R2Sonic 2026, Operation Manual

Page: 43 / 254

Page 43 of 254
Version 6.3 Rev r012
Date 05-11-2022
Figure 33: Sonic 2026 in the mounting frame
The Sonic family of multibeam echosounders is designed to be operated
whist deployed in water (fresh or sea) and should not be operated in air
except for brief periods for the deck test detailed within this manual. The
sonars use water as a means to dissipate heat. Operating the sonar, in air,
can do damage to the sonar; to prevent damage, R2Sonic now has a pre-
deployment test mode.
To avoid damage to the sonar, the sonar will sense when it is being
operated in air and will reduce power. The sonar will determine, from the
sound velocity input, whether it is immersed in water or operating in air.
The sonar allows full Tx Power if either of the following conditions is true:
1. The operator selects manual sound velocity.
2. The SVP reported 1300 to 1600 m/sec somewhere within the past 30 seconds
Otherwise it limits the requested Tx Power to 206.666 dB. During power limiting,
the sonar puts 206.666 into the H0_TxPower field of the various data headers.
The GUI will recognize this and flag the power setting with a red indicator light to
alert the user.
WARNING – Pre-Deployment Test Mode