Blueprint Subsea Starfish 453OEM User guide

StarFish Sidescan Sonar

453OEM System Manual

StarFish 453OEM

System Manual

Contents

1. Introduction ..............................................................................................................................................................4

2. Installation ................................................................................................................................................................5

2.1. Choosing A Mounting Location .........................................................................................................................5

2.2. Transducer Mounting & Sealing........................................................................................................................6

2.3. Circuit Board Mounting .....................................................................................................................................7

2.4. Power Supply Connection.................................................................................................................................8

2.5. USB Data Connection ........................................................................................................................................8

2.6. Transducer Connections ...................................................................................................................................9

3. Using The Sonar ......................................................................................................................................................10

3.1. Operation.........................................................................................................................................................10

3.2. Software Development Kit ..............................................................................................................................10

4. Understanding Sidescan Imagery ..........................................................................................................................11

4.1. What Is A Side-Scan Sonar?.............................................................................................................................11

4.2. What Does A Side-Scan Sonar Image Look Like?............................................................................................12

4.3. Calculating Depth Below The Sonar (Altitude)...............................................................................................12

4.4. Calculating The Distance To A Target .............................................................................................................13

4.5. Acoustic Shadows............................................................................................................................................13

4.6. Reflected Target Intensity ...............................................................................................................................14

4.7. Example Side-Scan Sonar Images...................................................................................................................15

4.8. Gain & Contrast Settings .................................................................................................................................16

4.9. Shallow Water & Channels ..............................................................................................................................16

4.10. Tips For Good Imagery ..................................................................................................................................17

6. Safety.......................................................................................................................................................................18

6.1. Electrical Safety ...............................................................................................................................................18

6.2. Operational Safety...........................................................................................................................................18

7. Care Of Your Starfish...............................................................................................................................................19

7.1. Operational Care .............................................................................................................................................19

7.2. Maintenance & Cleaning..................................................................................................................................19

7.3. Storage............................................................................................................................................................19

8. Troubleshooting .....................................................................................................................................................20

9. Product Support .....................................................................................................................................................21

10. Limited Warranty Policy .......................................................................................................................................22

11. Notices...................................................................................................................................................................23

12. Specifications........................................................................................................................................................24

12.1. Mechanical Drawings.....................................................................................................................................24

12.2. Technical........................................................................................................................................................25

12.3. Acoustic Beam Patterns ................................................................................................................................26

StarFish 453OEM

System Manual

1. Introduction

Thank you for purchasing the StarFish453OEM Seabed Imaging System, a revolutionary high definition side-scan

sonar system capable of producing near photographic quality sonar images of the seabed.

Whether surveying lakes, rivers or the open ocean for dive sites, submerged structures, shipwrecks or research

purposes, StarFish gives you the capability to capture detailed images of the seabed for work or play, making hi-

tech seabed imaging accessible to anyone.

The StarFish453OEM sonar is design for equipment manufacturers or those wishing to integrate a sidescan sonar

onto their own platform (such as ROV or AUV). The system comprises of two hull-mounted transducers that should

be mounted angled 30° down from the horizontal, and an electronics module with USB connection to a Microsoft®

Windows® based embedded PC.

The simple intuitive StarFish “Scanline” software makes seabed imaging extremely easy for novices and

experienced side scan sonar users alike, alternately an SDK is available that allows StarFish data to be captured

directly into your own application.

Before proceeding, we recommend that you read the safety, installation and operation guidelines in this user

guide in order to get full benefit from the features of the StarFish system.

We hope you get many years of trouble free use from your StarFish sonar. However, should you have any

difficulties please refer to the “Product Support” section at the end of this manual for details on how to obtain

technical support, upgrades and repairs.

Safety

Before installing and using this product, please read through the “Safety” section at the rear of this manual.

Throughout the documentation the following symbols are used to indicate special precautions or procedures:

WARNING!

This symbol indicates a warning you should follow to avoid bodily injury or damage to your equipment.

CAUTION

This symbol denotes precautions and procedures you should follow to avoid damage to your equipment.

NOTE

This symbol denotes special instructions or tips that should help you get the best performance from your system.

StarFish 453OEM

System Manual

2. Installation

2.1. Choosing A Mounting Location

Before you can start using the Starfish453OEM Sonar system in the field, you will need to mount the sonar

transducers to your underwater platform. Correct mounting of the sonar is essential in order to achieve the best

image results, and as each setup is different you should consider the following points when deciding on a suitable

mounting location…

Avoid creating acoustic shadows

The StarFish transducers contain transmitter and receiver elements that should be mounted horizontally and

angled 30° down from the horizontal-plane for optimal sea-bed coverage.

The transducers acoustically transmit sound in a “fan beam” of narrow width (refer to the specification of your

StarFish product for the exact width), but wide vertically, with most of the acoustic energy confined to the centre

60° of the beam.

The arrangement allows the StarFish to perform well in shallow water at long ranges, and see almost directly

below it, but incorrect placement on the hull/platform could cause “acoustic shadows” or “reflections” to be

produced features around them, such an ROV thrusters, AUV fins/dive-planes, umbilical cables etc.

Acoustic shadows will create blind spots in the sonar’s field of vision and may reduce its maximum working range.

Reflections from the hull may create a ‘ghost’ or mirror image of the opposite channel on the sonar display.

Reduce vulnerability to grounding

When mounting the sonar, ensure there is always a point on the hull/platform that is lower than the transducers

location. This will reduce the risk of damage to the transducer should you run aground or collide with any

submerged obstacle.

Position in relation to the platforms propulsion

Ideally the StarFish transducers should be mounted to the hull/platform in front of its means of propulsion (i.e.

propeller or thrusters), as these introduce small air-bubbles into the water which in-turn act as reflectors of sound

and degrade the range and quality of the sonar imagery.

If it is not possible to mount the transducers in front of the thrusters or propeller, efforts should instead be made

to mount the transducers lower than it, such that its turbulence does not obstruct the acoustic beams.

Avoid cavitation & turbulence

When mounting the transducers, it is important that a location is chosen that under normal conditions is known

to be free from turbulence and aeration. You should also ensure the transducer is positioned such that cavitation

and turbulence is minimised on the transmitter and receiver surfaces as this may distort or degrade the sonar

imagery.

Avoid mounting the transducers behind features on the hull/platform, such as rivets, strakes or steps, that may

introduce cavitation or turbulence into the water around them.

StarFish 453OEM

System Manual

2.2. Transducer Mounting & Sealing

The StarFish transducers should be mounted onto the hull of the vehicle (or subsea platform) using 2 M4 fixings,

with centres 381mm apart as shown in the diagram below.

For best acoustic performance, the transducers should be mounted such that they are angled 30° down from the

horizontal plane, as shown:

To ensure a waterproof connection, the cable boss protruding from the rear of the transducer is fitted with two

18.0mm 2.6mmO-rings. These should be greased with a small amount of suitable silicone lubricant and

inserted into a suitable machined hole on the mounting housing that ensures a waterproof piston-seal.

Alternately, a waterproof glad may be used to seal onto the cables that are potted into the rear of the transducer

housings.

StarFish 453OEM

System Manual

2.3. Circuit Board Mounting

The StarFish electronics can be mounted onto a base plate using 4 M3 fixings that locate into the notches on the

edge of the board (circled in blue below).

The should be stood off a base plate using spacers with a minimum height of 3mm.

StarFish 453OEM

System Manual

For best electrical performance, the electronic should be placed into an enclosed metal housing that is electrically

connected to the same Ground reference as the power supply input –this will reduce electrical noise and

interference that may appear on the sonar display.

2.4. Power Supply Connection

The StarFish electronics module has a 2.1mm DC input socket (labelled “J3”) that will accept voltages between

9V and 28V, and will require a supply capable of delivering 5W.

Typically, this means the StarFish will require just under 500mA at 12V, or just under 250mA at 24V.

The centre pin (tip) of the power connector is Positive, and the outside of the connector (ring) is Ground.

2.5. USB Data Connection

The PC running the Scanline software should be connected to the electronics module using “J2”, a Type-B USB

2.1 connector (bandwidth used is less than 12Mbps).

StarFish 453OEM

System Manual

2.6. Transducer Connections

The StarFish electronic circuit board is pre-fitted with the transducer cable loom connected to “J1”. Once the

transducers have been mounted and sealed into the housing, they should be connected as shown in the diagram

below to the electronics module:

The grey cables from the circuit board are labelled with “Port” and “Starboard” to indicate which transducer they

should be connected to. However, in case the labels are missing, the Starboard transducer should be connected

to the Yellow & Green wiring pair, while the Port transducer should be connected to the Red & Blue wires.

Wire

Function

Wire

Colour

Starboard

Connector Pin

Port

Connector Pin

Ground

Black

Not Used

Starboard Signal+

Yellow

Starboard Signal-

Green

Ground

Black

Not Used

Port Signal+

Red

Port Signal-

Blue

StarFish 453OEM

System Manual

3. Using The Sonar

3.1. Operation

Once the StarFish453 transducers and electronics module have been installed onto your platform, the system is

ready for use.

If this is the first time you’re using the StarFish system, it is recommended you install the “Scanline” software and

USB hardware drivers on your embedded PC before connecting the electronics module to it. Refer to the

accompanying “Scanline User Guide” for details on how to do this.

When using the StarFish453OEM system with “Scanline”, follow the connection and configuration instructions for

a StarFish 450 family device.

•Switch the DC power on to the StarFish electronics module

•When powered up, the “Power/Status Indicator” will illuminate and start to flash – indicating that the

Topside box has correctly initialised.

The “Activity Indicator” will not illuminate until the USB connection is made, Scanline is running and

configured correctly.

•Start the Scanline software or your application. When the software opens the data connection to the

StarFish electronics and starts the sonar “pinging”, the “Activity Indicator” will start to flash.

3.2. Software Development Kit

The StarFish Software Development Kit (SDK) can be downloaded from the Blueprint product website (see the

“Technical Support” section for details). The SDK contains the software libraries, drivers, utilities and

documentation to help you :

•Integrate the StarFish interface into your own application using the Windows API DLL.

•Diagnose USB connection issues within the Windows operating system.

•Diagnose operational issues with the StarFish hardware using the “StarFishTools” utility, including an

FFT spectral analyser mode to resolve electrical noise and interference issues.

Table of contents

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