A Smarter Sensor - A Radar that learns
With the ability to accurately measure both velocity and level and compute flow in real time, Non-Contact Radar is becoming a game-changer for water authorities around the world.
Mounted safely high above the water away from potentially damaging debris and fouling, the RQ-30 is a highly effective tool in the hands of the the water professional, enabling velocity and discharge measurements to be obtained at sites previously thought too challenging or dangerous
The Sommer RQ-30 incorporates both a Radar Level Sensor and a Radar Velocity Sensor in one compact enclosure. These two radar sensors simultaneously and continuously measure water level and velocity. Using this continuous data plus cross-section information stored in the RQ-30, the RQ-30 is able to compute and output Discharge Data in real time and from the moment it is activated.
With the advanced ability to provide discharge data from the moment it is deployed, the RQ-30 begins to gather data at an unprecedented rate not only providing accurate real-time level, velocity and discharge data, but laying the foundation for its advanced ‘Machine Learning’ feature to kick in.
This ability to continuously measure level and velocity AND compute flow in real time, fires up the advanced pattern recognition feature of the RQ-30, accelerating the building of a highly reliable internal rating curve.
Data in Real Time
The availability of real-time discharge data has become increasingly important to water authorities who require detailed data quickly for optimal water management strategies. The conventional method is the development of a relation called a “stage-discharge rating” by taking periodic measurements of the discharge using mechanical current meters or acoustic doppler current profilers (ADCP) for a range of stages. Complex flow conditions may negate stable stage-discharge ratings and make the use of conventional methods impractical or impossible. These conditions include flow reversals, backwater effects and hysteresis effects.
At low flow rates wind can create surface waves by accelerating or decelerating the water surface that can impact the accuracy of velocity a nd discharge measurements. This is especially so with wide, deep, slow moving rivers. Deep channels with a calm, glassy surface tend to pick up wind effects easily.
To compensate for this and other environmental influences, the RQ-30 Radar incorporates an ‘Advanced Machine Learning’ feature that continuously builds an internal relationship between Level and Velocity. The more often a velocity or velocities are measured at a specific water level, the stronger the stage/discharge relationship for that specific level becomes.
The RQ-30 continues to measure and record the relationship between level and velocity and thus, the more often a value is “Learned”, the stronger and more accurate the learning becomes. This gives the RQ-30 the amazing ability to eliminate wind and other environmental effects and provide accurate flow data even in challenging applications.
With over 2000 radars now in operation in more than 20 countries, Sommer Messtechnik have refined and perfected Non-Contact Discharge measurement technology and bring an unmatched level of innovation and expertise to this field.