Development of a measurement system for hydraulics

Abstract

Measurement is actually a major problem in scientific fields. Particularly, hydraulic researches depend directly on the knowledge of certain important and variable parameters. A hydraulic system (airlift pump) that requires a continuous measurement of air pressure and water level has been proposed to us as a problem. Previously, traditional solutions have been proposed using mechanical measurement methods such as the U tube manometer for pressure and an ordinary ruler to measure level. These methods, as well as having slow time constants which means slow response, introduce also a wide error margin. Likewise, the measures analysis needs mathematical calculation and graphics plotting. This removes the possibility of the measurements’ real-time visualization and analysis. In this document, we propose an electronic solution consisting of a group of sensors measuring pressure and water level in real time with higher precision and a smaller error margin. These sensors surround a microcontroller whose function is the processing of the data coming from the different sensors and the controlling of the whole process. Additionally, the data is sent from the microcontroller to computer through USB cable in order to visualize clearly, register and plot the values. The management of data in the computer is done by an application with a graphic interface that represents the software part added to the hardware part to form the whole system.