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Testing transducer
- Thread starter Brian
- Start date
Perhaps go boating and see how it performs? Tough to adequately test on Dryland though I believe the tranducer mfgrs. have some very expensive equipment to do that. Best to not energize the F/F out of water and it really won't give meaningful results that way anyway.
Generatlly, if it is pinging, it is working. That said, there could be issues with what is connected to. Some manufactures have been having issues with communication between black box signal processors and displays (MFDs), some have had issues with transducers with higher power and sensetivity.
If you were in Florida, the company that I work for has an Airmar transducer tester.
If you were in Florida, the company that I work for has an Airmar transducer tester.
- Joined
- Mar 4, 2001
- RO Number
- 3641
- Messages
- 765
Yes, when you power it up you should hear the fairly loud pinging/ticking at a frequency of 2 to 8 clicks per second.
- Joined
- Aug 10, 2002
- RO Number
- 9715
- Messages
- 42
If you have a Raymarine tri-data:
Testing the Speed Transducer
To test the speed portion:
Disconnect the transducer wires from the instrument. Then take an ohm meter and connect one lead to the Green Wire and the other to the Shield or Bare wire.
As you turn the paddle wheel by hand, you will see continuity readings and then open. Each ¼ turn you should see a reading and then as you continue to move the wheel it will go open. This will happen 4 times in a single rotation of the paddle wheel.
If you get this, then the speed portion of the speed transducer is working. If you do not get these readings, then the transducer is defective and will need to be replaced.
To Test the Temperature portion:
To test the temperature portion, again you use an Ohm Meter. Connect to the Brown and White wires. This is a little more complicated. The Temperature is read by the use of a Thermistor. A Thermistor changes its impedance or resistance value as the temperature changes. As the temperature goes up, the resistance goes down and of course as the temperature goes down, the reading goes up.
So, if the water is 77 degrees F you will read 10,000 on the meter. If the temperature is 68 degrees the value will be 12,495 ohms.
Other examples:
81 degrees F = 9,164 Ohms
77 degrees F = 10,000 Ohms
68 degrees F = 12,495 Ohms
61 degrees F = 15,004 Ohms
57 degrees F = 16,470 Ohms
54 degrees F = 18,098 Ohms
50 degrees F = 19,911 Ohms
With the Temperature, you can also check the display. If you take a 10,000 Ohm resister and connected it across the instruments Brown and White Speed Transducers terminals, the display should read 77 degrees F.
Testing the Speed Transducer
To test the speed portion:
Disconnect the transducer wires from the instrument. Then take an ohm meter and connect one lead to the Green Wire and the other to the Shield or Bare wire.
As you turn the paddle wheel by hand, you will see continuity readings and then open. Each ¼ turn you should see a reading and then as you continue to move the wheel it will go open. This will happen 4 times in a single rotation of the paddle wheel.
If you get this, then the speed portion of the speed transducer is working. If you do not get these readings, then the transducer is defective and will need to be replaced.
To Test the Temperature portion:
To test the temperature portion, again you use an Ohm Meter. Connect to the Brown and White wires. This is a little more complicated. The Temperature is read by the use of a Thermistor. A Thermistor changes its impedance or resistance value as the temperature changes. As the temperature goes up, the resistance goes down and of course as the temperature goes down, the reading goes up.
So, if the water is 77 degrees F you will read 10,000 on the meter. If the temperature is 68 degrees the value will be 12,495 ohms.
Other examples:
81 degrees F = 9,164 Ohms
77 degrees F = 10,000 Ohms
68 degrees F = 12,495 Ohms
61 degrees F = 15,004 Ohms
57 degrees F = 16,470 Ohms
54 degrees F = 18,098 Ohms
50 degrees F = 19,911 Ohms
With the Temperature, you can also check the display. If you take a 10,000 Ohm resister and connected it across the instruments Brown and White Speed Transducers terminals, the display should read 77 degrees F.
A very quick test is to connect the leads to an oscilloscope, or if un-available, a high impedance voltmeter. Tap on the transducer and observe the oscilloscope/ voltmeter signal. Note this is not definitive but will let you know the transducer is not shorted or open.