As any designer and engineer knows, all designs are a balance of trade-offs, cost and product features ride the same elevator. Regardless of features, any product can be termed a “quality” product if it meets the design intent without statistically significant failures. An origami weather station could be high quality and meet the design intent, but its features (including materials) may not result in a long product life.
Many personal weather stations are optimized for cost. One of the methods to reduce cost of these weather stations is to minimize materials and simplify installation by combining all of the sensing components into a single unit which can be mounted on a pole.
When evaluating this type of weather station, users should recognize that this clustered configuration affects the measurements. Often the air flow around the cluster will affect the wind direction and speed. Similarly, rain gauges position over the temperature and humidity sensors will affect the temperature as the collected rain is discharged over the radiation shield.
Rain gauges often use a tipping bucket mechanism. When mounted on a pole, the rain gauge may shake and vibrate during a storm. The vibrations may cause the tipping bucket to actuate too soon.
In spite of these issues, the clustered weather station may be adequate for many applications. But, if you want to know the wind affecting the canopy of your orchard or forest and the temperature or humidity near the ground, these systems may not deliver the required data.
A more robust and flexible solution, such as Dyacon weather stations, provide the flexibility to position sensors where they are needed for the best measurement data for the application. Independent sensor also allow for serviceability and a longer product life, allowing users to maximize their investment.
For professional applications, ease-of-use, data connectivity, and serviceability, Dyacon weather stations are a compelling solution.
Let us know how we can help meet your weather station needs.
Eugene
