Hey !
In a previous post, I was able to ask questions about an experiment I’m carrying out but didn’t get an answer, so I’m trying my luck again as I’m facing new difficulties. The experimental set-up has evolved and now looks like this: the transducer is attached to a mechanical arm and is submerged in a cubic metre of water.
For the purposes of signal processing, I need to recover the gain function applied to each of the return echoes. Let me explain: I need to get my hands on the gain function Sg(t) applied to the signal. Very often, in RADAR applications, this function is either linear or exponential. Usually, to recover this function, all I have to do is take measurements at different distances from the same interface. The gain, on the other hand, does not change, so the signal attenuates as the target moves further away. So, by plotting the different signals on a single graph (see image below), and linking the maximum values of the detection peaks, we can obtain this famous function (linear, exponential, etc.).
Having said that, I can’t do this with the Ping2 because, as described in a section of the forum, an auto-correction always sends back a saturated peak to indicate that this is the surface being detected, even if you manually change the gain. Whether I set the gain to 0,1,2,3,4,5, or 6, all my signals are saturated and prevent me from plotting this famous gain function.
So, I’d like you to tell me more about the gain function applied to transducer signals. What is its function? I’ve searched every possible topic and technical detail on the site or forum but can’t find anything.
I hope you understand what I’m trying to achieve and that you can help me. Thanks in advance!
Lucas 