Test Setup
MaxBotix Inc has recently tested operation of our MB7360 HRXL‑MaxSonar‑WR in a multi-sensor environment. The testing was conducted from 11/15/2012 to 11/19/2012. The following presents the test data from a four day, three sensor test to verify multisensor operation for the MB7360 ultrasonic sensor. The sensors tested were the MB7360 in free run mode with data captured using the RS232 serial output by a Serial to USB converters. A terminal program was used to capture the data into a text file.
Copies of the text files are provided at the bottom of this article. The text files that are available are not synchronized. The only modification to the text files was the removal of the ASCII character “R” for plotting purposes. The graphic below is a representation of the layout for the multi-sensor test. 
*Corrugated steel introduced some error in the mm range accuracy as the sensor cycled in the outdoor temperatures (Photos 1 and 3 show a clear definition of the corrugated steel ceiling) **The test area was an earth floor (Pictures 1, 2, and 3) so the exact distance to the ceiling varied slightly from sensor to sensor.
Multi-Sensor Test Setup Photo's
MB7360 Multi-Sensor Test Results
Sensor 1 Results
Sensor 2 Results
Please note the slight drop in the data was a real detection point. The sensor detected the technician when taking photo 4. The drop in data had 9 range readings in the following sequence: 0676, 0677, 0678, 0680, 0680, 0680, 0681, 0681, and 0681. Like stated this was a valid range reading, not only because the range readings where at the same distance, but because the sensor was reporting the range to hat the technician was wearing when taking photo 4.
Sensor 3 Results
During setup, the sensor was wired and handled in a room at 64 degrees Fahrenheit and then brought into an unheated room. This handling of the sensor during the test setup caused the drift in the reported range. This drift occurred because the internal temperature sensor was warmer than the air temperature. As a result, it took about 36 minutes for the sensor's internal temperature to match the air temperature.
Multi-Sensor Test Summary
All the test data (about 7.5mil. data points) gathered show there to be no interference from multi-sensor operation for the MB7360 in this test setup. MaxBotix Inc has presented test data and concludes that there will be little to no interference from MB7360 multi‑sensor operation in the application described to MaxBotix. It is still recommended that the customer tests multi‑sensor operation in their application prior to full integration, however, MaxBotix Inc doesn’t foresee multi‑sensor operation to be an issue with the MB7360 based on our test results.Test Data File Downloads
MB7360 Sensor Test DataProducts Related to the Article
MB7360 HRXL-MaxSonar-WR
The weather resistant HRXL-MaxSonar-WR is a rugged, ultrasonic sensor component module...
Buy NowMB7363 HRXL-MaxSonar-WRLS
The weather resistant HRXL-MaxSonar-WR is a rugged, ultrasonic sensor component module...
Buy NowMB7366 HRXL-MaxSonar-WRL
The weather resistant HRXL-MaxSonar-WR is a rugged, ultrasonic sensor component module...
Buy Now