Procedure for symmetric orientation of hot-wire probes

A quick and simple procedure was developed for setting the sensing elements of an X-hot wire probe to be symmetric to the mean flow direction. The angle that the probe axis makes with the mean flow direction is changed until a properly conditioned voltage is maximized. This procedure does not require the rather restrictive assumptions of matched linear wire sensitivities, symmetric were orientations to the probe's axis, wire mutual perpendicularity, or known mean flow direction. After the mean flow direction is determined, the linear sensitivities are matched and the probe is calibrated.