What is Data Logging?

Data logging, as its name implies, refers to an ongoing process of collecting and storing data over time, with very limited real-time monitoring capabilities, such as measuring voltage or current in smaller, more immediate applications.

Industrial data loggers are typically used for logging all sorts of data types, including machine monitoring, environmental conditions, and other data types. Their primary purpose is to capture a detailed record of events, conditions, or operations at incremental periods and store the data for subsequent analysis. Data capture alone is done through various sensors and input methods.

For example, the sensors will measure physical properties such as pressure, light, temperature, etc., and the data logger’s software will log these events and other activities within the system. Once the data is captured, it’s stored in a log file or internal memory storage.

Each piece of logged data usually includes a timestamp that denotes when an error occurred, allowing professionals to understand the sequence of events or patterns that have appeared over time. Some data loggers automatically connect to their data acquisition centers and upload the acquired data for storage.

Using industrial data loggers in your application has immense benefits. These devices are regularly used in various fields and applications, ranging from scientific research to industrial operations.

Below is a breakdown of some of the most important benefits of data loggers:

Industrial data loggers (DAQs) are incredibly versatile devices that have found their way into numerous applications across many fields and industries including applications of strain measurement. In this section, we’ll discuss some of the most common applications of industrial data loggers.

Data loggers are extensively used by the manufacturing and automotive industries for various purposes. For example, they’re used by the automotive industry to check the strength and durability testing of the vehicle’s body/chassis.

Other industries rely on DAQs as well; for example, these devices are regularly used for electronic PCB evaluations, temperature data collection along with strain gauge measurements allow for how the shape changes according to temperature.

In the past, industrial data loggers were typically designed and produced as dedicated standalone data collection devices that would measure one of perhaps several different physical properties. Unfortunately, these devices were more akin to modern data acquisition systems—they’re large, very difficult to use, and not practical for on-the-go applications.

Fortunately, the miniaturization of modern electronics made these devices more compact and much more portable. Many modern industrial data loggers feature a modular design, making them practical and useful as the modular design eliminates the risk of overexertion by simply carrying the device.

Modern industrial data loggers consist of a main computing unit, such as KEYENCE’s NR-X100W multi-input data logger, and a modular measurement unit, which attaches to the central unit and allows measurements of a specific physical property.

KEYENCE provides comprehensive solutions for data acquisition and data recording, as well as several different processing units with a variety of different channels — up to 576 channels, depending on the peripheral processing units used.