Water Current Meter – IC-TCM-1

The IC-TCM-1 is a new current meter that is ideal for measuring water velocity from inland to the edge of the continental shelf. The simple design and lower cost of the IC-TCM-1 make it feasible to measure current in many locations simultaneously.

The IC-TCM-1 is a new current meter that is ideal for measuring water velocity from inland to the edge of the continental shelf. The simple design and lower cost of the IC-TCM-1 make it feasible to measure current in many locations simultaneously.

The core of the IC-TCM-1 is the MAT-1 Data Logger. The MAT-1 data logger was designed for NOAA and is ideally suited as the “brains” of a tilt current meter.

The IC-TCM-1 is field configurable for either low or high current range my simply adding or removing a calibrated ballast. Housed rugged PVC, with no external sensors, the IC-TCM-1 is easy to deploy and recover. The built-in data logger includes a USB communication interface, a microSD flash memory card, and a long-life lithium battery.

Operation
The IC-TCM-1 measures current using the drag-tilt principle. The logger is buoyant and is anchored to the bottom via a short flexible tether. Moving water tilts the logger in the direction of flow. The IC-TCM-1 contains a 3-axis accelerometer and 3-axis magnetometer for measuring tilt and bearing. The resulting orientation data is converted to current by applying calibration coefficients.

Key Features & Benefits
Water velocity for a fraction of the cost of an acoustic meter
Tilt compensated compass for bearing measurements
Simple, rugged, low maintenance design
Seaweed snag-resistant
Change range in the field without software
Temperature sensor accurate to +/-0.1C
4GB memory card eliminates memory concerns
Lithium battery allows continuous 4Hz sampling for more than 1 year
USB 2.0 with standard cable and drag and drop data file offload

Data
Windows software is used to configure the IC-TCM-1 for deployment and to process data and saved as text file (.csv).

Package Contents
MAT-1 Data Logger
46 cm (18″) current meter housing
Bronze “low-range” ballast washer and bolt
Lithium battery (installed in logger)
4 GB microSD card (installed in data logger)
1 m (3 ft) USB A to micro-B Cable
Spare O-ring (pre-lubricated)
20 cm (8″) lanyard