Position Feedback System for ARTMS

Overview

Designing a distributed sensor checkpoint system for ARTMS QIS Ecosystem to provide real-time positional feedback of radioactive capsules traveling inside a sealed pneumatic transfer hose within a radiation-constrained environment.

Problem

• ARTMS relies on shielded pneumatic transport lines to move radioactive capsules between stations. In failure cases, capsules get stuck inside the transfer hose
• The environment prevents visual inspection, making the capsule's exact position unknown. This lack of visibility leads to production delays, inefficient troubleshooting, and reduced system throughput

Solution

I am designing a sensor checkpoint system to provide real-time position feedback of the capsule inside the hose. The system architecture I designed is:

All of the sensor PCBs and main board run FreeRTOS. Each sensor PCB performs sensor fusion locally and transmits its status to the main board via CAN bus.

Impact

The solution provides a real-time capsule feedback system connected to the client's HMI. This feedback system would reduce production delays while increasing throughput of the system.

Technical Details

I designed the PCB schematics in Altium:

PCB layout is currently in progress!