8.2 Comparative assessment and validation.8.1 Performance of dive computers exposed to profiles with known human subject results.6.4 Management and mitigation strategies.
6.1 Failure modes and probability of failure.5 Additional functionality and features.
Use by professional scuba divers is also common, but use by surface-supplied divers is less widespread, as the diver's depth is monitored at the surface by pneumofathometer and decompression is controlled by the diving supervisor. A dive computer is perceived by recreational scuba divers and service providers to be one of the most important items of safety equipment. Data recorded by a dive computer may be of great value to the investigators in a diving accident, and may allow the cause of an accident to be discovered.ĭive computers may be wrist-mounted or fitted to a console with the submersible pressure gauge.
Several additional functions and displays may be available for interest and convenience, such as water temperature and compass direction, and it may be possible to download the data from the dives to a personal computer via cable or wireless connection. The display provides data to allow the diver to avoid decompression, or to decompress relatively safely, and includes depth and duration of the dive. Audible alarms may be available to warn the diver when exceeding the no-stop limit, the maximum operating depth for the gas mixture, the recommended ascent rate or other limit beyond which risk increases significantly. Some dive computers allow for gas switching during the dive. Several algorithms have been used, and various personal conservatism factors may be available. Most dive computers use real-time ambient pressure input to a decompression algorithm to indicate the remaining time to the no-stop limit, and after that has passed, the minimum decompression required to surface with an acceptable risk of decompression sickness. Suunto Mosquito with aftermarket strap and iDive DAN recreational dive computersĭive profile recording and real-time decompression informationĪ dive computer, personal decompression computer or decompression meter is a device used by an underwater diver to measure the elapsed time and depth during a dive and use this data to calculate and display an ascent profile which according to the programmed decompression algorithm, will give a low risk of decompression sickness. And the best part of all? Blue Grotto has a resident turtle named Virgil who will swim right up to you in the shallower portions of the site.Hydrospace Explorer Trimix and rebreather dive computer. It’s a great opportunity to get a tiny taste of what cave diving might be like while staying in a cavern environment. If you want to fully explore Blue Grotto, there is a permanent guidelines that leads you down into a more narrow traverse, which descends to 100 feet before turning back up toward the open cavern. Inside the cavern, you can navigate about the rocks or check out the fossils in the walls. The overhang of the cavern begins at about 30 feet, where you can slip under an air bell and pop out your regulator for a fun chat with a buddy. There are three platforms at about 30 feet and higher, allowing divers to gain their bearings or practice skills. This dive site begins at the 80-foot-wide opening of the cavern - which lets plenty of sunlight in. Highlights: This privately owned freshwater cavern is perfect for those who want to venture deeper. It’s a wonderful chance to experience freshwater diving in a relaxed, beautiful (yet chilly at 72 degrees F) environment. You’ll head out on a boat, get dropped off in the river and make your way downstream as the boat follows along. This dive bottoms out at 25 feet, staying more shallow for the most part. And, hey, if you’re lucky you just might find a turtle hiding in the grass. Sunbeams shine down into the water as bass, brim and gar swim by sand boils bubble with freshwater on the floor and anhinga’s dive into the water for a swift catch. This lovely, lazy drift dive in a shallow body of water is beautiful for its simplicity. Rainbow River - about 30 minutes northeast of Three Sisters Spring, the famous site for manatee encounters - winds gently for 5.7 miles, starting at Rainbow Springs in the north. Highlights: Head to the town of Dunnellon, Florida, to find this crystal-clear spring-fed lake. Rainbow River Diving among the eelgrass in Florida’s Rainbow River.