A Monitoring System for Fans in Industrial Flight Simulators

Sammanfattning

In modern industrial and computing environments, maintaining the optimal performance of critical components—such as fans, power supply units, and other hardware is essential to ensure system reliability and operational efficiency. This Bachelor’s thesis project presents a monitoring system that integrates sensors, real-time data analytics, and visual alerts to track the operational status of the fans, helping prevent failures, reduce maintenance costs, and improve overall system stability. The monitoring system consists of sensors that transmit data to a web application updated every 20 minutes. Users can access the interface from both mobile devices and computers by connecting to the local Wi-Fi network and entering the correct IP address. The system provides a clear visual status: green indicators show that fans are operating normally, while red signals identify fans requiring attention. The monitoring system is developed for CAE, a global leader in flight simulator manufacturing and pilot training. It is customized to monitor the numerous fans inside the simulators. For example, monitoring the fans for cooling the high-voltage hardware, like the 33kV projectors used in the visual systems. Malfunctioning fans can cause these projectors to shut down, interrupting training sessions and potentially leading to an “Aircraft on Ground” (AOG) status. Since simulator training is costly and involves pilots traveling from across the globe, any downtime results in significant financial and logistical consequences. By providing real-time insight into hardware conditions, the system enables CAE’s maintenance team to detect issues early, such as fans rotating too slowly, and take prompt action. The primary goal of this project is to minimize simulator downtime and help maintain uninterrupted, high-quality training operations.