Remote Monitoring of Industrial Energy Storage Systems

Summary

Stercom faced challenges in monitoring and maintaining the health and performance of individual battery cells and capacitors within their energy storage solutions. The lack of real-time data on these units hindered their ability to provide predictive maintenance and proactive service, leading to potential downtimes and increased operational costs. Embever developed a tailored IoT solution to address these issues, enhancing Stercom’s ability to offer reliable and efficient energy storage systems.

Challenge

Stercom needed detailed insights into the utilization, operational performance, and health of individual battery cells and capacitors within their energy storage solutions. The degradation of these cells over time affects the overall performance of electrical storage systems, making it crucial to monitor their condition. Stercom wanted to offer proactive, predictive maintenance leading to reduced downtimes and operational costs.

Lack of Insight

Stercom’s industrial energy storage solutions, including UltraCap storage systems and battery management systems, lacked real-time data post-delivery. This gap limited Stercom’s ability to enhance customer value through improved maintenance and monitoring services.

Remote Firmware Updates

As firmware security is becoming increasingly important, it was crucial for Stercom’s systems to always run the latest firmware with the most recent patches. Implementing remote firmware updates over-the-air (OTA) was identified as a more cost-effective and efficient method compared to manual updates.

Resilience of Data Transmission

To ensure reliability, it was essential for Stercom to have a data transmission system independent of the customer’s network. This independence would prevent potential disruptions and maintain consistent data flow for monitoring and maintenance purposes.

Verification of Usage Profile and Cell Quality

Ensuring the quality and reliability of the supplied cells, as well as adherence to the contracted usage profile, was vital to minimizing Stercom’s liability risks. This proved challenging without access to secure and reliable real-time data.

Opportunity for Proactive Service

The ideal solution required a non-invasive method to continuously monitor Stercom’s equipment and energy storage cells. By identifying potential issues early, Stercom could engage with customers proactively, preventing faults and ensuring optimal performance.

Solution

In response to the challenges of limited post-delivery insight and the need for proactive maintenance capabilities, Embever has developed a tailored IoT solution to enhance the performance and reliability of Stercom’s Auxiliary Power Converters (APCs). The approach centers around four key components, each designed to address specific aspects of the operational challenges faced by Stercom:

Custom Hardware Integration

Using Embever’ perbuilt board, the CaaM (Cloud as a Module), Stercom created a custom and cost effective IoT retrofit solution that can be added optionally to existing Battery and UltraCap Management Systems, allowing for the gathering of diagnostic information about key parameters of the units in the field.

Seamless Integration Using I2C

The integration of IoT capabilities into the Battery and UltraCap Management Systems is achieved using the I2C application and protocol, a popular system for peripheral device interfacing. This method ensures that the IoT expansion board communicates effectively and efficiently with the main unit, facilitating real-time data transmission and analysis without disrupting the core functionalities of the products.

Dashboard Implementation

To make the data actionable, Embever has implemented a sophisticated dashboard that presents the collected diagnostic information in an intuitive format. This dashboard allows operators and maintenance teams to monitor the health and performance of the Energy Storage Systems at a glance, enhancing decision-making processes with data.

This comprehensive IoT solution by Embever addresses the critical need for predictive maintenance and operational insight, enabling Stercom to provide more value to the operators by increasing reliability and safety while reducing downtime and operating cost.

Solution

Embever developed a comprehensive IoT solution to enhance Stercom’s Auxiliary Power Converters (APCs), focusing on four key components:

Custom Hardware Integration

Using Embever’s prebuilt board, the CaaM, Stercom created a cost-effective IoT retrofit solution for existing Battery and UltraCap Management Systems. This integration allows for the collection of diagnostic information about key parameters of the units in the field.

Seamless Integration Using I2C

The IoT capabilities were integrated using the I2C protocol, ensuring effective and efficient communication between the IoT expansion board and the main unit. This method facilitated real-time data transmission and analysis without disrupting core functionalities.

FOTA Retrofit

Stercom implemented a firmware over-the-air (FOTA) update system Embever’s CaaM secure file transfer capabilities via I2C. This allows them to update their firmware remotely, ensuring compliance with the latest security standards and providing the most recent updates seamlessly.

Dashboard Implementation

Embever implemented a sophisticated dashboard to present the collected diagnostic information in an intuitive format. This dashboard allows operators and maintenance teams to monitor the health and performance of the Energy Storage Systems at a glance, enhancing decision-making with actionable data.

This IoT solution by Embever addresses the need for predictive maintenance and operational insight, enabling Stercom to offer increased reliability, safety, and reduced downtime and operating costs to their customers.

The Outcome

The collaboration between Embever and Stercom has significantly advanced the maintenance and monitoring of energy storage systems. By leveraging Embever’s IoT Integration Platform, Stercom introduced a new predictive maintenance product, allowing continuous monitoring of electrical energy storage performance and health. Additionally, the implementation of a firmware over-the-air (FOTA) update system using I2C integration has enabled Stercom to deliver their firmware compliant with the latest upcoming cyber security standards and provide the most recent updates seamlessly.

This innovation enables Stercom to offer proactive support, minimizing downtime and preventing potential damages. The enhanced reliability and efficiency of operations have led to considerable cost savings for customers, improved operational uptime, and strengthened Stercom’s service offerings, resulting in higher customer satisfaction.

About Stercom

Stercom is a renowned leader in electrification and automation, providing a wide range of products, systems, solutions, and services across various sectors including utilities, industry, transport, and infrastructure. Known for innovations in robotics, industrial automation, and electrification products, Stercom significantly enhances industrial productivity and energy efficiency. Their Auxiliary Power Converters (APCs) set new standards for efficient power supply in rail vehicles worldwide.