Typically, weighing a tank, silo, or hopper means mounting several load cells, combining their millivolt signals in a junction box and feeding the sum through an external amplifier into an analogue input card
With the LBOA, octogon of Leoben, Austria, moves the amplifier into the load cell itself, where each cell sends a digital weight value to the controller over IO-Link.
As each cell connects to its own IO-Link master port, the controller sees the total weight and the load on each support at the same time; this eliminates the need for the junction box, and uneven load distribution shows up straight away.
Two switching channels with adjustable set point, hysteresis and teach-in enable the cell to monitor limits such as minimum fill level or an overload on its own. The LBOA works with IO-Link 1.1 (IEC 61131-9) as a Port Class A device at 230.4kbit/s (COM3), with a minimum cycle time of 600µs and follows the Smart Sensor Profile 4.1.1. An IODD is available for integration into engineering tools.
Plants without an IO-Link master can run the cell in SIO mode, providing a 4-20mA signal with 16-bit resolution and a switching output with adjustable alarm thresholds. Moving to IO-Link later requires no change to the load cell or the mechanics.
The LBOA can measure tension and compression and is available with rated capacities from 50kg to 10t, or optionally from 500N to 100kN. The housing is made of 15-4PH stainless steel, is rated IP67, and the cell operates from −20 to 80°C. It connects via a 4-pin, A-coded M12 connector and is powered at 18-30V DC.
For vessels and silos, matching weigh modules with height adjustment, lateral restraint, and tip-over protection are available; some are certified to EN 1090. Every cell is factory calibrated. On request, a laboratory accredited to ISO/IEC 17025 performs calibration.
