Verifying the performance of rotating spray device has long been an issue in the tank cleaning industry. Currently, there are two technologies in use, pressure sensor and radar sensors based.

The pressure system utilizes a pressure switch that must penetrate through the vessel wall directly over the cleaning device. Each time the pressure sensor is hit by the rotating spray jet, the switch is activated. The pressure switch is connected to an electronic package that detects when the switch is activated. Repeated activations during the course of the cleaning process indicate that the cleaning device is functioning normally. The Rotacheck system is a stand-alone single node device that can only monitor a single cleaning device.

The radar system monitor's the radar returns from level detection system during the tank cleaning process. As the spray passes the radar antenna the system provides an indication of the rotational activity of the cleaning device. The SAAB system is currently only found in marine applications and, like the pressure system, requires a penetration into the tank.

The Cip-Check acoustic approach uses a similar principle as employed with the pressure switch, except that the pressure switch now is an audio sensor. Each time the spray passes by the sensor it triggers a spike. However, by having access to a complete time series of how the spray is approaching and passing by the sensor, additonal information can be extracted from the signal giving a far more detailed insight. How resistant is CipCheck to noise? Thus far unbeaten. We have not yet encountered a functional spray head or jet head, which we could not track.

Table below compares the three technologies.

Technology	Pressure Switch	Radar	Sound
Advantage	Simple Easy to maintain	Works in noisy environments	Excellent detection capabilities Non intrusive Low cost Information rich Continuous monitoring
Disadvantage	Limited detection capabilities Limited information Intermittent monitoring Intrusive	Limited detection capabilities Intrusive High cost	Sensor placement someties requires a trained person.

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