Induskey INK290 Self-cleaning Turbidity Sensor

1. Product Overview

The INK290 is a high-precision industrial online turbidity sensor engineered for continuous, long-term monitoring of water turbidity in harsh process environments. Built in full compliance with ISO 7027 international standards, it leverages 90° nephelometric light scattering technology paired with custom sapphire optical components to deliver reliable, repeatable measurements with minimal ambient light interference.

Its core differentiator is an integrated automatic self-cleaning brush system, which actively mitigates biofouling, contamination, and bubble interference on optical surfaces, drastically reducing manual maintenance intervals and extending service life. Housed in a corrosion-resistant titanium shell with IP68 ingress protection, the sensor supports RS485 MODBUS digital communication, comes factory pre-calibrated for plug-and-play deployment, and offers flexible measurement ranges (0-1000NTU / 0-4000NTU) to meet diverse industrial water monitoring requirements.
2. Sensing Technology & Self-Cleaning System

2.1 Sensing Technology

The sensor operates on the 90° light scattering (nephelometric) principle, the global gold standard for turbidity measurement per ISO 7027:

• A calibrated near-infrared light source emits a stable beam into the water sample.

• Suspended particles in the water scatter the incident light at a 90° angle relative to the source.

• A high-sensitivity photodetector captures the scattered light, whose intensity is directly proportional to the water’s turbidity (measured in NTU).

• Custom sapphire optical windows and specialized filters eliminate ambient light and chromaticity interference, ensuring measurement stability even in variable process conditions.

2.2 Self-Cleaning System

The integrated automated cleaning brush is a critical design feature for industrial reliability:

• Function: Periodically wipes the optical window surface to remove microbial attachment, sediment fouling, and trapped bubbles, eliminating measurement drift caused by contamination.

• Benefit: Reduces manual maintenance frequency significantly compared to traditional non-cleaning sensors, extending calibration intervals and minimizing process downtime.

• Power Efficiency: Operates at 0.6W during wiping cycles and 0.2W in standby, ensuring low power consumption for continuous deployment.
3. Key Features & Competitive Advantages

3.1 Core Key Features

• ISO 7027 Compliance: Adopts the 90° scattering method fully aligned with international turbidity measurement standards, ensuring traceable, globally recognized measurement accuracy.

• Integrated Self-Cleaning System: Equipped with an automated cleaning brush that prevents biofouling and contamination on optical surfaces, sustaining long-term measurement accuracy and reducing manual maintenance.

• Premium Sapphire Optical Components: Features custom-designed sapphire optical windows and specialized filters, delivering extreme resistance to ambient light and chromaticity interference for stable measurements.

• Digital Industrial Communication: Supports RS485 output with standard MODBUS protocol, enabling seamless integration with industrial PLC, SCADA and process monitoring systems.

• Factory Pre-Calibration: Delivered with pre-set zero, one-point or two-point calibration parameters, enabling direct plug-and-play installation without complex on-site calibration.

• IP68 Submersible Industrial Design: Fully sealed titanium housing with IP68 ingress protection, supporting reliable continuous submersion in harsh industrial water environments.

• Flexible Measurement Range Options: Offers 0-1000NTU and 0-4000NTU measurement ranges, covering applications from low-turbidity drinking water to high-turbidity industrial wastewater.

• Customizable Installation & Connectivity: Standard NPT3/4 threaded process connection, with a default 10m cable that can be customized to fit diverse deployment scenarios.

• Low Power Consumption: Operates at 0.2W (non-wiping) / 0.6W (wiping) with 12-24V DC power input, supporting energy-efficient industrial monitoring systems.

• Compact Form Factor: Miniature size (Φ36mm×198.2mm) minimizes installation footprint while reducing ambient light interference for superior repeatability and stability.

3.2 Competitive Advantages

1. Significantly Lower Maintenance Cost: The built-in self-cleaning system eliminates frequent manual cleaning and calibration, drastically reducing operational expenses for long-term monitoring projects.

2. Superior Interference Resistance: Sapphire optical windows and custom filters outperform traditional glass-window sensors in high-ambient-light and colored water environments, ensuring consistent accuracy.

3. Industrial-Grade Durability & Corrosion Resistance: Titanium housing and IP68 rating ensure long-term reliability in chemically aggressive wastewater, seawater and industrial process water.

4. Rapid Plug-and-Play Deployment: Factory pre-calibration eliminates on-site calibration complexity, cutting installation time and labor costs significantly.

5. Open Protocol Compatibility: Standard MODBUS RTU support enables easy integration with existing industrial control systems, with no requirement for proprietary hardware.
4. Technical Specifications


5. Applications

The INK290 is designed for industrial water quality monitoring across a wide range of verticals:

1. Municipal Water & Wastewater Treatment: Continuous monitoring of drinking water, activated sludge processes, and effluent discharge compliance.

2. Industrial Wastewater Treatment: Turbidity measurement in chemical, pharmaceutical, and manufacturing wastewater streams for process control and discharge monitoring.

3. Power Plant Water Monitoring: Cooling water, boiler feed water, and circulating water turbidity monitoring to prevent scaling and corrosion.

4. Food & Beverage Processing: Process water and product quality monitoring in beverage, dairy, and food production lines.

5. Aquaculture & Fisheries: Water quality monitoring in fish farms, hatcheries, and aquaculture systems to maintain optimal living conditions.

6. Desalination & Water Reuse: Turbidity measurement in reverse osmosis (RO) pre-treatment and recycled water systems.

7. Environmental Water Monitoring: In-situ monitoring of rivers, lakes, and reservoirs for environmental compliance and water quality assessment.

8. Pulp & Paper Industry: Process water and effluent turbidity monitoring in paper manufacturing to control discharge and process efficiency.