Omnimeter
 

By popular demand...

Now you only have to figure out how the thing works...

http://img6.imageshack.us/img6/2120/...erovera.th.jpg

http://img101.imageshack.us/img101/3...headhei.th.jpg

http://img80.imageshack.us/img80/8190/dsc00170b.th.jpg

http://img191.imageshack.us/img191/572/dsc00167z.th.jpg

http://img513.imageshack.us/img513/2...00166ki.th.jpg

http://img404.imageshack.us/img404/4...00150lz.th.jpg

http://img39.imageshack.us/img39/1331/dsc00149pc.th.jpg

http://img6.imageshack.us/img6/3016/dsc00148fy.th.jpg

http://img64.imageshack.us/img64/8682/dsc00147rg.th.jpg

http://img243.imageshack.us/img243/2...erovera.th.jpg

Have fun...

Hi, what a nice steel tool, impressive :up:

I think I read how a shot was screwed up by reading off the wrong periscope power scale, and here is the very scale to ponder. Thanks for the pictures.

Most cool Gino.

I'd say it works like the stadimeter. Pick masthead height, count the number of divisions (in either x1,5 or x6 scope) and slide - then read off the distance on the right side of the scale - Simple and fast.

is there ANY possibility that you can put that thing into a high-res (or even low-res) scanner and provide the scanned image to us?

Something more about 'the tool'. It's quite heavy, but the sliders go really smooth. Mind that this is a handmade tool. The quality of the craftsmanship is beyond anything you can get nowadays.
How do I know that it's handmade, check out one of the pictures. The craftsman made a mistake... instead of 10,000 he first made 9...
It's also made for the boat that's named on it. Every boat built by Electric boat Co received (amongst other things) one of these.
E-boat Co also gave the submarine a number of playing cards. These were especially made for submarines. The red Hearts and Diamonds were printed in a different way. We are currently searching for the design of the back of these cards, so we can reproduce them.

Anybody here that can help us?

groetjes,

I'm working on that. The president of the USS Cod Submarine Memorial is recovering from surgery. He has the Omnimeter at home. I will contact him this weekend to see how he's doing, and I'll tell him about your request. Please have patience, the answer may take a little time...

Groetjes,

Excellent
 

Gino;
thanks for that.
regards,
Tomoose

HTML version
 

I've managed to create a virtual omnimeter in HTML format. You can slide the appropriate parts just like the real thing etc.

The only problem is that I used the images as currently provided by Gino which are off-angle and difficult to line up despite my trying with my graphics program. I've asked Gino for a straight-on shot or a scanned image which will resolve the issue. The only other option is to manually input all the line graduations which I don't have time for at the moment (too lazy, LOL).:yawn:

If Gino can get the images then I'll finish it up and post for DL within the next week or so (that will include testing during the game to see if it actually works).:salute:

Very cool gadget.

Gino - not to hijack your thread, but can I request your expert opinion on this?

http://www.subsim.com/radioroom/show...&postcount=427

http://www.subsim.com/radioroom/show...&postcount=429

The red needles on the diving gauges... It's correct to assume that they were used for steering correct depth, since they are on the gauges for shallow depth and that they are on both the gauges for both planes-men.
I think that the needles (they are 'adjustable') were set however the commander of the boat, or the diving officer wanted them. So, one for the attack periscope, and one for the observation scope. With the introduction of radar, that may have been used also. On the Guppies they may have been set to the snorkel depth, etc.
That you see different readings on various boats has a simple reason; people have adjusted them for whatever reason. The painted ones could have been made because the needles were missing, or the gauges had not been equipped with the needles. If you look at "The Fleet Type Submarine" you will find a drawing of the dive control station with gauges that do not have red needles. This could mean that this was a modification that was introduced during the war, or just after.
What they are currently set to is up to the discretion of the shipkeeper...

Groetjes,

Really cool device!:cool: I wonder if it could be added to the game as a "dial" on the overlay such as the stopwatch?:hmmm:

Now...what a great idea... I think you'll notice that some people are already working on something.

As for the device: I only know of it's existence, I held it in my hands once, and I have an idea of how it works ( I also know the source to go to if I don't...)

Groetjes,

OK,

so I have some more pictures. Although htey're not what you wanted, but I have some good news.

Somewhere this week I should receive scans/photos made from the front.
For this the Omnimeter that we have has to be disassembled.

http://img97.imageshack.us/img97/2125/dsc00157px.th.jpg

http://img541.imageshack.us/img541/2...c00145c.th.jpg

Groetjes,

Thanks.
 

Gino;
appreciate your efforts. Can't you just remove the two 'knobs' and lay the whole thing down in a scanner?
I'm not sure if it will be too reflective given the shiny surface. Good luck with that. I've got my little html application standing by and if the scan works then it should just be a simple cut and paste into the application.
:salute:

Hello,

how the omnimeter works is very easily, and can be used as substitute for a broken split prism stadimeter by using the marks in the scopes (At 6x zoom 1 big mark= 1 degree). You simply drag the sliding part and place estimated mast heigth opposite the measured numbers of marks in the scope at high or low power (thus the double scale) and read in the distance scale the resulting distance to target opposite the same mark but in the range scale. The Sine scale on the right allows doing the same with hull length instead of mast heigth, and the sine scale serves for correcting for the shortened hull size when the target is angled.

:up:

My contribution
 

The linked video shows what I've done so far using some html techniques. The actual movement of the 'slides' is very smooth compared to how it looks in the video. It's not much but it's all I can offer back to subsim at the moment. I've had this sitting on desktop and just alt-tab out to use it then alt-tab back into SH4. It works fine. The problem is that the images used have been taken from a distance and at a slight angle which throws off the graduations and lining them up thereby affecting the overall accuracy of the digital tool. If Gino can get a clear scan of the device and provide images then this will be a done deal and I'll make it available for all. Having said that, I'm not sure if the graduations on the actual scope are realistic in that they can be used with the omnimeter. I've used this rough version and what the omnimeter was giving me was close to what I saw in the scope graduations but not perfect.
http://smg.photobucket.com/albums/v6...=omnimeter.mp4

Update
 

I've briefly tested my 'virtual' omnimeter by comparing my TDC data with what the omnimeter shows.
Allowing for the discrepancies caused by the fuzzy graduations on the virtual omnimeter it actually seems to work!
Here's what I tried;
1. Get mast height from ID book then slide this figure on the omnimeter. (pause game, alt-tab to my virtual omnimeter slide rule on desktop etc).
2. Get range to target using TDC and stadimeter.
3. Check scope graduation indicated on omnimeter by the combination of the mast height and range data.
4. Check on periscope (high power) to see if marks on periscope match what omnimeter tells me (i.e. omnimeter indicates 2 1/2 graduations on high power on the scope should match the mast height in my scope picture). It seems to work better if the scope marks are set from the main deck to the mast top as opposed to from the surface of the water to the mast top.

It seems to work albeit not exact. I've only used high power markings so far as low power doesn't give a good clear indication of the masts at distance (at least on my poor rig).
I haven't figured out what the angle on the bow slide is supposed to do as yet.
:salute:

It should convert the angular length of the target into an AoB, given the correct target length.

Thanks
 

So if I set the mast height on the one slide and it indicates (for the sake of an example) 2 on high power.
Then how is the AOB slide used?
Is the actual AOB lined up with the high power 2 mark? i.e. if the AOB is 70 then I slide the AOB slider to line the 70 up with...? There is a black arrow at the 90 AOB mark which I'm not sure about either.
:salute:

Right, it's a bit of guesswork and a bit of science. Which information do you have and what information do you want?

OK, so assuming you know how to use the omnimeter to get the target range from the mast head height and telemeter scale, then what you need to do is to reverse the process to get the foreshortened length in feet of the target based on the angular length. So if the target was at 2,000 yards and it spanned five horizontal graduations on the telemeter, then set 5 against 2,000 and the indicated mast head height is the foreshortened (due to the AoB) target length.

Now, if you know what the target length is, then you can set the 90 (with the black arrow) against the known target length (using the range in yards scale) and then where the measured target length in feet is (read as against range in yards) then that's the AoB.

Or, if you guesstimate the AoB, or plot it to work out the AoB, you can deduce the real target length by placing the plotted AoB against the foreshortened target length and where the black arrow at 90 is will be the true target length.

Target length can then be used with the Torpedo Spread Angle Calculator to work out what spread angles to use.