Made GasTracker Manuel d'installation
GAS TRACKER
OPERATION MANUAL
March 2011
MADE V1.00
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Table of contents
Table of contents Page 2
Overview Page
The GasTracker™ Page 4
The transmitter Page 5
Procedure for connection of the transmitter Page 6
The receiver Page 8
Procedure for connection of the receiver Page 9
Prelocate mode Page 10
Pin-point mode Page 11
Frequently asked questions Page 16
Technical characteristics of the GasTracker™ Page 1
Warranty Page 18
Copyright Page 18
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Overview
The GasTracker™ is an instrument for tracing and identifying buried plastic gas pipes.
The method used is based on the propagation of a complex acoustic wave. Thanks to the
application-specific sensor and sophisticated signal analysis software, it is able to trace the
position and direction of a buried plastic pipe from the surface, even in noisy urban
environments.
The GasTracker™ is used on pipes operating at low pressure (21 mbar / psi) or at medium
pressure (4 bars / 58 psi). Scientific tests have been validated by GDF at up to 7 bars / 101 psi,
and field tests have been made at a maximum of 11 bars / 160 psi. It can actually even be used in
‘open air’ (atmospheric pressure).
It was developed to provide an easier, more efficient means to locate pipes resulting in a savings
of time and money. Manufactured in France and validated almost one decade ago by the French
group GDF, it is now used on all continents. This unique signal injection method is internationally
patented.
Operating the GasTracker™ typically requires the temporary disconnection of a customer for the
duration of the research.
However, the system can be connected at any convenient point.
The GasTracker™ just needs to access the gas, to vibrate it.
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The GasTracker™
It comes with two robust transport cases: one for the transmitter and one for the receiver.
The transmitter case:
• A carrying case containing the controls
and the internal batteries
• An orange cord to connect the transmitter
to the resonator tank
•A cigar-lighter plug
•An electric main cable
The receiver case:
•A hand-held receiver
•A listening device
•A resonator tank
•A rod
•A charger for the hand-held receiver
If some parts are missing, they can be purchased separately. Do not hesitate to contact your local
GasTracker™ dealer.
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The transmitter
Simple to manipulate, the transmitter sends a vibration through the gas.
In order to do this, a direct access to the gas is required, so you need a point of connection to
the network.
We usually recommend disconnecting a customer’s meter to connect the resonator tank here.
But it can actually be connected anywhere on the network, since you have made the good
adaptor.
Inside the resonator tank, an acoustic membrane will vibrate and create a very special acoustic
signature. This acoustic wave will vibrate every close particle of gas, which will in turn, vibrate
the next particles. This is how the signal is propagated into the network.
There is one simple rule: the bigger the diameter of injection, the greater the distance.
Here is a front view of the transmitter:
•Transmission signal (blinks
when the transmitter is in use)
•Battery level of charge
•Fault indicators
•ON button
•OFF button
•Receiver charger, only for the
old version of the GasTracker™
The GasTracker™ transmitter has two 12Volt (16A/h) internal rechargeable batteries. The
autonomy is about 5 hours on the field (in standard conditions).
In order to completely recharge the batteries, leave the transmitter connected to the electric
main overnight. It will automatically stop once the charge is completed, to avoid damaging the
batteries.
If you intend to store the GasTracker™ for a long period of time, we recommend doing this
with batteries fully charged.
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Procedure for connection of the transmitter
1. Connecting the resonator tank.
-Disconnect a customer’s meter with all the safety procedures required for this operation.
(Or find an access point anywhere on the network).
-Affix the resonator tank to the pipe end thanks to the proper adaptor.
-Check to ensure the purge valve is open (on the resonator tank).
-Slowly open the gas valve and check there are no leaks on the pipe.
- Using the purge valve of the resonator tank, remove the air out of it totally.
(Keep the purge valve open about 5 seconds)
-Close the purge valve on the resonator tank.
-Open your gas valve fully.
Now your system is safely connected to the gas network, and almost ready to be used.
2. Connecting the transmitter and starting it.
-Plug the orange cord from the transmitter to the resonator tank.
-Press the ‘on’ button.
You should now hear the noise of the signal.
ATTENTION: ALWAYS OPEN/CLOSE NETWORK AND PURGE VALVE SLOWYLY TO AVOID
DAMAGING THE MEMBRANE INSIDE THE RESONATOR TANK.
Repeated shocks due to pressure on the membrane may break it.
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Things to know about the transmitter:
For safety reasons, always make sure the joints are gas tight, and there are no leaks.
You may sometimes hear a rattling noise inside the resonator tank. This is normal.
The resonator tank can be plugged in any direction, upside down, horizontally, vertically, etc.
There is no ATEX requirement for the GasTracker™ since it is used outside, in open air.
The vibration is non-destructive for pipe walls and T connections.
Optimal results will be obtained in ‘normal’ environment conditions. Extreme temperatures may
affect the transmission of the signal, because it may affect soil conditions.
The signal is propagated from the pipe to the surface through the soil. As it is a vibration, the
more compact the soil, the better the values you can expect.
Compact soils, like asphalt or concrete, will always give
better results than soft grounds like grass or earth; especially
over longer distances.
The distance covered by the GasTracker™ will mainly depend
on the soil compaction. Field experience has proven that an
‘average’ distance would be about 200 meters (650 feet), in
both directions.
Always try to connect your transmitter close to where you
need to find the pipe: if you need to locate a pipe in a street,
try to connect your resonator tank somewhere in this street,
so you can get higher results in the interesting area.
All around the transmitter, the signal generated will be so powerful you may have difficulties
locating the pipe at the starting point. We recommend moving a few meters, or feet, away from
the transmitter before starting a locate campaign (see next chapter).
. To stop the transmitter
-Switch off the transmitter, and disconnect the orange cord from the resonator tank.
-Close the network valve, and slowly purge the gas out of the resonator tank.
-Unplug the resonator tank.
-Reconnect your customer using all the safety procedures your company requires.
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The receiver
The GasTracker™ receiver is composed of two distinct parts: the listening device, which will listen
to the ground micro-vibrations, and the hand-held receiver that will display the results.
The receiver has two different modes: Prelocate, and Pin-Point.
-Prelocate:
Mode to quickly identify the area where the pipe is located.
-Pin-Point:
Mode to accurately locate and trace the pipe.
Knowing this, the ‘standard’ procedure of utilization of the receiver will be:
First, using the Prelocate mode, you quickly confirm the presence (or absence) of the pipe in a
designated area.
Second, once you know approximately where the gas service/line is, you switch to Pin-Point to
enable you to accurately find good spots, and trace your yellow dots on the ground.
Here is the face view of the receiver:
•ON/OFF buttons
•High visibility screen
•Change the gain
•Go to Prelocate mode
•Go to Pin-point mode / Start a new calculation
The receiver works with a rechargeable battery. Its autonomy is about 8 hours. The charger is
provided. The hand-held receiver supplies the listening device.
Like for the transmitter, we recommend to leave it charged overnight for a complete cycle.
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Procedure for connection of the receiver
Set up the receiver.
-Use the military connectors to plug the hand-held receiver to the listening device.
-Connect the carrying rod to the listening device.
Your receiver is ready to use!
IMPORTANT: The listening device has three long feet, to ‘listen’ to vibrations.
If you are working over a hard surface like
concrete, pavement, asphalt, etc., just put the
listening device on the ground.
If you are working over a soft surface like
grass or earth, we recommend pushing with
your foot the listening device in the ground.
Push until you reach hard enough soil.
Things to know about the gain:
The gain is the sensitivity of the receiver. When you switch it on, the default value is ‘Gain 1’.
Gain 1 is used when you are still close to the transmitter, and the signal is strong enough.
As distance increases, the signal will slowly decrease. Once the signal is too low, you will switch
to ‘Gain 10’ to have a better sensitivity, and you will better ‘hear’ the signal.
IMPORTANT: Depending on the soil compaction, it is sometimes necessary to immediately
switch to gain 10, even few meter, or feet, away from the transmitter. It is all about compaction
of the ground.
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Prelocate mode
Use Prelocate mode to quickly identify the area where the pipe is located.
-Press the ‘on’ button.
-Press ‘Prelocate’ button.
-Put the listening device where the pipe is supposed to be (or where you think it is)
-Wait two seconds.
-Read the bars on the screen in real time.
Results will appear as a bargraph:
Left: a little bit of signal Right: a lot of signal
For both: check that the bars remain constant
If you are over the pipe, there will be a lot of bars across the screen. If you do not see any bars,
the pipe is certainly somewhere else.
In this mode, your results will be slightly impacted by the ambient noise. If you stomp on the
floor, you will see a lot of bars on your screen, BUT these bars will disappear to zero a few
seconds later.
This is why, in Prelocate mode, you are looking for constant bars.
Constant bar = Constant vibration = Constant signal sent by the transmitter.
Example: If you have to locate the pipe in a street, always check with Prelocate mode the entire
street in perpendicular to cover the entire surface, from one sidewalk to the other. If you do
this, you should find a place where you have a lot of signal: your pipe is there.
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