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Forum Index : Microcontroller and PC projects : Flow Sensor from Wiltronics
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Chopperp![]() Guru ![]() Joined: 03/01/2018 Location: AustraliaPosts: 1097 |
FYI. I got a couple of Hall effect flow meters from Wiltronics. Hooked one up to my CMM. Seems to work well measuring it's O/P frequency. Connected in line with the grey water outlet pipe. Reliability yet to be determined. https://www.wiltronics.com.au/product/18937/flowmeter-1-2inch-hall-effect-controlled-water-flow-sensor/ ChopperP ChopperP |
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LouisG Senior Member ![]() Joined: 19/03/2016 Location: AustraliaPosts: 129 |
Hi ChopperP, They are good little units. I have been running a couple of these exact 1/2" flow meters in an experimental pilot plant on and off for a couple of years. Liquid is strong NaOH solution at 60 deg C. Never had any problems. But then I never had any of the crud that you might find in wastewater. They work well at 3.3V DC supply too. Mine measures pulsating flow from a pneumatic diaphragm pump so I have to average the pulses counted over 10 seconds - easily done. Wouldn't mind knowing where I could get a matching connector to suit the one supplied. Louis - |
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Chopperp![]() Guru ![]() Joined: 03/01/2018 Location: AustraliaPosts: 1097 |
Hi Louis Good to hear that yours is running well with the hot NaOH going through it. Mine is still in a temporary setup to see how it goes. Will have to keep an eye on it. I soldered a 3 pin male header block on some strip board along with a 3 way 0.1" terminal block & some old phone cable for a temporary connection. Will also need to find a proper connector for it; one that is water tight as well. Interesting to know that they work on 3.3V. I only have a rose sprinkler with a smallish hole for the output on the end of the hose & that does get blocked or partially blocked occasionally so that needs regular checking. Thanks for the reply. ChopperP ChopperP |
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TassyJim![]() Guru ![]() Joined: 07/08/2011 Location: AustraliaPosts: 6283 |
They look to be similar to some 60L/M 3/4 inch ones I have been using for a few years. They last much longer than the ones I from Jaycar that I started with. The only problem I had was when the sensors got zapped by lightning. They are replaceable. I have 4 in daily use for the house and garden/farm water monitoring. For my purposes, I have them connected to counting inputs and read every 30 seconds. Jim VK7JH MMedit |
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Chopperp![]() Guru ![]() Joined: 03/01/2018 Location: AustraliaPosts: 1097 |
Hi Jim Can you advise as to where you got the 3/4" ones from? I'm only using the Freq method cos that's what was used in the sample code. Still experimenting. Thanks ChoperP ChopperP |
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TassyJim![]() Guru ![]() Joined: 07/08/2011 Location: AustraliaPosts: 6283 |
Ebay https://www.ebay.com.au/itm/1-60L-Min-DC-5-24V-Hall-Effect-Water-Flow-Sensor-Counter-Meter-HY/191877865762?epid=18593266 29&hash=item2caccfe122:g:ouUAAOSwU1FXQDPd It's 2 years since I purchased but this link looks like the same unit. When I bought some replacements, the pinout was in a different order just to make life interesting. Using count instead of frequency means you are measuring in the background and don't miss any pulses. Jim VK7JH MMedit |
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Phil23 Guru ![]() Joined: 27/03/2016 Location: AustraliaPosts: 1667 |
I've been using these ones for the past couple of years in the Spa & Heat Pump Controllers. Seem to be remaining stable with no issues yet. Did notice though that they are available in Stainless now. Phil. |
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Chopperp![]() Guru ![]() Joined: 03/01/2018 Location: AustraliaPosts: 1097 |
@TassyJim Thanks for that. Bigger would be better for me. Will look at using the count input. @Phil25. Thanks as well. I assume yours has the standard 3/4" fitting? Blurb says 20mm. Do you measure frequency, counts or both? ChopperP ChopperP |
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Chopperp![]() Guru ![]() Joined: 03/01/2018 Location: AustraliaPosts: 1097 |
Still playing with my flow meter on my CMM for my grey water. The water from the pump usually starts with spits & farts so to speak & gives high frequency / flow rate readings for over 15 secs then it settles down. So initial readings either with pulse count or flow rate are not accurate anyway. However, this is only a small portion of the normal 5-10 min run & does not really matter. If it does happen to start with full flow (pipes full), the readings are OK almost immediately. ChopperP |
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LouisG Senior Member ![]() Joined: 19/03/2016 Location: AustraliaPosts: 129 |
That's why the preferred direction of flow through the flowmeter is vertically upwards. The idea is to keep the pipe full (assuming the flowmeter is in the pump discharge line) even when the pump is stopped. |
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Chopperp![]() Guru ![]() Joined: 03/01/2018 Location: AustraliaPosts: 1097 |
Hi LouisG Yeh, unfortunately a sullage pump does not hold/retain it's water, so it doesn't really matter where you put it. The idea here is to get a rough idea of how much water is used in this area. ChopperP |
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Andrew_G Guru ![]() Joined: 18/10/2016 Location: AustraliaPosts: 871 |
Hi, Sorry to re-open an "old" thread but it seems a good way to keep track of the topic. I'm looking at these 1/2" flow meters which I think are the same as Phil23's above. 1) The description is "flow meter and switch" - is that what they are or is it only "flow meter" (ie no "switch"). Whilst I'm primarily interested in flow a unit that switched would be useful (I can always add one if not). 2) As Chopperp asks above "do you measure frequency, counts or both"? 3) Are there any code examples? Cheers, Andrew |
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Chopperp![]() Guru ![]() Joined: 03/01/2018 Location: AustraliaPosts: 1097 |
Hi Andrew. I don't know about the switched business. TassyJim says he measure counts which means no loss of input readings as counting is done in the background. I haven't tried that method. I just wanted rough idea of the times my grey water was on & if it was pumping OK. I was thinking that the frequency method was better for my purposes. On my CMM, I just measure the frequency input every 5 secs. I check for "over-speed" & also "Under-speed". If above the lower limit, flow rate is calculated as is time on. These are displayed to the screen; graphed as either ON or off to the screen & also saved to SD card. A few other things are done as well such as max flow rate while on. Code snippet (CMM) shown below. Hope it helps. Note, I load this sub as a Library file & unload it when another part of the program runs to free up memory. The file is then reloaded. setpin 11, fin 'Flowmeter sub Grey_UD 'run from Dostuff_2 every 5 seconds local Grey_Freq, Grey_flow$ Grey_freq = pin(11) 'flow meter if Grey_Freq > 120 then Grey_Freq = 120 'limit extroneous readings Grey_flow$ = format$(Grey_freq/8.2,"% 5.1f") '82Hz = 10 l/m print @(380, 180) CLR$(cyan) "GREY l/m " Grey_flow$ " " if Grey_freq > 15 then 'normally ~ 75Hz when running settick 20000, Grey_Check, 3 '20 sec time out set. StatVal(5) = 40 'Stat Graph line high (ON) STAT$(5) = " ON " 'set stat value. Reset after Data Save Grey_on_Ctr = Grey_on_Ctr + 5 'counter time in seconds if z1 mod 12 = 0 then 'check for multiples of 12 inc 0 Rate$ = "b:\GREYRATE\" + date1$ + ".csv" 'create a file save string with folder = current date if (flags and 32)= 0 then 'check SD card is still inserted open Rate$ for append as #5 'open the file for appending print #5:print #5,time$; ", "; ' print time to SD card file close #5 endif endif z1 = z1 + 1 if (flags and 32)= 0 then 'check SD card is still inserted. open Rate$ for append as #5 'open the file for appending Defined above print #5, grey_flow$; ", "; 'save data to SD card close #5 endif if z1 = 5 then Grey_Mem$ = " 0.0" 'reset prior to update if z1 => 6 then 'wait for pump to settle down if val(Grey_flow$) > val(Grey_Mem$) then Grey_Mem$ = Grey_Flow$ '82Hz = 10 l/m print @(380, 192) CLR$(cyan) "GREY MEM " format$(val(Grey_Mem$),"% 5.1f") " " 'permanently Display value endif gosub Grey_save else StatVal(5) = 2 'Stat Graph line low (OFF) STAT(5)reset after Data Save z1 = 0 endif end sub ChopperP |
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Phil23 Guru ![]() Joined: 27/03/2016 Location: AustraliaPosts: 1667 |
They look absolutely identical to mine. Dunno how long they have been installed now, but it's been a few years with no issues. Bromine & now lithium chlorinated water running thru them. My code is totally primitive, just reading frequency periodically. Flow rate is my requirement, not an actual volume measurement. [code]Sub ReadFlow FlowRate=Pin(FlowSen1)/424*60 End Sub [/code] The easiest lines were added to get things going, so might be a good time to pinch Choppers's superior code..... Cheers. Edit: Choppers code..... |
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Andrew_G Guru ![]() Joined: 18/10/2016 Location: AustraliaPosts: 871 |
Many thanks Chopper and Phil. I'll place an order! As with most www gear I cannot see any "datasheet" - how did you know that 82Hz = 10 l/m and what is 424 per ?? Cheers, Andrew |
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Phil23 Guru ![]() Joined: 27/03/2016 Location: AustraliaPosts: 1667 |
I hot mine from Aliexpress & as mentioned they were also available in stainless. The 424 is corrected l/h; 8.1x60=486; but when I ran measurement tests it was a bit off. This is the only data I had. [Code]3/4" DN20 flow rate2-45L/min water Brass Hall Turbine flow sensor meter switch control water liquid rate Product item no. : Ada-B0.75-5 Material : Brass Brand : Ada Specification : Function : Sensor , flow rate control Thread size : Male 3/4” Size:L Color : Golden color Flow rate : 2~45L/min Flow Pulse: F(Hz)=(8.1Q)-3 +/-10% Q=L/min Max. Working Current : 10mA (DC5 V) Min. Working Voltage: DC 4.5V Working Voltage:DC 5V~24V Load Capacity: =10 mA (DC 5 V) Operating Working Temperature : -25 Degree centigrade to +8 Degree centigrade Liquid Temperature: +80 Accuracy : + - 10% Wire : Black : "-" Red: "+" Yellow : "pulse output signal" [/code] Flow sensor Phil. Edit:- Weird formula; 8.1x flow rate MINUS 3? |
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Hatrick Newbie ![]() Joined: 16/11/2015 Location: AustraliaPosts: 6 |
I'm using these in my 19yo 4WD 4.2L diesel Nissan Patrol as a trip computer to measure fuel consumption, etc: https://www.alibaba.com/product-detail/aichi-flow-meter-with-pulser-out_60676340080.html?spm=a2700.7724857.normalList.6. 5a03633eqWb1FA These appear to be a Chinese made meter, but stamped Made in Japan. The Japan specs indicate 2000ppl, but in fact these only do 200ppl. Caused a re-write of the first software! Apart from that, they do the job and are suitable for oil, diesel, etc. The guts use two elliptical gears, so there is very little leakage of fuel past the gears. The low pulse rate makes them less suitable for low flow rates, such as fuel, but in my case the software does a sliding average to sort this out. I've been running this for about 2 1/2 years now with no problems. Accuracy quite good once I worked out its correct calibration. Gerry |
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