SmartBob Monitor

Manufactured by BinMaster & Distributed by Wm. Neundorfer & Co.

The proven workhorse for bin, silo, and tank inventory level insight—powders, solids, liquids, and slurries.

BinMaster’s authorized SmartBob II distributor for the Great Lakes region —
65 years specifying the right probe, cable, and configuration for your application.

WNC - SmartBob

Get an application-specific recommendation

Tell us about your vessel. Wm. Neundorfer & Co. will spec the right SmartBob — probe, cable, mounting, and software — for your material, environment, and process.

or call (440) 350-7460

Trusted across the Great Lakes region since 1959

Local Inventory
stocked in Painesville, OH

65 Years of
Bulk Material Handling Expertise

Serving the Great Lakes Region
OH, PA, WV, NY

Key Specs

Networked SmartBob system

Up to 255 bins

Measuring Range

Up to 150 ft

Accuracy

± 0.25%

Why the SmartBob is the standard in Great Lakes grain, cement, plastics, and other facilities

SmartBob Multi-Bob System

Manage 255 bins from one platform

Network SmartBobs across silos, day tanks, and outdoor storage; view everything from a single PC, phone, or tablet via BinMaster's Binventory or BinCloud inventory management software.

Built to outlast dust, humidity, and condensation

Two-compartment design isolates the electronics from the cable and pulley. A wiper cleans the cable on every retraction, and SureDrop™ keeps the probe from sticking. Many SmartBobs in Great Lakes facilities have run for 20+ years on the original head.

One sensor, many materials

Free-flowing grains, fine powders, plastic pellets, brine, slurries, sawdust, fly ash — change the probe and cable to fit the material. SmartBob doesn't care about dielectric constant, dust loading, or steam.

Lower cost per measurement point than radar

When you need to track inventory across a yard of silos rather than control a single process, SmartBob delivers reliable level readings at a fraction of the cost of putting radar on every vessel.

SmartBob II Models

Six SmartBob variants, all built on the same proven two-compartment platform. They differ in how level data is delivered, what the probe is measuring, and how the head is mounted. Send us the application, and we'll spec it for you.

Model Highlight Best at
SBR II The core SmartBob. Network up to 255 SBR II units back to a PC running Binventory or BinCloud over RS-485. Multi-bin inventory across many vessels at lower cost per point
SBR II AO Analog output model  that adds a built-in 4–20 mA analog output. PLC/HMI integration without separate inventory software
SBR II SS Submersed Solids model measures solids that have settled below a liquid. Solids submerged below a liquid (brine tanks, chlor-alkali, water treatment). Direct replacement for sight tubes and manual dipping.
SBR II HT High-temperature model built for process temperatures from 240°F to 500°F. Hot materials — fly ash, hot cement, kiln feedstock, and heated molasses
SBR II MB MultiBob model for large-diameter vessels where one measurement point isn't enough. Use 2 to 32 SmartBobs on a single bin. Wide-diameter silos where one reading misrepresents the vessel (2–32 units per bin)
SBR II HM Horizontal / Side-Mount model for vessels where top mounting is not possible. Retrofits and vessels with no top access (conical roofs, dust hoods)

Still narrowing it down?

Tell us your vessel and material—we'll spec the right model for your application.

Configure your SmartBob to your application

SmartBobs are utilized across a wide range of applications, each with its own unique materials and environments. To ensure optimal performance no matter where it's being deployed, each SmartBob probe, cable, data delivery, and mounts are configurable to meet your application's requirements. Not sure which configuration will work best for you? Tell us about your application, and we'll spec the right mount for you.

SmartBob Probes
SmartBob Mounts
SmartBob Cables
SmartBob Software and Data Delivery

 

Type Model / Construction Best at
Heavy Spike B1 - Stainless-steel
B2 - 416 Stainless-steel
B14 - Teflon® Coated		 Solids ≥20 lb/ft³ bulk density
Glass Spike B11 - Glass spike filled with sand Eliminates risk of metal contamination
6" Sphere B9 - Stainless-steel sphere
B13 - Teflon® Coated		 Liquids, slurries, light powders
6" Inverted Cone B4 - Stainless-steel hollow cone
B13 - Teflon® Coated		 Liquids & very light solids (≥3 lb/ft³)
Plastic Bottle 32oz B5 - Bottle filled with food-grade paraffin wax
B6 - Empty bottle
B12 - Bottle filled with wax and magnetic stainless-steel balls		 “Digestible” design passes through rotary valves or screw conveyors
4" Inverted Cone  B3 - Stainless-steel weighted hollow cone Light solids & powders (≥8 lb/ft³)

Type Best at
Nylon-jacketed Up to 250°F. The default for ambient and warm bulk solids.
Teflon-jacketed Up to 500°F. For high-temp applications, sticky materials, and aggressive chemistry.
Bare stainless-steel Up to 1,000°F. For extreme temperatures and submersed-solids applications.
FDA-approved, Nylon-jacketed For food and pharmaceutical processing where the cable contacts product.

SmartBob mounts to the top of a vessel on a standard 3" NPT connection.

Powder-coated carbon steel mounting plates are available in 0°, 5°, 10°, 15°, 20°, 30°, 35°, and 40° angles to match flat or sloped silo roofs.

For side-entry installations where top mounting isn't possible, use the SBR II HM with a custom 12–36" rigid horizontal extension.

 

Type Best at
BinCloud® Cloud-hosted SaaS. View inventory from any phone, tablet, or PC. Multi-site rollups, automated text/email alerts. The right answer if you have facilities in more than one location or want vendor-managed inventory.
Binventory® 2.0 On-premise. Runs as a web server on your local network — full local control of the data. Ships pre-installed on a dedicated controller. The right answer if IT policy keeps data off the cloud.
SmartBob AO + PLC 4–20 mA analog output direct to your control system. No separate inventory PC. The right answer when SmartBob data needs to live alongside flow, weight, and process variables in the existing HMI.
C-100 Console Push-button walk-up display. Shows distance, height, percent full, and estimated volume. Stores last reading for up to 120 vessels. The right answer for outdoor yards where a driver or operator needs a number without booting up software.

Not sure which mount fits your vessel?

Tell us your vessel type, roof angle, and existing fitting size—we'll spec the hardware for your application.

Industries where 80 GHz radar works

Serving industrial facilities across Ohio, Pennsylvania, West Virginia, and Western New York since 1959. Find your application below — or tell us about your vessel and we'll spec the right model.

Grain and Feed

Corn, soybean meal, wheat, DDGs, and ground feed in elevators, feed mills, and ethanol plants. SmartBob is the inventory standard — daisy-chained across 20–100 bins, viewed from the mill office.

Common fit:
SBR II + heavy spike probe + nylon-jacketed cable

Cement and Aggregate

Cement, fly ash, slag, lime, and aggregate in batch plants, ready-mix yards, and aggregate storage. Multi-bin inventory tracked across the yard from a single PC.

Common fit:
SBR II or SBR II MB (multi-point) for wide silos + heavy spike probe + Teflon cable for hot ash

Plastics and Resins

Virgin and regrind resin pellets, masterbatch, and ground polymer in day tanks and railcar unloading silos. ResinView software gives compounders a real-time picture of what's available.

Common fit:
SBR II + heavy spike probe (B1) + nylon-jacketed cable; ResinView in BinCloud

Power Generation

Coal, fly ash, limestone for FGD, and bottom ash storage. Operations crews use SmartBob for daily inventory and to schedule rail and truck deliveries.

Common fit:
SBR II HT for hot fly ash + Teflon or bare stainless cable; SBR II + spike probe for coal

Mining and Minerals

Aggregate, salt, lime, fertilizer, and frac sand in storage silos and load-out bins. Glass spike probe used where metal contamination of the product is not acceptable.

Common fit:
SBR II + glass spike (B11) for frac sand; SBR II + heavy spike for aggregate

Bioenergy and Wood

Wood pellets, sawdust, bark, and biomass at pellet plants, lumber operations, and biomass-fueled power facilities. Light-density materials handled with inverted cone probes.

Common fit:
SBR II + 6" inverted cone (B4) for sawdust; heavy spike for densified pellets

Brine and Slurry Tanks

Salt submerged in brine at chlor-alkali plants, water treatment, and food processors. SmartBob Submersed Solids drops through the liquid to measure the solid bed below — a direct replacement for sight tubes and manual dipping.

Common fit:
SBR II SS + bare stainless cable

Food and Pharmaceutical

Sugar, flour, starch, milk powder, and pharmaceutical ingredients where product contact is regulated. FDA-approved cable and digestible probes pass safely through rotary valves and screw conveyors.

Common fit:
SBR II + plastic bottle probe (wax-filled) + FDA-approved nylon cable

Don't see your exact industry?

Tell us your vessel and material—we'll spec the right model for your application.

FAQ

Use SmartBob when you need inventory management across many vessels at a lower cost per measurement point, when the material is dusty or condensing enough to fool an electronic sensor, or when you want a proven, low-maintenance workhorse that's been running in Great Lakes facilities for 20+ years. Use non-contact radar when you need continuous real-time measurement for process control, when there's no headroom for a cable drop, or when the application calls for no moving parts and no contact with the material. We sell both—send us the application, and we'll give you the honest answer, not the expensive one.

Yes—the standard SBR II carries Class II, Groups E, F, and G hazardous location approvals, which cover most combustible-dust environments (grain dust, coal dust, flour, sugar, and plastic powders). Confirm your specific classification requirements, and we'll help select the correct unit.

Up to 255 sensors on a single Binventory or BinCloud system. They communicate over RS-485 and can be daisy-chained across multiple buildings on a site, or split across multiple sites in BinCloud.

Yes, the SBR II AO model. It includes a built-in 4–20 mA analog output and two configurable relays for high/low alarms or error indication. No separate inventory PC required. Data shows up in your existing HMI alongside flow, weight, and process variables.

Yes. Application engineering visits across Ohio, Pennsylvania, West Virginia, and Western New York are at no charge. For a typical visit, we'll look at the vessel geometry, the material handling around it, the mounting options, and the wiring path back to the office, and you'll have a written recommendation in your inbox within a few days.

In most cases, yes. The older SBR II heads on your roof are still doing their job. Upgrading typically means replacing the on-premise software with BinCloud (cloud subscription) or Binventory 2.0 (on-prem), and in some cases swapping in a current-generation controller or gateway. Tell us what's installed, and we'll put together an upgrade path that keeps the heads you have.

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