IIoT often lives in harsh environments where trenching equipment, excavators, and backhoes can be challenging and expensive to operate. Costs escalate based on trench length and depth, soil type, post-trenching land restoration, permitting costs, and regulatory requirements.
Then there are maintenance considerations once copper wire is in the ground. If wire breaks underground, how do you know where the problem is? In places like the American West or Canada, where wild fires exist, wires require flame-retardant, or self-extinguishing jackets. High-temperature environments, chemical exposure or flood zones also require extra maintenance for underground wire. Rising copper prices pose a rising theft risk too – a billion dollar industry annually according to Nasdaq – where criminals trade stolen copper for profit, putting critical infrastructure at risk.
“Aging, trenched wired infrastructure is a high risk. You need to get in front of the problem because it’s not a matter of ‘if,’ it’s a matter of ‘when’ that wired infrastructure will fail,” said William H. Conley, III, director of technical and customer support at FreeWave.
That risk is highest for legacy industries like oil and gas, utilities, and water wastewater treatment. As digitalization increases, reliably transmitting analog and digital input/output (I/O) and sensor data across long distances becomes even more critical.
Traditionally, as an example, transmitting 4-20mA signals over long distances has required trenching miles of shielded twisted pair (STP) wire. In the past, trenching of wire signals has been a costly and maintenance-heavy process.
Enter ZumEdge® ZU1100. FreeWave’s latest wire replacement solution is designed to make buried wire a thing of the past and industrial analog and digital I/O and sensor data flow.
What Is ZU1100?
Wire replacement solutions aren’t new. Many companies offer solutions that are deployed in a lot of networks, today. However, the ZU1100 IS different. It is a bi-directional I/O wireless solution that replaces labor-intensive wired connectivity for customers in industrial sectors. The best part is a hallmark of FreeWave’s design philosophy: install it and it just works. It’s pre-configured so you literally plug it in and it works.
ZU1100 mirrors analog and digital signals from one point to another, eliminating the need for physical wiring. Whether you’re monitoring a remote water tank’s level or controlling a pump miles away, ZU1100 transmits real-time analog and digital I/O and sensor data, to include 4-20mA signals current loops over distances of up to 20 miles, or farther in some instances. The DIN-mountable device is sleek, measuring about the size of your favorite summer read. It supports two analog inputs/outputs and two digital inputs/outputs on each end, enabling two-way communication between field equipment and control systems. Being able to quickly analyze and respond to data variations is one of the paramount benefits from FreeWave solutions.
What’s better is that FreeWave is no stranger to radio technology. We’re trusted.
Since 1993, FreeWave has led the way with more than 800,000 units in use around the world sending telemetry data to users.
As data has evolved, thousands of customer conversations led to innovating the an evolved solution that truly scales. Unlike previous one-way solutions, the ZU1100’s bi-directional design allows for peer-to-peer and, soon, peer-to-multi-peer relationships (with its ability to support up to 32 remote devices in future updates). Future features include support for additional protocols and system integration for streamlined workflows.
“How industry collects information is identical across markets such as oil and gas, utilities, water/wastewater, and building automation,” said Conley. Add to the list industries like agriculture, smart cities, chemical processing, and manufacturing. When industry requires analog I/O signals, they prefer 4-20mA current loops. Why? Because the signal is almost immune to electrical noise and interference, delivering reliable signals.
“It’s the same analog and digital I/O signals, the same protocols like Modbus and MQTT (that many industries use). What might differ is the regulatory requirements and the type of command and control,” said Conley.
Even there, ZU1100 is prepared – for anything. Conley said that FreeWave designs solutions to the “absolute most challenging scenario.” ZU1100 is industrial grade: Class I, Division 2-certified (C1D2). It can operate in temperatures from -40°C to +75°C and is explosive proof – a must-have for oil and gas customers.
Along with ease of use, security is another signature design element in FreeWave solutions. AES encryption is available on ZU1100, with future plans for enhanced network security via FreeWave Zentry™, a secure connectivity solution introduced by FreeWave earlier this year based on zero-trust principles. Future integration of AI and advanced protocols are also on ZU1100’s ideation board.
ZU1100 Use Cases
Field technicians, administrators, integrators, and partners in industrial sectors wrestling with wired sensor systems have a number of use cases that highlight ZU1100’s plug-and-play installation, bi-directional I/O, and rugged, reliable performance.
Here are three high-impact use cases:
Industrial Monitoring
A remote water tank with sensors measures level, pressure, and pump current, all while feeding into a programmable logic controller (PLC). ZU1100
transmits signals wirelessly for remote monitoring and control.
Automated Control
Devices are connected in real-time so operators send commands such as turning on a pump or shutting down a system based on sensor readings – without the need to trench and maintain long runs of physical wiring. This use case is ideal for industries where assets are distributed over large, hard-to-wire areas. ZU1100’s bi-directional monitoring and remote actuation increases operational efficiency and reliability.
Protocol Bridging and Legacy System Modernization
ZU1100 helps organizations transition from legacy systems using protocols like Modbus to modern IoT protocols such as MQTT. (According to a 2022 survey by HiveMQ, 50% of respondents use MQTT as a standard protocol.) ZU1100 can bridge analog/digital, I/O and serial/Ethernet protocols so data flows between old and new equipment, allowing gradual modernization, and supporting both legacy and next-generation protocols.
What’s Next?
At FreeWave, our vision is to make receiving and sending data easy. It’s a world where we see IIoT being scalable, smart, and simple.
ZU1100 is a next-generation, customer-driven solution that bridges the gap between legacy systems and future-ready industrial automation. The solution creates connected, intelligent, and secure operations with a wireless industrial wire replacement solution that is plug-and-play, zero configuration, and that just works.
If you’re facing the challenge of getting sensor data from point A to point B, contact a FreeWave expert to explore how we can help you meet your business goals reliably, securely, and without unnecessary costs.
Let’s solve your toughest data challenges, together.
William “Bill” Conley III is the Director of Technical and Customer Support for FreeWave, provider of industrial wireless and IIoT solutions for people passionate about the beauty of a data-informed world. He is considered a global expert on technologies relating to U.S. export controls and cellular-based solutions.