Artificial intelligence to support industrial measuring and research equipment

In the artificial intelligence accelerator of the AI-TIE project, solutions have been developed for many different business challenges. Sintrol Oy, which operates globally but is based in Finland, participated in the accelerated workshop to utilize artificial intelligence in industrial measuring and research equipment.

Sintrol Oy was founded in 1975. The company designs, manufactures, markets, sells and maintains measurement, analysis and testing solutions. Sintrol employs around 50 people, and its turnover is approximately EUR 15 million. Sintrol’s customers are industrial and engineering companies. The company provides products for partners as well as does its own product development, especially with regard to measuring dust and particle concentrations. (Sintrol Oy s.a.)

Developing a business-oriented artificial intelligence solution

Sintrol participated in the clean industry artificial intelligence accelerator of the AI-TIE project (San Miguel & Ruuti 8 February 2022) organized at the turn of the year 2021-2022, within the framework of which the company began to consider ways to utilize artificial intelligence as part of the development of its business and services. During the artificial intelligence accelerator, the company has also received sparring to support its deliberations.

Along with familiarizing themselves with the topic, the company went through a preliminary product development process, where they started by brainstorming possible artificial intelligence application targets and the types of artificial intelligence and data used in them. The company’s representatives recognised five potential targets of artificial intelligence with the possibility to develop either the company’s own sales and marketing or to develop new services concerning company’s products.

After this, the company’s representatives developed quick prototypes based on the previous ideas and drew them on paper. These could help to perceive what could the possible artificial intelligence solution’s outcome be. In the next stage, the company thought over the data already in use to consider the possibilities and challenges there could be from a data perspective. With this estimation, the company recognised that the greatest business potential would not necessarily be in developing own sales and marketing but in developing new products for the company.

Artificial intelligence helps to improve the image quality of furnace cameras

One of the complete solutions offered by Sintrol is related to the process management of soda and power boilers, as part of which the company offers furnace cameras that monitor the combustion in the boilers. Due to the high temperatures used in combustion, it is possible to improve the image quality of furnace cameras by eliminating interference to support better observations and analyzes. Here, the use of video-enhancing artificial intelligence could be beneficial, and it is a target for which artificial intelligence is currently being researched by the company.

Sintrol Oy is one of the companies that has gotten so far in its development work during the accelerated period that it participates in the ongoing AI Design Sprint, where the companies together with their partner companies that support the development of artificial intelligence investigate the feasibility of solutions and also receive additional sparring in the context of the AI-TIE project to consider key questions.

According to Sintrol Oy’s experts involved in the accelerator of the AI-TIE project, participation has opened opportunities for the company and related business potential. If the company does not get far enough to achieve Proof-of-Concept during the Al Design Sprint participation has been helpful anyway. Within the framework of the participation, it has been possible to outline things that the company would not have been able to do with its own resources. If the development work does not yet result in commercial success, the company’s understanding of artificial intelligence has in any case increased and creates a basis for making the future.

Translated from the Finnish by Sari Benford and Petteri Saloranta.