IIT Madras: Researchers Develop Disruptive Sensor Technology-‘µTMapS’ to Increase Efficiency of Industrial Ovens

Multi-Point Temperature Measurement Sensor (µTMapS), is a potentially disruptive new sensor technology developed by a team of researchers at the Indian Institute of Technology (IIT), Madras. 

The objective behind the technology developed at IIT Madras is to raise the efficiency of industrial ovens used in the fertilizer, chemical, petrochemical, and manufacturing sectors.

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The high-technology sensor developed at IIT Madras, provides intelligent and automated measurements.

It is expected to replace the prevailing heat process control systems which is the reason for causing lengthy and expensive forced shutdowns.

@iitmadras researchers have developed disruptive sensor technology which will increase the efficiency of industrial ovens, generate data in real-time through Industrial IoT devices, and provide inputs to improve the manufacturing processes & efficiency. @IITMIC #XymaAnalytics pic.twitter.com/vVHW7OhL7k

— IIT Madras (@iitmadras) November 9, 2020

IIT Madras' Technology can accurately measure between -100 degrees and 1,400 degrees Celsius and it uses ultrasonic waves to collect real-time data from across the furnace.

The data could be sent to a centralized system through a unified IoT (Internet of Things) connection where it can be tracked and analyzed.

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 Krishnan Balasubramaniam, Professor at IIT Madras, the head of Centre stated that any industry where a lot of heat is used to process materials such as metals and polymers should ensure if the entire furnace has a uniform temperature across the board.

Balasubramaniam stated, "This is critical to reducing defective products. However, existing technologies for this purpose have a lot of gaps and our Research Team at the Centre for Nondestructive Evaluation set out to address these gaps."

The professor mentioned that the technology is licensed to an IIT Madras-incubated startup called Xyma Analytics.

The field testing of the technology is in progress for the past one year across Indian Industries to validate its performance, benefits, and reliability.

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Indian Institute of Technology Madras - [IITM] is a public technical and Research University located in Chennai, Tamil Nadu. 

Established in 1959 with financial and technical assistance from the former government of West Germany, it was the third established IIT by the Government of India. 

IIT Madras has been ranked as the top engineering institute in India for five years in a row, i.e. from 2016 to 2020 by the National Institutional Ranking Framework (NIRF) of the Ministry of Human Resource Development.

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