System and method for automatically sensing a position of a packing loading assembly with a position sensor

A method of monitoring and predicting maintenance requirements for a packing loading assembly having a plurality of packing elements and a movable component configured to apply compression to the plurality of packing elements, the method comprising:

• coupling a sensor assembly to the packing loading assembly, wherein the sensor assembly includes a position sensor configured to measure a position of the movable component relative to a stationary reference;
• generating sensor data with the position sensor over time, the sensor data being indicative of progressive movement of the movable component;
• transmitting the sensor data to an electronic device;
• processing the sensor data with the electronic device to determine a current compression state of the packing elements and a remaining compression capacity;
• analyzing historical sensor data with a machine learning model model to estimate a remaining useful life of the packing elements;
• and
• generating a maintenance output indicating at least one of:
• the current compression state, the remaining compression capacity, and the estimated remaining useful life.

A sensor assembly for monitoring a packing loading assembly having packing elements and a loading component movable between a preloaded position and a loaded position to apply compression to the packing elements, the sensor assembly comprising:

• a first main housing component coupled to the loading component and configured to move with the loading component;
• a second main housing component coupled to a stationary reference and configured to remain stationary relative to the loading component, wherein the first main housing component and the second main housing component are configured for telescoping movement relative to each other along an axial direction;
• a position sensor mounted within the second housing component and configured to measure a distance to a target surface associated with the first housing component;
• and
• a securing assembly configured to attach the first housing component to the loading component and to attach the second housing component to the stationary reference.