16-04-2014

GASSONIC OBSERVER-i Ultrasonic Gas Leak Detector

MSA is proud to announce the introduction of the new GASSONIC OBSERVER-i Ultrasonic Gas Leak Detector designed with Artificial Neural Network (ANN) intelligence and real-time broadband acoustic sound processing technology, setting a new global industry standard in highly reliable ultrasonic gas leak detection with unprecedented suppression of false alarms.

With the incorporation of ANN technology, the breakthrough GASSONIC OBSERVER-I detector makes it possible to fully analyze the sound spectrum above 12 kHz. The ANN algorithm has been “trained” to automatically distinguish between unwanted acoustic background noise and dangerous gas leaks. This advanced design provides a broader leak detection range, which also increases sensitivity to smaller gas leaks without interference from unwanted background noise. Furthermore, because it is self-adaptive, the detector requires no alarm set points to be configured, nor do alarm set points need to be adjusted if background ultrasound were to increase or decrease over time.

Ultrasonic gas leak detectors (UGLD) are used in pressurized gas applications to complement conventional gas detection methods. In outdoor or ventilated locations, conventional detectors can miss gas leaks due to wind conditions, gas dilution, or leak directionality. To compensate for such situations, ultrasonic gas leak detectors pick up gas leaks by responding to the airborne ultrasound instead of relying on physical contact between the gas and the sensor element. This capability significantly improves total speed of response to dangerous gas leaks.

The GASSONIC OBSERVER-i features the patented SENSSONIC self-test function which checks the device’s electrical integrity and microphone every 15 minutes and ensures the detector is operational at all times.

Designed to support large plant distributed control systems, the GASSONIC OBSERVER-I detector features HART and Modbus communication compatibility, along with 4-20 mA output, providing complete status and control capability in the control room. It features ATEX, IECEx, FM, and CSA approvals and is SIL 3 suitable.