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Introducing: Dynamic Offset

Sensor calibration has moved to EZsaltGo.com. One of our most common complaints from our sensors is that the reading displayed in the app is just a bit off from what a customer would like to see. We have been determined to close this disparity between actual salt reading and perspective. So, after gathering data from hundreds of customers and thousands of sensors over the last 4 years, we believe that we have finally cracked the formula. We're calling it Dynamic Offset.
Background
In 2021, we had users complain that their salt reading was not quite what they wanted it to be and asked for a way to basically edit what level is shown to them in the app. In response to this, we added a feature called the "offset" which allow users to increase or decrease the salt level shown in the app.

Here's how it worked: If the app read 78%, but a user wanted it to say 90%, they could add a 12% offset which would add 12% to the original 78% reading and give a new reading of 90%.

For a time, this solution worked great, people could just change their reading if they weren't happy with what it showed. But over time, this created an even worse problem. When the salt levels got very low, the customer wouldn't get a low salt alert. Because they had added a large offset, salt readings never went below the indicated low salt alert and therefore never sent an alert. 

For example: Let's use the example above with a 12% offset. If your low salt alert is set to 35%, but you have a 12% offset, it would mean that your salt would need to get down to 22% before an alert went out. The issue is, many water softeners use a "post fill" cycle which means there is always some water in the brine tank. Sometimes that water sits as high as 30% full. The EZsalt Sensor will measure water as a surface too, so as the salt goes down, the sensor will only down to 30% until the laser hits the water line. So, even though the sensor is reading 30%, there is an offset in place cause the system to believe it is at 42% and thereby never send an alert. 

So how do we fix it?!

This caused us to dive deeper to find a better way to calibrate sensors in a way that makes the customer happy AND ensures that low salt alerts still send. 

Here's what we found.

When a brine tank is close to full, customers want to see a high reading (90%), despite the true measured salt fill being at 78%.

When a brine tank is getting close to empty, users want to see a low number (15%), the true salt level being at 29%.

This showed us the need for a dynamic offset. An offset which changes depending on the salt level. The higher the salt, the higher the offset would make it appear and the lower the salt level, the lower the offset would make it appear. 
The experiment
In order to get to the bottom of this, we set up an experiment with 5 different EZsalt Sensors, put them all in the same brine tank and recorded their readings. We also used a tape measure to find out what the actual readings were and how they compared to what we perceived to be correct. Here is what we recorded from 1 of the sensors. 
As you can see, there was a disparity between the Actual percent full and the Perceived full rows. The row titled "Sensor reading dark %" is the reading taken from the salt monitor. (Dark because we also tested a theory of illumining the brine tank to see if it improved accuracy, which it did not.) What was relieving to us was seeing that the Actual percent full and the Sensor's reading were more closely aligned than the sensor's reading and the perceived full rows. Each sensor tested showed the same pattern. 

Now for the important data. How much of and offset would be needed in order to match the perceived full? You can see the values in the "Needed Offset" row. 

This gave us the data we needed to create the new formula which would give each customer a reading that they would be happy with. 
Dynamic Offset Tutorial
Below you can see the new advanced offset screen which allows users to fine-tune their sensor's dynamic offset if they would like to. The brine tank graphic is an aid to help you visualize how it works. 
Here is a video explainer, explaining how this offset works and how you can customize it to your liking. Please watch video first before clicking on "Guided Tutorial" below.
Dynamic Offset divides the brine tank into 5 sections that we call "levels". At each of the 5 levels, users can apply a unique offset. This is why we call it a "dynamic" offset. So, depending on where the salt is in the brine tank, a unique offset can be applied and this offset is customizable by the owner of the sensor. 
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