CNAV-MAN-019.6 (C-Tides Offline Users Manual)

C-Tides® Offline Software
User Manual
Revision 6
Revision Date: March 07, 2018
C-Nav Positioning Solutions

730 E. Kaliste Saloom Road
Lafayette, LA 70508 U.S.A.
oceaneering.com/cnav
C-Tides® Offline Software User Manual
Release Notice
This is the March 2018 release of the C-Tides® Offline Software User Manual.
Revision History
6 03/07/2018 Updated for C-Tides v2.2.0 C. Thompson
3 06/10/2015 Added C-Tides and C-Tides data Installation B.Mathweg
2 11/08/2013 Added troubleshooting section C. Thompson
1 05/09/2013 Initial document creation C. Thompson
Revision Date Description Author
Revision 6 Page 2 of 43 03/07/18

Trademarks
The Oceaneering logo is a trademark of Oceaneering International, Inc.
C-Nav, C-Nav3050, and C-Tides are trademarks of Oceaneering International,
Inc. All other brand names are trademarks of their respective holders.
Disclaimer of Warranty
EXCEPT AS INDICATED IN “LIMITED WARRANTY” HEREIN, OCEANEERING
INTERNATIONAL, INC. SOFTWARE, FIRMWARE AND DOCUMENTATION
ARE PROVIDED “AS IS” AND WITHOUT EXPRESSED OR LIMITED
WARRANTY OF ANY KIND BY EITHER OCEANEERING INTERNATIONAL,
INC., OR ANYONE WHO HAS BEEN INVOLVED IN ITS CREATION,
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IMPLIED WARRANTIES OF MERCHANTABILITY AND FITNESS FOR A
PARTICULAR PURPOSE. THE ENTIRE RISK, AS TO THE QUALITY AND
PERFORMANCE OF THE OCEANEERING INTERNATIONAL, INC.
HARDWARE, SOFTWARE, FIRMWARE AND DOCUMENTATION, IS WITH
YOU. SOME STATES DO NOT ALLOW THE EXCLUSION OF IMPLIED
WARRANTIES, SO THE ABOVE EXCLUSION MAY NOT APPLY TO YOU.
Limitation of Liability
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PERSON INVOLVED IN THE CREATION, PRODUCTION, OR DISTRIBUTION
OF THE OCEANEERING INTERNATIONAL, INC. SOFTWARE, HARDWARE,
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OF THE USE, LIABILITY TO USE, QUALITY OR PERFORMANCE OF SUCH
OCEANEERING INTERNATIONAL, INC. SOFTWARE, HARDWARE, AND
DOCUMENTATION, EVEN IF OCEANEERING INTERNATIONAL, INC., OR
ANY SUCH PERSON OR ENTITY HAS BEEN ADVISED OF THE POSSIBILITY
OF DAMAGES, OR FOR ANY CLAIM BY ANY OTHER PARTY. SOME STATES
DO NOT ALLOW THE LIMITATION OR EXCLUSION OF LIABILITY FOR
INCIDENTAL OR CONSEQUENTIAL DAMAGES SO, THE ABOVE
LIMITATIONS MAY NOT APPLY TO YOU.

Table of Contents
C-Tides® Offline Software User Manual ................................................................ 1
Trademarks ....................................................................................................... 3
Disclaimer of Warranty ...................................................................................... 3
Limitation of Liability .......................................................................................... 3
Table of Contents.................................................................................................. 4
List of Figures ....................................................................................................... 5
Manual Organization ......................................................................................... 7
Related Documents ........................................................................................... 8
Manual Conventions.......................................................................................... 9
Section 1 - Overview ........................................................................................... 10
Introduction ..................................................................................................... 10
Installation ....................................................................................................... 11
Section 2 - Controls ............................................................................................ 12
Area of Interest ................................................................................................ 12
Vertical Reference Surface ............................................................................. 12
Alpha-Beta Settings......................................................................................... 13
Averaging Period ............................................................................................. 13
Center of Gravity Offsets ................................................................................. 13
Draft Settings................................................................................................... 14
Pitch / Roll Settings ......................................................................................... 15
Load Data ........................................................................................................ 15
Process Data ................................................................................................... 16
Doodson XO .................................................................................................... 16
Section 3 - Menus ............................................................................................... 18
File .................................................................................................................. 18
Load PVT1B Data ........................................................................................ 18
Load C-Tides Data....................................................................................... 18
Save Raw Data ............................................................................................ 18
Save Processed Data .................................................................................. 18
Quit .............................................................................................................. 18
Settings ........................................................................................................... 19
Import Settings............................................................................................. 19
Export Settings ............................................................................................ 19
Reset Settings ............................................................................................. 19

Data................................................................................................................. 19
Prediction ..................................................................................................... 19
UTide ........................................................................................................... 20
Trim Data ..................................................................................................... 20
Decimate...................................................................................................... 21
Flush Data ................................................................................................... 21
View ................................................................................................................ 22
Plot Surfaces ............................................................................................... 22
Plot Constituents.......................................................................................... 22
Plot Raw Data .............................................................................................. 22
Plot Processed Data .................................................................................... 22
Close All Plots.............................................................................................. 22
Show Log ..................................................................................................... 23
Help ................................................................................................................. 23
Show Help ................................................................................................... 23
Show Manual ............................................................................................... 24
C-Nav Dongle Check ................................................................................... 25
About ........................................................................................................... 26
Section 4 - Calculations ...................................................................................... 27
Predicted Tide.............................................................................................. 27
Calculated Tidal Height ................................................................................ 27
Filtered Tidal Height..................................................................................... 27
Averaged Tidal Height ................................................................................. 27
Averaged Tidal Height Minus Predicted Tide ............................................... 27
Doodson XO ................................................................................................ 27
UTide ........................................................................................................... 28
Appendix A - Plot Functions ................................................................................ 29
Appendix B - Example Plots ............................................................................... 30
Appendix C - Frequently Asked Questions ......................................................... 35
Appendix D - Glossary ........................................................................................ 40
Index ................................................................................................................... 43
List of Figures
Figure 1: C-Tides Offline ..................................................................................... 10

Figure 2: COG Offset Sign Conventions ............................................................. 14

Figure 3: Prediction Dialog .................................................................................. 20
Figure 4: Trim Data Dialog .................................................................................. 21
Figure 5: Decimate Dialog .................................................................................. 21
Figure 6: Log Data Dialog ................................................................................... 23
Figure 7: Help Dialog .......................................................................................... 24
Figure 8: C-Nav Dongle Check Dialog ................................................................ 25
Figure 9: About Dialog ........................................................................................ 26
Figure 10: MSS - EGM Surface Plot ................................................................... 30
Figure 11: Amplified ISLW Constituents Plot ...................................................... 30
Figure 12: Raw Height Plot ................................................................................. 31
Figure 13: Processed Data Plot .......................................................................... 32
Figure 14: Predicted Data Plot ............................................................................ 33
Figure 15: UTide Plot .......................................................................................... 34
Figure 16: Missing MATLAB Runtime Error Dialog ............................................. 35
Figure 17: Sample Error Dialog........................................................................... 35
Figure 18: Missing Predicted Data ...................................................................... 37
Figure 19: Data Discontinuities Filtering Error Dialog ......................................... 38
Figure 20: Data Discontinuities Doodson X0 Error Dialog .................................. 38
Figure 21: Non-Contiguous Data ........................................................................ 39

Manual Organization
This manual describes how to install, configure, and operate the post-processing
version of the Oceaneering® C-Tides® worldwide tidal data software, the
C-Tides® Offline application. Sections are organized in a manner that facilitates
quick operator orientation.
Section 1 - Overview (Page 10) gives a brief overview of the C-Tides® Offline
application and its purpose.
Section 2 - Controls (Page 12) gives detailed descriptions of the different settings
and controls used to run the C-Tides® Offline application.
Section 3 - Menus (Page 18) describes the various options and dialogs available
via the different menus of the C-Tides® Offline application.
Section 4 - Calculations (Page 27) gives a brief description of each of the various
values output by the C-Tides® software suite and how they are derived.
Appendix A - Plot Functions (Page 29) describes the buttons available on the
various plots that can be used to better investigate the plotted data.
Appendix B - Example Plots (Page 30) provides sample plots created by the
C-Tides® Offline application.
Appendix C - Frequently Asked Questions (Page 35) explains how to resolve a

few of the common errors that occur while running the C-Tides® Offline
application.
Appendix D - Glossary (Page 40) provides definitions for various terms used in
this manual.
The user may also be interested in the User Manual for the companion
C-Tides® Online application, which processes real-time data.

Related Documents
CNAV-MAN-018.6 (C-Tides Online User Manual)

Similar to this manual, the C-Tides® Online User Manual describes how to
configure and operate the C-Tides® Online application. It is available on the
C-Nav™ website at https://www.oceaneering.com/C-Nav/Software/C-
Tides/PDFDownloads/CNAV-MAN-018.6%20%28C-
Tides%20Online%20Users%20Manual%29.pdf.

CNAV-MAN-022.5 (C-Tides Quick Start Guide)
The C-Tides® Quick Start Guide is a short tutorial explaining the minimum steps
required to configure a fresh C-Tides® software installation. It is available on the
C-Nav™ website at https://www.oceaneering.com/C-Nav/Software/C-
Tides/PDFDownloads/CNAV-MAN-022.5%20%28C-
Tides%20Quick%20Start%20Guide%29.pdf.
Modelling the global ocean tides: modern insights from FES2004

Details the methodology used to determine the predicted tide values used in the
C-Tides® software. It is available on the C-Nav™ website at
https://www.oceaneering.com/C-Nav/Software/C-
Tides/PDFDownloads/FES2004%20Modern%20Insights.pdf.
Unified Tidal Analysis and Prediction Using the UTide Matlab Functions
Describes the underlying methodology of the UTide harmonic analysis used in
the C-Tides® Offline application. It is available at
https://www.oceaneering.com/C-Nav/Software/C-
Tides/PDFDownloads/2011Codiga-UTide-Report.pdf.

Manual Conventions
Arial font is used for plain text in this document.
Arial italic font is used for settings names.
“Arial quoted” font is used for settings values.
Arial Bold font is used for button names.
Arial Bold Italic font is used for menu items.
Arial Blue font is used for cross-references.
Arial Blue Underline font is used for hyperlinks.
Arial red italic is used for typed commands.
Arial Bold font size 10 is used for captions.
ARIAL BLACK ALL-CAPS font is used for port connection names.
This symbol means Reader Be Careful. It indicates a caution,

care, and/or safety situation. The user might do something that
could result in equipment damage or loss of data.
This symbol means Danger. You are in a situation that could

cause bodily injury. Before you work on any equipment, be aware
of the hazards involved with electrical and RF circuitry and be
familiar with standard practices for preventing accidents.
Important notes are displayed in shaded text boxes.

Please note:
Such note boxes display important information that should not be ignored.
Simple file content is displayed in Courier New Black font in a text box.
#Sample File
Version 0.1

Section 1 - Overview
Figure 1: C-Tides Offline
Introduction
The C-Tides® software is a suite of two programs which enables ocean tidal data
to be derived from high accuracy Oceaneering® C-Nav3050® GNSS receiver
data in real-time, and further processed offline for increased accuracy and
harmonic derivations.
The software consists of the C-Tides® Online application, which processes

C-Nav3050® receiver data and optional TSS1 and / or draft information to give
real-time tidal height about the vertical reference surface. The C-Tides® Offline
application can be used to further process the data obtained by the online
program to smooth, spike reject, and Doodson XO (Page 16) filter the data. In
addition, the C-Tides® Offline application can generate harmonic analysis
constituents for the site and predict tide plots for the area. Comprehensive
output files are generated for further analysis by the user.

Installation
Instructions for installing the C-Tides® Offline application and its dependencies
can be found in the C-Tides® Quick Start Guide, available on either the
installation thumb drive or our website https://www.oceaneering.com/positioning-
solutions/customer-access-and-resources/.

Section 2 - Controls
Area of Interest
The C-Tides® Offline application reads large, worldwide databases in the form of
MATLAB .mat files. They cannot all be held in memory simultaneously. On the
other hand, the user only operates in a local area (AOI), not the whole world.
The purpose of this panel is to extract the AOI from the worldwide databases.
The AOI will automatically be set when the raw data is loaded. The user can
manually alter the AOI by entering the northern, eastern, southern, and western
extents after loading the raw data.
Ideally, the smallest AOI possible should be entered. However, an AOI that is
too small will prevent processing of the data. The difference in AOI values
should be no less than the selected Vertical Reference Surface (Page 12). For
example, if using MSS the AOI should be no smaller than 2-minutes by 2-
minutes in size.
Note:
When processing data, the C-Tides® Offline application will reject any points
outside of the AOI.
The maximum AOI allowed is 10 degrees by 10 degrees. The AOI only needs to
be extracted once, unless the extents are changed. The AOI will automatically
be extracted when needed.
Selecting Data / Trim will open a dialog that allows the user to trim the loaded
data on the entered AOI, thus editing or reducing the size of the data set.
Vertical Reference Surface

Choose the Vertical Reference Surface (VRS) for processing. All surfaces are
referenced at the centimetric level to WGS84. The default VRS is “MSS”.
The MSS model is based on satellite altimetry readings that utilize a 10 km

beam. Because of this, the vessel must be 10 kilometers from the nearest land
mass to use MSS. MSS data is available in 2-minute by 2-minute grid intervals.

The EGM model is the EGM08 geoidal model. EGM most closely approximates
MSL where there are no geographic influences on tides. While there is no
minimum distance from land requirement to use EGM; the vessel must be in
water with a depth of at least 10 meters, preferably 25 meters. EGM data is
available in 2-minute by 2-minute grid intervals.
Alpha-Beta Settings
Tidal heights are smoothed with a double-sided alpha-beta filter; however, the
unsmoothed tidal height is always available.
The Constant determines the alpha-beta parameters. The higher the Constant,
the heavier the filtering. The Constant value can be any number between 0 and
1500 seconds.
Height outliers are rejected with a Gate; the difference in meters between the
predicted tide and the actual tidal height. The smaller the Gate, the more values
will be rejected. A valid Gate value is between 0 and 20 meters.
Averaging Period
Tidal height is averaged based on the Plot Average period. The Plot Average
can be set from 10 seconds to 3600 seconds.
The averaged value is the average of 1-second tidal height for the selected
period centered on current event (that is, before and after data, a "boxcar"
smoother). Outliers are not gated or rejected.
Center of Gravity Offsets

Vessel offsets are in meters with respect to the center of gravity (COG) of the
vessel. For COG measurements to the GPS, the convention is positive
starboard, forward, and up while negative is port, aft, and down. For COG to
keel the convention is positive up and negative down.

Figure 2: COG Offset Sign Conventions
Note:
The COG can be any navigation reference point (NRP), but it is advisable that
it be as close to the physical center of gravity as possible, recognizing that the
COG changes with dynamics and ballasting.
Draft Settings
There are two methods for using draft in the tidal height calculations. If you are
processing a C-Tides® software data format file, one recorded by the C-Tides®
Online application, and you want to use the draft recorded in the file, then check
the Use Recorded Draft If Applicable box. The Draft Beginning and Draft Ending
values will be ignored.
If there is no draft data available in the loaded data, then the user can enter a
manual draft value. There are two entries for Draft, beginning and ending. If
they are the same, that number will be used as the draft value in calculations. If
they are different, the processing will vary the draft linearly from the beginning
value to the ending value. The draft actually used will be recorded in the data
that can be saved.

The convention for draft data values is positive down and negative up. This
convention can be reversed by checking the Switch Draft box.
Pitch / Roll Settings

If processing PVT1B data, no pitch or roll is used. However, if processing a
C-Tides® software data format file, pitch and roll can be used. If a motion sensor
is calibrated, the calibration values can be entered here. The values entered
here are added to the pitch and roll values in the raw data.
The axes or rotation senses of the motion sensor may not be consistent with the
convention used by the C-Tides® software. These conventions can be mapped
with these checkboxes. At the end of data processing, a Raw minus Smoothed
(RMS) value is reported to the Show Log (Page 23) dialog. This value can be
used to confirm correct orientation and rotation senses.
Load Data
Two types of data can be loaded into the C-Tides® Offline application: PVT1B
and the C-Tides® software data format. PVT1B is the C-Nav™ proprietary binary
GNSS data format. The C-Tides® software data format is the data format
produced by the C-Tides® Online application, which can be generated to enter
data into the C-Tides® Offline application.
Note:
Loading PVT1B files is considerably slower than loading the C-Tides®
software data format files.
Data is loaded with either the Load PVT1B Data (Page 18) or Load C-Tides Data
(Page 18) menu. Both types of data cannot be loaded at the same time.
Once the data is read the pitch, roll, heave, raw height, and track plots will be
displayed. After these plots are dismissed, they can be re-plotted from the Plot
Raw Data (Page 22) menu.
Note:
Heave is not used by this version of the C-Tides® software.

Process Data
The next step is the processing of data with the Process button. This reduces
the raw height at the C-Nav3050® receiver antenna to the water level tidal height
referenced to a vertical surface. The default vertical reference surface is MSS,
but others can be chosen (see Vertical Reference Surface (Page 12)). Height
reduction from the antenna also requires knowledge of the vessel offsets
between the waterline and the center of gravity and between the COG and the
C-Nav3050® receiver antenna (see Center of Gravity Offsets (Page 13)).
The C-Tides® Offline application reduces the C-Nav3050® receiver antenna

height to the waterline using pitch, roll, and draft data when available and
desired. Processing progress will be reported every 2000 records.
When processing is completed, plots of the tidal heights are provided with
smoothed tidal height, averaged tidal height, and predicted tide. Another plot is
smoothed tidal height minus predicted tide and Doodson XO (Page 16). Vessel
track is the third plot offered. After these plots are dismissed, they can be re-
plotted from the Plot Processed Data (Page 22) menu.
Note:
There is a 19.5 hour gap at the beginning and end of any Doodson XO plot
due to the 39-hour length of the Doodson X0 filter.
Doodson XO
The Doodson XO filter process is useful for deriving a local VRS approximating
MSS, valid during the period of observations. The Doodson XO filtering process
includes any weather or seasonal effects plus any errors in the vertical offset
used between the GPS antenna and the waterline. The value is the separation
between the Doodson XO derived VRS and the selected VRS.
The Doodson XO value is the best indicator of an offset error, but the vessel
would need to stay in the same location while collecting the data. Unless
working under a very high or low pressure weather system Doodson XO errors
are a reflection of both the granularity of the model used and any offset error
(also any significant movement of the vessel during data collection).

Note:
The Doodson XO value is provided for reference and QC purposes only. It is
not used in any of the C-Tides® calculations.

Section 3 - Menus
File
Load PVT1B Data
The Load PVT1B Data menu opens up a standard Windows Open File dialog.
Files can be loaded either one at a time or all at once. As the application reads
each file, the file name and path will be echoed to the Show Log (Page 23)
dialog. Progress will be reported every 2000 records in the Show Log (Page 23)
dialog.
Load C-Tides Data

Load C-Tides Data will load C-Tides® software data format files. Files can be
loaded either one at a time or all at once. As the application reads each file, the
file name and path will be echoed to the Show Log (Page 23) dialog.
Save Raw Data

The Save Raw Data menu will save only the raw data in 1-second intervals in
the C-Tides® software data format. Progress will be reported every 2000 records
in the Show Log (Page 23) dialog.
Save Processed Data

The Save Processed Data menu will save the processed data in 1-second
intervals in the C-Tides® software data format. The processed data can only be
saved after the loaded data has been processed. Progress will be reported
every 2000 records in the Show Log (Page 23) dialog.
Quit
Selecting Quit will close the C-Tides® Offline application.

Settings
Import Settings
Loads a configuration from a previously saved instance of the C-Tides® Offline
application.
Export Settings
Saves the current configuration of the C-Tides® Offline application to file.
Reset Settings
Resets all settings to default.
Data
Prediction
The Prediction dialog will allow the user to plot the predicted tidal data for a
given time period, at a given coordinate. Time is entered in UTC time in the
format “YYYY/MM/DD HH:MM:SS.”
The latitude and longitude of the prediction location must be entered in decimal
degrees. When the Predict button is pushed, a plot of the tide (hourly tides in
decimal days from the beginning of the year of the selected period will display.
Additionally, the tidal constituents and their amplitude, phase and frequency will
be written in the to the Show Log (Page 23) dialog where it can be saved.
For more information on the interpretation of tidal constituents follow this link
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Theory_of_tides. The Save As button will prompt the
user to save a file that will contain two columns of information, UTC time in one-
hour intervals in the first column and the tide with respect to sea level in meters
in the second column.
Note:
The predicted coordinate must be within the AOI set on the main screen. This
means that the AOI bound by the extents on the main screen will be extracted
when the Prediction dialog is opened.

Figure 3: Prediction Dialog
UTide
The UTide button performs harmonic analysis on the data. Information on UTide
can be found in the reference document Unified Tidal Analysis and Prediction
Using the UTide Matlab Functions. If data spanning more than 3 days have been
processed in the C-Tides® Offline application, then the UTide menu will compute
the tidal constituents from the reduced data using default options and predict the
tide using those constituents. A plot of the smoothed tidal height, predicted tide,
UTide tide, and Doodson X0 is displayed. Tidal constituents and their error bars
are reported to the Show Log (Page 23). Visit the link above for an interpretation
of these parameters.
Trim Data
The Trim Data menu has two functions. When unchecked, pressing the Trim
Data menu will open the Trim Data dialog. This dialog allows the user to trim the
loaded data set to a particular period or AOI. This can remove outliers from the
processed data. Time is entered in UTC time in the format “YYYY/MM/DD
HH:MM:SS.” The AOI used is defined by the main window.
When the Trim Data menu is checked, pressing the menu item will revert to the
full data set.

Figure 4: Trim Data Dialog
Decimate
Some users may not want a long file of 1-second data. Once the loaded data
has been processed, the Decimate dialog will save a reduced file of averaged
data. The averaging period can be entered between 2 and 600 seconds. The
output format will be the same as the normal processed data, but there will be
fewer rows of data and all the columns will be averaged. Further processing a
decimated file by the C-Tides® Offline application is not recommended, but a
decimated file is suitable for analysis in a spreadsheet.
Figure 5: Decimate Dialog
Flush Data
Flushes all loaded and processed data from memory.

View
Plot Surfaces
Plot Surfaces will produce the following contour plots of the selected AOI:
 EGM
 MSS
 The difference between EGM and MSS
Sample surface plots can be found in Appendix B - Example Plots (Page 30).
Plot Constituents
Plot Constituents will produce plots of the amplitude and phase for the 14 tidal
constituents (28 plots total). A 29th plot estimates LAT (Lowest Astronomic Tide)
with respect to MSL by amplifying ISLW (Indian Spring Low Water, computed as
the sum of the amplitudes of 4 tidal constituents) by a factor empirically-derived
and verified in the VORF area. The quality of this estimate is 2 to 3 decimeters.
Appendix A - Plot Functions (Page 29) offers advice about examining and saving
the plots. These plots consume memory. After inspection and before processing
data, they should be deleted individually with the X or en masse with View /
Close All Plots. They can be re-plotted at any time.
Sample surface plots can be found in Appendix B - Example Plots (Page 30).
Plot Raw Data

Allows the user to reopen the raw data plots without having to reload the data.
Opens the following plots:
 GNSS Antenna Height
 Vessel Track
 Pitch
 Roll
 Heave
Plot Processed Data

Allows the user to reopen the processed data plot without having to reprocess
the data.
Close All Plots

Closes all open plots and dialogs. The same functionality can be achieved by
pressing Control + W in the main C-Tides® Offline application screen.

Show Log
Opens the Log Data dialog, which displays the last 500 log messages output by
the C-Tides® Offline application. These messages can be status updates, error
messages, or the results of calculations.
Figure 6: Log Data Dialog
Help
Show Help
Selecting the Show Help menu or pressing F1 will display a brief set of
instructions to run the C-Tides® Offline application. The same instructions can be
found in the C-Tides® Quick Start Guide, available on either the installation
thumb drive or our website https://www.oceaneering.com/positioning-
solutions/customer-access-and-resources/.
Note:
Pressing F1 in any dialog will display help for that particular dialog.

Figure 7: Help Dialog
Show Manual
Opens the current C-Tides® Offline User Manual.
Note:
A PDF reader must be installed to open the C-Tides® Offline User Manual.

C-Nav Dongle Check

Information about the currently connected dongle can be found in the
C-Nav Dongle Check dialog.
Figure 8: C-Nav Dongle Check Dialog

About
Support contact information for C-Nav™ can be found by selecting About. The
current version number, contact information, etc. to assist the operator should
problems arise can also be found in this dialog.
Figure 9: About Dialog

Section 4 - Calculations
The C-Tides® software calculates several values useful when dealing with tides.
Below are some details about each.
Predicted Tide
The predicted tide values are derived from an independent solution that is
detailed in the paper FES 2004 Modern Insights, available on the C-Nav™
website. The values are based on a combination of MSS and tide gauge values
around the world. Within the C-Tides® software, the values are interpolated to
the coordinates of the C-Nav3050® receiver. This value is typically within 50 cm
any of the Vertical Reference Surface (Page 12) models. The value is output in
meters.
Calculated Tidal Height

The calculated tidal height is derived based on the real-time ellipsoidal height of
the C-Nav3050® receiver, the Center of Gravity Offsets (Page 13) adjusted for
any pitch, roll, or draft movement, and the selected Vertical Reference Surface
(Page 12). The result gives the user the tidal height above the selected VRS in
meters.
Filtered Tidal Height

Using the Time Constant and Gate settings, the C-Tides® software will perform
an alpha-beta filtering technique on the calculated tidal height. The result is a
smoothed tidal height above the selected VRS in meters.
Averaged Tidal Height

Using the Plot Average setting, calculates an average of the filtered tidal heights.
The result is a tidal height above the selected VRS in meters.
Averaged Tidal Height Minus Predicted Tide

A simple subtraction of the average tidal height value by the predicted tide value.
The result is given in meters.
Doodson XO
The Doodson XO filter process is useful for deriving a local VRS approximating
MSS, valid during the period of observations. The value is the separation

between the Doodson XO derived VRS and the selected VRS in meters. This
value is only available via post-processing in the C-Tides® Offline application.
Note:
The Doodson XO value is provided for reference and QC purposes only. It is
not used in any of the C-Tides® calculations.
UTide
The UTide harmonic analysis process will make an estimate of the 14 highest
order harmonics of the measured tide. The calculation requires a minimum of
three days of data. The value output for each epoch is the tidal height resulting
from the use of the 14 harmonic parameters above the VRS in meters. This
value is only available via post-processing in the C-Tides® Offline application.

Appendix A - Plot Functions
Expand to full screen
Save in 16 formats
Print
Zoom in
Zoom out
Pan
Rotate 3D figure
Mark coordinates
Reset to original view …right click with cursor in plot

Appendix B - Example Plots
Figure 10: MSS - EGM Surface Plot
Figure 11: Amplified ISLW Constituents Plot

Figure 12: Raw Height Plot

Figure 13: Processed Data Plot

Figure 14: Predicted Data Plot

Figure 15: UTide Plot

Appendix C - Frequently Asked

Questions
When I start the C-Tides® application, I get an error message about the
MATLAB Runtime?
Figure 16: Missing MATLAB Runtime Error Dialog
This occurs when the proper MATLAB Compiler Runtime has not been installed.
Please follow the instructions in the C-Tides® Quick Start Guide, available on
either the installation thumb drive or our website
https://www.oceaneering.com/positioning-solutions/customer-access-and-
resources/.
When I try to extract an AOI, why do I get the error message “Can’t find
“XXXX.mat” on path”?
Figure 17: Sample Error Dialog

There are three possible reasons for this error.

1. The C-Tides Data package was not properly installed. Ensure that the
C-Tides Data is installed into the same directory as the C-Tides® Offline
application.
2. The Area of Interest is too large. Ideally, the AOI should be as small as
possible around the desired location. Select a smaller bounding area.
3. The MATLAB runtime has run out of system memory. Restart the
C-Tides® Offline application.
My computer made a ding sound while C-Tides was running, and now the
application doesn’t seem to be doing anything.
The ding sound indicates that the MATLAB Runtime has triggered an unexpected
error that caused the C-Tides® software to stop execution. It is best to close the
application and send the error to C-Nav Support for further troubleshooting.
To close the application, press Ctrl + C in the busy dialog window. This will allow
you to then close the main C-Tides® application window.
All errors are logged to a diagnostic log file. The most recent diagnostic log file
can be found at:
C:\Users\{USERNAME}\AppData\Local\C-Nav\C-Tides\.

Why is there no predicted data in my AOI?
Figure 18: Missing Predicted Data
Tidal prediction data availability varies by the selected model. Each model of the
C-Tides® application has a slightly different area:
 To use the MSS model, the vessel must be 10 kilometers from the nearest
land mass.
 To use the EGM model, the vessel must be in water with a depth of at
least 10 meters. It is preferable to have a depth of at least 25 meters.
When post-processing data I get a ‘Discontinuities’ error. How do I resolve

this?

Figure 19: Data Discontinuities Filtering Error Dialog
Figure 20: Data Discontinuities Doodson X0 Error Dialog
These errors occur when the data is not contiguous, as the example below
shows.

Figure 21: Non-Contiguous Data
The most likely reason for non-contiguous data is the coordinates for the gaps lie
outside of the AOI and were therefore skipped. Increasing the size of the AOI
can alleviate the problem.

Appendix D - Glossary
AOI (Area Of Interest) An AOI is a rectangle bounded by
two latitudes and two longitudes and which covers the
prospect (survey) and any port calls the vessel may
have made. If the C-Tides® Offline application is used
for tidal predictions, the extracted AOI must cover
location (lat / lon) for the prediction.
C-Nav3050 The C-Nav3050® GNSS receiver has expanded

capabilities including RTK, 1PPS output, etc. The
C-Nav3050® receiver includes dual frequency
precision GNSS receiver, with two additional channels
for receiving SBAS signals and an L-Band
demodulator for reception of C-Nav™ subscription
signals. For more information, go to
oceaneering.com/cnav.
COG (Center Of Gravity) The COG is the point at which the

mass or weight of a vessel is evenly distributed. A low
COG contributes to vessel stability. The COG is the
point with the least heave on the vessel.
Consequently, draft is most easily measured from the
COG.
EGM (Earth Gravitational Model) EGM is one of several

geoidal models (e.g. EGM96, EGM08). The EGM
models are a collaboration among the National
Geospatial-intelligence Agency (NGA), the NASA
Goddard Space Flight Center (GSFC), and Ohio State
University. The C-Tides® software uses EGM08.
Geoid The geoid is that geopotential surface that on average

approximates MSL. The geoid defines the horizontal.
Due to the dynamics of ocean currents, MSL / MSS
are not horizontal.
Geopotential The geopotential at a point is the acceleration of

gravity at that point times the distance to the center of
the Earth. At the surface of the Earth it is

approximately 62 million meters squared per seconds

squared, which is 62 million Joules / kilogram, or 62
million Geopotential Units (GPU).
Geopotential Surface A geopotential surface is a surface around the Earth

(like layers of an onion) in which the geopotential is
constant. A satellite in space will orbit in a
geopotential surface. Geopotential surfaces are
neither parallel nor equally spaced. The vertical is
everywhere perpendicular to the geopotential surface.
Height Refers to the raw antenna height above (or below) the
reference ellipsoid.
ISLW (Indian Spring Low Water) ISLW is a tidal datum

originally used as a chart datum in Indian and later in
Australia and elsewhere. It is lower than MSL by the
sum of the amplitudes of the constituents M2, S2, K1
and O1.
LAT (Lowest Astronomic Tide) The lowest level of tide that

can be predicted to occur over an 18.6 year period
without regard to meteorological conditions. LAT is not
utilized in the C-Tides® software with the exception of
the parameter plot output where an approximation of
its relationship to the chosen VRS is given. This
approximation is derived empirically from VORF data,
and is a good fit in that geographical area. Its accuracy
in other parts of the world is unknown.
MSL (Mean Sea Level) MSL is a tidal datum that is the

average of tidal heights observed at a tide gauge over
an 18.6-year cycle during which the plane of the moon
with respect to the Earth (Lunar Orbital Plane) rotates
360 degrees with respect to the plane of the Earth with
respect to the sun (Ecliptic Plane), thus averaging out
the effects of the sun and the moon.
MSS (Mean Sea Surface) MSS is a model that combines

satellite altimetry with tide gauges to extend MSL over
the entire sea surface.

NRP (Navigation Reference Point) The NRP is any

convenient point on the vessel from which to measure
the dimension to other points of interest. It is
recommended that the NRP be as close as possible to
the COG.
SET (Solid Earth Tides) The Earth's crust flexes during the
day with solar and lunar gravity-induced tides,
resulting in a distance variance from the earth's
surface to its center by as much as 40cm in height.
The C-Nav3050® receiver corrects for these variations
by employing real-time integrated SET corrections in
its CCS positioning algorithm.
VRS (Vertical Reference Surface) The different types of

VRS used in the C-Tides® software are EGM and
MSS.

Index
A
Alpha-Beta.....................................................................................................................................................13
AOI ..........................................................................................................................................................12, 40
C
C-Nav ..................................................................................................................................................1, 15, 40
C-Nav3050 .................................................................................................................................. 13, 16, 40, 42
COG .................................................................................................................................................. 13, 40, 42
E
EGM .................................................................................................................................................. 22, 40, 42
I
ISLW .......................................................................................................................................................22, 41
L
LAT ................................................................................................................................................... 22, 41, 42
M
MATLAB ......................................................................................................................................................12
MSL ............................................................................................................................................. 22, 40, 41, 42
MSS ....................................................................................................................................... 16, 22, 40, 41, 42
P
PVT1B .....................................................................................................................................................15, 18
S
SET ................................................................................................................................................................42
V
VORF ......................................................................................................................................................22, 42
VRS .........................................................................................................................................................12, 42

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C-Tides® Offline Software

Revision Date: March 07, 2018

C-Nav Positioning Solutions

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Figure 2: COG Offset Sign Conventions ............................................................. 14

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Appendix C - Frequently Asked Questions (Page 35) explains how to resolve a

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CNAV-MAN-018.6 (C-Tides Online User Manual)

Modelling the global ocean tides: modern insights from FES2004

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This symbol means Reader Be Careful. It indicates a caution,

This symbol means Danger. You are in a situation that could

Important notes are displayed in shaded text boxes.

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Figure 1: C-Tides Offline

The software consists of the C-Tides® Online application, which processes

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Vertical Reference Surface

The MSS model is based on satellite altimetry readings that utilize a 10 km

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Center of Gravity Offsets

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Figure 2: COG Offset Sign Conventions

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Pitch / Roll Settings

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The C-Tides® Offline application reduces the C-Nav3050® receiver antenna

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Load C-Tides Data

Save Raw Data

Save Processed Data

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Figure 3: Prediction Dialog

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Figure 4: Trim Data Dialog

Figure 5: Decimate Dialog

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Plot Raw Data

Plot Processed Data

Close All Plots

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Figure 6: Log Data Dialog

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Figure 7: Help Dialog

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C-Nav Dongle Check

Figure 8: C-Nav Dongle Check Dialog

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Figure 9: About Dialog

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Calculated Tidal Height

Filtered Tidal Height

Averaged Tidal Height