Switch on the sonar device using the flip-switch. The device should blink a series of LEDs before tuning on a red LED. This indicates that the sonar device has booted properly and is ready for a connection.
The sonar device sets up a WIFI network with an animal name as the ESSID (wireless network name), for example, otter. The ESSID can be found on the label of each sonar device. To connect to the sonar device, use your computer’s wireless settings to connect to this wireless network. The computer might complain this connection does not provide internet access. This is normal and can be ignored.
Run the bat file Run.bat in the bme_sonar folder by double-clicking it.
It might take a few seconds for the program to load. Be patient. A window like the one shown below should appear. This interface allows the user to gather data using the sonar device. In addition, the interface allows comparing different measurements by storing them and visualizing them concurrently in the main window. To find more information about the interface, open the toggle below.
To collect a single measurement, click the Measure button. The led on the device should blink blue before turning red again. The data is plotted in the main window.
You can use the mouse to zoom in on the data and inspect specific ranges in more detail. You can also right-click the data window to get a menu with additional visualization options (including the option to View All, which resets the view).
Selecting the region to zoom.
Zoomed in data.
If you want to save a collected measurement for future analysis, you can enter a descriptive name for your data in the text box below the Measure button. Next, click the Save Measurement button. Your data will be saved and should appear in the list at the right-hand side of the application window.
You can re-plot saved data in the data window by highlighting the data’s name in the list of saved measurements and clicking the Plot Data button.
The software allows exporting of the figures to various image formats. To export the current plot to an image, right-click the data window and choose the Export option. This brings up a little window that allows you to select the format you want to use. If you keep this window open, you can quickly export additional images.
If you select the Hold Measurements option at the bottom left of the data window, the application will overlay subsequent measurements (in different colors) onto the data already plotted. Below, an example is shown of two measurements plotted on top of each other. This option makes it easy to compare data for different situations.