









CURRENT PROFILER
Signature500
Mean currents and turbulence, plus wave height, direction and ice tracking
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Overview
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The Signature500 ADCP is designed for flexibility. It measures current profiles at up to 8 Hz sampling frequency. It can also measure direct vertical velocity profiles, wave height and direction, and ice thickness and drift. The center beam also functions as a biological echosounder, enabling high-resolution measurements of biomass in the water column. All these features can be combined using Nortek’s patented concurrent mode technology.
Highlights
- Five beams for mean currents and turbulence
- Wave height and direction
- Acoustic ranging to ice
Applications
- Turbulence studies
- Tidal turbine operations
- Studies of tidal currents
- Sediment transport studies
- Ice drift and draft studies
- Vessel-mounted coastal surveying
- Plankton migration studies
- Biomass measurements
- Directional wave measurements
- Suitable for wave buoys
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Water velocity measurements
Maximum profiling range1) 60 m (burst mode), 70 m (average mode) Cell size 0.5-4 m Minimum blanking 0.5 m Maximum number of cells 256 (burst)/200 (average) Velocity range (along beam) User-selectable 2.5 or 5.0 m/s Minimum accuracy 0.3% of measured value ± 0.3 cm/s Velocity precision Broadband processing, consult instrument software Velocity resolution 0.1 cm/s Max sampling rate 8 Hz (4 Hz using 5 beams) -
HR option (on 5th beam only)
Velocity range N/A Cell size N/A Profiling range N/A Range velocity limitations N/A -
AD2CP measurement modes
Single Burst or average Concurrent Burst and average Alternate Single and/or concurrent -
Echo intensity (along slanted beams)
Sampling Same as velocity Resolution/ dynamic range 0.5 dB / 70 dB Transducer acoustic frequency 500 kHz Number of beams 5; 4 slanted at 25°, 1 vertical Beam width 2.9° -
Echo sounder option
Resolution 6 mm - 0.5 m Number of bins 11,000 Transmit pulse length 32 μs - 1 ms Transmit pulse Monochromatic or pulse compressed (25% BW) Resolution / dynamic range 0.01 dB / 70 dB -
Wave measurement option
AST frequency 500 kHz AST max distance 75 m Maximum wave measurement depth 60 m Height range -15 to +15 m Accuracy/resolution (Hs) < 1% of measured value / 2 cm Accuracy/resolution (Dir) 2° / 0.1° Period range 1-50 s Cut-off period (Hs) 5 m depth; 0.6 sec, 20 m depth; 1.1 sec, 60 m depth; 1.9 sec Cut-off period (dir) 5 m depth; 1.5 sec, 20 m depth; 3.1 sec, 60 m depth; 5.5 sec Sampling rate (velocity and AST) 4 Hz -
Ice measurement option
Parameters Acoustic ranging to ice, speed and direction, echo sounder data -
Sensors
Temperature: Thermistor in head (sampled at meas. rate) Temp. range -4 to +40 °C Temp. accuracy/resolution 0.1 °C/0.01 °C Temp. time response 2 min Compass: Solid State magnetometer (max 1 Hz samplerate) Accuracy/resolution 2° for tilt < 30°/0.01° Tilt: Solid State accelerometer (max 1 Hz sample rate) Accuracy/resolution 0.2° for tilt < 30°/0.01° Maximum tilt Full 3D Up or Down Automatic detect Pressure: Piezoresistive (sampled at meas. rate) Standard range 0-100 m (inquire for options) Accuracy/precision 0.1% FS / Better than 0.002% of full scale -
AHRS option
Accelerometer dynamic range ± 2 g Gyro dynamic range ± 250°/sec Magnetometer dynamic range ± 1.3 Gauss Pitch and roll range /resolution ± 90° (pitch) ± 180° (roll) /0.01° Pitch and roll accuracy ± 2° (dynamic)4), ± 0.5° (static, ±30°) Heading range / resolution 360°, all axis /0.01° Heading accuracy ± 3° (dynamic)4), ± 2° (static, tilt < 20°) Sampling rate Same as measurement rate (up to 8 Hz) -
Data recording
Capacity 16 GB, 64 GB or 128 GB (inquire for larger capacity) Data record Consult instrument software Mode Stop when full -
Real-time clock
Accuracy ± 1 min/year Clock retention in absence of external power 1 year. Rechargeable backup battery. -
Data communications
Ethernet 10/100 Mbits Auto MDI-X, TCP/IP, UDP/IP, HTTP protocols, Fixed IP / DHCP client /Auto IP address assignment, UPnP and Nortek proprietary instrument discovery over Ethernet Serial Configurable RS-232/RS-422 300-1250000 bps Recorder download baud rate 20 Mbit/s (Ethernet only) - 1 GB in 6 minutes Controller interface ASCII command interface over Telnet and serial -
Connectors
Depending on configuration MCBH6F (Ethernet), MCBH8F (serial), MCBH2F-G2 (pwr), optional Souriau M-series metal connector for online use (10M) -
Software
Functions Deployment planning, instrument configuration, data retrieval and conversion (for Windows®) -
Power
DC input 12-48 V DC Maximum peak current 1.5 A Max. average consumption at 1 Hz 8 W at 1 Hz, Ethernet adds 0.75 W Typical average consumption 25 mW Sleep consumption 100 μA, power depending on supply voltage Transmit power per beam 0.3-30 W, adjustable levels Ping sequence Parallel -
Batteries
Internal 180 Wh alkaline, 540 or 1800 Wh with long canister Duration Depending on configuration, consult software -
Environmental
Operating temperature -4 to +40 °C Storage temperature -20 to +60 °C Vibration IEC60068-2-64 EMC approval IEC/EN 61000-6-2, 61000-6-3 Depth rating 300 m (for 6000 m version, contact Nortek for specifications) -
Materials
Standard model POM with titanium fasteners -
Dimensions
Maximum diameter 228 mm Maximum length with room for internal batteries 274 mm (180 Wh), 464 mm (540 Wh or 1800 Wh Li) Maximum length without room for internal batteries 184 mm -
Weight
In air, no battery 6.4 kg (5.2 kg short) In water, no battery -0.35 kg (0.6 kg short) Battery 1.8 kg
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Technical drawings
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Approvals
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Main product
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Signature500
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Probe type / Head
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5-beam head
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Housing
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Standard, with room for 180 Wh internal battery
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Short, no room for battery
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Long, with room for 540 Wh battery
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Memory
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16 GB SD card data logger
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64 GB SD card data logger
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Pressure sensors
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Pressure sensor, 0-10 m, 0,1%
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Pressure sensor, 0-20 m, 0,1%
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Pressure sensor, 0-30 m, 0,1%
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Pressure sensor, 0-50 m, 0,1%
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Pressure sensor, 0-100 m, 0,1%
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Pressure sensor, 0-200m, 0,1%
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Pressure sensor, 0-500m, 0,1%
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Pressure sensor, 0-500m, 0,1% (Note: instrument depth rating is 300m)
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Cables
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10m Ethernet cable with MCIL6MP, Power/RJ45 at dry end
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10-100m Ethernet cable (specify length in comments field) with MCIL6MP-PWR/RJ45
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10m Serial RS232 cable, MCIL8MP-DB12
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10m Serial RS232 cable, MCIL8MP-DB9 w/RS485 trigger
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Serial RS422 cable >10m (specify length in comments field), MCIL8MP-DB9
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Online cable, Souriau 10M open ended, (specify length in comments field)
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Online cable, Souriau 10M PWR/RJ45, max 100m, (specify length in comments field)
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Other
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Compass and tilt sensor
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AHRS
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