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Last week I told you about the major theme for sensors at ISA Expo 2006: Wireless networking. But that wasn't the only theme at the show. For instance, much activity surrounded chemical and biological sensing.
Three Examples
Sionex, which gained its biochem expertise in the military and government market, showed up to offer its microAnalyzer to OEMs in the process industries. The new product combines Sionex's patented microDMx technology with a miniaturized gas chromatographic module. It targets a variety of applications requiring detection and identification of trace chemicals, including process control plus air, building, fence-line, and environmental monitoring.
Sionex competes with RAE Systems, which during the show released a new whitepaper, Radiation Detection: Selecting the Right Equipment for the Job. RAE's Web site also offers a chemical index that lists almost 300 common workplace chemicals and information on each one (plus the range of RAE products able to detect it). By the way, RAE was recently named one of Silicon Valley's fastest-growing companies. in Deloitte's Technology Fast 50 program. Deloitte & Touche's rankings are based on percentage revenue growth over five years from 2001 to 2005, a time during which RAE's revenue grew 217%, from $19 million to $60.3 million.
Obviously, biochem is hot. Another ISA Expo exhibitor active in this market is Esensors, which displayed—among other products—its Six-Gas Sensor Monitors. The units accommodate a variety of plug-and-play sensors and offer wired or wireless operation.
More on Standards
Last week's reports discussed wireless sensor network standards, but those weren't the only standards in evidence at ISA Expo. For instance, Watlow announced that its Series PD temperature and process controller now supports EtherNet/IP, the industrial Ethernet communications technology endorsed by ODVA. Compliant with Ethernet and Internet standards, it claims the only media-independent industrial protocol available in the world: the Common Industrial Protocol (CIP), which lets vendors, machine builders, system integrators, and users to take full advantage of industrial Ethernet network technologies and to integrate I/O control, configuration, diagnostics, information, safety, synchronization and motion to "to bridge the commercial-industrial divide."
This concludes Sensors' report ISA Expo 2006 highlights. If you'd like to know more about what happened in Houston, check out the show's Web site.
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