Sensorized Future - Sensing of temperature and pressure in harsh environments

Several trends in end components (longer life time, higher accuracy, higher complexity...) are challenging for the European manufacturing industry. Due to the global competition, increasing production costs is not an option. Innovation by increased process control meets this challenge. Manufacturers using metal or plastic transformation processes (e.g. deep drawing and injection moulding) recognized this challenge, but there is a lack of proven technological solutions to control production processes. Measurements of relevant process data were missing. Here, SensoFut started. The necessary in-situ and real-time capture of process data offers tremendous possibilities for many industrial processes and applications. Process data can be used to get a deeper understanding of the many manufacturing processes with the consequence of an increased performance and lifetime of the manufacturing devices plus the opportunity of even further optimization. Important and even critical process parameters for many processes are temperature and pressure. However, for complex processes at high temperatures and / or pressures as well as for positions in components that are difficult to reach, it was complicated or sometimes impossible to obtain in-situ data with the current sensors at the specific desired locations. In many processes or for components in heavily polluted environments, the use of hard durable (lifetime extension) and self-lubricating coatings is already well established. The coatings are made by the use of PVD, CVD or hybrid deposition techniques. In this way it was possible to combine the tribological and sensory function in a multifunctional coating with new properties. Thus, in addition to a protective function, these coatings continuously provided information on temperature and pressure and / or forces. The primary target groups were companies, which manufacture components or work with processes under heavy load (thermal load and / or pressure). Typical industries were aerospace, machining, foundry, metal processing, automotive industry and mechatronics. A second target group consisted of companies across the entire value chain of such sensors. The job coaters can offer such sensor functionality. SensoFut had the following objectives: -Sensor coatings for temperature and pressure, implemented by material combinations, which are pressure and temperature resistant in harsh industrial environments. -Integration of the sensor coating in a process or product in location, which were previously inaccessible or difficult to measure. -A prototype measurement system (and connections to the sensor) that continuously monitors the product / process. -Demonstration of the feasibility in well selected industrial applications that are relevant to the challenges of the target group. By achieving the desired objectives, end users and component developers in Germany and Flanders increased the added value of their products. For example, they are now able to use it up to the limit or integrate new features and services. This had an impact on their competitiveness, production costs and product quality. First applications of members of the user committee also created an initial market for technology developers.