New Level Transmitter With Foundation Fieldbus Protocol

Aug 06 2009

MTS Systems Corp., Sensors Division (USA) announces that production of the Level Plus® model MG liquid-level transmitter with Foundation Fieldbus protocol was started last April. The Foundation Fieldbus protocol will be the third protocol offered by the model MG digital level transmitter, which also includes current production of Modbus and the ASCII based proprietary DDA protocols. MTS Sensors has gone through numerous rounds of testing, including interoperability testing performed by the Fieldbus Foundation to ITK 5.0.1 and certification by leading Host system manufacturers.

“The introduction of the Foundation Fieldbus protocol to our Level Plus product line expands the breadth of our product line to further fulfill customers’ demands,” said Lee Aiken, product marketing manager, MTS Sensors. “MTS Sensors is not the first magnetostrictive level transmitter to the market with Foundation Fieldbus, but we believe that our transmitter offers an additional level of performance and interoperability that the older designs are not able to deliver. No other magnetostrictive level transmitter offers our accuracy, the ability to output volumes, and an industrial grade flexible transmitter.”

Foundation Fieldbus technology is the world’s leading digital protocol for process automation, which provides end users with the freedom to choose interoperable control products from their suppliers of choice, as well as the ability to integrate control systems, subsystems and devices across a plant enterprise. The protocol will make MTS’ magnetostrictive liquid-level transmitters compatible with an even wider variety of control systems, expanding the company’s offerings to customers with sanitary and/or hazardous environment applications.

The Level Plus model MG level transmitter satisfies the demand for a digital communication interface in the liquid-level marketplace for vessels from 508mm (20 in.) to 22,000mm (866 in.). Outputs for the model MG include Modbus, DDA (proprietary ASCII protocol), and Foundation Fieldbus. The model MG features 3-in-1 measurement of the product level, interface level, and the average temperature from up to 12 temperature points utilising a single process opening, eliminating the need for separate level and temperature transmitters. Designed for inventory control, the model MG is accurate to at least 1/16th of an inch at max length and can also provide volume measurement from a 100-point strap table that the user loads into the transmitter. By incorporating the strap table into the transmitter the user does not need multiple copies of the strap table or have to code the additional formulas.