Anchor Chain Counter smartphone App

[Bernd_]

Hi everyone,

I am an engineering student from Tasmania and I just uploaded my very first smart phone app called "anchor chain counter" to the Google play store. The app can measure the length of the deployed or retrieved anchor chain by analyzing the sound pattern produced by the anchor chain. Friends of mine have tested my first versions on their 11.5 m catamaran where the app seems to work very accurately. However, since every boat is different I would like to get some more feedback from other people here in the forum so I can further optimize the app for other boats if needed. Currently the app is only available for android devices. But I plan to release a version for apple devices in the future.
I would like to point out this is not meant to be an advertisement. The app is for free and the money from the built in advertisement will only be used for developing some other ideas where I need money to build prototypes.

Cheers,
Bernd

[Sailmonkey]

Is this based on a chain size or windlass type? I can make a whole lot of racket for a very short time and have all 225' of chain out, or make a little less noise and have all the chain out in 2ish minutes, but then there is the added windlass motor noise.




Sent from my iPhone using Cruisers Sailing Forum

[Bernd_]

You would have to input the length of one chain link. There is an FAQ section in the app which explains a little more about the app and how to set it up. I have not tested the maximum speed for the anchor chain that can still be detected accurately. But the maximum speed should be quite reasonable. If you get the chance to play around with that I would love to hear about it.
Most of the noise from the windless motor is filtered out and should therefore not be a big problem.

Cheers,
Bernd