Author Topic: Trying to figure out how a stormcope/strikefinder lightning detector works  (Read 526 times)

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Offline 4flyerTopic starter

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Hey guys,

I am trying to figure out how stormscope/strikefinder lightning detectors work. These are lightning detectors that are put on aircraft that not only indicate when lightning is nearby, it displays the relative distance and direction of the lightning. I get that the system detects the radio waves emitted by the lighting (probably on 500kHz), and then sends the signal to a processor to figure out the strength. The antenna also seems to be a loop antenna but how they make the antenna so small and how they get it to "rotate" electrically is beyond me. Can anybody help me or point me in the right direction on how these systems work? I would love to try and make my own. Thanks! Here are some links to what I am referring to:

https://www.bennettavionics.com/wx-500-stormscope/

http://www.insightavionics.com/pdf%20files/STRIKE%20GUIDE.pdf
 

Offline cur8xgo

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https://patents.google.com/patent/US5295072A/en

should be able to start there and find all the other patents as well

would def be a fun project

EDIT: actually here you go, I think this is where it started..at least in the 90's https://patents.google.com/patent/US4023408A/en

I bet you a lightning scope/meter like this evolved over 50 years and there is probably some kind of earlier version in the 70s, 60s, 50s, etc..

EDIT: OH dam that thing is from the 70s! And there is a schematic! I do not need more projects but this is pretty great
« Last Edit: April 25, 2020, 04:51:51 am by cur8xgo »
 
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