Sensors - CRATUS Technology https://www.cratustech.com/category/sensors/ Physical | Digital | Connected Wed, 08 Jul 2026 05:26:05 +0000 en-US hourly 1 https://wordpress.org/?v=7.0.2 https://www.cratustech.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/09/cratus-site-icon-100x100.png Sensors - CRATUS Technology https://www.cratustech.com/category/sensors/ 32 32 Why CAN Bus is Eating the AI Data Center From the Inside https://www.cratustech.com/why-can-bus-is-eating-the-ai-data-center-from-the-inside/ https://www.cratustech.com/why-can-bus-is-eating-the-ai-data-center-from-the-inside/#respond Mon, 11 May 2026 15:30:29 +0000 https://www.cratustech.com/?p=13980 Data center operators have spent thirty years not thinking about CAN Bus. BACnet for the building management system, Modbus for power monitoring, SNMP for the IT stack, IPMI and Redfish for server management. That has been the protocol stack since the late 1990s and most DCIM platforms, Vertiv Trellis, Schneider EcoStruxure IT, Nlyte, are still […]

The post Why CAN Bus is Eating the AI Data Center From the Inside appeared first on CRATUS Technology.

]]>

Data center operators have spent thirty years not thinking about CAN Bus. BACnet for the building management system, Modbus for power monitoring, SNMP for the IT stack, IPMI and Redfish for server management. That has been the protocol stack since the late 1990s and most DCIM platforms, Vertiv Trellis, Schneider EcoStruxure IT, Nlyte, are still architected around it.

Then NVIDIA shipped a 120 kilowatt rack and the math changed.

The DGX GB200 NVL72 dissipates roughly 120 kW per rack with individual B200 GPUs running at 1000W TDP. Air cooling has a hard ceiling around 25 to 30 kW per rack, set by ASHRAE TC 9.9 thermal guidelines and basic fluid dynamics. Anything above that requires direct to chip liquid cooling, rear door heat exchangers, or full immersion. The infrastructure that delivers liquid to the rack, the coolant distribution units, the manifolds, the secondary loops, the leak detection sensors, did not come from the IT industry. It came from industrial process cooling, where CAN Bus has been the standard for two decades.

That is how CAN bus entered the AI data center. Not by design choice, but by supply chain.

Where CAN actually lives in modern DC infrastructure

Three places, growing fast.

Coolant distribution units. CDUs from CoolIT, Motivair, Vertiv Liebert XDU, and Schneider Galaxy series almost universally use CANopen or J1939 internally for pump speed control, valve actuation, manifold pressure, supply and return temperatures, flow rates, and leak detection. The CDU exposes a Modbus TCP or BACnet IP interface upward to the BMS, but the internal sensor fabric is CAN. When something goes wrong below the Modbus abstraction layer, the diagnostic data lives on a bus the BMS cannot see.

Lithium ion UPS battery management. The shift from VRLA to Li-ion in data center UPS, driven by the same density and footprint pressures, brought CAN with it. Vertiv HPL, Schneider Galaxy VL, Eaton 9395 with lithium option, ABB DPA UPScale, all use an internal CAN bus to communicate cell voltage, temperature, state of charge, and balancing status from the cell modules to the cabinet controller. The thermal runaway risk profile of lithium chemistry makes that data operationally critical, not optional.

DC distribution at rack and row level. Open Compute Project rack designs run a 48V DC bus and increasingly use CAN for power shelf control, rectifier coordination, and battery backup unit telemetry. Hyperscalers running OCP fleets have CAN traffic on every rack whether they think about it or not.

Then NVIDIA shipped a 120 kilowatt rack and the math changed.

The DGX GB200 NVL72 dissipates roughly 120 kW per rack with individual B200 GPUs running at 1000W TDP. Air cooling has a hard ceiling around 25 to 30 kW per rack, set by ASHRAE TC 9.9 thermal guidelines and basic fluid dynamics. Anything above that requires direct to chip liquid cooling, rear door heat exchangers, or full immersion. The infrastructure that delivers liquid to the rack, the coolant distribution units, the manifolds, the secondary loops, the leak detection sensors, did not come from the IT industry. It came from industrial process cooling, where CAN Bus has been the standard for two decades.

That is how CAN bus entered the AI data center. Not by design choice, but by supply chain.

The three places CAN Bus lives in modern data center infrastructure: CoolIT and Motivair coolant distribution units, Vertiv and Schneider lithium-ion UPS battery management, and 48V Open Compute Project rack power shelves.

The integration problem nobody owns

Each of these subsystems exposes a single upstream interface. The CDU has one Modbus TCP register map. The UPS has one BACnet IP integration. The OCP rack has a single rack management controller. That is fine for top level monitoring, but it loses the resolution that lives on the underlying CAN bus.

When a CDU pump starts running 4 percent slower than baseline, the CAN bus knows it three weeks before the Modbus alarm threshold trips. When one cell module in a 200 module Li-ion cabinet starts drifting on internal resistance, the CAN bus knows months before the cabinet flags a fault. That data exists, it is generated, it is visible inside the device, and it is invisible to the BMS by design.

Closing that gap is what brings a CAN bus aware control board into a data center conversation. Not as a replacement for the BMS, which is not the right architecture, but as a parallel telemetry plane that pulls the bus level data, processes it locally, and ships it to a separate analytics stack over MQTT, HTTPS, or whatever the operations team has standardized on.

What the architecture actually looks like

A control subsystem in this role sits between the CAN Bus of a target subsystem, a CDU, a UPS battery cabinet, an OCP power shelf, and the IP network of the facility. The hardware requirements are concrete and there is no slack on most of them.

Two independent CAN FD channels at 2 Mbps cover the case where a single board needs to listen to both the primary and redundant bus in an A and B redundant cooling system. Wi-Fi for the IP uplink is honestly the controversial part inside a hyperscale, where wired Ethernet is preferred for security and EMI reasons. For colocation facilities, edge sites, and retrofit projects where pulling new Cat6 to every rack is impractical, 802.11 b/g/n on 2.4 GHz remains the path of least resistance.

The INTERCAL8 ICL8-WC182 from CRATUS fits this role specifically. A Cortex-M7 at 480 MHz handles real time CAN frame parsing and local state estimation. Two ESP32-S3 modules give Wi-Fi for backhaul and a separate ESP-NOW radio for low latency board to board links, useful when two boards need to coordinate across a row without going through the access point. Two CAN FD channels per board cover the redundancy case. A 2000 VDC isolated 24V output rail powers downstream sensor nodes from the same drop.

Architecture diagram of the CRATUS ICL8-WC182 control board: dual CAN FD channels at 2 Mbps, Cortex-M7 at 480 MHz, ESP32-S3 Wi-Fi and ESP-NOW radios bridging CDU/UPS CAN buses to an MQTT analytics stack alongside the BMS.

The honest voltage range conversation

This is the place where a marketing sheet usually skips a paragraph. The ICL8-WC182 accepts 9 to 36V DC input, with an absolute maximum of 40V. That covers the 12V and 24V industrial cooling and instrumentation systems cleanly. It does not cover the 48V DC OCP rack bus directly. Connecting it across a 48V rail will exceed the maximum input rating and damage the input stage.

For OCP rack deployments, the practical answer is an upstream 48V to 24V step down converter (that can also be integrated in the enclosure while ordering units) feeding the V-IN terminal of ICL8-WC182. That is one extra component, but it lets the same board be specified across the whole facility, the cooling plant, the UPS room, and the rack level, with a single firmware base. That standardization is usually worth more than the bill of materials cost of one regulator.

ICL8-WC182 is genuinely a redundancy

This is not a BMS. BACnet IP, Modbus TCP, and the certified BMS integration paths exist for a reason and are not going away. The right architecture treats this subsystem as a parallel telemetry source feeding an analytics stack, sitting next to the BMS, not replacing it, but providing redundancy.

This is also not a fit for hyperscalers who have already standardized on a wired Ethernet sensor fabric. Meta, Google, and AWS have the in-house engineering capacity to design custom rack management controllers and they do. The deployment model where ICL8-WC182 subsystem makes economic sense is colocation operators, enterprise data centers running 5 to 50 megawatts, edge facilities, and AI factory build outs where the operator wants visibility into the cooling plant without commissioning a custom rack manager.

Data center operations shifting from threshold-based to trend-based maintenance using CAN Bus telemetry, detecting a 4% CDU pump degradation three weeks early and Li-ion cell internal resistance drift months before BMS alarms trigger.

What changes for the operations team

The practical effect of pulling CAN Bus level data into an analytics stack is that maintenance shifts from threshold based to trend based. A pump degrading 4 percent over three weeks is a maintenance ticket for next month, not an outage for tonight. A cell module drifting on internal resistance is a swap during scheduled downtime, not a thermal event during peak load.

That kind of predictive maintenance stack has been talked about in DCIM marketing for ten years. The reason it has not been delivered is that the data resolution at the BMS layer was never high enough to support it. Going one layer deeper, to the CAN bus that the equipment vendor already built into their product, is where the data actually lives.

The other place this matters is multi vendor cooling. A facility built out in three phases with CDUs from two different vendors and a Li-ion UPS from a third has three internal CAN dialects, three Modbus integration points, and no unified view. A control subsystem such as ICL8-WC182 that can attach to each subsystem’s CAN Bus and normalize the telemetry into a single MQTT topic structure does the integration work the BMS layer was never designed to do.

Parallel CAN Bus telemetry plane in an AI factory deployment, closing the visibility gap between vendor Modbus TCP register maps and the sub-Modbus CAN data inside CDUs, Li-ion UPS cabinets, and OCP power shelves.

If you are running an AI training cluster or a colocation facility and have looked at the gap between what your CDU vendor’s Modbus map exposes and what is actually visible on the internal bus, we would be curious how you closed it. The vendor lock in on this layer is real and the workarounds vary widely.

If you are running a colocation facility, an AI training cluster, or an enterprise data center and the gap between your CDU vendor’s Modbus register map and the actual CAN telemetry inside the unit has become a maintenance problem, we want to hear about it. Cratus is working with several operators on parallel telemetry deployments using the ICL8-WC182, and we are ship evaluation units to teams piloting CAN level data extraction off CDUs, Li-ion UPS cabinets, and OCP power shelves. Email info@cratustech.com with the subsystem you want to instrument and we will ship an ICL8-WC182 subsystem, integration documentation, and a sample MQTT schema we have been refining with the first wave of pilot sites.

The post Why CAN Bus is Eating the AI Data Center From the Inside appeared first on CRATUS Technology.

]]> https://www.cratustech.com/why-can-bus-is-eating-the-ai-data-center-from-the-inside/feed/ 0 Modern Cranes Have a Wireless Problem (And It’s Not the Operator’s Joystick) https://www.cratustech.com/modern-cranes-have-a-wireless-problem/ https://www.cratustech.com/modern-cranes-have-a-wireless-problem/#respond Wed, 06 May 2026 09:47:27 +0000 https://www.cratustech.com/?p=13811 Walk onto any port, factory floor, or large construction site in 2026 and you will find cranes that are partially wireless and mostly not. The operator’s pendant talks to the crane on a licensed 433 MHz or 2.4 GHz link, usually a Cattron MGuard, an HBC Radiomatic Spectrum, or a Hetronic Nova. The fleet management […]

The post Modern Cranes Have a Wireless Problem (And It’s Not the Operator’s Joystick) appeared first on CRATUS Technology.

]]>

Walk onto any port, factory floor, or large construction site in 2026 and you will find cranes that are partially wireless and mostly not. The operator’s pendant talks to the crane on a licensed 433 MHz or 2.4 GHz link, usually a Cattron MGuard, an HBC Radiomatic Spectrum, or a Hetronic Nova. The fleet management system talks to a cellular gateway in the cabin. Everything in between, the boom sensors, the trolley I/O, the hoist encoder, the load pin, the slewing angle reference, the anemometer, the hook camera, runs on cable harnesses that have not fundamentally changed since the early 2000s.

That gap, between a wireless edge at the operator and a wireless edge at the cloud, is where the real industrial CAN bus problem lives.

What a typical crane CAN Bus topology actually looks like

A modern tower crane or large mobile crane runs CANopen with the CiA 417 lift control profile, or J1939 if the platform was derived from an off-highway vehicle. The bus is almost always a single backbone running from the cabin controller out to the boom tip and down through the trolley, with anywhere from twelve to thirty nodes hanging off it depending on the machine.

The problem is the physical layer, not protocol. CAN runs reliably at 250 kbps over a 250 meter cable and a tower crane at 80 meters is well inside that envelope. But the wiring has to be pulled through the lattice during commissioning, terminated correctly at both ends, and shielded from the EMI generated by every variable frequency drive on the same machine. When a sensor fails or a node is added, the rework is expensive, the operators often live with the gap rather than fix it.

A bus that lets you replace individual segments with reliable 200 meter line of sight wireless, without redesigning the protocol layer above, would change how cranes get retrofitted.

The constraints nobody mentions until commissioning week

Three things tend to bite crane integrators after the design is locked.

The slip ring is the most common bus failure point on the entire machine. Every large crane has a slewing ring with a slip ring assembly that carries power and signal between the rotating upper structure and the static base. Anything that lets you put a bus controller on the boom side and run only power and an isolated wireless link across the slip ring, instead of running CAN signals through it, removes a maintenance headache nobody wants to own.

The 24V environment is harsher than the spec sheet suggests. Most crane systems are nominally 24V, but in practice you see transients from contactor switching, relay coils, and VFD bus pumping that go well above 36V on the rail. The board level needs ideal diode reverse polarity protection, transient suppression on the input, and real headroom on the regulators. A 9-36V input range covers the nominal case, but the protection circuits matter more than the range itself.

ESD and surge on the CAN Bus pair. A crane working outdoors in summer storms sees indirect lightning surge on every cable longer than ten meters. Automotive grade 24V working voltage TVS on the differential pair, combined with common mode chokes, is the difference between a unit that survives the season and one that does not.

Close-up of an industrial control board showing MAX3051 CAN transceiver, TVS1/TVS2 surge suppressors and common mode chokes that protect the differential pair against 24V transients and lightning surge

Where CRATUS INTERCAL8 changes the calculation

The interesting development in the last two years is ESP-NOW as a deterministic, sub 10 millisecond point to point link between two ESP32 radios on 2.4 GHz. ESP-NOW is not a Wi-Fi protocol in the TCP/IP sense. It is a connectionless layer that skips association and authentication overhead, which is exactly what makes it useful when you want something close to a wireless equivalent of a CAN segment.

Two ESP32-S3 modules on the same machine, one on the cabin controller and one on the boom tip, can carry CANopen frames across the slip ring at latencies that match the bus itself. That is the use case that justifies a dual wireless control board: one radio for low latency machine internal traffic via ESP-NOW, the other for 802.11 b/g/n Wi-Fi backhaul to a fleet management gateway.

This is what the Cratus ASSET-Rx platform integrating INTERCAL8 ICL8-WC182 is built around. The ICL8-WC182 pairs an ARM Cortex-M7 running at 480 MHz with two CAN FD channels up to 2 Mbps, two independent ESP32-S3 modules, and a 2000 VDC isolated 24V rail rated to 20W for downstream sensor and actuator power, all in a single enclosure.

Architecture diagram showing a tower crane with two ICL8-WC182 nodes — one in the cabin, one at the boom tip — linked by an ESP-NOW RF segment across the slewing slip ring and a Wi-Fi backhaul to the cloud

What dual RJ45 with power actually buys you

The other detail that matters on cranes specifically is wiring practice. Every additional connector on the bus is a failure point. The ICL8-WC182 uses dual RJ45 jacks that carry both power and CAN on the same cable, which lets an integrator daisy chain six or eight nodes along the boom without breaking out a separate power bus.

Each RJ45 carries V-IN on three pin pairs per side, each pair rated 1.5A. At 24V nominal that is roughly 100W of pass through capacity per port, plenty for a downstream node and its sensor loop.

The address selection is the small detail that makes this work in the field. A 6 position DIP switch on each board gives 64 unique CAN node addresses without per device firmware. A maintenance technician at height in poor weather can swap a failed unit, set the DIPs to match the old node, and the system comes back without recompilation. That matters more than any specification on the ICL8-WC182 datasheet.

Field technician at height swapping an ICL8-WC182 control board enclosure on a crane lattice — DIP switch address selection lets the unit come back online without firmware recompilation

What this is not good for, to be honest about it

Two things to be clear about, because crane buyers will ask.

This is not a safety rated crane control element. ISO 13849 PLd or higher safety functions, overload prevention, anti two block, anti collision, slew limit, need a redundant safety bus and certified components, and a general purpose industrial control board running application firmware is not that. The right architecture is to keep the safety chain on a dedicated CAN segment with rated devices, and use a subsystem like this for non safety telemetry, condition monitoring, and configuration.

This is also not a replacement for the operator’s licensed band radio remote. Cattron, Hetronic, and HBC Radiomatic remotes use 400 to 900 MHz licensed or ISM bands precisely because 2.4 GHz is congested at any commercial site that has Wi-Fi. The dual wireless on the ICL8-WC182 is for machine internal links and cloud backhaul, not for operator joystick control.

The bigger picture for crane fleets

The crane industry is moving toward predictive maintenance and remote diagnostics. Both are bottlenecked by how much data you can pull off the machine and how cheaply you can put a smart node on a sensor. A control board that combines CAN FD, dual wireless, isolated 24V power, and address selection in a single enclosure lowers the cost of placing a real node on every sensor that matters, which is what makes the data dense enough to do condition monitoring in the first place.

The question for crane OEMs and fleet operators in 2026 is not whether to instrument more of the machine. It is whether the bus and node hardware they specified five years ago can still carry what the next five years of telemetry will demand.

Crane fleet management dashboard showing live load percentage, slew angle, wind speed and motor temperature telemetry from multiple port cranes — the kind of condition monitoring data density enabled by smart CAN FD nodes

If you have run into the slip ring CAN Bus problem on a crane retrofit, or you solved the wireless segment replacement question a different way, we would be curious how you handled it. The CiA 417 community has been quiet on wireless extensions and there is a real conversation to be had there.

 

If you are designing or retrofitting a crane control system and the slip ring CAN Bus routing is on your problem list, we would like to talk. CRATUS is shipping INTERCAL8 ICL8-WC182 evaluation units (that either run on ASSET-Rx platform or standalone) to crane OEMs and integrators working on the wireless segment replacement architecture, and we are interested in the topologies you are seeing in the field. Reach out to info@cratustech.com with your platform details and we will ship a unit, a technical brief on wireless timing characteristics across the slewing ring, and time on the calendar with our engineering team to walk through your specific bus layout. 

Watch the video on YouTube and subscribe for more!

The post Modern Cranes Have a Wireless Problem (And It’s Not the Operator’s Joystick) appeared first on CRATUS Technology.

]]> https://www.cratustech.com/modern-cranes-have-a-wireless-problem/feed/ 0 Wireless Dual CAN Bus Bridge https://www.cratustech.com/dual-wireless-dual-canbus-control-board/ https://www.cratustech.com/dual-wireless-dual-canbus-control-board/#respond Tue, 07 Apr 2026 14:31:35 +0000 https://www.cratustech.com/?p=13389 Industrial Control · Made in USA One Integrated System.Total Network Control. ICL8-WC182Wireless CAN Bus Bridge Stop cobbling together gateways, radios, and CAN adapters. The CRATUS INTERCAL8 Wireless Dual CANBUS Bridge “ICL8-WC182” does it all, wired and wireless, as one highly integrated subsystem. It is ready for integration into larger systems or standalone applications as one […]

The post Wireless Dual CAN Bus Bridge appeared first on CRATUS Technology.

]]>
Industrial Control · Made in USA

One Integrated System.
Total Network Control.

ICL8-WC182
Wireless CAN Bus Bridge

Stop cobbling together gateways, radios, and CAN adapters. The CRATUS INTERCAL8 Wireless Dual CANBUS Bridge “ICL8-WC182” does it all, wired and wireless, as one highly integrated subsystem. It is ready for integration into larger systems or standalone applications as one ruggedized package, ready for the field. It features dual wireless links, WiFi or Proprietary wireless mode.

Request a Quote See It In Action
Cratus Dual Wireless Dual CANBUS Control Board — top-down view showing ARM Cortex-M7 processor, dual CAN FD ports, and dual ESP32-S3 wireless modules
480MHz
ARM Cortex-M7 Core
2×
PROPRIETARY OR WiFi WIRELESS
2×
ESP32-S3 Wireless
9–36V
Wide-Range Input
-40°C to 70°C
Industrial Rated
2000VDC
Galvanic Isolation
ISO 11898-2 CAN FD Compliant
±8 kV ESD HBM Protection
Made in USA by Cratus Technology
The Problem

Industrial Networks Need Integrated Solutions

Engineers building CAN FD networks today are forced to piece together multiple components — each with its own power requirements, firmware stack, and integration risk.

The Old Way
  • Separate CAN gateway + wireless radio + field power supply + protocol bridge
  • Multiple power rails to manage — 5 V, 12 V, 3.3 V all run separately
  • 3–5 boards per node. More failure points, more enclosure space, more wiring
  • Weeks of integration work just to get CAN data to the cloud
  • Field updates require physical access to every node
  • Higher BOM cost, larger PCB area, longer lead times
The Cratus Way
  • One board handles CAN FD, wireless, power conditioning, and cloud connectivity
  • Single 9–36 VDC input. Onboard SMPS + LDO + isolated DC/DC
  • One ICL8-WC182 per two CAN networks. Less wiring, fewer failure points. Single and quad versions available
  • Plug in power, set the DIP address — network is live in minutes
  • OTA firmware updates pushed wirelessly over Wi-Fi to every node simultaneously
  • Lower total system cost. Fewer vendors, one firmware ecosystem, faster time to market
Why Cratus Wins

How We Compare

See why engineers who've tried the fragmented approach keep switching to a single, purpose-built platform.

Capability Cratus DW-DCAN Board Multi-Board Approach Generic CAN Gateway
Dual CAN FD channels ✓ Both channels, simultaneous Possible — extra board Usually 1 channel
Wireless (Wi-Fi + P2P radio) ✓ Dual Wireless Onboard Add-on module required x Not included
Power conditioning (9–36 V) ✓ Onboard SMPS + LDO + isolation x Separate PSU needed x External supply only
OTA firmware updates ✓ Dual-bank, over Wi-Fi Per-device, manual x Not supported
Hardware node addressing ✓ 64 addresses via DIP switch x Firmware only x Firmware only
RJ45 daisy-chain (power + CAN) ✓ Single cable per node x Separate power + signal runs x CAN only, no power
ESD protection (±8 kV HBM) ✓ On both CAN buses Varies by component Usually ±2 kV
Industrial temp range (–40 to +85 °C) ✓ Full range, all components Depends on selection Often 0 to +70 °C
Time to first packet ✓ <5 minutes, no firmware config Hours to days of integration 30–60 minutes
Why Cratus

The Complete Platform Your System Deserves

Purpose-built for demanding field deployments — so you spend less time on integration headaches and more time shipping product.

Processing power icon
Serious Processing Power
ARM Cortex-M7 at 480 MHz with hardware FPU handles real-time control loops and data-intensive sensor fusion without breaking a sweat.
Dual CAN FD icon
Two CAN FD Channels — Up to 2 Mbps
Run two fully independent CAN FD buses simultaneously. More bandwidth, true redundancy, and ISO 11898-2 compliance built in.
Wireless connectivity icon
Wired + Wireless in One
Two wireless modules handle peer to peer links and Wi-Fi to Cloud simultaneously — no external radios or dongles needed.
Daisy chain icon
Plug-and-Play Daisy Chain
Power and CAN travel on the same Cat5e/6 cable via rugged RJ45. Add up to 64 nodes with nothing but patch cables — no power wiring needed at each node.
Field protection icon
Field-Ready Protection
±8 kV ESD, 2000 VDC galvanic isolation, ideal-diode reverse-polarity guard, and common-mode chokes. Deploy with confidence in the harshest environments.
Node addressing icon
Zero-Config Node Addressing
Set your node address with a DIP switch. 64 unique addresses, no firmware changes required. Scale from 2 nodes to 64 in minutes.
Wide input power icon
Wide-Input Power — Anywhere
9–36 VDC input means it runs off 12 V or 24 V vehicle/industrial supplies, isolated DC/DC for sensitive loads, with 92% efficiency SMPS onboard.
OTA update icon
Update in the Field, Instantly
USB-C, SWD/JTAG debug header, and dual-bank OTA boot over Wi-Fi. Push firmware to your entire fleet without touching a single unit.
Temperature resilience icon
Designed to Survive
–40°C to +85°C industrial temperature rating. Vehicles, outdoor enclosures, factory floors, marine vessels — this board is built for real life.
Electrical Specifications

Full Technical Specifications

All parameters unless otherwise noted apply over –40 °C to +85 °C after thermal stabilization.

Processing
CoreARM Cortex-M7
Clock Frequency480 MHz
Internal Flash128 KB
SRAM1 MB
External NOR Flash16 Mbit SPI
FPUHardware (single & double)
Power Supply
Input Voltage9 – 36 VDC
Input Current (idle)35 mA typ
Input Current (full load)1000 mA typ / 1200 mA max
5 V Rail (SMPS)4.85 – 5.15 V, 2 A max
3.3 V Rail (LDO)3.2 – 3.4 V, 3 A max
SMPS Efficiency92% typ @ 24 V, 1 A
Isolated Output24 V / 20 W, 833 mA max
Isolation Voltage2000 VDC (1 min)
Absolute Maximum Ratings
Input Voltage (V-IN)–0.3 to 40 V
Reverse Input–40 V (ideal-diode protected)
CAN Bus (CANH/CANL)±27 V transient
CAN ESD (HBM)±8000 V
USB VBUS–0.3 to 5.5 V
Storage Temperature–65 to +150 °C
CAN FD Interface
Data Rate (CAN FD)Up to 2 Mbps
Data Rate (Classic CAN)Up to 1 Mbps
Channels2 × independent (ISO 11898-2)
Bus Fault Protection–58 to +58 V
Common-Mode Range±12 V
Bus Termination120 Ω switchable (per channel)
Loop Delay (TXD→bus)80 ns typ / 145 ns max
Standby Current5 µA typ per channel
Wireless Interfaces
Module2X Wireless
WL1 — Protocol2.4GHz P2P
WL2 — Protocol802.11 b/g/n Wi-Fi
Wi-Fi TX Power20 dBm max
Wi-Fi Data Rate150 Mbps (HT40)
RF Range (LOS)200 m typ
Bluetooth5.0 LE
Connectivity & I/O
CAN Connectors2 × Dual-port RJ45 (J3, J4)
Power Input4-pos screw terminal (T1)
USBType-C (virtual COM port)
Debug/Program10-pin SWD (1.27 mm)
UART Header6-pin, 2.54 mm (TTL-232R-3V3)
Node Addressing6-position DIP (64 addresses)
User Buttons2 × tactile + power reset
Status LEDsPower (red), system (blue), fault (yellow) + bi-color RJ45
Applications

Where This Subsystem Gets to Work

Engineered for the most demanding real-world deployment environments across industries.

Industrial AutomationFactory floor distributed I/O, machine control, and process monitoring over CAN FD backbones.
Automotive & Commercial VehiclesBody electronics, diagnostics gateways, and ECU communication for trucks and fleet vehicles.
Agricultural MachineryImplement control, GNSS telemetry, and sensor aggregation across tractors, harvesters, and spreaders.
Marine NavigationEngine monitoring, NMEA-2000 bridging, and navigation network nodes for vessels.
Building ManagementBMS and HVAC control nodes with cloud uplink via Wi-Fi and local bus via CAN FD.
RoboticsCoordinator nodes for multi-axis motion control, sensor fusion, and real-time feedback loops.
Remote Sensor AggregationWireless backhaul via ESP-NOW from remote sensor clusters to a central controller or cloud.
Energy ManagementSmart-grid edge controllers, EV charging station coordination, and microgrid monitoring.
Fleet ManagementCAN-to-cloud gateway for real-time vehicle data, OBD telemetry, and remote diagnostics.
Architecture

How It All Connects

Every subsystem engineered to work together — from the power rail to the wireless antenna.

Functional block diagram of the Dual Wireless Dual CANBUS Control Board showing external inputs, isolated DC-DC power management, ARM Cortex-M7 processing core, dual ESP32-S3 wireless subsystem, dual CAN FD transceivers, and RJ45 physical ports
In Action

Typical Application

A Multi-Node CAN FD Network with Cloud Telemetry

Imagine a fleet of machines on a factory floor. Each machine hosts one Cratus board. The boards communicate over CAN FD with local sensors and actuators. Each board relays live telemetry wirelessly to a central gateway. The system also pushes data to your cloud dashboard over Wi-Fi — and handles OTA firmware updates automatically.

Up to 64 nodes per CAN bus segment, connected with Cat5e patch cables
Wireless telemetry — no additional infrastructure required
Cloud integration over Wi-Fi with MQTT or HTTP
OTA firmware updates across the entire fleet, simultaneously
Discuss Your Use Case
CAN FD daisy-chain network topology showing multiple nodes connected via RJ45 with RF-Link peer communication and Wi-Fi uplink to Cloud SCADA
Setup

Up and Running in Minutes

No complex configuration. Hardware does the heavy lifting so your team hits the ground running.

01

Connect Power

Plug in 9–36 VDC via screw terminal or the RJ45 daisy-chain. The board's ideal-diode controller protects against reverse polarity and surges — the moment power is applied, the system begins bringing up rails automatically.

02

Set Your Node Address

Flip the 6-position DIP switch to your desired node ID (0–63). No firmware changes, no tool required. Every board in your network gets a unique address in seconds.

03

Join the Network

Daisy-chain boards with Cat5e/6 patch cables. The MCU auto-initializes both CAN FD channels and the wireless modules come online within 300 ms. Your entire network is live.

04

Stream & Control

CAN FD data flows between nodes. Telemetry is relayed via ESP-NOW to a gateway, and Wi-Fi pushes live data to your cloud dashboard or MQTT broker. Everything just works.

05

Update the Fleet, Remotely

New firmware? Push an OTA update over Wi-Fi to every board in the field simultaneously. Dual-bank boot ensures a safe rollback if anything goes wrong. Zero downtime.

“We replaced three boards — a CAN gateway, a wireless module, and an external PSU — with a single Cratus board. Integration time dropped from three weeks to two days. It just works.”

Systems Integration Engineer Industrial Automation Customer, USA
Get Started

Build Your Network.
Ship Faster. Break Less.

Get in touch with the Cratus team for pricing, volume discounts, custom configurations, and engineering support. Most customers go from inquiry to first prototype in under two weeks.

Quick lead times
Volume pricing available
Engineering support included
Made in the USA
Contact Cratus Technology View Full Datasheet

The post Wireless Dual CAN Bus Bridge appeared first on CRATUS Technology.

]]> https://www.cratustech.com/dual-wireless-dual-canbus-control-board/feed/ 0 Smarter Sensing – Safer systems by CRATUS https://www.cratustech.com/smarter-sensing-safer-systems-by-cratus/ Wed, 18 Feb 2026 22:32:13 +0000 https://www.cratustech.com/?p=12883 At Cratus Technology, a privately held company based in San Jose, California, we bring together a team of 30 experts in mechanical, electrical, and software engineering. Together, we deliver advanced perception sensor systems for industrial, automotive, and robotics applications. Specializing in both hardware sales and software development, we offer fully integrated perception stacks. These systems […]

The post Smarter Sensing – Safer systems by CRATUS appeared first on CRATUS Technology.

]]>

At Cratus Technology, a privately held company based in San Jose, California, we bring together a team of 30 experts in mechanical, electrical, and software engineering. Together, we deliver advanced perception sensor systems for industrial, automotive, and robotics applications. Specializing in both hardware sales and software development, we offer fully integrated perception stacks. These systems combine LIDAR for precise localization and cameras for object detection and classification. They also include radar for resilient, weather-proof sensing and wireless sensors for unique, anonymous identification. Our technologies are used to make heavy equipment safer, with LIDARs, cameras, and wireless sensors mounted on crane structures and transmitters embedded in rigger hard hats. In workplace environments, we enhance safety by deploying mobile LIDAR and camera systems on forklifts, and stationary systems at warehouse intersections. We streamline operations with edge-optimized software solutions built for constrained environments, delivering 100% edge processing at the lowest cost possible. Our geospatial technology quantifies the world with high-precision tools like colorized point clouds, 3D Gaussian splatting, dual 24MP cameras, LIDAR, IMU, and RTK. This system achieves less than 1cm relative accuracy in a lightweight 680g setup that works with mobile phones and drone mounts, paired with a high-performance post-processor. With a solution for virtually any use case, Cratus provides LIDARs for any application, ensuring flexibility, precision, and safety across sectors. To learn more, contact Cratus Technology

Watch the video on YouTube and subscribe for more!

The post Smarter Sensing – Safer systems by CRATUS appeared first on CRATUS Technology.

]]> LiDAR Solutions: Precision and Perception for the Real World https://www.cratustech.com/lidar-solutions-precision-and-perception-for-the-real-world/ Wed, 18 Feb 2026 22:28:12 +0000 https://www.cratustech.com/?p=12877 Cratus Technology offers cutting-edge LiDAR solutions designed to meet the demanding needs of industrial automation, smart mobility, and safety-critical environments. Leveraging high-resolution sensors like the Hesai QT128, AT128, and XT32, Cratus enables precise 3D perception with up to 128 laser channels and wide field-of-view coverage, ensuring real-time detection, tracking, and classification of objects in complex […]

The post LiDAR Solutions: Precision and Perception for the Real World appeared first on CRATUS Technology.

]]>

Cratus Technology offers cutting-edge LiDAR solutions designed to meet the demanding needs of industrial automation, smart mobility, and safety-critical environments. Leveraging high-resolution sensors like the Hesai QT128, AT128, and XT32, Cratus enables precise 3D perception with up to 128 laser channels and wide field-of-view coverage, ensuring real-time detection, tracking, and classification of objects in complex surroundings. These sensors are integrated into customized perception stacks that support SLAM, obstacle avoidance, and AI-based decision-making for autonomous systems. What sets Cratus apart is its ability to tailor both hardware and software for specific industrial use cases—be it autonomous forklifts navigating narrow aisles, robotic systems coordinating in dynamic factories, or AMRs operating in mixed indoor-outdoor environments.

Each system is designed with reliability and real-time performance in mind. Cratus combines these advanced sensors with GPU-accelerated processing units and robust data pipelines that allow for high-frequency point-cloud analysis, semantic segmentation, and dynamic object tracking. This enables machines not only to see, but to understand and react to their environments with minimal latency. With ROS/ROS2 integration, support for FPGA and embedded systems, Cratus simplifies deploying scalable perception across diverse robotic platforms.

In addition to hardware and software, Cratus also offers consultation and end-to-end deployment services. From sensor selection and mounting strategies to calibration, data labeling, and fusion with other inputs like cameras or IMUs, every detail is addressed for maximum system performance. The result is a smarter, safer, and more efficient automation workflow—built on the power of real-time, 360-degree spatial awareness. With Cratus, LiDAR isn’t just a sensor; it’s the foundation of intelligent autonomy in the real world.

Watch the video on YouTube and subscribe for more!

The post LiDAR Solutions: Precision and Perception for the Real World appeared first on CRATUS Technology.

]]> Lidar Scanner For Infrastructure https://www.cratustech.com/lidar-scanner-for-infrastructure/ Wed, 18 Feb 2026 21:09:44 +0000 https://www.cratustech.com/?p=12807 Unlocking the Underground A Single Tool for Every Infrastructure Challenge For companies dedicated to the meticulous work of underground infrastructure inspection, cleaning, and maintenance, adaptability is not just an advantage – it’s a necessity. From sprawling municipal pipelines to critical industrial networks and essential residential connections, each job presents unique access challenges and demands precise […]

The post Lidar Scanner For Infrastructure appeared first on CRATUS Technology.

]]>

Unlocking the Underground
A Single Tool for Every Infrastructure Challenge

For companies dedicated to the meticulous work of underground infrastructure inspection, cleaning, and maintenance, adaptability is not just an advantage – it’s a necessity. From sprawling municipal pipelines to critical industrial networks and essential residential connections, each job presents unique access challenges and demands precise data.

At CRATUS Technology, we’ve seen firsthand how the right tools can revolutionize this demanding field. That’s why we’re so excited about distributing the Handheld Scanner SXMCA in CRATUS Technology, a truly versatile solution that’s capturing the attention of leading companies in the San Francisco Bay Area, across California and in the US.

portable-lidar-scanner-for-infrastructure
Learn Product Details

The Old Ways: Limitations in a Diverse World

Traditional underground inspection methods, while still in use, often come with significant limitations:

  • CCTV Crawlers: Excellent for video, but often miss subtle structural issues and don’t provide a comprehensive 3D understanding of the environment. They’re also specialized and can’t adapt to all pipe sizes or access points.
  • Manual Inspections: Time-consuming, risky, and inherently limited in scope and accuracy.
  • Bulky LiDARs: Powerful, but often too large to fit into tight manholes or be maneuvered effectively in confined spaces.

These methods often force companies to use multiple specialized tools, leading to increased costs, complexity, and gaps in data.

The New Standard: Introducing the SXMCA’s Game-Changing Versatility

The Handheld Scanner SXMCA distributed by CRATUS Technology is engineered to eliminate these compromises, offering unprecedented flexibility in a single, powerful device.

1. The Power of Handheld Precision

For close-quarters inspection, the SXMCA excels as a handheld scanner. Imagine effortlessly capturing a complete, high-resolution 3D model of a manhole, vault, or trench. The SXMCA’s integrated 360° LiDAR and dual 12MP Sony cameras work in tandem to create colorized point clouds, giving you not just geometry, but rich visual context. This is invaluable for:

  • Safety Assessments: Thoroughly inspecting entry points before personnel descent.
  • Planning & Documentation: Accurately mapping “as-built” conditions and planning future repair or maintenance work.
  • Rapid Diagnostics: Quickly identifying critical issues like corrosion, structural fatigue, or blockages.
  • Rugged Reliability: With an IP54 rating, it’s built to withstand the dirty and damp conditions inherent in underground work.

2. Unleashing the Drones: Land, Air, and Beyond

Where manual access is impractical or dangerous, the SXMCA-DEV transitions seamlessly into drone-mountable mode. This capability transforms how you approach complex inspections:

  • Aerial Drones: For open-pit inspections or wide access points, mounting the SXMCA-DEV on an aerial drone allows for rapid, high-detail 3D mapping of the surrounding area and the underground entry, all from a safe distance.
  • Land Drones/Crawlers: This is a true breakthrough for pipe and tunnel inspections. Deploying the SXMCA-DEV on a ground-based drone or crawler allows it to navigate through challenging underground conduits, capturing an incredibly detailed 3D point cloud of the interior. This goes far beyond traditional video feeds, enabling:
    • Precise Structural Analysis: Detecting subtle cracks, deformations, or sediment buildup that might be invisible to the naked eye or a 2D camera.
    • Volume Calculation: Accurately measuring debris volume for more precise cleaning bids and project planning.
    • Accurate Mapping: Generating inch-level accurate 3D maps of pipeline networks, thanks to its integrated RTK, correcting outdated or non-existent records.
Lidar-equipped autonomous robot performing tunnel infrastructure inspection and 3D mapping

3. From Data to Digital Twin: Real-time to 3D Gaussian Splatting

The SXMCA doesn’t just collect data; it empowers you with actionable intelligence.

  • Flexible Processing: Choose between real-time processing for immediate operational insights or post-processing for in-depth analysis back at the office.
  • Next-Gen Visualization with 3D Gaussian Splatting (3DGS): This is where the SXMCA truly pushes boundaries. Beyond standard point clouds, the dual camera images can be used for 3DGS, creating incredibly photorealistic, immersive 3D scenes. Imagine presenting a city council or a homeowner with a vivid, interactive digital twin of an inspected area – complete with realistic lighting, textures, and details. This transforms complex data into easily understandable, compelling visuals.

Redefining Underground Inspection

The CRATUS Technology Handheld Scanner SXMCA is more than just a piece of equipment; it’s a strategic asset for any company in underground infrastructure. It enhances safety, boosts efficiency, and delivers an unparalleled level of data quality and visualization. By consolidating multiple inspection needs into a single, adaptable platform, the SXMCA is set to redefine what’s possible in the vital work of maintaining our hidden infrastructure.

The post Lidar Scanner For Infrastructure appeared first on CRATUS Technology.

]]> The HESAI JT128 Solution for AMRS and Robotics https://www.cratustech.com/hesai-jt128-solution-for-amrs-and-robotics/ Wed, 18 Feb 2026 20:57:27 +0000 https://www.cratustech.com/?p=12794 In the fast-evolving world of Autonomous Mobile Robots (AMRs), innovation isn’t just about groundbreaking algorithms or cutting-edge sensors – sometimes, it’s about a fresh perspective on how to integrate existing, powerful technologies. We recently encountered a fascinating design challenge from a customer aiming to build next-generation AMRs with a particularly slim form factor. Their goal: […]

The post The HESAI JT128 Solution for AMRS and Robotics appeared first on CRATUS Technology.

]]>

In the fast-evolving world of Autonomous Mobile Robots (AMRs), innovation isn’t just about groundbreaking algorithms or cutting-edge sensors – sometimes, it’s about a fresh perspective on how to integrate existing, powerful technologies. We recently encountered a fascinating design challenge from a customer aiming to build next-generation AMRs with a particularly slim form factor. Their goal: advanced navigation, robust collision avoidance, and precise SLAM (Simultaneous Localization and Mapping), all within a confined space.

The solution? A clever orientation of a high-performance LiDAR, paired with the unparalleled AI processing power of NVIDIA’s Orin series GPUs.

The Challenge: Slim Profiles and High Performance

AMRs are increasingly being deployed in environments where space is a premium – think crowded warehouses, narrow factory aisles, or public spaces. This often necessitates a low-profile design, making the integration of critical sensors like LiDAR a significant hurdle. Traditional LiDAR units, while powerful, can sometimes be too tall or bulky for these sleek designs.

Our customer needed a LiDAR that could deliver a comprehensive 3D point cloud for detailed environmental perception but couldn’t accommodate a standard, upright mounting.

The Breakthrough: The Hesai JT128 – Sideways!

Enter the Hesai JT128 LiDAR, distributed by CRATUS Technology. This isn’t just any LiDAR; it’s a 128-channel powerhouse designed specifically for robotics and industrial applications. While its impressive technical specifications – high resolution, a wide 360° (H) x 187° (V) field of view, and an integrated IMU – are well-known, it was its physical dimensions that sparked an “aha!” moment.

The JT128 boasts an approximately 50 mm diameter and 68 mm height. While 68 mm might still be too tall for some slim applications, we realized that by mounting the JT128 sideways, its roughly 50 mm dimension (the side profile when oriented horizontally) perfectly fit the customer’s stringent form factor requirements.

This seemingly simple reorientation opened up a world of possibilities, allowing the customer to achieve their slim design without compromising on sensor performance. The JT128’s hyper-hemispherical FOV ensures no blind spots, providing robust environmental perception even in this novel mounting configuration. Its integrated IMU is crucial for accurate pose estimation and robust SLAM, especially when navigating complex paths.

hesai jt128 FOV lidar sensorfield of view distributed by cratus technology
Learn Product Details

The Brains of the Operation: NVIDIA Orin Series GPUs

A powerful sensor demands equally powerful processing. This is where the NVIDIA Orin series GPUs, also distributed by CRATUS Technology, come into play. The Orin platform (including Orin Nano, Orin NX, and AGX Orin) provides the industry-leading AI compute power necessary to crunch the massive amounts of data generated by the JT128’s high-resolution point cloud.

With an Orin GPU on board, the AMR can:

  • Perform real-time SLAM: Building dynamic, accurate maps of its environment while simultaneously pinpointing its own location.
  • Execute advanced collision avoidance: Instantly detect and react to obstacles, even in fast-changing scenarios.
  • Run sophisticated AI models: Leveraging the GPU’s capabilities for tasks like object recognition, semantic segmentation, and predictive analytics, further enhancing the robot’s intelligence and autonomy.

The seamless integration of the JT128’s point cloud and IMU data with the Orin’s processing prowess creates a formidable perception and navigation system.

A Partnership for Innovation

This solution highlights the synergy between cutting-edge sensor technology and powerful AI computing. Partnering with CRATUS Technology, distributing both HESAI LiDARs and NVIDIA Orin GPUs, means customers can access a complete, integrated solution from a trusted source for robotics and warehouse automation.

The excitement from our customer upon seeing this “sideways” solution was palpable. It’s a testament to the idea that sometimes, the most elegant solutions are found by simply looking at a problem from a different angle – literally!

The right combination of hardware and an innovative approach can unlock incredible potential. If you’re facing similar design constraints in your robotics or autonomous vehicle projects, don’t hesitate to think outside the box… or in this case, rotate the box! Better yet, contact CRATUS Technology and we will brainstorm together.

hesai jt128 lidar sensor versus other lidar sensors
Learn Product Details

The post The HESAI JT128 Solution for AMRS and Robotics appeared first on CRATUS Technology.

]]> Measuring What Matters Using LiDAR for Weight, Volume, and Particle Size in Agriculture, Mining, and Material Handling https://www.cratustech.com/measuring-what-matters-using-lidar-for-weight-volume-and-particle-size-in-agriculture-mining-and-material-handling/ https://www.cratustech.com/measuring-what-matters-using-lidar-for-weight-volume-and-particle-size-in-agriculture-mining-and-material-handling/#respond Wed, 18 Feb 2026 20:34:04 +0000 https://www.cratustech.com/?p=12770 When the supply chain is measured in tons and minutes, knowing how much material you have and how it’s changing drives profit and safety. Modern LiDAR brings fast, non-contact measurement of volume, weight (via bulk density), and particle size distribution (PSD) to farms, quarries, mines, and bulk terminals. Below is a practical guide to how […]

The post Measuring What Matters Using LiDAR for Weight, Volume, and Particle Size in Agriculture, Mining, and Material Handling appeared first on CRATUS Technology.

]]>

When the supply chain is measured in tons and minutes, knowing how much material you have and how it’s changing drives profit and safety. Modern LiDAR brings fast, non-contact measurement of volume, weight (via bulk density), and particle size distribution (PSD) to farms, quarries, mines, and bulk terminals. Below is a practical guide to how it works, where it fits, and how to deploy it with confidence.

Why LiDAR?

3D accuracy at line speed: High point density enables millimeter or centimeter surface models of stockpiles, truck beds, silage bunkers, grain bins, hoppers, and conveyors.

Non-contact & lighting-agnostic: Works in darkness and varying light; multi-echo returns help in dust or chaff.

Real-time analytics at the edge: Pair sensors with embedded CPUs/GPUs to compute volumes, rates, and PSD on-site.

Grain storage warehouse showing 320 cubic meter grain pile with green wireframe volume measurement overlay and mounted sensor device
Learn More

Core Measurements

1) Volume

Create a 3D surface (mesh) from the point cloud and compute volume relative to a reference plane or baseline mesh (empty-bin model).

Stockpiles / Bunkers: Mesh-to-plane or mesh-to-mesh comparison.

Bins / Silos: Use a CAD baseline of the vessel; LiDAR scans provide infill height and surface shape.

Trucks / Railcars: Scan loaded profile versus known tare geometry for fast load checks.

Formula (conceptual):

V ≈ ∑ (signed tetrahedra between surface mesh and reference)

 

2) Weight (Mass)

Convert volume to mass using bulk density:

Mass (t) = V (m³) × ρ_bulk (t/m³)

 Adjust 𝝆bulk for moisture, compaction, and particle size.

Improve accuracy by periodically calibrating against belt scales, truck scales, or weighbridges.

3) Particle Size Distribution (PSD)

For PSD on conveyors or in chutes:

Acquire dense scans over the belt section.

Pre-process (denoise, ground/belt removal, normal estimation).

Segment individual particles (region growing/watershed on the depth map or 3D-connected components).

Fit per-particle size metrics (Feret diameters, equivalent circle/volume).

Aggregate to percent-passing curve; report D10/D50/D90 or D32 (Sauter mean).

In particle size distribution, D10 is the particle size value below which 10% of the particles in a sample are found. It’s a percentile that helps define the fine end of the particle size range, indicating the quantity of ultrafine particles present in a powder or sample. The D10 value is typically measured in micrometers (μm).  

What D10 represents:

The fine particle threshold: It marks the size of the smallest particles in the distribution. 

A percentile: Along with D50 (the median size) and D90 (the size below which 90% of particles fall), D10 provides a comprehensive overview of the particle size distribution. 

A measure of consistency: When considered with other percentiles, D10 helps to understnd the spread or consistency of the particle sizes in a sample. 

Why it’s important: 

Product quality:

Knowing the D10 value can be crucial for industries like pharmaceuticals, where it can affect drug effectiveness.

Industrial processes:

Particle size directly relates to industrial process performance, energy consumption, and product quality.

Notes:

Correct for occlusions and edge bias; use multi-frame fusion to “see around” overlaps.

Validate periodically with sieve analyses to maintain traceability.

Where LiDAR Adds Immediate Value

Grain bins & silos in agriculture

Continuous fill-level and volume.

Silage & feed bunkers: Pile volume tracking for ratio planning and shrink loss auditing.

Harvest logistics: Truck/load volume verification at the field edge; reduce under/overloads.

Overhead laser scanner measuring grain pile showing 1284 cubic meters volume, 1.6 tons per cubic meter density, and 2054 ton total mass estimate with contour lines
Learn More
Large outdoor sand or aggregate pile with green grid overlay showing 4530 cubic meters volume and 7900 tons mass measured by pole-mounted laser scanner
Learn More

Stockpile Reconciliation in Mining & Quarrying

Frequent, safe 3D scans without walking the pile; monthly to hourly cadence.

Blast optimization feedback: Conveyor PSD after crushing/screening to tune blast and crusher settings.

Haulage verification: Rapid volumetric checks reduce overfill fines and optimize cycle times.

Conveyor Mass Flow Material Handling & Terminals

Cross-sectional area from LiDAR × belt speed × bulk density ⇒ tonnage rate.

Hopper/chute monitoring: Detect hang-ups, rat-holing, or asymmetric discharge.

Barge/railcar loading: Live 3D load profiles for even distribution and draft targets.

Conveyor belt carrying coal or aggregate with digital overlay showing 503 tons per hour throughput, 3.2 m/s belt speed, and 0.085 square meter cross-section measurement
Learn More

Deployment Blueprint

1) Sensor Placement

Overhead for conveyors and bins; mast or catwalk positions for piles.

Minimize occlusions; ensure safe mounting outside moving machinery envelopes.

Choose wavelength/optics for range and dust (905 nm vs 1550 nm; consider protective windows and air purge).

2) Sensor Specs to Match the Job

Range: Short (≤20 m) for conveyors; mid (20–80 m) for bins; long (80–300 m) for large piles.

Angular resolution / scan rate: Higher density for PSD; moderate density for volume-only.

FOV: Ensure complete coverage of belt width or pile footprint.

Ruggedness: IP65/67+, shock/vibration ratings, heating for cold starts.

3) Edge Compute + Software

Embedded CPU/GPU for on-site meshing, segmentation, and analytics.

I/O & Protocols: OPC-UA, Modbus/TCP, EtherNet/IP, REST/MQTT for SCADA/MES/EMS integration.

Data Products:

Volume, mass, tonnage rate

PSD curve (tables + plots)

Alarms (overfill, underfill, blockage)

Audit trail with timestamps, operator, and configuration hash.

4) Calibration & QA

Establish golden runs against scales and sieve stacks.

Track bulk density vs. moisture; maintain a density lookup by material and condition.

Schedule routine sensor health checks (window cleaning, laser power/temperature logs).

Accuracy & Throughput Tips

  • Use multi-echo and temporal averaging in dusty lines.
  • For PSD, maintain belt speed compensation and motion synchronization with encoder signals.
  • For large piles, adopt scan path planning or multi-sensor fusion to eliminate blind spots.
  • Maintain versioned algorithms and store raw data for reprocessing if contracts/audits require it.


Example Workflows

A) Conveyor Tonnage + PSD (Mining)

  • Ceiling-mounted LiDAR scans 1 m of belt.
  • Compute cross-sectional area; multiply by belt speed for m³/s → mass flow via 𝜌bulk
  • Parallel pipeline segments particles in the upper surface for PSD; output D10/D50/D90 each minute.
  • Push KPIs to SCADA and notify when PSD drifts beyond spec.

B) Silo Inventory (Agriculture)

  • A top-mounted LiDAR sweeps the surface; compare to silo CAD baseline.
  • Output net volume and mass with moisture-adjusted density curve.
  • Trigger purchase orders when projected days-of-supply drop below target.

 

C) Stockpile Reconciliation (Terminals)

  • Tripod or fixed-mast LiDAR performs 360° scans hourly.
  • Mesh differencing quantifies inflows/outflows; reconciles with weighbridge totals.
  • Automated report with variance, confidence bands, and photo thumbnails.

 

Quantifiable ROI 

  • Shrink reduction (agri): less guesswork on pile/bunker losses.
  • Reduced rework/fines (mining/terminals): fewer overloads and better distribution.
  • Energy savings: PSD control stabilizes mill/crusher performance.
  • Labor & safety: No climbing piles or entering confined spaces for manual dip measurements.

 

Getting Started: A Short Checklist

  • Define required metrics (volume only vs. volume + PSD).
  • Map ranges, FOV, and occlusions; pick sensor mounts.
  • Decide edge compute footprint (CPU vs. GPU) and protocols to SCADA.
  • Establish density & PSD calibration plan.
  • Pilot on a single conveyor/bin; validate against scales/sieves; then scale.

     

Want a turnkey path?

We can deliver LiDAR + embedded compute bundles preloaded with volume, mass, and PSD analytics—plus industrial I/O for drop-in integration.

Request more information

The post Measuring What Matters Using LiDAR for Weight, Volume, and Particle Size in Agriculture, Mining, and Material Handling appeared first on CRATUS Technology.

]]> https://www.cratustech.com/measuring-what-matters-using-lidar-for-weight-volume-and-particle-size-in-agriculture-mining-and-material-handling/feed/ 0 Benefits of Using Lidar in Industrial Automation https://www.cratustech.com/benefits-of-using-lidar-in-industrial-automation/ https://www.cratustech.com/benefits-of-using-lidar-in-industrial-automation/#respond Wed, 18 Feb 2026 19:15:40 +0000 https://www.cratustech.com/?p=12753 How Lidar is Powering the Next Generation of Industrial Automation What is Lidar and Why It’s a Game-Changer for Industry Lidar (Light Detection and Ranging) is no longer just for autonomous vehicles — it’s rapidly becoming a core sensing technology in modern industrial environments. By emitting laser pulses and analyzing their reflections, Lidar creates precise, […]

The post Benefits of Using Lidar in Industrial Automation appeared first on CRATUS Technology.

]]>

How Lidar is Powering the Next Generation of Industrial Automation

What is Lidar and Why It’s a Game-Changer for Industry

Lidar (Light Detection and Ranging) is no longer just for autonomous vehicles — it’s rapidly becoming a core sensing technology in modern industrial environments. By emitting laser pulses and analyzing their reflections, Lidar creates precise, real-time 3D maps of complex factory floors, warehouses, and workcells.

For industries dealing with automated material handling, safety zones, robotic navigation, and dynamic asset tracking, Lidar offers unmatched reliability — even in low-light, dust-prone, or high-traffic environments where other sensors fail.

Lidar 3D object detection with edge computing processing on NVIDIA Jetson for real-time industrial applications
Lidar-powered AGV and AMR navigation system for warehouse robotics and automated logistics

Industrial Use Cases Where Lidar Excels

  1. AGV/AMR Navigation and Obstacle Avoidance

Automated Guided Vehicles (AGVs) and Autonomous Mobile Robots (AMRs) depend on real-time perception. Lidar enables these machines to move safely, detect obstacles instantly, and reroute without manual input.

  1. Dynamic Safety Zones

Fixed safety barriers are inefficient in flexible production lines. Lidar enables dynamic geofencing that adapts in real-time based on human presence, robot activity, or process changes.

  1. Object Detection for Pick-and-Place Robots

With high-resolution 3D point clouds, Lidar provides depth perception and shape recognition for precision picking, bin picking, and automated assembly tasks.

  1. Smart Inventory Management

Lidar can scan shelf height, object size, and pallet alignment with millimeter precision — reducing errors in inventory logging and enabling real-time spatial awareness in warehouses.

  1. Conveyor Belt Monitoring and Volume Measurement

For bulk materials, Lidar can measure flow rates, detect jams, and ensure even loading — all without physical contact or moving parts.

Lidar technology benefits for industrial automation with real-time 3D sensing and precise measurement

Why Pairing Lidar with Edge Compute Makes Sense in Industry

Industrial environments demand real-time decision-making. When Lidar is paired with onboard GPU (e.g., NVIDIA Jetson) or embedded CPU modules, the system can run:

  • Real-time obstacle classification
  • Intrusion detection in safety zones
  • SLAM (Simultaneous Localization and Mapping)
  • Object tracking and segmentation in warehouses

This eliminates the latency of cloud processing and avoids the downtime risk of connectivity loss.

 

Learn More

Bundle Pricing: Lidar + Compute for Industrial Readiness

To help integrators, OEMs, and operations managers deploy faster, we offer pre-integrated Lidar + compute bundles optimized for industrial automation. Each bundle includes:

  • A rugged Lidar sensor (short- or mid-range, as needed)
  • An embedded processing unit (GPU or CPU)
  • SDKs for ROS2, safety field definitions, or motion control
  • Optional mounting and cable kits
  • Support for Modbus, EtherCAT, or CANbus where applicable

You can save time and reduce risk by selecting a bundle that’s already tested and ready to deploy.

Infographic showing how LiDAR powers next generation industrial automation with use cases including AGV navigation, dynamic safety zones, object detection for robots, and smart inventory management

What to Look for in an Industrial Lidar System

Before choosing your Lidar system, ask:

  • What is the required detection range in meters?
  • Is the environment dusty, dark, or reflective?
  • What speed do nearby robots or objects move at?
  • Do I need multi-zone safety logic?
  • Is compute done at the edge or in the cloud?

We help customers specify systems based on application — from factory automation to smart logistics and beyond.

Final Thoughts

Industrial automation is evolving rapidly, and perception is the foundation of autonomy and flexibility. Lidar is the sensor of choice for applications that demand 3D awareness, robust environmental performance, and low latency.

By bundling your Lidar solution with the right edge compute hardware, you eliminate guesswork, reduce deployment time, and move faster toward operational excellence.

Request a quote for our Lidar + Compute bundles for industrial applications

The post Benefits of Using Lidar in Industrial Automation appeared first on CRATUS Technology.

]]> https://www.cratustech.com/benefits-of-using-lidar-in-industrial-automation/feed/ 0 How Sensor Integrated Intelligent PPEs are Revolutionizing Worker Safety https://www.cratustech.com/ppe-integrated-sensors-for-ehs-worker-safety/ https://www.cratustech.com/ppe-integrated-sensors-for-ehs-worker-safety/#respond Wed, 18 Feb 2026 18:37:24 +0000 https://www.cratustech.com/?p=12711 In the dynamic and often dangerous world of industrial worksites, from bustling construction zones to sprawling railyards, worker safety is the highest priority. For decades, personal protective equipment (PPE) like hard hats and safety vests has served as the first line of defense—a passive shield against physical impact. But what if that shield could become […]

The post How Sensor Integrated Intelligent PPEs are Revolutionizing Worker Safety appeared first on CRATUS Technology.

]]>

In the dynamic and often dangerous world of industrial worksites, from bustling construction zones to sprawling railyards, worker safety is the highest priority. For decades, personal protective equipment (PPE) like hard hats and safety vests has served as the first line of defense—a passive shield against physical impact. But what if that shield could become intelligent? What if it could see, sense, and alert workers to dangers before they even happen?

That future is now. Through the integration of advanced sensors into capes and helmets, we are witnessing the dawn of a new era in proactive safety. This isn’t just about protection; it’s about prediction and prevention.

More Than a Hard Hat: A Hub of Awareness

Imagine a hard hat that does more than protect you from falling objects. The new generation of intelligent PPE, like the conceptual SPOT-M system, transforms the helmet into a personal safety hub. By embedding a suite of miniaturized sensors directly into the gear a worker already wears, we can create a 360-degree awareness bubble.

This “integrated intelligence” monitors three critical areas: the worker’s location, their physical well-being, and the surrounding environment.

PPE location awareness system detecting workers entering danger zones with real-time alerts
Smart helmet with integrated sensors providing real-time safety monitoring on construction site

1.Creating Digital Safe Zones

On a worksite with heavy machinery like mobile cranes, situational awareness is a matter of life and death. Intelligent helmets equipped with transponders can communicate with equipment and a central site system. This creates dynamic “safe zones” around moving vehicles. If a worker steps into a potentially dangerous area, the system doesn’t just alert the crane operator; it sends a direct warning to the worker. A vibration in the hard hat or a distinct audible tone provides an immediate, unmistakable signal to step back, preventing a potential collision.

2.Monitoring the Body’s Warning Signs

The most immediate danger isn’t always external. Heat stress, overexertion, and exposure to toxic elements can incapacitate a worker quickly. Intelligent PPE acts as a personal biometric monitor.

  • Temperature Sensors: Embedded thermometers can track both ambient and body temperature. Before a worker even feels the full effects of heatstroke, the system can send an alert advising them to take a break and hydrate.
  • Gas Detection: For those working in confined spaces or around hazardous materials, miniature gas sensors integrated into the helmet or a collar-mounted cape can detect dangerous particles in the air. If toxic gas or a lack of oxygen is identified, the worker is alerted instantly, long before the hazard becomes critical.

3.Sensing Invisible Environmental Threats

Many workplace dangers are invisible. High noise levels can cause permanent hearing damage over time, while excessive vibration from tools can lead to neurological and circulatory issues.

  • Acoustic Sensors: These can monitor decibel levels in real-time. When noise exceeds safe limits, the worker is prompted to use additional hearing protection. The system can also log noise exposure over a shift, providing valuable data for long-term health initiatives.
  • Accelerometers: By measuring vibration, the system can warn a worker when they are approaching daily exposure limits for operating high-vibration equipment, helping to prevent long-term injuries.
Intelligent PPE with biometric monitoring sensors tracking worker health and safety in industrial environment

A Safer Tomorrow, Today

By combining location-based awareness with personal biometric and environmental monitoring, intelligent PPE provides a comprehensive safety net. This technology empowers individual workers with real-time, actionable information while giving site supervisors a complete overview of team safety. It marks a fundamental shift from reactive incident response to proactive hazard prevention. This isn’t just an upgrade to the hard hat; it’s an upgrade to the entire philosophy of workplace safety.

#WorkerSafety #IntelligentPPE #SafetyTech #ConstructionSafety #IndustrialSafety #WearableTech #FutureOfWork #IoT #SmartHelmet #ProactiveSafety

The post How Sensor Integrated Intelligent PPEs are Revolutionizing Worker Safety appeared first on CRATUS Technology.

]]> https://www.cratustech.com/ppe-integrated-sensors-for-ehs-worker-safety/feed/ 0