C-SCOPE M-SCAN User Manual

3. Get Started

4. Features

5. Controls

6. How the M-Scan works

Basic Operation and Description

7. Batteries

8. Preparation

8. Sensitivity

9. Volume

9. Audio Indication

10. Visual Indication

10. North/South Polarity

10. Depth

10. Pinpointing

11. Power Line Indicator

11. Erase

11. Submersion in Water & Searching

12. Application Note 1. Understanding the M-Scan Magnetometer

14. Application Note 2. How Objects Appear to a Magnetometer

16. Application Note 3. Depth

17. Application Note 4. Using near Large Ferrous Objects

18. Application Note 5. Finding the Centre of a Target

Contents

3

Brief Instructions for Use

1. Insert batteries in the holder ensuring they are in the correct
orientation before re-inserting the holder so the contacts touch.

2. Remove any metal items (rings, watches, etc) and electronic
devices (e.g. mobile phones) from about your person.

3. Turn the M-Scan on by pressing ON/OFF .
The display should come on.

4. Hold the M-Scan in one hand at 45º to the ground and move
slowly across the area to be searched marking places where the
audio pitch increases.

5. Follow a grid pattern over the area.

6. When the area has been covered and any ferrous material
locations identified return to each location to pinpoint the item
and determine the size more precisely.

7. If too many objects are found the sensitivity is too high,
or there is trash in the ground. Raise the M-Scan off the ground
by 20 inches or 0.5 m and search again.

More detail can be found in the following pages. We recommend
reading this User Guide and the Application Notes in full in order
to achieve the best results from the M-Scan.

Get Started

Hold the M-Scan
in one hand at 45º

Follow a grid pattern
over the area.

4

Features

The C.Scope M-Scan magnetic locator is a flux-gate
magnetometer. It responds when it detects ferromagnetic
material (material that is able to be magnetised, such as iron)
by increasing the audio frequency to a higher pitch as the object
is approached and passed. It is not affected by other objects
without a magnetic property. Gold, silver, copper, aluminium
and most other metals have no significant magnetic property
so are not detected.

The M-Scan is made to withstand heavy site use.
The plastic housing is manufactured from high-impact ABS
and the sensor tube is manufactured from lightweight aluminium.
There is a liquid crystal display and loudspeaker to give visual
and audible outputs. There are four main user controls, on/off,
volume up/down, sensitivity up/down and an ‘erase’ button that
can be used to mask nearby disturbances allowing the user to
search near a steel fence, for instance.

The sensitivity setting controls the effective depth that the
M-Scan will find a ferromagnetic object. The M-Scan uses
eight AA batteries in the sealed battery compartment giving
approximately 100 hours of typical use (with high quality
batteries). The standard kit includes a padded carrying case
with shoulder strap.

The display shows the field strength in units of micro Tesla (µT).
There is an analogue bar graph showing signal strength, a four
segment battery indicator, and a flashing power line alert
indicator. It also displays the North/South polarity
of the detected object.

Display and Control Panel

LoudspeakerBattery Cover

Lower Sensor Upper Sensor

5

1. Power On/Off

2. Volume Up/Down

3. Sensitivity Up/Down

4. Erase Button

5. Bar graph

6. Sensitivity Indicator

7. Volume Indicator

8. Digital Signal Indicator

9. Power Line Warning

10. Battery Indicator

11. Flange Symbol

Refer to Application Note 2 (page 13)

M-SCAN

5

9

2

1 4

10

876

3

11

Controls

6

The M-Scan finds ferromagnetic objects by sensing
the magnetic field radiated by the object. The locator contains
two sensor coil assemblies that are spaced apart and their
outputs electronically finely balanced. This is done so that the
M-Scan can correct for the ever-present magnetic field on the
earth. The two sensors measure the same field due to the earth
because both the coils are relatively close so they experience
the same magnetic lines of force. The earth’s magnetic lines
of force can be regarded as generally parallel but when
a ferromagnetic object is nearby the field strength and direction
of the magnetic lines upon each sensor is slightly different.
This is enough to disturb the critical balance allowing
the M-Scan to produce a different signal.

When no ferromagnetic objects are present, the speaker emits
a steady low frequency tone but as the M-Scan gets closer
to a ferromagnetic object the audio pitch increases until
the strongest signal from the object is directly under the end
of the sensor tube. The pitch is maximum over the strongest
signal and then decreases as the M-Scan is moved away.
(For a more detailed description of the way the field
of an object affects the M-Scan please refer to
the Application Notes in this manual.

How the M-SCAN Works