Free-flow fluid measurement meter

摘要

Apparatus for measuring a liquid's flow rate which includes a housing, a set of electrical sensors and a processing apparatus. The housing includes a separation wall which divides the housing into measurement and discharge chambers and contains a slot which allows the liquid to freely flow from the measurement chamber into the discharge chamber. The sensor apparatus includes a reference sensor and a common sensor positioned proximate to the floor, and a set of measurement sensors positioned within the measurement chamber. The measurement sensors are spaced apart in a generally vertical stepped continuum stretching from the floor to a height substantially equal to the top of the separation wall. A processing apparatus processes the data according to a preprogrammed process. Processing includes measuring an electrical parameter of the liquid proximate to the floor of the apparatus and at various levels of the liquid and normalizing the results. The normalized values can be correlated to the flow rate of the liquid.