting an electronic module; the electronic module having at least one electronic component for realizing an additional functionality; a capacitor, which is designed to provide an additional first auxiliary energy amount to the component if the component of the electronic module has an energy demand exceeding the main power; a battery, which is designed to provide a second auxiliary energy amount to the at least one component if the at least one component of the electronic module has an energy demand exceeding the main power and the first auxiliary energy amount, wherein the battery provides the second auxiliary energy amount to the component only if the main power and the first auxiliary energy amount are not sufficient for the energy supply of the component.

An automation field device comprises a housing that surrounds an inner space; a sensor- and/or actuator element arranged at the housing; an electronic circuit arranged in the housing and having a round, outer contour and a plurality of spring contacts in an edge region. The inner contour of the housing and the edge contour of the first circuit board are adapted to one another so that the first circuit board is introducible into the housing with a main plane orthogonal to a longitudinal axis of the housing. The spring contacts are so arranged on the first circuit board and embodied to hold the first circuit board in the inner space and to produce an electrical connection between the first circuit board and the housing to drain away disturbance currents from the first circuit board.

A method for detecting errors or malfunctions in electrical or electronic components of circuits, wherein each of the circuits is located on a circuit board and wherein a plurality of circuit boards border one another on a circuit board panel, includes populating each of the circuit boards of the circuit board panel with electrical or electronic components corresponding to the circuits; for each of the analog, electrical or electronic components used for the construction of the circuits, placing a corresponding test component in an edge region of the circuit board panel; providing the analog, electrical or electronic test components placed in the edge region of the circuit board panel with test points; and checking for the correct function value and/or the correct poling of the analog, electrical or electronic test components provided with test points and located in the edge region of the circuit board panel.

Method for detecting errors or malfunctions in electrical or electronic components of a circuit arrangement

The present disclosure relates to an explosion resistant electronic module having a high-speed interface and a method for electronic contacting of such electronic module via such interface. The electronic module includes an electronic component, an electrical contact area for electrical contacting the electronic component and an encapsulation, which encapsulates at least the electrical contact area. The encapsulation is embodied such that the contact area is contactable through the encapsulation by an electrical contact pin, wherein the encapsulation is filled at least in a portion with a self-healing gelatinous potting compound, which enables the encapsulation to be re-sealed after removal of the contact pin.

Growing community of inventors

Rickenbach, Germany

Christian Strittmatter