
Deep SUNA Manual
For SUNA running firmware version 2.4 or later
4. Terminal Interface of the SUNA
4.2.6 Analog Output
The SUNA can work with analog input data acquisition systems, such as a Sea-Bird
CTD profiler, by using the optional analog output system. The analog interface allows
merging of nitrate data with other data recorded at the same time. A standard
application is to integrate the voltage signal into a CTD profiler's auxiliary port, providing
a profile of conductivity, temperature, and nitrate versus depth.
Generating Voltage and Current for a Nitrate Concentration
The SUNA generates analog voltage and current representations of the calculated
nitrate values. The voltage is generated using a precision 12-bit digital-to-analog
converter (DAC) and is in the range of 0.095 to 4.095 Volts. The current is generated
using a precision 16-bit DAC and is in the range of 4 to 20 mA.
The SUNA has two configuration values, DAC Minimum Nitrate and DAC Maximum
Nitrate, that correspond to the lower and upper bounds of the voltage and current
output. If the nitrate concentration is below the DAC Minimum, the output voltage and
current will be the minimum voltage or current. If the nitrate concentration is above the
DAC Maximum, the output voltage and current will be the maximum voltage or current.
Otherwise, the voltage and current are calculated via
V
=
V
min
+
V
max
−
V
min
DAC
max
−
DAC
min
⋅(
C
nitrate
−
DAC
min
)
and
I
=
I
min
+
I
max
−
I
min
DAC
max
−
DAC
min
⋅(
C
nitrate
−
DAC
min
)
,
where
C
nitrate
is the nitrate concentrations
DAC
min
is the nitrate concentration at minimum voltage and current
DAC
max
is the nitrate concentration at maximum voltage and current
V
is the generated voltage
V
min
is 0.095 V, the minimum voltage
V
max
is 4.095 V, the maximum voltage
I
is the generated current
I
min
is 4 mA, the minimum current
I
max
is 20 mA, the maximum current
The actual voltage or current may differ slightly from the theoretical values. See below
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