Category: Trip Replay

Color Enhancing your Sonar Log

ciBioBase’s Trip Replay feature that couples bottom depth, aquatic vegetation biovolume, and bottom hardness maps with your actual Sonar Log empowers you with a verification tool that ensures an accurate map in every system you map, every time.  The sonar log also provides users and our Quality Control team helpful information about signal quality and transducer placement that can help both parties diagnose issues.

A little known feature in ciBioBase allows users to reprocess their Lowrance HDS/Elite sonar log at different color and sensitivity settings (Figure 1).

Figure 1. Trip Reprocessing Tab that allows ciBioBase users to reprocess their trips with new edits.  Try reprocessing your sonar log at a higher color (e.g., 240) for “cooling” the colors in your sonar log in ciBioBase and to bring out subtle bottom features.

Sometimes, your Sonar Log may look a little too “hot” making it difficult to distinguish between plants and bottom (Figure 2).

Lowrance, ciBioBase, Sonar Log
Figure 2.  Sonar Log showing colors that may be “too hot” to distinguish between plants and bottom.

Try reprocessing the sonar log at a colorline of 240 (default is 220).  This will bring in “cooler” colors to the sonar log and may help you better distinguish subtle bottom features and gaps in plant beds (Figure 3).

Figure 3.  Sonar Log reprocessed with a colorline of 240.

Alternatively, Lowrance has a powerful free desktop software program called SonarViewer which allows you to replay your Sonar Log with options to dynamically control sensitivity, colorline, zoom, and range (Figure 4).

Figure 4.  SonarViewer is a free download from Lowrance and has a range of tools for enhancing the contrast of bottom features detected by your Lowrance HDS or Elite.

Use SonarViewer to review your files prior to upload to ciBioBase if you suspect possible signal quality issues or are testing different transducer setups for optimal signal quality.  Signal Quality should also be continually monitored by watching your SONAR page on your HDS or Elite while collecting data on the water.  A helpful rule of thumb is that a signal that is clear and crisp to your eyes is most likely clear and crisp to ciBioBase algorithms.

For more Tips & Tricks visit our Support Resources Page –Here

 

Lake Mapping and 800 kHz DownScan

BioBase Now Offering 800 kHz DownScan in its dynamic Trip Replay feature.

 

Trip Replay is taking a leap forward with the new option to view your data using the 800 kHz DownScan option when recording with the StructureScan™ add-on.  Anyone that has been uploading data gathered with StructureScan™, by logging all channels, can now view past and future trips with this new feature.

You may have seen our earlier posts about the BioBase Trip Relay feature.  Your raw data collection is automatically processed by our powerful cloud servers and fully mapped with kriging algorithms and other geo-statistical considerations. Once processed, you can then replay the entire trip, watch your boat travel along your transects, and ground truth the % BV heat map with the water column cross section (on the right side of the image above).   This feature allows our customers to verify every trip output for accuracy and provide objective evidence for anyone that questions your aquatic vegetation maps!

The power and accuracy of the Lowrance™ HDS StructureScan™ allows us to offer a new and amazing cross-section view (DownScan) of the water column for each trip in the Trip Replay feature.  As you can see from the images below, this feature provides amazing views of bottom and vegetation.  It is even possible to notice changes in vegetation types or habitat cover type under your boat.  With our waypoint feature, you can identify vegetation transition zones and areas of interest for typing and delineation.

 

Please let us know if you would like to add StructureScan™ to your current data collection hardware.  Although not mandatory for using BioBase, this option can be added to any HDS™ system at any time for great views underwater.  For details on using or recording StructureScan™ please request a copy of our Standard Operating Procedures.

Another great feature added to the powerful BioBase System.

ABOUT BIOBASE

BioBase was engineered to provide automated cloud based GIS, aquatic vegetation mapping and historical trend tools for aquatic habitat analysis.  BioBase leverages log file formats recorded to SD cards using today’s Lowrance™ brand depth finders and chart plotters.  Data you collect while on the water is uploaded to an online account where it is processed by our servers automatically.   We rely on automation to make vegetation mapping cost effective by reducing the technical skills, staff, and hours to produce vegetation abundance maps from raw sonar collection. With the human element gone, you get accurate and objective mapping at lightening speeds!

Check out more anytime at www.BioBaseMaps.com and on our BioBase BLOG

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