Simrad Mesotech MS 990 - 20
Description
Driver for RS-232 Serial Data from a Kongsberg (SIMRAD) Mesotech Model 971,990,1000 Sonar can be used to decode the profile scans from the high frequency sector scanning sonar.
There is no quality field included in the data.
For the model 990 and 1000 two transducer heads can be decoded, for the 971 only one.
For the MS1000 optionally the timetag in the message can be decoded and used as the ping time.
Note that for the MS1000 also a network driver exists that will also decode sidescan data.
Driver Information
| Driver | Kongsberg Mesotech MS1000 Simrad Mesotech MS 971/990 | Interface Type | Serial | Driver Class Type | Terminated <LF> |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
UTC Driver  | Yes and No | Input / Output | Input | Executable | DrvSimradMesotech.exe |
| Related Systems |
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| Related Pages | |||||
Decoding Notes
The driver will group the received beams into a single ping container by looking at the direction of rotation. As soon as the rotation direction inverts then the collected beams are grouped as a single ping and sent to the rest of Qinsy. The arrival of the first beam after the direction change is considered to be the first beam. The time offset of the beams with respect to the first beam are calculated and stored with the beam data.
The decoded Quality Indicator (QI) can be interpreted as one flag, the brightness flag. The flag is set to 1 is the beam has got a valid travel time, it is set to 0 if the travel time is zero. Brightness Flag (0 = invalid, 1 = valid)
MS990 and MS1000
The device Id from the string is used as slot number, the string will only be used if the Id from the string matches the Slot ID as entered in Database Setup.
The transducer Id at the end of the string is not used.
The reported travel time is two way in samples, the samples to skip value should always be added to this value to calculate the range.
Important: Driver will only decode properly when the direction of the scanner is flipping. So you should put the Mesotech in sector scanning mode to make it work. If the scanner head is constantly turning in one direction then the data will not be decoded.
System Configuration
The MS1000 Sonar is controlled by a windows software program. This program can export the profiler points to Qinsy via a serial link. In order to activate the serial output in the MS1000 software, press Export button. Export Wizard will start. On the first page select MS1000 Format. On the next page enable the Port Checkbox and select the output serial port of the MS1000 computer. On the next page the baud rate can be selected for the selected port, choose 115K2 if you can. When the wizard is finished and the scanner is in profiling mode the MS1000 software should output the profile point data on the serial port.
Database Setup
MS1000 Only, If you want to use the time stamp from the message then select the system "Kongsberg Mesotech MS1000 (With UTC)" or "Kongsberg Mesotech MS1000 Head II (With UTC)" for the second head.
Slot numbers, on the Second page of the multi beam system wizard in Database Setup you can enter the Device Id of the string that is to be decoded.
The device Id can be looked up in the Mesotech software. For MS971 the Slot number is to be left on the default of "1".