Analysis of Calibration Facilities for Acoustic Doppler Current Profilers (ADCPs)

Abstract

Despite technological developments and application advances of Acoustic Doppler Current Profilers (ADCPs), no standard procedure has been adopted or accepted for calibration of ADCPs. Limitations of existing facilities for calibrating ADCPs, the complexity of ADCP instruments, and rapid changes in ADCP technology are some of the reasons why a standard procedure has not been adopted. However, there is increasing realization of the need for effective Quality Assurance (QA) and as part of that the importance of standardized calibration. In this study, the significance of calibration and QA plans for ADCPs is discussed and the calibration facilities for ADCPs at home and abroad are reported. Furthermore, the method for calibrating ADCPs using a towed car and its limitations are discussed. This study contributes to discussions surrounding the establishment of standard procedures for calibrating ADCPs and QA plans, and the construction of calibration facilities in the future.

A spar buoy-mounted ADCP measurement station in the Ligurian Sea: a metrological approach to correct current measures for bias effects and evaluate uncertainties

“…The general characteristics of the instrument are reported in Table I, referring to literature for a more exhaustive description of the technical details and the operating principle underlying the Doppler measurements of current profiles [7,8]: Despite their widespread use, combined with technological developments and application advances, no standard procedure has been adopted or accepted for calibration of ADCP until today [9]. ADCPs are not individually calibrated for velocity, however the transducers are tested at factory to be within specification on the transmitted and received frequencies, which is somehow equivalent to testing the velocity measurements (as declared by the manufacturer [10]).…”