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Inland waterways, measured for every passage.

Barges need water under the keel, clearance under bridges and a lock ready when they arrive. Level and flow sensors along the river, weather stations and cameras at locks report to one record that the waterway authority, lock keepers and skippers share through river information services.

Industry

Transport

Measurements

5

Sources cited

4

1. Transport · Inland waterways and locks

   Water under the keel

   A barge loads to the water it expects to find downstream. Too little water and it grounds; too much and the next bridge is too low. Waterways that measure levels along every reach let skippers load right, plan every passage and pass every bridge safely.

2. What is measured

   Levels, depths, flows and weather

   Gauges at locks, weirs, bridges and critical reaches read water level against the datum; surveys give fairway depth; weirs and gauging sections give flow. Weather stations at locks and bends read wind and visibility, and cameras watch lock approaches and bridges.

   Instruments

   Level gauges · Hydrographic surveys · Weir flows · Weather and visibility · Lock cameras

3. The base node

   A lock node that knows the clearance

   Each lock’s node reads its gauges and cameras, signs every value and keeps it through any lost link. It follows levels up and down the reach, computes depth and bridge clearance available now and raises low-water, high-water and visibility notices.

4. Radio and links

   LoRaWAN along the river, cellular home

   Gauges along a reach reach a gateway at the nearest lock over LoRaWAN at very low power. Locks report to the waterway centre over the public cellular network along the river, and skippers keep their marine radio while notices reach them through river information services.

   Links

   LoRaWAN · Public cellular · VHF marine radio

5. How it works

   From a falling gauge to a loading plan

   A gauge at a shallow reach reads the level falling. The endpoint signs it and sends it over LoRaWAN to the lock node, which computes the depth available and issues a low-water notice through the river information services. Skippers upstream adjust their loads, and the record keeps the notice.

6. From order to operation · Order

   Scope the waterway and its notices

   The scope reads the waterway’s locks, weirs, bridges and shallows, the river information services in place and the flood arrangements. Nexus Observatory Inc. returns the point plan by reach, the radio design, the integration with river information services and a price per point and per service.

   Plan a deployment

7. From order to operation · Survey

   Survey from the bank and the boat

   Crews survey with the authority’s engineers from the bank and by boat: stable gauge sites at locks, weirs and bridges, levels of the highest recorded water, gateway coverage along each reach and camera views of lock approaches. They record access in high and low water.

8. From order to operation · Permits

   Banks, structures and the river

   Points on locks, weirs and bridges need the authority’s or the owner’s consent, and works in the river need the water authority’s permission. Data sharing with flood managers is agreed in writing, and every consent is kept with the point it covers.

9. From order to operation · Build

   Build for the riverbank

   Gauges, weather stations, cameras, endpoints, gateways and nodes are built, tested together and enrolled with their identities. Each is configured for its reach, the datum and its notice levels, and labelled with its river kilometre. Spares are kept at each lock for quick swaps.

   Open the Station Builder

10. From order to operation · Install

    Install at low water

    Crews install at low water: gauges on stable structures levelled to the datum, weather stations at locks and bends, cameras on lock approaches and gateways at the locks. Every point is photographed and located by river kilometre for the record.

11. From order to operation · Commission

    Check against the staff gauge

    Each device proves its identity. Levels are checked against staff gauges and the datum, flows against field measurements, weather against a reference. Notices are tested through the river information services to skippers and lock control. Each point joins the record only when every check passes.

12. From order to operation · Operate

    Plan every passage on evidence

    Skippers see levels, depth and bridge clearance along their route and load to the water available. Lock keepers see approaches and conditions, and the authority issues notices when water is low or high. Flood managers use the same levels, and every notice is kept on record.

13. From order to operation · Maintain

    Keep levels true to the datum

    Gauges are checked against staff gauges and the datum on schedule and after floods, debris is cleared, cameras cleaned and batteries changed on plan. Every change is recorded, so long level series stay consistent for navigation and flood planning. Spares are kept at the locks.

    Book field services

14. Data products

    For skippers, lock keepers and flood managers

    Skippers and fleet planners receive levels, depth and bridge clearance along their route; waterway authorities issue low- and high-water notices; lock keepers receive approach conditions; flood managers receive the same river levels. Each product carries its datum, siting and calibration.

    See the data products

15. Evidence

    Levels skippers can trust

    Every reading, notice and check is signed and kept with its time and river kilometre. Levels follow hydrological practice, depths follow hydrographic survey standards, and notices travel through harmonised river information services, so skippers, authorities and flood managers read the same evidence.

    Drawn against

    WMO-No. 168 · IHO S-44 · Directive 2005/44/EC · OGC WaterML

16. What you get

    Hydrometeorological and flood observing networks

    Stream gauges, rain gauges, weather radar and automatic weather stations built to WMO practice, reporting through WIS 2.0 where the agency requires it. Delivered as hardware + software, managed service and build-operate-transfer, for national meteorological and hydrological services, river-basin agencies, utilities.

    Talk to sales

17. Next step

    Plan inland waterways and locks with us

    Tell us the site, the measurements and the rules it answers to. We reply with a survey proposal, a design and a scope for inland waterways and locks. An engineer replies with a survey proposal and a scope, and the plan grows from one site to the network you need, at your pace.

    Plan a deploymentOpen the Station BuilderOpen the Studio

01The place and its hazards

Where it runs, and what can go wrong.

Operating contextWaterway authorities manage rivers and canals for navigation with locks, weirs and dredged channels. Skippers plan loading on the depth available and pass bridges on the clearance at the current level. River information services share levels, notices and traffic, and the same measurements serve flood management.

Hazards

• Low water limiting loads or closing the waterway
• High water reducing bridge clearance or closing locks
• Strong currents and wind at locks and bends
• Fog and poor visibility
• Lock and weir failures

02What must be measured

What, where, how often, and under which rules.

Each measurement names where it is taken, how often, and the public standard or regulation behind it. Numbers in the sources column open the cited source below.

03The observation stack

From one base unit to a network.

The same blocks at every scale: instruments and a base node, a site with its radio, a fleet run as one, and a network federated on the open protocol.

1. 01

   Base unit

   A river point: a level gauge or weather station on a LoRaWAN endpoint that signs every value, or a lock node with its cameras.

   Build a station →
2. 02

   Site

   A reach: points from lock to lock, a gateway at each lock and a cellular link to the waterway centre.

   Plan a site →
3. 03

   Fleet

   Every reach of a waterway run as one fleet, with one record.

   Managed offers →
4. 04

   Network

   Waterway authorities, flood managers and skippers exchange levels and notices through river information services and open standards.

   The open protocol →

• 01Water level gauge
• 02Flow meter
• 03Compact weather station
• 04PTZ camera
• 05LPWAN endpoint
• 06LoRaWAN gateway
• 07Edge node (Wedge)
• 08Cellular modem/router
• 09Solar array
• 10Pole

Radio and links

LoRaWAN

Gauges along a reach reach a gateway at the nearest lock at very low power.

Radio and links

Public cellular

Locks and gateways report to the waterway centre over the public network along the river.

Radio and links

VHF and UHF radio

Skippers keep their marine radio; level notices reach them through river information services and voice.

Edge computeEach lock’s node follows levels up and down the reach, computes the depth and bridge clearance available now and raises low-water, high-water and visibility notices for the river information services.

PowerGauges run on batteries or small solar panels above the highest recorded water; lock nodes run on lock power with a battery.

04How it works

From the instrument to the product.

One observation’s path, tier by tier, with the interface on every link and a bill of materials below; then how the one node grows to a site, a fleet and federated networks.

05From order to operation

Every step, from the first call to a running site.

The same crew and the same record carry the work from scope to maintenance.

1. 01 Order

   Scope the waterway and its notices

   The scope reads the waterway’s locks, weirs, bridges and shallows, the river information services in place and the flood arrangements. Nexus Observatory Inc. returns the point plan by reach, the radio design, the integration with river information services and a price per point and per service. 2

2. 02 Survey

   Survey from the bank and the boat

   Crews survey with the authority’s engineers from the bank and by boat: stable gauge sites at locks, weirs and bridges, levels of the highest recorded water, gateway coverage along each reach and camera views of lock approaches. They record access in high and low water.

3. 03 Permits

   Banks, structures and the river

   Points on locks, weirs and bridges need the authority’s or the owner’s consent, and works in the river need the water authority’s permission. Data sharing with flood managers is agreed in writing, and every consent is kept with the point it covers.

4. 04 Build

   Build for the riverbank

   Gauges, weather stations, cameras, endpoints, gateways and nodes are built, tested together and enrolled with their identities. Each is configured for its reach, the datum and its notice levels, and labelled with its river kilometre. Spares are kept at each lock for quick swaps.

5. 05 Install

   Install at low water

   Crews install at low water: gauges on stable structures levelled to the datum, weather stations at locks and bends, cameras on lock approaches and gateways at the locks. Every point is photographed and located by river kilometre for the record. 1

6. 06 Commission

   Check against the staff gauge

   Each device proves its identity. Levels are checked against staff gauges and the datum, flows against field measurements, weather against a reference. Notices are tested through the river information services to skippers and lock control. Each point joins the record only when every check passes.

7. 07 Operate

   Plan every passage on evidence

   Skippers see levels, depth and bridge clearance along their route and load to the water available. Lock keepers see approaches and conditions, and the authority issues notices when water is low or high. Flood managers use the same levels, and every notice is kept on record. 23

8. 08 Maintain

   Keep levels true to the datum

   Gauges are checked against staff gauges and the datum on schedule and after floods, debris is cleared, cameras cleaned and batteries changed on plan. Every change is recorded, so long level series stay consistent for navigation and flood planning. Spares are kept at the locks.

06Data products and integration

What it delivers, to whom, and into which systems.

Data products

• Levels, depth and bridge clearanceSkippers and fleet planners
• Low- and high-water noticesSkippers and waterway authorities
• Lock approach conditionsLock keepers
• River levels for flood managementFlood managers

Integration

• River information servicesLevels and notices are delivered to the services skippers already use.
• Flood forecastingLevels and flows are shared through OGC WaterML and SensorThings.
• Lock controlConditions and images reach lock control screens beside its own systems.

Exchanged through OGC WaterML 2.0, OGC SensorThings API, River Information Services.

07Questions buyers ask

Before you scope it.

Do skippers need new equipment?

No. Levels and notices reach them through the river information services they already use.

Can the same gauges serve flood warning?

Yes. Flood managers read the same levels, under their own procedures.

What about fog?

Visibility sensors at locks and bends raise notices when visibility falls.

Are gauges safe in floods?

They are mounted above recorded floods and keep their data through any lost link.

08Resources

The sources behind this page.

Public standards, regulations and guidance, cited where they apply. Each applies only where its jurisdiction or scope does.

1. 1Guide to Hydrological Practices (WMO-No. 168)World Meteorological Organization
2. 2Directive 2005/44/EC on harmonised river information servicesEuropean Union · 2005
3. 3IHO Standards for Hydrographic Surveys (S-44)International Hydrographic Organization
4. 4Guide to Instruments and Methods of Observation (WMO-No. 8)World Meteorological Organization

09Related

Use cases and solutions.

10Transport: specialized fields

Other fields of this industry.

Bring us the site.

Plan a deployment, configure a station, model it in the Studio or talk to sales. The form names who receives your details.