Real-time wireless vibration monitoring system using LabVIEW

Vibration analysis provides relevant information about abnormal working condition of machine parts. Vibration measurement is prerequisite for vibration analysis which is used for condition monitoring of machinery. Also, wireless vibration monitoring has many advantages over wired monitoring. This Paper presents, implementation of a reliable and low cost wireless vibration monitoring system. Vibration measurement has been done using 3-Axis digital output MEMS Accelerometer sensor. This sensor can sense vibrations in the range 0.0156g to 8g where, 1g is 9.81m/s². Accelerometer Sensor is interfaced with Arduino-derived microcontroller board having Atmel´s AT-mega328p microcontroller. The implemented system uses ZigBee communication protocol i.e. standard IEEE 802.15.4, for wireless communication between Sensor Unit and Vibration Monitoring Unit. The wireless communication has been done using XBee RF modules. National Instruments´s LabVIEW software has been used for development of graphical user interface, data-logging and alarm indication on the PC. Experimental results show continuous real-time monitoring of machine´s vibrations on charts. These results, along with data-log file have been used for vibration analysis. This analysis is used to ensure safe working condition of machinery and used in predictive maintenance.