Cold chain monitoring is crucial for product quality in sensitive supply chains. The Sensing Puck answers the question of how companies can seamlessly record temperature, humidity and position during goods transfers along the transport chain.
The puck-shaped IoT device logs events in real time and reliably documents limit value exceedances. This reduces complaints and process costs, while making quality control faster and more reliable.
In many supply chains, e.g., in the chemical industry, there is a lack of consistently climate-controlled transport. Standard trucks, pallets, and trolleys with thermal covers dominate everyday life. Responsibilities change, documentation breaks down, and deviations often go undetected. Companies need precise temperature monitoring during transport and clear documentation at the point of transfer. The Sensing Puck addresses these gaps with a robust, user-friendly IoT device for transparency at the pallet and shipment level.
The Sensing Puck aims to make compliance with a temperature window verifiable across all process steps – from packaging to acceptance by the recipient. The project creates continuous, event-based tracking: it records temperature and humidity in the load carrier, detects locations, logs goods transfers, and reports deviations immediately. This enables those responsible to ensure quality and liability, reduce testing efforts, and make informed decisions in the event of complaints.
The system adapts to different loading aids, can be activated without buttons by double-tapping, and provides clear visualizations via an LED matrix. Data communication uses the globally broadcast NarrowBand-IoT and LTE Cat-M1 mobile networks to balance range and energy efficiency. The benefits range from higher delivery reliability and less waste to greater sustainability by avoiding spoilage and unnecessary returns.
| Project title | Sensing Puck |
|---|---|
| Funding volume | Subproject of the major project Silicon Economy |
| Funding | Federal Ministry of Digital and Transport |
| Cooperation partners | Rhenus Logistics |
| Project managemenT | Fraunhofer Institute for Material Flow and Logistics IML |
"We bring pallet data live into the world—turning assumptions into verifiable quality."
Dr. Sebastian Wibbeling, Head of Health Care Logistics
The Sensing Puck combines sensor technology, connectivity, and ease of use in a compact, robust form factor. The device works as a wireless temperature data logger, records events, and provides location information for a seamless chain of responsibility. Activation and deactivation are contactless via double-tap, with status and temperature displayed on the LED matrix.
This creates scalable monitoring directly on the loading equipment, which can be quickly integrated into existing processes. The result: a reliable database for decision-making and fewer disruptions between the company, service providers, and recipients.
The Sensing Puck is part of the Silicon Economy's open source initiative. With the release of hardware and software in the Open Logistics Foundation repository, companies are provided with a flexible platform for adapting to their specific requirements. This promotes innovation and improves standards in cold chain monitoring and beyond.
A chemical company handed over products with a target range of 15–25 °C to a logistics service provider. The usual piece goods and thermal units were supplemented with the Sensing Puck. The modular housing allowed it to be mounted on various loading aids. The LED matrix displays the ID and current temperature, events such as warnings, alarms, and errors, and signals limit value exceedances. The double-tap replaces buttons and prevents operating errors. Continuous measurements and event logs make deviations immediately visible and speed up quality control during acceptance.
Complaints could be initiated earlier and based on facts before the affected goods entered subsequent processes. This reduced administrative and operational costs as well as complaint costs and increased delivery reliability – a win for everyone involved in the logistics chain.
Fraunhofer Institute for Material Flow and Logistics IML