25 replies to this topic

[mthornton]

re Ski-Hill Temp monitoring :

At Pano (a pretty big Mtn with 4000' vertical), we have had a very simple temperature profile system in place for the past 8 years. It's proven very rugged & works perfectly over some very noisy old phone-lines. The temperature sensors connect to a transmitter which converts the signal to a frequency signal. 1200Hz=0DegC, A change of +1.0 DegC adds 10Hz (ie +10.0 DegC = 1300Hz, -10.0DegC = 1100Hz). The transmitter uses an opto-coupled current-source (25mA) to connect to a receiver located in the base office. The current signal is opto-coupled to a small computer, which converts the frequency signal back to temperature, displays current conditions on a small lcd screen in the ops-office foyer (always accessable), and logs the data for trend reporting (on-line)
It works regardless of any network stuff fuckin' up & is easy.
It's rugged, but I remove the summit transmitter during non-ski-season, due to regular intense lightning.
The design is ready for a revamp (adding a touchscreen graphics for the base station & an embedded web-server for on-line access). It would work well for wet-bulb (or dual we/dry), as wet is always lower than dry, so I'd program the tranasmitters to send Twet for 1Sec, then Tdry for the next second. RelH sensors have recently become very cheap. Need 1 pair of cu per transmitter.

I've got a logging hour-meter design (dry contact input) that records every start-stop event along with a date/time stamp. In addition to recording hours, it also counts starts. All memory is non-volitile & output is via a serial port & local lcd display. the thing mounts in a standard electrical box with a decora plate. This design is also due for a revamp (more memory via MMC card, TCP/IP access, etc), but I just don't have the bloody time. This might be good for a no BS, ultra-simple logging of your operator stops.

M

oceanwanderlust, on Nov 5 2008, 09:00 AM, said:

mthornton and all, thankyou for your help! My project got approved!!!!

Some notes, so I can start contributing back to this community:

1) Wet bulb sensors will be very useful; where can I make snow?

2) Operator generated stops are of interest for now.

3) Communication over existing copper can be done with DSL

[hvteleman]

back up a few .... load/torque and speed... could there be a possible gain in energy savings by running fixed & or detach chairs at 75-85% line speed during weekdays(slow days) and 95- 100% during weekends and holidays

[Emax]

hvteleman, on Nov 13 2008, 03:07 PM, said:

back up a few .... load/torque and speed... could there be a possible gain in energy savings by running fixed & or detach chairs at 75-85% line speed during weekdays(slow days) and 95- 100% during weekends and holidays

Not really - especially if the drive system is DC. These systems are quite efficient at full speed (i.e. using most of the AC waveform) but decrease in efficiency as motor rpm is reduced (i.e. using only a portion of the AC waveform). Most regulated motor controllers (AC or DC) are most efficient at full-tilt. It's sad, but true.

[cjb]

Operator generated stops can be useful. Especially for determining if a station needs more help or a better operator. Of course this would need to be real time, as finding out the next day doesn't help everyone sitting on the lift the day before. Lift ops supe's should have a good hold of which operators are best suited to which stations and on which days. (especially that 550fpm fixed grip double on a holiday)

[cjb]

We've sent people to the moon so we could definitly make an automated line timer, whether it is worth it or not is another story. These will all have their flaws but here are a few ideas:

RFID chips in lift tickets, season passes, or on rental boards. If there is a sensor at the entrance to the maze and at the loading area then the two times could be compared and a display of averages could be posted on boards throughout the resort.

Photo eyes could be established a intervals throughout the lift line, the last transmitting eye shows where the end of the line is and this would then correspond to a predetermined wait time. Again to be transmitted throughout the resort.

[mthornton]

cjb, on Nov 16 2008, 07:50 PM, said:

We've sent people to the moon so we could definitly make an automated line timer, whether it is worth it or not is another story. These will all have their flaws but here are a few ideas:

RFID chips in lift tickets, season passes, or on rental boards. If there is a sensor at the entrance to the maze and at the loading area then the two times could be compared and a display of averages could be posted on boards throughout the resort.

Photo eyes could be established a intervals throughout the lift line, the last transmitting eye shows where the end of the line is and this would then correspond to a predetermined wait time. Again to be transmitted throughout the resort.

ya, been-there... done-all-that... It (stuff listed above) used to be my job.
Satisfies a bit of curiousity for someone, but the skier could care less. What the skier wants is a nice smooth event-free ride... with minimal stops & slows. If it gets busy enough for a line-up, speed it up a notch. No lineup... relax a bit. Detailed analysis aimed at maximizing capacity is only important if there is some good reason for it to be important.

So now I just focus on what makes the lifts run nice. A lot of time that's just talking to the operator.

A nice instrument for load-tests & brake set-up... you bet! A smart hour-meter that counts, records & time-stamps every start/stop... sure, you need a damn hour-meter anyways. A grip-force logger that provides real historical data for each grip... hell ya. A smart spacing monitor... can't live without it (on our old ET anyways).
All cool stuff. This stuff I still do. But the main gig is : the lifts gotta run nice 100% of the time. If some gizmo helps that happen...cool. Otherwise it's just pissin in the wind.
M