Leveraging Next-Gen IoT for Automation of Silo Monitoring and Management
About LvLogics
LvLogics SiloSpi provides accurate and reliable silo levels as-a-service to end users, distributors and manufacturers of animal feeds, polymers, dry mortar/cement, wood pellets or any solids or semi-solids. The patented solution enables the use of low-cost sensors in dusty environments, due to its unique ability to firstly detect when the lens is dirty and then self-clean. It’s this ability that ensures the reliable and accurate capture of levels data over time, in spite of the aggressive environment in a silo.
TxWireless™ worked with LvLogics to provide the critical infrastructure and technologies to realize the solution. Based on the TxWireless EDGE hardware and software platform, LvLogics and TxWireless worked together to develop a custom solution that automatically monitors and manages silo levels. Each silo-monitoring customer has secure access to a unique platform that presents the data in an easy-to-understand format. Using the TxWireless EDGE hardware enables a cost-effective short and long-range wireless platform for IoT.
Combined with TxWireless EDGE Insights, this provides a scalable end-to-end solution for easy control, maintenance and secure management of many connected devices, systems, instruments, and appliances.
The Challenges of Silo Monitoring and Management
Traditionally, farmers have manually inspected the level of feed in silos to avoid running out. Feed Mills have historically accepted feed orders manually, requiring orders to be delivered within 24 hours of the phone call in most cases. This inefficient emergency delivery process has a negative logistics cost of over €2 billion globally, on average, per year. Likewise, in other verticals such as dry mortar, polymers, wood pellets etc., without access to real time levels, the owners of silos run the risk of run-out, and all the associated costs of down-time that could occur as a result.
The Solution:
The innovative SiloSpi solution provided by LvLogics utilizes a smart sensor in the silo that continually measures the amount of stock remaining in the bin. Users can view the measurement from any device or receive an email and/or text alert when the level reaches a set threshold. Additionally, sensors typically become blocked with dust, rendering them unusable. To address this, LvLogics developed a self-cleaning mechanism, with no moving parts. Combined with the TxWireless EDGE platform, this allows for years of maintenance-free service and provides real-time automation and insights. This industry-first solution is available to farmers, feed mills, cement/dry mortar companies, suppliers, and biomass users globally. Currently, LvLogics’ solutions are deployed in twenty countries and used by the world’s largest equipment and automation suppliers for agriculture markets worldwide.
The Outcome:
Traditional methods of monitoring feed usually cost 4-8 times more than the LvLogics SiloSpi solution and are challenging to install. LvLogics SiloSpi solution enables reliable, accurate, low-maintenance measurement capabilities for end users at an affordable price.