All-fiber laser Doppler anemometer

Laser-based remote wind systems work from Doppler-shifted scattering by aerosols in the atmosphere. These devices have been developed over decades, but their integrated opto-components and the associated signal processing are only now reaching an operational state, thanks to new laser and detection systems emerging from the communication industry, where they are becoming stable, eye-safe, cost-effective, and commercial available. A fiber based laser Doppler anemometer (LDA) was developed in the laboratory. Measurements of moving hard targets (wheels, loudspeakers) and soft targets (spray) were carried out and will be reported upon. At the beginning of the development a virtual instrument was used to design the sensor and was subsequently modified after the first flight test using a CO2 LDA. It was used to design a compact fiber sensor.