7
LED Screen:
This area is where the amount of heat detected will be displayed. There are seven LEDs in the display. From left to
right, there are two green, three yellow, and two red. The more intense the heat detected, the more of these LEDs will light up. You will
notice that when you turn on the heat seeker, the LEDs will sweep outward from the center LED and sweep back in then go off. The
HeatSeeker is now ready for use.
12
Lens:
This end of the heat seeker will always be pointed toward the area you are scanning. If the lens gets dusty, simply blow it off.
If a more thorough cleaning is required, use a mild lens cleaner designed for camera lens. The lens will scratches easily. Scratches will
affect the accuracy of the unit.
10
Seal Screws:
Tampering with these screws or the control panel plate will void warranty.
15
Battery:
A Duracell or other high quality 9V alkaline battery (
15
) is recommended. Unscrew (
13
) the battery cap (
14
), connect the
battery connectors to the battery, and insert into handle. Replace battery cap (
14
). Remove the battery when not using the unit for a long
period of time.
Operating Procedures
The key to operating the heat seeker is to always keep it in motion when scanning. Set the gain control to proper gain. Point the
heat seeker to a neutral area where there are no known heat sources. Turn on the unit while observing the LED display, or listening to the
earphone. If you are watching the LED display, you will see the power-up sequence. If you are listening to the earphone, you will hear
the maximum pitched sound momentarily. With the unit on, scan back and forth from left to right. Scan at a moderate, even pace
making sure your sweeping motion is horizontally level. Scan horizontally, not vertically. Keep scanning in wide sweeps, much like
using a flashlight. Now use the same procedure to scan an area with a known heat source. Remember to always keep the heat seeker in
motion. When you get a reading, keep scanning past the area. As you scan back and forth, you can pinpoint the area that gave you the
reading. The more variance in temperature between the object and the surroundings, the further you can detect the object. If the object
is the same temperature as the surroundings, the detector has no way to determine it is there. The HeatSeeker will detect changes above
the surrounding temperature.
What Affects The Detection of Heat?
This section will give you some guidelines on how weather and other environmental conditions affect infrared detection. Please use
these guidelines in determining what kind of range to expect.
Ground cover, trees and other solid objects.
Although it is entirely possible to get a good reading through some brush, tree cover, and other similar objects, the rule of thumb is:
the more cover an object has, the less heat that can be seen by the detector. This also means that the denser the cover is, the shorter the
range of detection will be. A little common sense goes a long way here. Heat can be radiated through some objects such as leaves, but
the more of them that are between you and the object, the less heat that can be detected. A good example would be a deer lying in the
snow. If the deer has a body temperature of 100 degrees it is going to be easy to detect on the cold snow. If that same deer was covered in
a foot of snow, you would probably never see it. However, the deer could be found if there was a hole in the snow, allowing heat to
escape.
Temperature.
In order to detect an object, there must be a difference in temperature between it and the surroundings. Again, common sense goes
a long way here. The greater the difference in temperature between the object and the surroundings, the further you can detect the
object. If the object is the same temperature as the surroundings, the detector has no way to determine it is there. The heat seeker can
detect changes above and below the surrounding temperature.
Wind, rain, fog, and snow.
The general rule for these conditions is much the same for ground cover and trees. If the conditions are such that the heat is
blocked, it may not be detected. This mainly applies to snow, but all weather conditions should always be taken into consideration.
Sunshine.
Although sunshine will not effect the operation of the heat seeker, keep in mind that when the sun heats an object, it emits infrared
energy. This means that any infrared detector may detect heat from rocks, trees and other objects. Stay in close so if you get signals
from these objects you can readily see what you are detecting. It is also a good idea to check the area from different angles to eliminate
these signals, and to make sure a good signal was not missed.
Testing your unit for proper operation.
1. First, set unit on maximum gain.
2. Scan ground cover in a shaded area. You should get very few signals. Then scan your HeatSeeker toward a definite source, such as an
animal, person, or automobile with a warm engine. You should have no trouble getting a strong signal.
