Depth-averaged currents and distribution of near-surface specific conductance in coastal Lake Erie in the vicinity of Villa Angela Beach and Euclid Creek, Ohio on September 11, 2012 Produced in VMT using data from a TRDI 600 KHz Rio Grande ADCP and supplementary specific conductance data from an autonomous underwater vehicle (AUV) that completed a simulataeous three-dimensional survey.

Depth-averaged velocity and primary and secondary velocities (Rozovskii definition) in the confluence of the White and Wabash Rivers along the Illinois and Indiana border, January 12, 2008. Produced in VMT using data from a TRDI 1200 KHz Rio Grande ADCP and additional formatting using Adobe Illustrator.

Overview

VMT is a Matlab-based software for processing and visualizing ADCP data collected along transects in rivers or other bodies of water. VMT allows rapid processing, visualization, and analysis of a range of ADCP datasets and includes utilities to export ADCP data to files compatible with ArcGIS, Tecplot, and Google Earth. The software can be used to explore patterns of three-dimensional fluid motion through several methods for calculation of secondary flows (e.g. Rhoads and Kenworthy, 1998; Lane et al., 2000). The software also includes capabilities for analyzing the acoustic backscatter and bathymetric data from the ADCP. A user-friendly graphical user interface (GUI) enhances program functionality and provides ready access to two- and three- dimensional plotting functions, allowing rapid display and interrogation of velocity, backscatter, and bathymetry data.

VMT is capable of processing ADCP data from all TRDI ADCPs, the SonTek M9, and SonTek S5. The SonTek RS5 is not supported by VMT at this time.

See our paper in Earth Surface Processes and Landforms (DOI: 10.1002/esp.3367)

Downloading the Software

USGS Software Users Rights Notice

The software is available both as compiled executables and source code. To access the compiled executables, click the links in the table below. The source code is housed in a GitHub repository, available here as a ZIP archive. To install, extract the contents of the ZIP file, ensuring that the folder structure in the file is preserved, and start VMT.m in Matlab version 2012a or newer. Note that to enable full functionality of VMT in source code mode, you will need the Mapping Toolbox license in your distribution of Matlab.

Using the Software and Tutorials

The following resources are available for using the VMT software.

• VMT Source Repository (Github)
• Tutorials and Example Data (Outdated, new versions coming soon!)
  • Tutorial #1 -- Generating ASCII output files in WinRiver II
  • Tutorial #2 -- Transect averaging and basic processing
  • Tutorial #3 -- Flow visualization through a reach
  • Tutorial #4 -- The ASCII2KML utility
  • Tutorial #5 -- The ASCII2GIS utility
• Example input data and output data may be downloaded for use with the above tutorials.
• Lecture Notes from VMT Short-course (Snowbird, 2012)
  • Introduction to Velocity Mapping
  • Velocity Survey Planning
  • Instrumentation, Gear, and Measurement Procedures
  • VMT Background & Applications
  • VMT Interface and Key Concepts
  • VMT Utilities
  • Limitations and Considerations in Velocity Mapping
  • The Future of VMT

OSW CLASS: Velocity Mapping and Bathymetry with ADCPs

This week-long class is designed to provide ADCP users familiar with discharge measurements with the skills, resources, and techniques necessary for velocity mapping and bathymetry surveys with an ADCP. Students will learn how to plan and execute surveys through several days of classroom and field work. Students will learn to process the data they collected and visualize and export it in a range of formats for delivery to cooperators, modelers, and the general public.

Class Information

For details on the class, or to sign up for the next class session, see the links below or contact Ryan Jackson, Kevin Oberg, or Frank Engel.

• Current Hydroacoustic Training Schedule
• Software
  • VMT software
  • Matlab MCR v7.17
  • WinRiver II (version 2.04 or higher)
  • RDI Tools
  • A GPS navigation software such as Hypack, Fugawi, Global Mapper, or ArcGIS10
  • ArcGIS (version 10 preferred)

Selected References

Parsons, D.R., Jackson, P.R., Czuba, J.A., Oberg, K.A., Mueller, D.S., Rhoads, B., Best, J.L., Johnson, K.K., Engel, F., and Riley, J. (2013) Velocity Mapping Toolbox (VMT): a processing and visualization suite for moving-vessel ADCP measurements, Earth Surface Processes and Landforms. doi: 10.1002/esp.3367.

Lane, S.N., K.F. Bradbrook, K.S. Richards, P.M. Biron, and A.G. Roy (2000) Secondary circulation cells in river channel confluences: Measurement artefacts or coherent flow structures?, Hydrol. Processes, 14, 2047- 2071.

Rhoads, B.L., and S.T. Kenworthy (1999) On secondary circulation, helical motion and Rozovskii-based analysis of time-averaged two-dimensional velocity fields at confluences. Earth Surface Processes and Landforms, 24, 369-375.