Survey Equipment Presentation

Power Systems:
The majority of the survey equipment runs on 28 Volts DC. Some devices use 12 Volts DC. This voltage is derived from the 28 Volt Airborne Power Distribution Box. Survey equipment is provided power by up to three sources: Aircraft Electrical System, External Power and Onboard Backup Battery. External Power is derived from the local power grid and is conditioned and backed up by our Outback Power System. External Power keeps the survey equipment powered while the aircraft is parked. Aircraft Power (We often call it Survey Power) is manually switched on or off by the captain as required. It feeds power to the survey equipment from the aircraft electrical buss (battery/generator). It is enabled after engine start and the aircraft's generator is online. At this point, External Power will be disconnected. Survey Power will be disabled after External Power is connected at the end of a flight but before engine shutdown. Backup Battery Power is provided to the survey equipment from and onboard 24Volt battery (BUB). It ensures that the survey equipment always has a steady voltage available, particularly during switch overs between External Power and Aircraft Power. The captain can disable the battery power at any time. The Airborne Power Distribution Box manages the three power sources and ensures that the survey equipment always has power. It allows anyone operating the system to verify voltages and current draw of the survey equipment. It also provides power to the Backup Battery for charging.

Sensors:
For magnetic surveys a Cesium Magnetometer located at the far end of the aircraft's tail boom or stinger is used. It is located here so it can be as far away as practical from the aircraft's magnetic signature. We perform extensive tests on each individual aircraft's installation to determine its magnetic signature so it can be filtered out of the acquired magnetic readings. The Magnetometer must be oriented correctly because it is most sensitive in only two opposing directions. This orientation will depend on where on earth the survey is being conducted and which direction the survey lines are being flown. A Fluxgate is also used to measure the magnetic field three directions (X,Y and Z). As the aircraft's orientation (yaw, pitch and roll) changes, the product of all three readings from the fluxgate will be the same. This data is used along with that of the magnetometer for the magnetic survey. The fluxgate is mounted either in the lower portion of the stinger or in the vertical stabilizer (tail fin) of the aircraft. A Specometer (Spec) survey uses two key components; Crystal Packs and a Gamma Ray Spectrum Processor (we call it a Spectrometer). The Crystal Packs contain specially grown salt crystals that have an optical amplifier affixed to one end. As various naturally occurring radiation strikes the crystals, microscopic flashes of light occur within the crystal. The optical amplifier detects these flashed which are counted by the Spectrometer. This survey is using two Crystal Packs, each with four downward facing and one upward facing crystal. The upward facing crystals detect radiation from above the aircraft. We are only interested in what is below so the radiation from above can be accounted for and essentially removed from our readings.

The Spectrometer accepts the signals from the individual crystals and amalgamates what they are detecting. Each crystal is a little different so on going calibrations and checks are performed. The Spectrometer will automatically adjust itself for many of the minor variances in crystal performance to keep the data consistent. When not in use (not flying) the Spectrometer will be set to stabilize itself using samples of Thorium placed below the crystal packs. This allows the Spectrometer to stay adjusted and therefore flight ready. Other samples; Uranium and Cesium are used as well as part of ongoing calibrations and checks to keep the Spectrometer system performing at its best. Analogue Sensors are also used to collect environmental information during the flight. Barometric pressure, outside temperature and humidity levels are recorded also. Any or all of these readings can be factored into our data processing if required. Height information is very important during a survey flight. As height above the ground varies during a flight, this must be accounted for in processing as measurements will be affected. We have several different methods of determining the height of the aircraft. While GPS and the Barometric sensor mentioned above will provide height information, we are mostly concerned with the height above the ground when processing data. To determine height above ground level (AGL) we use three different methods; TRT Radar, King Radar and a Laser Profilometer. The TRT is a Radar Altimeter that uses radio wave echoing to determine height above ground. It works well over ground and will generally see through foliage. It doesn't perform well over water due to inconsistent returns to the receiving portion of the radar. The King Radar is also a Radar Altimeter that is already included in most aircraft. All of our fixed wing aircraft have a King Radar. While it is not always as good as a TRT or Laser Profiler we still record it since it is still effective as a backup in the event of a failure in one of the other systems. The Laser Profilometer uses a single optical laser beam to measure distance to the ground. Since it is optical, the beam will tend to reflect off of denser foliage rather than the ground. It is still quite effective for our needs however. With all three of these systems, we can get a good height AGL picture during data processing. A very important sensor with many purposes it the GPS Antenna. You can have the best data ever collected but it means nothing if you don't know WHERE any given set of readings was acquired. GPS location and time is recorded along with data from all of the other sensors discussed here. We know where and when every bit of data was recorded. Another important need for the GPS system is pilot navigation. This is discussed in more detail below.

Pulling It All Together

The heart of any of our survey systems is the Data Acquisition System (CDAC). Using its two embedded computer systems, it performs many tasks. The right-hand computer displays data being collected in real time on the Acquisition Screen. It is also the user interface where pilots enter in the desired survey line they wish to fly. If the acquisition system generates any errors, the will appear on this screen as well. This computer also records acquired data to redundant hard drives. The right-hand computer also controls the left-hand computer. It's primary function is to provide navigational information to the pilots' Navigation Display. This display, mounted on top of the glare shield in the cockpit, shows the pilots where to fly. It provides extremely accurate height and lateral information, allowing the pilot to fly as accurately as possible. Since we are almost always flying over terrain with various elevations, the navigational computer is programmed to instruct the pilots to fly a Drape over the terrain. The Drape essentially follows the terrain elevations while not demanding more than the aircraft's performance is capable of. The

Navigation Display provides notice of upcoming changes in altitude so the pilot can be ready to adjust accordingly. Another function of the left-hand computer is to record video images taken from a camera in the aircraft's belly. Since it is time and location indexed, the video can be used to show what was being flown over at any given point of a flight. This is useful if an anomaly is detected by the survey sensors. (Example: The magnetometer readings fluctuate wildly for several seconds. Belly camera video reveals that this occurred while flying over a steel mill.)
Prepared By Douglas Hargrave Survey Systems Engineering Sander Geophysics Ltd. Ottawa, Canada