Vaisala FD12P BROCHURE
Vaisala Weather Sensor FD12P
Field-proven visibility, precipitation
and present weather measurement
The Flexible Weather Sensor
The Vaisala Weather Sensor FD12P is an
economical, multi-variable weather sensor
used to carry out weather observation
duties that normally require a human
observer and an assortment of special
instruments.
The Vaisala Weather Sensor FD12P
can be substituted for a range of
weather observation instruments
that are expensive and difficult to
maintain. It automates many timeconsuming weather observation and
reporting duties by means of:
• An optical forward-scatter sensor
that senses fog and also
distinguishes between
precipitation types
• An analog capacitive surface
sensor that “feels” the amount
of water falling on it
• A temperature sensor
• A special algorithm, running in
the microprocessor, that calcu
lates accurate present weather
and visibility values using data
collected from all the sensors
The FD12P approximates the
human senses of sight and touch as
closely as possible in order to
generate accurate visbility,
precipitation and present weather
values. Frozen and liquid
precipitation is distinguished
according to the ratio of the optical
measurement value vs. the
amount of water measured on the
capacitive precipitation sensor.
For many applications
Typical applications for the Vaisala
Weather Sensor FD12P are
present weather identification and
visibility measurement at airports
and remote weather stations. The
FD12P is ideal for fully automated
weather observation, but can also
be used to support human
observers at semi-automatic
stations. The FD12P outputs the
WMO present weather codes
(code table 4680) required for
automatic SYNOP messages. For
aviation applications, the WMO
code table 4678 for METAR
messages is also supported.
Simple and effective design
The FD12P's simple and effective
design comprises a transmitter, a
receiver, a controller and a
capacitive precipitation detector.
An ambient temperature sensor
ensures that precipitation type is
assessed reliably. The mechanical
design of the FD12P is well thoughtout: sample air volumes are not
disturbed; the anodized aluminum
construction is weather-proof thanks to
its head-down design; the factory
mountings ensure easy installation and
onsite adjustment. The FD12P can be
mounted in a variety of ways so
suitable locations are easily found.
Weather Sensor FD12P features
• Measures visibility up to 50 km
• Detects precipitation type
and intensity
• Calculates precipitation
accumulation
• Calculates water equivalent of
frozen precipitation
• Calculates snow accumulation
• Reports over 50 SYNOP codes
• Reports present weather in
SYNOP, METAR and NWS code
formats
Loading...