Min Reqs and Specs.pdf

Minimum Requirements and Specifications

Non-contact discharge and water level sensor RQ-30 ADMS

Background:

In our projects, we require to estimate all the water balance fluxes at various scales, from plot to watershed scale. Accurate estimation of flow using well-tested conventional approaches such as the current meter and other generally accepted practices are usually within 5% of the actual value. The error and deviation from the true values are uncommon. The non-contact discharge and water level sensor RQ-30 ADMS allows water velocity measurement at high accuracy and precision. The radar technology uses the Doppler frequency shift method to determine the water surface flow velocity. The non-contact radar-based measurement for streamflow and water level removes the existing challenges of direct measurement of flow with a current meter or any other instrument that must- be placed in the water, which could introduce high measurement errors and safety hazards. For a known cross-section, the non-contact radar-based water level and discharge sensors provide accurate water flow dynamics. The accurate and high frequency measurement will have a substantial effect on the accuracy of water balance calculations.

We need an instrument that is:

• Capable of providing high-quality, high-resolution velocity and water level measurement of environmental water. Environmental water is a term that describes natural water systems, rivers, and gravity flow systems of open cannel networks.

• Always provide flow observations without jeopardizing the safety of technicians and site managers.

• Robust and fully automated recording with sufficient temporary data storage capability and the ability to transmit data remotely.

Operational Specifications:

1. The system must be operable with minimum maintenance requirements and no interference with flowing water.

2. The system must be able to measure, compute the water level and velocity, store the data, and transmit the report at regular intervals for archiving.

3. The system must be able to perform duty with the minimum error possible.

4. The system needs to be able to export raw data in a commonly used file format for analysis and evaluations.

5. The system must be operated under extreme weather conditions in California.

6. The system must have the necessary software for data manipulation and accessories for maximum operability and safety.

Instrument Specifications:

7. Must be able to measure the velocity of flow from a distance of 10 m – 15 m

8. The instrument must be able to operate and function under -40 60 oC (-40 – 140 oF) temperature.

9. The system must have a 9 - 28 VDC power supply, Reverse voltage protection, overvoltage protection, and a battery capacity of 24 Ah/12 V; 20-W solar panel stand-by power unit.

10. The system must include RS-485 ASCII / Modbus RTU SDI-12 output features.

11. The system must include a robust and secure housing unit to protect the equipment from vandalism.

12. The system must include 4 MB internal flash memory (equivalent to approx. 500'000 measurement values) for data storage.

13. The system must include 2G, 3G (optionally 4G), 3 FTP/HTTP servers, IP call, fixed IP, time-synchronization via NTP, e-Mail, and SMS messages for data logging and communication.

14. The instrument must be able to detect velocity ranges of 0.08-16 m/sec with the accuracy of +/-

0.01 m/sec.

15. The equipment must be able to measure velocity at high resolution up to 1 mm/sec.