Measurement range expansion of continuous wave ultrasonic anemometer

This study was conducted to expand the measurement range of a continuous wave ultrasonic anemometer (CWUA) that uses phase difference measurement. A CWUA has a narrower measurement range than conventional ultrasonic anemometers because it can measure the phase difference up to the half-cycle of the used ultrasonic signals. In this study, a method of expanding the measurable range of the phase difference using a phase delay circuit and a frequency divider was developed. Through experiments, it was found that this method doubled or quadrupled the measurement range when the method was used. Furthermore, an algorithm for determining the validity of the measurement data by comparing them with the previous data was implemented with a wind velocity measurement error of less than ±1 μs to solve the problem caused by the use of the frequency divider and to produce a stable measurement system.

► We deal with continuous wave ultrasonic anemometer (CWUA). ► This paper employs a phase delay circuit and a frequency divider. ► It is for expanding the measurable range of the phase difference. ► An algorithm was implemented for calculating the wind velocity. ► The error in the experimented wind velocity is less than ±1 μs.