Depth Sounder (Echo Sounder)
What is the principle of echo sounder?
transmitting sound waves by transmitter from the bottom of the ship to the seabed by measuring the time different we can calculate the depth when we already know the velocity of the sound
1500 m/s .
What is the purpose of echo sounder?
The depth sounder can warn well before if the ship is getting too near any shoal areas or closing with the coastline. the initial depth sounder was an extended line with a chunk of lead on the tip and a series of marks along its length which, when dropped to the ocean bottom, measured the depth of water. This was used before Captain Cook’s day and remains a useful addition to a ship’s equipment where the navigator might need reservations about the reliability of electronics!
The electronic depth sounder operates during a similar thanks to radar. The echo is timed electronically and transposed into a reading of the depth of water under the hull. Multi-colour displays within the monitor show not only the depth of the water, but differing types of seabeds, prominent features like sunken wrecks, and sometimes even schools of fish. The more advanced sounders can transmit the heartbeat earlier than the boat and thus indicate the approach of navigational hazards such as reefs or shoals in good time to avoid them. There are two main uses for the depth sounder in coastal navigation. The first, as described above, is to assist locate the ship’s position when employed in conjunction with other electronic instruments. And secondly, to help in navigation through shallow inshore passages and channels, or over bars.
What are the main components of an echo sounder?
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