One thing that is true in any operating manufacturing plant is that the place is noisy. Simply put, Noise is not necessarily a bad thing, but it may be a nuisance. When listening to the sounds your equipment makes, being able to filter out the component’s normal sounds you may hear some problems. In fact, the equipment may be trying to tell you something by the sound it makes. Are you listening?

To find problems, many facilities use a maintenance program for routine testing including ultrasonic, infrared, and other methods. These testing methods have their place, and they help reduce the likelihood of serious problems.

ID’ing Problems

Identify the issues operators experience in different ways. Sometimes, the performance of the machine is lacking, and at other times, the vibration increases. In many instances, however, the sound of the equipment is the primary tell in identifying problems.

Two Kinds of Sounds

As crazy as it seems, there are two different kinds of noise: acoustical and Electrical Noise in components. The difference between the two is simple; acoustical noise is any unwanted sound or vibration audible to the human ear or tangible via touch.

Electrical Noise

Electrical noise is not particularly loud or readily perceptible with physical contact and is an unwanted variation in an electrical signal. To some degree, all circuits have electrical noise. Depending on the system, electrical noise, within limits, may not be a problem.

Another type of electrical noise, inductive coupling, is magnetic-coupled noise. Any conductor carrying current generates a magnetic field that can induce a current in nearby conductors and circuits.

According to Mat Dirjish writing at Electronic Design, there are other types of electrical noise including:

thermal noise, shot noise, and flicker noise. Thermal noise emanates from the friction between charge carriers in a conductor. This friction generates varying levels of heat. Shot noise includes any random fluctuations in current flow. Flicker noise, also known as 1/f noise, is the level roll-off or unwanted attenuation of a signal at higher frequencies.

Acoustical Noise

There are many causes of acoustical noise, but as we talked about before, not all acoustical noise means trouble. Electric motors are the source for many noises that is okay in a noisy environment. As long as they continue to run without problems, noise is not an issue.

Dirjish shares a good rule to follow:

Regarding acoustical noise, a good rule of thumb in any design prototyping is to question any source of mechanical noise regardless of the component. Even if noise levels are acceptable and within spec and regulation, the noise can indicate a faulty component and imminent system failure.

Once recognizing an unusual noise, it is time to do more testing and even try a simple repair. Sometimes, it is just a matter of tightening a screw here or there, but at other times, the issue could be more serious. Know your limitations. Making a mistake, even a simple one, may result in a cheap repair becoming expensive.

In Sum

When the noise is creating an issue is not clear, or beyond the scope of your department, it is time to get help. Contact a reputable company who has experience with a variety of tests to help nail down your problem.

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