Features
Measuring the static electric
field generated by thunderclouds the Boltek EFM-100 not only detects nearby lightning but can detect the atmospheric
conditions which precede lightning. Electric field data is displayed and graphed
on your desktop computer using the included software.
For complete electrical isolation from the field mill outside, the
EFM-100
connects to your computer using a fiber optic cable. The EFM-100
features aluminum and stainless steel construction for corrosion
resistance, gold plated
connectors throughout, and the highest quality ball-bearing brushless
dc motor for
excellent reliability.
Detect lightning up to 30 miles
away.
Detect the conditions which
precede lightning.
Monitor the electric charge above
and near your location.
Monitor up to four separate
locations on your PC.
Watch trends develop.
Attention getting alarms.
Review archived data from
previous storms.
Stay current with free software
updates from the Boltek website.
Electric fields
develop wherever there is a difference in electric potential. If the electric
field gets high enough you can feel your hair stand on end (if this happens
outdoors during a thunderstorm crouch down with your feet together as you are
about to be struck by lightning.) An electric field is what attracts your
hair to a charged comb or a charged balloon.
The electric charge contained in a
thundercloud also generates an electric field. This field can be measured on the
ground.
Electric field is measured in Volts per meter (3.3 feet) The electric fields
which accompany thunderstorms normally measure in the thousands of Volts per
meter, usually abbreviated to kV/m. Lightning is detected as a
sudden change in the static electric field.
The EFM-100 software has three built-in alarms: High
Field,
Very
High Field, and a Lightning
alarm.
Both the the High Field and Very High Field alarms activate
if the electric field magnitude rises above a preset level (user configurable). For
example: 1 kV/m for High Field alarm and 5 kV/m for the Very High
Field alarm.
The display turns red when the Very High Field
alarm is active.
The software plays a user selectable WAV file when an alarm activates.
The WAV file messages will repeat at a predefined frequency (user-configurable)
The display turns yellow when the High Field
Alarm is active.
Once the field returns to normal the display will
return to green.
The Lightning Alarm is activated if a sudden electric field change is detected.
Here a thunderstorm has passed over.
Up to four field mills can be monitored. The field mills can be
connected to the computer directly (fiber optic cable to USB/RS232) or remotely
over a network (either locally or the internet)
Electric field data can be logged to your hard
drive for review at a later date.
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