educational piv
educational piv
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educational piv
FLOWlab | Educational PIV System - Image 2
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educational piv

FLOWlab | Educational PIV System

Light Source

500mW or 0,.5W Laser Diode Pulsing System

Imaging Rate

Up to 160 fps (80 fps double frame)

Flow Velocity

Up to 0.4 m/s

Software

PIVlab (open source)

Measurement Section

140 mm x 125 mm x 200 mm

Water Tank Dimensions

1200 mm x 150 mm x 300 mm

Brand:

Educational PIV Measurement System by OPTOLUTION

The OPTOLUTION FLOWlab is an educational PIV system that features a small circulating water tunnel for education. It is bundled with a 500 mW (Laser class 2M) or 5W (Laser class 4) pulsed laser with synchronizer and sheet optics, and the OPTOcam 2/80 (160 fps, 2 megapixels, USB 3.0) with a band pass filter. These components offer unparalleled PIV performance in a cost-effective eduPIV package. Inside the water tunnel, a powerful thruster generates a velocity up to 0.4 m/s. Several flow straighteners rectify the flow in the test section measuring 140 x 125 x 200 mm. Three example flow bodies are supplied that can be examined by the students. In the near future, OPTOLUTION will also provide scripts for practical courses that involve the  analysis of the vortex shedding frequency of cylinders, the circulation (lift) of flat and cambered wings, and more common tasks dealing with PIV in general.

Furthermore, by using bandpass filters in the camera, the experimental lab does not need to be darkened, making it an ideal tool for an educational setting.

All-Inclusive, Ready to Go

  • Circulating channel / aquarium: Water tank (approx. 1200 mm x 150 mm x 300 mm) with thruster (200 W) and flow bodies (cylinder, wing sections, custom objects can easily be integrated by 3D printing). The measurement section is 140 x 125 x 200mm, similar to the historical Prandtl water channel
  • Laser: With options including a low-energy pulsed laser featuring 500mW @638nm, or a 5W pulsed laser @450nm.
  • Laser sheet optics: every light source includes adjustable light sheet optics.
  • Camera: with 2.35 megapixel and frame rate of 160 fps (USB 3.0).
  • Lens and bandpass filter: F1.4 f 16 mm, 2/3″ sensor, low distortion lens with included bandpass filter.
  • Optional laser warning sign: automatically activates with direct wireless control by PIVlab.

Completely Integrated Educatioanl PIV System For Use With PIVlab

The Educational PIV FLOWlab system was developed specifically for PIVlab (open source software) for complete control, image acquisition, and analysis. PIVlab is a free and open-source PIV software and is currently the most frequently cited PIV tool on the market. PIVlab is developed and maintained by William Thielicke, and is available as stand-alone app or Matlab toolbox. It can be used to calculate the velocity distribution within imported (or captured) images. It also controls OPTOLUTION’s lasers, cameras and synchronizers, and derives, displays and exports multiple parameters of the flow pattern. The simple graphical user interface makes PIV data acquisition and data post-processing fast and efficient.

A Myriad of Resources for PIV Education

A paper with educational experiments designed for our FLOWlab educational PIV system is available here: https://arxiv.org/abs/2508.02147 (preprint, accepted for publication in “DGLR-Fachsymposium der STAB – Deutsche Strömungsmechanische Arbeitsgemeinschaft”, 13. – 14. November, Regensburg, Germany)

Example data from the FLOWlab can be downloaded from Google Drive.

Extensive series of measurements on the wake of cylinders, flat plates and profiles at different angles of attack can be found here: https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.13982681

A Compact Yet Powerful Flow Setup

The OPTOLUTION FLOWlab is a small circulating water tunnel for educational Particle Image Velocimetry (PIV). Inside the water tunnel, a powerful thruster generates a velocity up to 0.4 m/s. Several flow straighteners rectify the flow in the test section measuring 140 x 125 x 200 mm. Three example flow bodies are supplied that can be examined by the students. OPTOLUTION also provides scripts for practical courses that involve the analysis of the vortex shedding frequency of cylinders, the circulation (lift) of flat and cambered wings, and more common tasks dealing with PIV in general.

Educational PIV Measurement System by OPTOLUTION

The OPTOLUTION FLOWlab is an educational PIV system that features a small circulating water tunnel for education. It is bundled with a 500 mW (Laser class 2M) or 5W (Laser class 4) pulsed laser with synchronizer and sheet optics, and the OPTOcam 2/80 (160 fps, 2 megapixels, USB 3.0) with a band pass filter. These components offer unparalleled PIV performance in a cost-effective eduPIV package. Inside the water tunnel, a powerful thruster generates a velocity up to 0.4 m/s. Several flow straighteners rectify the flow in the test section measuring 140 x 125 x 200 mm. Three example flow bodies are supplied that can be examined by the students. In the near future, OPTOLUTION will also provide scripts for practical courses that involve the  analysis of the vortex shedding frequency of cylinders, the circulation (lift) of flat and cambered wings, and more common tasks dealing with PIV in general.

Furthermore, by using bandpass filters in the camera, the experimental lab does not need to be darkened, making it an ideal tool for an educational setting.

All-Inclusive, Ready to Go

  • Circulating channel / aquarium: Water tank (approx. 1200 mm x 150 mm x 300 mm) with thruster (200 W) and flow bodies (cylinder, wing sections, custom objects can easily be integrated by 3D printing). The measurement section is 140 x 125 x 200mm, si milar to the historical Prandtl water chanel
  • Laser: With options including a low-energy pulsed laser featuring 500mW @638nm, or a 5W pulsed laser @450nm.
  • Laser sheet optics: every light source includes adjustable light sheet optics.
  • Camera: with 2.35 megapixel and frame rate of 160 fps (USB 3.0).
  • Lens and bandpass filter: F1.4 f 16 mm, 2/3″ sensor, low distortion lens with included bandpass filter.
  • Optional laser warning sign: automatically activates with direct wireless control by PIVlab.

Completely Integrated Educatioanl PIV System For Use With PIVlab

The Educational PIV FLOWlab system was developed specifically for PIVlab (open source software) for complete control, image acquisition, and analysis. PIVlab is a free and open-source PIV software and is currently the most frequently cited PIV tool on the market. PIVlab is developed and maintained by William Thielicke, and is available as stand-alone app or Matlab toolbox. It can be used to calculate the velocity distribution within imported (or captured) images. It also controls OPTOLUTION’s lasers, cameras and synchronizers, and derives, displays and exports multiple parameters of the flow pattern. The simple graphical user interface makes PIV data acquisition and data post-processing fast and efficient.

A Myriad of Resources for PIV Education

A paper with educational experiments designed for our FLOWlab educational PIV system is available here: https://arxiv.org/abs/2508.02147 (preprint, accepted for publication in “DGLR-Fachsymposium der STAB – Deutsche Strömungsmechanische Arbeitsgemeinschaft”, 13. – 14. November, Regensburg, Germany)

Example data from the FLOWlab can be downloaded from Google Drive.

Extensive series of measurements on the wake of cylinders, flat plates and profiles at different angles of attack can be found here: https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.13982681

A Compact Yet Powerful Flow Setup

The OPTOLUTION FLOWlab is a small circulating water tunnel for educational Particle Image Velocimetry (PIV). Inside the water tunnel, a powerful thruster generates a velocity up to 0.4 m/s. Several flow straighteners rectify the flow in the test section measuring 140 x 125 x 200 mm. Three example flow bodies are supplied that can be examined by the students. OPTOLUTION also provides scripts for practical courses that involve the analysis of the vortex shedding frequency of cylinders, the circulation (lift) of flat and cambered wings, and more common tasks dealing with PIV in general.

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