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Traversing Sensor Platform for Environmental Measurements

Dep. of Agronomy, Evapotranspiration Lab., Kansas State Univ., Manhattan, KS 66506

^* Corresponding author.

Under conditions of high spatial variability, environmental sensors can be transported across or through the region of interest to obtain representative samples of the measured parameter. A traversing platform was designed to carry heavy sensors and instruments along a horizontal path under field conditions. The system was composed of a 0.17- by 0.13-m rolling platform atop a 2.2-m long aluminum channel. A motorized cable-chain drive was used to move the platform at a speed of 0.035 m s^–1. The system was powered with 12-V DC deepcycle batteries and consumed 6 W of power when the sensor platform was in transit. On-board circuits can be used in conjunction with a programmable datalogger to sense the platform's location or stop the platform at user-specified locations along the traversing path. The mechanism was capable of transporting a 5-kg sensor package at inclination angles up to 45°. The system operated without failure for a 6-wk period under field conditions.

Received for publication May 21, 1992.