New in Echoview 12 for all users

Feature

How it works

Benefit

Performance

Echoview's interface is now more responsive during heavy calculations, allowing you to interact and change settings, or to cancel analysis exports that are in progress.

Many aspects of Echoview are also now faster, allowing you to process your data more efficiently, which will be particularly evident when using a powerful computer.

Performance improvements include further multithreading of calculations and will be most noticeable for:

• Exports to the ICES are up to 10 times faster.
• Analysis exports can be canceled. Support for this feature includes feedback on export progress.
• Reading data from files is multithreaded. This benefits processor intensive calculation performance.
• Better recalculation processes and times for settings changes related to calibration, the platform, transducer geometry and GPS.
• .EVI files are now created for depth CSV files to ensure faster loading.
• The Auto-synchronization tool is streamlined to improve response times.
• Faster calculation times for acoustic variable dataflows and significantly faster times for virtual variable dataflows that include the Reduce pings (method 2), Region Statistic and GLCM Texture Feature virtual variables.
• Smoother interactions (e.g. panning, moving variables, scrolling) when zoomed into sections of large or complicated Dataflow structures.
• Calculations for Heave are faster. The performance improvements for heave calculations can result in a minor variation in export values of single targets when compared to previous releases of Echoview.
• Better performance and calculation times for the Alongtrack window and alongtrack integrations.
• Live viewing line handling is improved and the result is a faster workflow for lines and operators that use lines.
• Live viewing handling for Match ping times variables is improved.
• Improved performance and memory usage when reading Echoview Data File Format files.
• New in 12.1: The performance of the analysis by regions by cells integration export has been improved for very large cells under the following conditions:
  • Heave_min/mean/max export variables are disabled.
  • Export empty cells is turned off.
    Export type is spreadsheet (not database).

More efficient workflow and time savings.

Windows 11

New in 12.1: Echoview is compatible with Windows 11.

We are planning to improve Windows 11 compatibility in future versions of Echoview.

Echoview compatibility with changing Windows operating systems.

New in 12.1: Introducing new data types for Export to Matlab:

• Power
• Complex power*
• Pulse compressed complex power*
• unspecified dB
• TS
• complex TS*
• pulse compressed complex TS*
• Multibeam unspecified dB

*Exports from complex variables contain single dB values per sample as displayed in echograms. Full complex data exports (where every sample is represented by a real and an imaginary number) will be available in a future version of Echoview.

More options to exporting to Matlab.

Workspaces for templates

New in 12.1: Workspaces have been extended to templates. Workspaces save a preferred arrangement of windows in an EV file, new behaviors are:

• When a template is saved using the File menu, Save Template, the workspace is also saved.
• When a new file is created using a template, the workspace will be used (if one exists).

Graph auto-synchronization

Introducing Auto-synchronization group support for graphs with time as the X-axis. Use a ping/time locator to inspect graph data synchronized with single beam and/or multibeam echograms. Support includes:

• Line graphs
• Heading graphs
• Pitch graphs
• Roll graphs

Improved zoom and vertical pan for:

• Ping graphs
• Beam graphs

which are synced to echograms.

Flexibility for data visualization.

Graph labels and axes limits

Configure the display of graphs with custom labels and axes limits. Properties can be accessed using:

• the shortcut menu item, Graph Properties
• the Graph menu item, Graph Properties
• the shortcut key combination, Ctrl+F8

Related graph design changes include:

• When the onscreen Frequency distribution graph X-axis limits are blank, the limits are derived from the data.
• Improvements to the handling and display of heading in the Heading graph.
• Improvements for default X-axis handling for all graphs.
• Improvements when saving changes for multiple variable graphs.
• Additional Graph Properties shortcuts.
• The Graph Properties dialog box can be resized horizontally.

More control of graphs when exploring data or capturing images for presentations.

Echoview introduces time-variable support for the synchronization of towed body image and video data with echograms.

This feature is supported by:

• a new Media Position page for the Variable Properties dialog box of media variables
• a length CSV file format for towed body tether length data, that can be added to a fileset
• new virtual line operator Towed body time offset that displays the time- and length-adjusted depth of the towed body
• a Length graph
• Exporting length data to a *.length.csv file
• EVD file support for length data
• improved Media window handling for video data
• Media window and echogram synchronization is enabled by right-click menu, Synchronize and Synchronize To Point and the Auto-synchronization tool

For more information refer to Synchronizing towed body media data with echograms.

Calibration Assistant

Enhancements for the Calibration Assistant to facilitate on-axis or off-axis calibration with calibration sphere data. In-dialog box graphs of target, offset, angle and RMS Error data enable quick calibration sensitivity analyses. New live viewing support means that the Calibration Assistant responds to real time data.

Changes include:

• A Narrowband/Wideband setting to support calculations for Wideband or Narrowband data.
  • Wideband results include graphs for Wideband Output format, Angle offset, 3dB beam angle and RMS Error.
• New Beam compensation (dB) option for On-Axis Definition under the Required Settings tab.
• New graphs with calibrated or uncalibrated data to accompany Target Summary statistics. New summary items include Range and Standard deviation, and increased precision. Scatter graphs allow target left-click synchronization with open echogram windows.
• A new Sphere Settings tab with a Calibration sphere frequency response graph that supports exclusion zones. Graph output can be derived from sphere parameters or Sphere TS/TS frequency distribution.
• The Calibration Assistant window can be resized.
• A Save Report button to export Calibration Assistant input data and output results.
• The Calibration Assistant responds to live viewing data for selections and echograms.
• Access to all Calibration Assistant settings using PropertiesActions in COM, to aid in automation of the calibration process.

Complete transparency and control over the data being used to calculate calibration parameters.

Wideband Frequency Response Graph Properties for the graph, graph export and scripting.

• Apply beam compensation setting to output uncompensated TS or compensated TS.
• Resolution of frequency axis (kHz) to customize the resolution.

Improvements for Wideband frequency response graph display-new selection behavior.

Fixed platform and speed data

Fixed platforms can now use Speed data for water distance calculations. This alternative to a time-based grid may be useful for echogram data recorded from a stationary mooring in moving water.

This feature is supported by:

• Fixed platform Water current speed source on the Position page of the Platform Properties dialog box
• 2D school detection
• Speed data .csv file that can be added to a fileset
• a Speed graph
• Exporting speed data to a *.speed.csv file
• EVD file support for speed data
• Grid page Show time/distance grid lists Water current distance

Refer to About speed data for further information.

Sound speed depth profile enhancements include:

• Current Simrad EK60 and Simrad EK80 CW support is joined by support for these file formats:
  • BioSonics
  • Echoview Data File Format single beam
  • Simrad EK80 wideband
• A sound speed depth profile adjusts calculations for:
  • Sv volume.
  • PulseLengthDeterminationLevel setting in Single target detection single beam and split beam method 2 operators.
  • single target range.
  • Calibration Assistant Sv integration window.
  • transducer Z location and elevation.
  • TVG range correction used to calculate Sv.
  • Variable Properties settings Time-varied threshold and Background noise at 1m; Sv to TS, TS to Sv and Data generator operators and Background, Transient and Impulse noise removal operators.
  • data from an upwards facing transducer.
  • target samples bitmap pulse length.
  • bottom analysis calculations that use pulse length.

See also Using a sound speed profile: Notes

Duplicate mouse pointer

Any open echograms, cruise tracks and graphs can display an indicator that duplicates the mouse pointer position on an active echogram, cruise track or graph. Switch this feature on or off using the Echoview Configuration dialog box, the Mouse pointer duplication icon or the shortcut.

For further information refer to Mouse pointer duplication.

A better understanding of your data.

Multibeam 3D school detection

• Updates to the 3D school detection cruise scanning algorithm introduces handling for overlapping or intersecting pings (e.g. when a vessel is turning).
• Speed up 3D school detection quality control with 3D region synchronization between multibeam echograms through active 3D regions in the Regions window. Double-click a listed 3D region or use the Regions window region activation shortcuts.

Synchronize To Target

Synchronize a single target with the associated multibeam target or vice versa using the Shortcut menu option, Synchronize To Target.

For more information refer to the updated documentation for Synchronizing echograms.

Easier visualisation.

Calibration multiple names

Echoview now supports multiple names for a calibration setting name. The enhancement allows more flexibility in handling historical and current calibration names for the same setting and seamlessly handles deprecated names used in existing EV files and scripts.

New setting names include:

• TransducerGain: previous alias was Ek60TransducerGain
• PulseDuration: previous alias is TransmittedPulseLength
• SaCorrectionFactor: previous alias is Ek60SaCorrection
• PulseDurationLogging: previous alias is TransmittedPulseLengthLogging
• EffectivePulseDuration: previous alias is EffectivePulseLength
• PulseCompressedEffectivePulseDuration: previous alias is PulseCompressedEffectivePulseLength

Note: The single target data export now outputs Pulse_duration in place of Transmitted_pulse_length.

General changes

The following changes make Echoview features easier to use:

• Find Next/Previous Integram Value searches relative to the mouse pointer ping position.
• A Help item for context sensitive menus.
• Clearer text on solid background color for onscreen cell-based integration.
• Improvements have been made to the way Echoview checks and identifies a file format.
• Echograms with grids enabled now support the shortcut menu - option Define a Region from a Cell.
• Consistent undo and redo behavior when changing operand data type in operators that support single beam and multibeam operands.
• Clearer grid time labels when lines represent whole minutes.
• Multibeam echograms now support Shortcut menu, Delete Regions In Selection.
• .depth.csv files use Depth_index instead of Depth_data.
• Improvements to the handling and messages for corrupt EV files.
• The line *.csv file format supports the column name Depth_meters or Depth_metres.
• New flexible window docking options under the Interface page of the Echoview Configuration dialog box.
• The Region Browser Detection Settings tab displays the source Variable name as well as the detection settings for the region.
• Heading, Pitch and Roll raw variables derive a single measurement at each timestamp. A message is shown when multiple values exist for the same timestamp.
• Improved updating of graphs and onscreen integration results when the visibility of the regions changes.
• Looped multibeam replay is more stable during use.
• Improved updating of displayed echograms with saved changes to an ECS file.
• The Dataflow window supports the export of Transducer Properties using right-click, Export, Settings.
• SciFish file format support is removed.
• New support for an underlying data export from complex raw variables.
• Workspaces don't support the Media window.
• The Echoview installation process creates folders and files for general use under C:\Users\Public\Documents\Echoview Software\Echoview 12.0
• Echoview installation no longer installs example color schemes.
• Echogram automatic display limits adjust in response to requested pings from the active echogram. The new behavior may lead to more than one display limit change while pings are being read or loaded.
• The optional export variable 3D_school_area is deprecated and no longer available for export. The 3D_school_area equation was incorrect. The variables Corrected_area and Uncorrected_area are unaffected by this change.
• The Cruise track window region integration feature is removed. Similar functionality remains for the Alongtrack window.
• Support for 3D Regions is removed from EV file templates.
• Consistency driven design changes for Export region, Integration by Cells (database format) include the addition of a Species file and the output of Grid based intervals in the Interval file. Previously the Interval file recorded intervals that overlapped the region.
• Analysis export variable changes for spreadsheet and database formats.
• Improvements in 'file not found' procedures.
• New in 12.1: Updated the minimum and maximum values for CalibrationOffset, CalibrationOffsetTS, CalibrationOffsetSv.
• New in 12.1: Improved management for the display of setting changes and recalculation in the Region browser and Regions window.
• New in 12.1: Ctrl+Shift+P for pre-calculate samples, now supports the 4D window.
• New in 12.1: An Edit button on the 3D Regions page of the Detect 3D Schools dialog box, that allows you to create/edit region classes on the Classes page of the EV File Properties dialog box.
• New in 12.1: Use Shift+J to define a region from a selection, and assign its region class to Bad data (empty water).
• New in 12.1: Support for echosounder data with a transmitted pulse duration of up to 200 milliseconds.

Licenses

Module changes

Module renaming:

• Essentials module replaces Echoview Essentials module.
• Survey Suite module replaces the Live Viewing module. Survey Suite includes licensed access to Echoexplore.

Other module changes include:

• Printing is added to the Survey Suite and Habitat Classification modules.
• The Media module is removed from Echoview licensing. Video and image synchronization is now available to all license holders.

Demonstration mode

Under Demonstration mode you can now visualize 500 measurements on watermarked echograms.

Printing requires one or more of the Essentials, Habitat Classification or Survey Suite modules to be licensed.

New Virtual Variable

New Virtual Line

New Virtual Surface

Operator licensing and the option to filter based on the Selected variable's data type are now included in the New Variable dialog box for new virtual variables, new virtual lines, and new virtual surfaces.

New operators and operator enhancements

Towed body time offset

Introducing the new Towed body time offset virtual line operator. The operator calculates a time offset for all data points, with respect to the platform system reference and platform speed, and considers the tow point, tow length and towed body depth. See also: Synchronizing towed body media data with echograms.

Visualize the position of a towed body on an echogram.

Code operator

Improved Code operator support for wideband variables through:

• measurement.data_complex, a NumPy array of acoustic variable complex values
• measurement.matched_filter, a NumPy array of matched filter complex values

Code operator support for wideband data.

Multithreading

Multithreading support is extended to include these additional operators:

• GLCM texture feature
• Virtual line operators: Arithmetic, Crop, Fixed depth, Linear offset, Maximum Sv line pick, Off-axis angle offset, Smoothing filter, Span gaps, Statistical combination, Threshold offset, Time offset, Towed body time offset.
• Performance benefits will be seen in the display of virtual lines in echograms and the use of acoustic variables that use virtual lines in their calculations.
• Reduce pings (method 2)
• Region Statistic

Improved performance.

Live export

The lower limit for the Live export file size lower limit is reduced to 1 MB.

Flexibility for file size.

Span gaps

A Maximum gap size setting has been added to the Span Gaps virtual line operator to limit the size of the gap to be bridged.

Improved flexibility and performance.

Merge pings

A design change in the Merge pings operator makes it more stable. Note that this change may potentially result in slower performance while live viewing.

Designed for stability.

Region statistic

Multithreading design changes to the Region statistic operator ensure stability, however, the nature of the operator means that its live viewing performance becomes poorer with each recalculation.

Designed for stability.

Multibeam target detection

Echoview has changed the way it tracks the selection of Target page properties. The change has a one time effect on Multibeam target detection variables in EV files saved in previous versions of Echoview. In Echoview 12, such variables will show all available properties on the Target page as selected by default. Subsequent changes to the selection will be saved.

Circular calculations

Updated circular calculations checks provide feedback on disallowed operands via Console window messages, as well as error messages during Dataflow window drag and drop, when changing operator inputs.

Checks to prevent circular calculations.

Scripting and COM objects

For more information about the COM objects refer to Scripting with COM objects.

Command interface

The Echoview Command interface allows you to access Echoview properties and actions. Use the Console dialog box to immediately interact with the Command interface. Use a script to execute batch commands.

Support includes:

• A new Console dialog box icon has been added to the Windows and dialog boxes toolbar.
• Content descriptions for the Command interface and interface object pages are simplified and streamlined.
• Improved error and warning handling for command line returns.
• Console returns and Export content use a space to separate items on return lines; items previously indicated by a space are displayed as None.
• Support for <count> for object lists or with <PropertyName> lists.
• EV file object, read-only PropertiesAction LocationOfEVFile.
• Support for many Graph label and axes-limits under PropertyOptions and <VariableName | PageGraph>
• New Console PropertiesActions for Calibration Assistant settings accessed through a suitable single target variable.
• Virtual line items support PageOperator that lists virtual line settings.
• Console objects without Command interface settings support are no longer displayed in Command interface returns.
  • Removed objects include: Fileset, Platform, Unassigned, Unclassified regions, Unclassified targets and Scene.
  • Removed associated ObjectTypes filters include: Filesets, Platforms, DataflowNotes, RegionClasses, TargetClasses, Species, Scenes and ThreeD.

Note: We strongly recommend checking that any scripts written for previous versions of Echoview that include EvApp.Exec content still work as expected. We also recommend you incorporate built-in scripting safeguards that will report any errors that may occur.

COM SchoolDetection2D removed

COM support for EvFile.Properties.SchoolsDetection is removed.

However, you can still script changes to 2D school detection settings with the wider support available through the EvApplication.Exec() method and Command interface commands for Variable Properties and EV File Properties.

Export wideband frequency response

Graph Properties Apply beam compensation and Frequency resolution support under the following:

• ExportSingleTargetWidebandFrequencyResponseByRegions
• ExportSingleTargetWidebandFrequencyResponseByRegionsAll
• ExportSingleTargetWidebandFrequencyResponseForRegion

Graph Properties Frequency resolution support under the following:

• ExportSvWidebandFrequencyResponseByRegions
• ExportSvWidebandFrequencyResponseByRegionsAll
• ExportSvWidebandFrequencyResponseForRegion

eVariableType

New data type support and a design change for enums of EVariableType:

• The existing enum names now include "VariableType".
• Introducing new enums for the data types of Line, Geopoint, Video, Image, Length and Speed variables.

eOperator

New enums for these operators: Threshold offset (line), XxYxZ convolution, Line range bitmap, Wideband frequency select, Calibration subset, Wideband frequency subset, Code and Towed body line time offset.

Region definition file format

Update for region creation type 6 documentation.

EVC file format

Update for the EVC file format used for custom color schemes.

Export velocity

Update for data export from current velocity echograms.

Line licensing

Updates to clarify line licensing.

Templates

Updated information about templates and relative file paths.

Code operator

Updated information about Code operator handling of single beam data generated from multibeam data.

Added a new Code example demonstrating multifrequency categorization.

Beam parameters

Updated recommendations for 3dB beam angle and two-way beam angle.

Open echogram windows, cruise tracks and graphs

Updated information for graph double-click synchronization with open echograms and cruise tracks windows.

Bug fixes

ExportEchogramToImage

New in 12.1: Fixed a bug for the COM method ExportEchogramToImage, it now includes lines in the exported image.

New in 12.1: Fixed an issue where a Ping subset operator would sometimes have incorrect data when loading an EV file that it was saved in.

New in 12.1: Fixed a problem where Target Length Distribution could not be exported from a variable with the Target length data type.

Cruise track selections

New in 12.1: Fixed a bug on the cruise track window where the boundaries of a selection were not displayed until the left mouse button was released.

3D school detection

New in 12.1: Fixed an issue where multibeam schools detection could produce different results dependent on the number of CPU logical processors.

Region name edit

New in 12.1: Fixed an issue where a region name edit might not always be applied or included in an export.

Multibeam target detection

New in 12.1: Fixed a crash that could occur when deleting the operand of the Multibeam Target Detection operator.

Alongtrack display

Fixed a bug where the Use alternate color scheme checkbox was loading incorrectly. It now correctly reflects the status of the underlying property.

Beam subset, Background noise removal

Fixed a bug that could cause a crash when using the Beam subset and Background noise removal variables with multibeam data.

Minus, Plus, Threshold operators

Bug fix for the Minus, Plus and Threshold operators for case where the Operand 2 variable is made up of all no data pings.

GLCM texture feature operator

A bug associated with GLCM texture feature array handling is fixed. Previously, GLCM samples that were close to the minimum or maximum bounds may have crashed Echoview.

Cell statistic data type

New cell statistic variables update their data type correctly. In Echoview 11, new cell statistic data type updates were inconsistent.

Wideband frequency response graph

A bug affecting the display of data across multiple data files is fixed. Previously, hidden and unused calibration value differences between multiple files prevented the display of valid data.

Windows file path

Handling has improved for Windows path length issues. Previously, Echoview could crash when file path issues occurred.

Vessel log

A vessel log bug is fixed. Previously, alternative vessel log variables were hidden and issues with the Dataflow variable relationship arrow updates occurred when the Platform was set to Fixed.

Conversion operators

A bug which affected the dB to Linear, Linear to dB and Type conversion operators is fixed. Previously, the data type for the pings in these output variables was not updated.

Horizontal scroll bar behavior

Fixed a bug that caused the horizontal scroll bar to not update or update incorrectly when scrolling on some echograms.

Unzoom ping graph

Fixed a bug that inhibited ping graphs from unzooming to the full echogram depth.

Exporting angular positions data

Fixed a bug which was not correctly accounting for points outside the bounding rectangle of the region when exporting angular positions data.

Color legend

A bug affecting the Color legend while docking echogram windows is fixed.

Integration results

Integration Results Bottom (classification) values are based on the pings intersecting the region. cell or selection. Previously, Bottom values were based on the samples within the region, cell or selection which could lead to incorrect results.

Multibeam school detection

A bug affecting multibeam school detection while using Cache Limit = 0 is fixed.

3D region tracking

A bug affecting 3D region track detection is fixed. Previously, region track detection failed to detect regions when the Auction Sv cost could not be calculated.

Virtual variables

Fixed a bug that could sometimes cause a crash to occur when a virtual variable was deleted.

School detection

Fixed a bug that could cause a crash to occur when using school detection followed by region classification.

Integram

Fixed an issue where the integram analysis displayed on an echogram was not always refreshed after settings were changed.

Database (targets).csv

Fixed a bug that omitted some output variables for database exports. Restored variables include:

• For (targets).csv
• Distance_manor_axis
• Distance_minor_axis

• For (analysis).csv
• Program_version
• Processing_version
• Processing_date
• Processing_time

Region analysis export

Fixed a bug when exporting an integration of a region, when the Echogram Mode was set to Range. Previously, range was treated as depth.

Bottom classes variable properties

Fixed a problem where variable property changes to bottom classes were not being saved for a bottom points variable.

Export to EVD

Fixed a crash that could happen when exporting a variable, with settings in an error state, to the Echoview Data (EVD) File Format.