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RF401 and RF430 Series - Bad Request

1. 35 D 1 CR206 Setup Main Menu ee cceecsesecseeeecsseeeeesecseeecneesecsaseeeeaees D 1 D 2 This graph represents a transmitting radio that uses a long header and a receiving radio that is in a sleep cycle The length of the wake up initializer exceeds the time interval of cyclic sleep ensuring that the receiver detects the wake up initializer and receives the payload i e transmitted data eceeseeeeeeeeeeeees D 2 D 3 This graph represents a radio that transmits a wake up initializer that is shorter than the cyclic sleep of the receiving radio The receiver does not detect the wake up initializer and remains asleep missing the data transMissiOn cceceescsseeeeeseceeeeeeseceeeseeereeeeaees D 3 D 4 DevConfig Deployment panel showing the CR206 X setup for Example 1 zr r e E ania D 4 D 5 DevConfig Deployment panel showing the RF401 setup for Example Ternisien ien oe niee daaa n EEEo ENE bared kee D 5 D 6 DevConfig Deployment panel for CR206 X Example Setup 2 D 6 D 7 DevConfig Deployment panel showing the RF401 1 setup forExample A E T D 7 D 8 DevConfig Deployment panel showing the RF401 2 setup for Example 2 nuaa a e EEE EE aE E D 8 F 1 Point to Multipoint System eseseessesesseesreseersesrsesrrrrerersersesrerrererree F 4 F 2 PC208W Datalogger Generic Dial String eeeeeeeeeeeeeseeerererrererererere F 6 G 1 Short Haul Modem to RF401 Setup eseseesseeesseeeessersererrsrrerr
2. v RF Standby Mode posae lici This setting governs the duty cycle that the radio will use for powering its receiver circuit As such it governs the amortised current drain for the radio This setting should be set the same for all radios in the same network This setting is cambined with the Tong Header Time Time to Sleep and Time to Long Header setting values to define the following pre defined power modes Standby Mode Baud Rate Time to Sleep Long Header Time Time to Long Header Max Response Power Mode Delay Apply Cancel Factory Defaults Read File Summary Figure D 8 DevConfig Deployment panel showing the RF401 2 setup for Example 2 D 8 Appendix E Port Pin Descriptions RS 232 Port The RS232 port is a partial implementation of RS 232C It is configured as Data Communications Equipment DCE for direct cable connection to Data Terminal Equipment DTE such as an IBM PC serial port RS 232 CONNECTOR 9 PIN D SUB FEMALE PIN VO DESCRIPTION 1 2 O TX 3 I RX 4 5 GND 6 7 8 O CTS 9 I Signal Into the radio 0 Signal Out of the radio Only CTS is implemented for flow control If data arrives say from a PC faster than the radio transmits it the radio will de assert CTS when the 640 byte port buffer is full If the PC continues to send data the buffer will accept it and may wrap around over writing oldest
3. x Hop Sequence 0 Network 0 2 Address Power Mode 1 Sec with Long Header Y Cl ignore RF Protocol PakBus Aware RF Network Address Specifies the radio network address of the built in radio This setting sould be set to match the network address for the RF400 base used to communicate with the datalogger PC Serial Port Baud Rate Apply J l Cancel l Read File Summary Figure D 6 DevConfig Deployment panel for CR206 X Example Setup 2 D 6 Appendix D Setting Up RF401 to CR206 X Communications RF401 1 Setup for Example 2 see Figure D 7 1 Since RF401 1 will connect to a PC select AutoSense or RS 232 Active Interface 2 Choose PakBus Aware for the Protocol 3 Use 9600 k baud rate to communicate with the CR206 The baud rate setting in the LoggerNet Setup screen must also be set to 9600 4 Select Hop Sequence 0 which matches the CR206 X s hop sequence 5 Select Net Address 0 which matches the CR206 X s address 6 The Radio Address is fixed at 0 when the Protocol is PakBus Aware 7 Select lt 2ma 1 Sec Header for the Power Mode 8 Select Retry Level Low 9 Entry of a PakBus Address is disabled in DevConfig for the PakBus Aware protocol Device Configuration Utility 1 14 File Language Options Help Device Type Danan a RF401 RF41 RF416 pakBus Serial Number 0 05 Version 4 Active Interface Auto Sense SDC Address 7 Protocol
4. RF401 and RF430 Series Spread Spectrum Radio Modems B 6 LONG HEADER TIME Sets long header duration in tenths of a second The default is 7 for 0 7 seconds If changed from the default of 7 this number should be set to the Max Response Delay indicated in Table B 1 for the standby mode you are using plus 200 milliseconds 0 2 seconds For example if your standby mode delay is 2 seconds set the long header time to 2 2 seconds The valid number range is from 0 to 255 The longest long header time you should ever need is 8 2 seconds Appendix C Address and Address Mask Address Address mask The address is 16 bits O 1111 1111 1111 1111 binary 0 ffffh hexadecimal 0 65535 decimal The two parts of the address are the Network Address and the Radio Address The six most significant bits of the address are the Network Address and the ten least significant bits are the Radio Address Network Address Radio Address O 11 1111 O 11 1111 1111 binary 0 3fh 0 3ffh hexadecimal 0 63 0 1023 decimal The radio has a user programmable 16 bit address mask Like the address the address mask is divided into two parts The six most significant bits are the Network Address Mask and the remaining ten bits are the Radio Address Mask When an incoming packet header s address is compared with the RF401 s address only the address bits that correspond to address mask
5. The remote possibility exists that this file has become corrupted in your PC After you create the Network Map in PC208W you can back up PC208W dnd in case this should happen If this appears likely exit PC208W and copy and paste your backup file over the suspect dnd file to restore proper operation Radio has wrong Network Address Radio Address Hopping Sequence or Standby Mode It is improbable that a radio that has been working would ever change address hopping sequence or other settings However check the settings for the unlikely event this may have happened Try Restore Defaults and set up the radio again from that point 37 Appendix A Part 15 FCC Compliance Warning Changes or modifications to the RF401 series radio systems not expressly approved by Campbell Scientific Ltd could void the user s authority to operate this product Note This equipment has been tested and found to comply with the limits for a Class B digital device pursuant to part 15 of the FCC Rules These limits are designed to provide reasonable protection against harmful interference in a residential installation This equipment generates uses and can radiate radio frequency energy and if not installed and used in accordance with the instructions may cause harmful interference to radio communications However there is no guarantee that interference will not occur in a particular installation If this equipment does cause harmful interfe
6. PakBus Aware RS 232 Baud Rate 2500 CS I O ME Baud Rate Hop Sequence 0 NetAddress 0 Radio Address Power Mode lt 2ma 1 second v Retry Level Low RS 232 Baud Rate Peasia Eart Specifies the baud rate that will be used on the RS 232 port apply cance _ Factory Defaults _ResdFie _ summary Figure D 7 DevConfig Deployment panel showing the RF401 1 setup for Example 2 D 7 RF401 and RF430 Series Spread Spectrum Radio Modems RF401 2 Setup for Example 2 see Figure D 8 1 For RF401 2 select Datalogger SDC 7 or 8 10 11 Set the RF401 Protocol to PakBus Aware 3 Select Hop Sequence 0 which matches the CR206 X s and RF401 1 s hop sequence Select Net Address 0 which matches the CR206 X s and RF401 1 s address 5 The Radio Address is fixed at 0 in PakBus modes 6 Select Power Mode lt 2ma 1 second to work with the CR206 X 7 Select Retry Level Low 8 PakBus Address entry is disabled in DevConfig for the PakBus Aware protocol Device Configuration Utility 1 14 File Language Options Help Device Type Deployment RF401 RF411 RF416 pakBus Serial Number 22568 2 os Version 4 Active Interface Datalogger SDC _ SDC adress 7 w Protocol RS 232 Baud Rate Hop Sequence PakBus Aware CS I O ME Baud Rate o Net Address 0 Radio Address 9 Power Mode ee es Low Retry Level
7. Radio Address Mask 0 3ffh Hop Table 0 6 Radio Standby Modes Standby Mode 0 gt 24 mA Always ON 3 gt 4 mA 1 2 sec Cycle 4 gt 2 mA 1 sec Cycle 5 gt 1 mA 2 sec Cycle 6 gt 6 mA 4 sec Cycle 7 gt 4 mA 8 sec Cycle 1 gt Pin Sleep PakBus Only Time of Inactivity to Sleep units of 100 msec 1 32767 Time of Inactivity to Long Header units of 100 msec 0 65535 Select 0 to always use long header Select 65535 to never use long header Long Header Time units of 100 msec 0 255 iii Radio AT Command Sequence Setup Menu 1 2 3 4 AT Command Sequence Character any ASCII character Silence time before Command Sequence units of 100 msec 1 32767 Silence time after Command Sequence units of 100 msec 1 32767 AT Command Mode Timeout units of 100 msec 1 32767 B 1 RF401 and RF430 Series Spread Spectrum Radio Modems B 2 2 3 4 9 b iv Radio Diagnostics Number of Retry Failures Received Signal Strength v Radio Retry Settings 1 Number of Retries 0 255 2 Number of time slots for random retry units of 38 msec 0 255 3 Number of bytes transmitted before delay 1 65535 4 Sync Timer Setting units of 100 msec 0 255 vi Configure RF401 for Firmware Download Interface Parameters i SDC Address Not Active 7 or 8 ii RS 232 Auto Power Down Enable 0 gt RS 232 always acti
8. s Power jack RF401 series and RF430 series Spread Spectrum Radio Modems 10 Table 2 Lacking 12 V on CS I O Pin 8 EQUIPMENT SERIAL NUMBER CR500 lt 1765 CR7 700X Bd lt 2779 21X lt 13443 CR10 Wiring Panels All black grey silver PS512M Power Supply lt 1712 When you connect power to the RF401 through the SC12 cable or the optional Field Power Cable you should see the power up sequence of red and green LEDs described in Step assuming datalogger is powered Current dataloggers and wiring panels not mentioned in Table 2 provide 12 V on pin 8 For older products not listed check for 12 V between CS T O connector pin 8 and pin 2 GND or contact Campbell Scientific c Configure the remote radio using the same settings as the base radio see e in Section 3 2 1 This assumes the base radio is set to AutoSense 3 2 3 Step 3 LoggerNet Set up a The next step is to run LoggerNet and configure it to connect to the datalogger via the radio s point to point or PakBus network you have set up For point to point and PakBus communications the radios are represented as direct connect in LoggerNet see Figure 4 Refer to Section 5 2 for the LoggerNet setup of point to multipoint EZSetup Wizard CR1000_2 CR1000 Progress Connection Type Introduction Select the mode of communication that will be used for this datalogger Communication Setup i Direct Connect 4 direc
9. RF401 s CS I O port to the datalogger s CS I O port A remote RF401 can also be connected to the datalogger s RS 232 port via the 14392 null modem cable A remote RF430 must use the 14392 null modem cable to connect the RF430 s RS 232 port to the datalogger s port Radios connected to the datalogger s RS 232 port must use a 12 Vdc field cable item 14291 or AC adapter to furnish 12 V to the DC PWR connector on the radio 15 RF401 series and RF430 series Spread Spectrum Radio Modems 16 4 4 Compatible Antennas NOTE CAUTION The 900 MHz antennas are compatible with the RF401 RF411 RF430 and RF431 The 2 4 GHz antennas are compatible with the RF416 and RF432 Several antennas are offered to satisfy the needs for various base station and remote station requirements These antennas have been tested at an authorized FCC open field test site and are certified to be in compliance with FCC emissions limits All antennas or antenna cables have an RPSMA female connector for connection to the radio The use of an unauthorized antenna could cause transmitted field strengths in excess of FCC rules interfere with licensed services and result in FCC sanctions against user The antennas are listed below Photographs of some of the antennas are shown in Figures 6 through 13 An FCC authorized antenna is a REQUIRED component You must pick one of the antennas listed below CSI Item Number Description 14310
10. The radio will also have a Beacon Interval Hello List Verify Interval and Central Router setting These settings function as they do in the CR1000 The default settings are Beacon Interval 60 seconds Verify Interval 150 seconds Hello List None Central Router None M 8 Optimization Since response speed is always important you should use the fastest IO mode available Specifically the fastest IO mode is CSDC for the datalogger interface and 38 4k for the RS 232 interface Another reason to use the fastest IO mode is that the RF401 buffers the entire PakBus packet before sending it to the radio module the RF400 would just start streaming it to the radio immediately and therefore introduces a delay The RF401 or RF430 can handle full size 1000 byte PakBus packets However decreasing the size of the PakBus packets to 240 bytes will provide better throughput when there is heavy RF traffic or the collection of a lot of data Large PakBus packets are spread across multiple RF packets which could cause another RF packet to be interleaved leading to the corruption of the larger PakBus packet Essentially the PakBus packet is fragmented and received out of order No mechanism exists that reorders the individual RF packets The PakBus size is an adjustable setting in our PakBus dataloggers and in the LoggerNet server M 3 RF401 and RF430 Series Spread Spectrum Radio Modems M 9 Idiosyncrasies M 4 As mentioned under Net and R
11. and limit the available Radio Net addresses to 0 1 2 or 3 Signal Strength and Standby Modes All configurations of the RF PakBus protocol PakBus Aware PakBus Node RF router or leaf modify the hop metric in the Hello and Hello Response messages The modifications are based upon the radio standby mode length of duty cycling and an averaged value of the signal strength for each node Basing the hop metric on the length of the duty cycle automatically provides enough time for the long headers to propagate and wake up the receiving radio Basing the hop metric on signal strength allows the PakBus routing algorithms to automatically take the best route without entering a Hello list that will constrain the network This only affects the system when a node has two RF routes one route that has good signal strength on each of the hops and another route that is direct but has poor signal strength Typically the route with the strongest signal strength is used but the other route should not be eliminated The RF401 or RF430 will not reduce the hop metric only increase it The radio compares the hop metric of the Hello message received by the radio both RF sourced and wire sourced to a calculated hop metric based on duty cycle and signal strength The largest hop metric is used Below is a more detailed explanation about the method used to modify the hop metric M 6 1 Hop Metric Code M 2 The HopMetric code corresponds to the following t
12. with the datalogger Note The max baud rate for 50324 interfaces is 19 200 bps The max for SC929 is 38 400 bps A unique PakBus address is used to identify the datalogger in the PakBus network Enter the PakBus address that was set on the datalogger Valid range is 1 4094 Suggested range is 1 3999 If a security code is set on the datalogger it must be entered here for communication and data collection to occur 0 means security will not be used If the datalogger requires extra time to respond enter the extra response time Because some links are costly it may be desired to have the connection closed automatically Enter the maximum time for a connection to stay online 0 means stay online until the user disconnects Cancel l Settings Help Figure 5 The Baud Rate in LoggerNet must match the radio s RS 232 baud rate 3 2 4 Step 4 Connect You are now ready to connect to your datalogger using the LoggerNet Connect screen After you connect notice the flashing of the green LEDs on both radios This indicates that RF packets with the same hopping sequence are being received by the radios The red LEDs light solid while the connection lasts When you Disconnect the red LEDs remain on for five seconds which is the default setting of the Time of Inactivity to Sleep Datalogger program transfer and data collection are now possible Refer to Appendix H for a treatment of communication distance vs factors in
13. 1 s are used in the comparison Example 1 Incoming Packet s Header Address XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX RF401 s Network Address Mask TELE Aa RF401 s Network Address yyyy yy RF401 s Radio Address Mask Va eh LLLE RF401 s Radio Address ZZ ZZZZ ZZZ Since the address mask is all 1 s all of the incoming Packet Header Address bits are compared against the corresponding radio s address bits Example 2 Incoming Packet s Header Address xxxx XXXX XXXX XXXX RF401 s Network Address Mask LEIL II RF401 s Network Address yyyy YY RF401 s Radio Address Mask 11 1111 0000 RF401 s Radio Address ZZ 2222 LOZ In this example only the twelve most significant incoming Packet Header Address bits are used in the comparison with the radio s twelve most significant address bits because the entire address mask Radio Address Mask appended to Network Address Mask is 1111 1111 1111 0000 Since the last four bits are not compared any remote radio with Radio Address of 0 to 1111 decimal 0 to 15 will be received by the base station This allows multiple remotes in a network to be received by the base without changing the base Radio Address the remotes cannot receive the base however Auto Sense pre configures as many settings as possible including the address mask If you have an RF401 connected to a PC s RS 232 port and a remote RF401 connected to a datalogger s CS I O port Auto Sense will configure the C 1 RF40
14. 5 The Radio Address is fixed at 0 when the RF Protocol is PakBus Aware 6 Select Power Mode 1 Sec with Long Header to economize station power Device Configuration Utility 1 14 File Language Options Help _ Device Type Deployment a a PakBus Address 1 lt Hop Sequence 0 a Network o lt Address Power Mode 1 Sec with Long Header Vv o RF Protocol PakBus Aware RF Network Address Specifies the radio network address of the built in radio This setting should be set to match the network address for the RF400 base used to communicate with the datalogger Apply Cancel Read File Summary Figure D 4 DevConfig Deployment panel showing the CR206 X setup for Example 1 D 4 Appendix D Setting Up RF401 to CR206 X Communications RF401 Setup for Example 1 see Figure 5 1 Since the RF401 will connect to a PC select AutoSense or RS 232 Active Interface Choose PakBus Aware for the Protocol Must use 9600 baud rate to communicate with a CR206 X The baud rate setting in the LoggerNet Setup screen must also be set to 9600 Select Hop Sequence 0 which matches the CR206 X s hop sequence Device Configuration Utility 1 14 File Language Options Help Device Type Deployment a RF401 RF411 RF416 PakBus Serial Number 0 0S Version 4 Active Interface Auto Sense SDC Address 7 Protocol PakBus Aware RS 232 Baud Rate EWM v CS 1
15. Dataloggers default settings schedule collections as desired RF401 CONFIGURATION a Base RF401 1 Active Interface ME Master 2 Protocol Transparent 3 CS I O ME Baud Rate 9600 4 All other settings defaults RF401 and RF430 Series Spread Spectrum Radio Modems b Remote RF401s 1 Radio Addresses 1 2 etc unique for each remote RF401 and must agree with respective RF401 Remote settings 2 Protocol Transparent 3 CS I O Baud Rate 9600 4 All other settings default NOTE If there is a neighbouring RF401 network you should change the Hopping Sequence of base and remote RF401s to a new setting to avoid interference a Uraa Hedo ome PhoneBase PhoneRemote hee AOD Elle RF400Remote O h 00 m 00s 000 ms Apply Sancel Figure l 5 LoggerNet Point to Multipoint Setup Appendix I Phone to RF401 Series 4 COM220 Dip Switches Dip Switch Position Open Open Open Open Open Open Open Open AANDNPWNK NOTE Refer to the COM220 manual for more information about the COM220 Dip Switches 5 HARDWARE After configuring LoggerNet and the RF401s you are ready to set up hardware The A100 null modem connectors it s not important which connector goes to which unit connect via SC12 cables to the COM220 and the base RF401 CS I O port Connect the site phone line to COM200 Connect power to the PS100 Connect antenna to RF401 When you turn on the PS1
16. Field Power Cable Item 14291 connected to a 12V battery pack or 12V power supply see footnote 1 above b Choose an open area to conduct the tests see footnote above c Attach the yagi or collinear antenna being tested to base RF401 RF411 i A yagi can be mounted on a microphone stand or similar metal wood or PVC ok Orient antenna elements vertically as shown in figure below and adjust height so the bottoms of the elements are 20 inches above floor Aim yagi at remote RF401 RF411 Figure K 2 Vertically Polarized 9 dBd 900 MHz Yagi ii A collinear antenna should be solidly mounted in a vertical position so that its omnidirectional pancake pattern is horizontal A metal or wooden stand can be used i Figure K 3 3 dBd 900 MHz Collinear Omni Antenna K 5 RF401 and RF430 Series Spread Spectrum Radio Modems d Set up remote RF401 RF411 with NO antenna and with antenna connector 20 inches above floor e Arrange antenna distance apart according to following table Table K 1 900 MHz Gain Antenna Test Distances Antenna Gain Power Ratio Distance Apart Over 1 4 Wave vs 14 Wave 5 ft x Power Ratio 9 dBd 11 2 dB 13 18 18 ft 6 dBd 8 2 dB 6 61 13 ft 3 dBd 5 2 dB 3 31 9 ft 2 2 dBd 0 dB 1 0 5 ft This assumes a signal strength vs distance relationship of 1 d Type 8 groups of 5 characters on the terminal aaaaabbbbbccccc etc g 100 of characters shoul
17. Lr gt cable loss between antenna and receiver in dB Pr gt signal power at the radio receiver in dBm The signal power at the receiver Pr must exceed the receiver sensitivity 110 or 104 dBm by a minimum of 6 dB for an effective link The amount that Pr exceeds 110 dBm or 104 dBm 2 4 GHz is the link margin All of these elements are known or are easily determined with the exception of Lp Unfortunately signal path loss can make the difference between a marginal link mile apart and a reliable link 10 miles apart Transmitter Power Transmitter output power is often expressed in dBm which is a decibel power rating relative to 1 milliWatt The formula is dBm 10 log Pt with Pt expressed in milliWatts Transmitter Power Pt dBm milliWatts 1 0 10 10 50 RF416 RF432 17 100 RF401 RF411 RF430 RF431 20 1000 30 5000 37 Cable Loss Cable loss is a function of cable type length and frequency and is usually specified as attenuation dB per 100 of cable Using a low loss cable becomes very important as the cable run distances increase Here are some typical cable types and their properties Cable Type Outside Diameter Loss dB 100 900 MHz Loss dB 100 2 4 GHz RG 58A U 195 21 1 COAX RPSMA L 195 11 1 18 8 RG 8 405 6 9 COAX NTN L 405 4 5 8 1 LMR 400 405 3 9 6 7 CSI stocked antenna cables are shaded H 3 RF4
18. PakBus Aware PakBus Node and RF PakBus cceeeeees M 1 M 2 Minimizing the Number of Small Link State Packets eee M 1 M 3 Maximizing the RF Packet Size cece eeeseeceseeeeeeceseeeeeseeneeseeneeees M 1 M 4 Establishing an Ad Hoc Point to Point Link ceeceeeeeseeeeeeees M 2 M 5 Net and Radio Address Settings ceeeesesceecneseeceseeeceseseeeeeeneeees M 2 M 6 Hop Metric Signal Strength and Standby Modes cc eeeeeeeeeee M 2 M 6 1 Hop Metric Codes sss cscetnla aiiveehp aici ander diets M 2 MGT CRE ROUET 6 5 ccssccscvscsesssnciscdstsethssusiestieseeasgesssesdasdstpscna cesesoddesebssassesvennsess M 3 M S Optimization n aes sepestes de teas ena atest sericea aae sa i E M 3 M 9sIdiosyncraSi eS nna e enap EEE REEE E A n M 4 List of Figures 1 The RF411 is one of the models available of our RF401 series radios 2 2 RF430 has a USB port allowing it to be connected directly to a PC s USB POTE a aa eet ees 3 3 RF401 Basic Point to Point Network cecesecssesecseeeeceeeeeceseeeeeseeneeseens 9 4 Point to Point or PakBus communications select direct connect as the connection typerna Gans eree E AE r EEE 10 5 The Baud Rate in LoggerNet must match the radio s RS 232 baud ratere e E EE E E E N G e 11 6 Item 14310 900 MHz Omnidirectional 1 4 Wave Whip 0 dBd 17 7 Item 14204 900 MHz Omnidirectional 1 2 Wave Whip 0 dBd 17 8 Item 14201 900 MHz Yagi 9 dBd w Mount uu
19. RF41 1s in this example are configured for the lowest possible average standby mode current Advanced Setup Menu selection 7 The same amount of data are collected as in Example 1 however the frequency of collection is changed from once a minute to once an hour It Ist tIh Iq Ir hi Calculating each term Is table mA value 0 4 mA Ih E s x73 mA as x73mA 17mA_ long header length 8200 ms T ms 3 600 000 ms Iq 20m5 73 mA 0 0004mA 3 600 000 ms S 45 ms 20 ms 3 600 000 ms x24 mA 0 0004 mA 5000 ms i x 24mA 0 033 mA using default time of inactivity to sleep 50 3 600 000 ms It 0 6 mA L 8 Appendix L RF401 RF411 Average Current Drain Calculations EXAMPLE 7 Remote RF401 RF411 in lt 0 4 mA 4 sec Cycle standby mode The RF401 RF41 1s in this example are configured for the lowest possible average standby mode current Advanced Setup Menu selection 7 The same amount of data are collected as in Example 1 however the frequency of collection is extended to once an hour It Is Id Ir Ii Calculating each term Is table mA value 0 4 mA EN D aA a eS DOMA T ms 3 600 000 ms Id 20 ms x24mA 0 0001 mA 3 600 000 ms 5000 ms i x 24mA 0 033mA 3 600 000 ms It 0 43 mA SUMMARY Choosing a lower current standby mode does not always result in an overall lower average current f
20. Seguente narin na e ar a E iets 26 SLT Net Addres Siniseen aiaeeiiee riasa ee 26 5 1 2 8 Radio Address oiccen kereis neuse n ioni E 26 5k29 Power Modes niece eae a sll es hehe E RRR 27 5 1 2 10 Retry Leve licci prenese eretier iep eea EEk s Tre s 27 5 1 3 PakB s Tabni r ta eeaeee a ear Sisk ered Ea RE Sa 28 52 LoggerNet oe enir e ae a R EE R a 29 3 21 Setup Sreem nonb ees o arseen EEE eane ee E Oe 29 5 2 1 1 Standard Setup RF400 ee eeseeceeeeeeneeceeeeeeneeceereeeeeees 31 5 2 1 2 Standard Setup RF400 Remote eeeeeeeeeneceeeeeeneees 32 3 2 2 NetWork Planner visirani anerian ctu E bane 34 5 2 3 Pak Bus Graph wsiseccsvssassstianstieveutisecentiievt a A e 34 6 Troubleshooting ccccccccccceeeceeceeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeees 35 Appendices A Part 15 FCC Compliance Warning A 1 B Advanced Setup Menu 0 cseeeeeeeeeeeeeeees B 1 B 1 Accessing the Advanced Menu cessceceesseceeeeeseeceereeeeecesreeeneeeees B 1 B 2 Error Handling and Retries cc eesecseesscseeeeceseeeceseceeesecneeseeneeeeeaees B 3 B 2 1 Number of Retes aenn ae E Ea AR B 3 B 2 2 Number of Time Slots for Random Retry seseeeeeeeeeeeereeeeeeeeee B 3 B 2 3 Number of Bytes Transmitted before Delay 000 eee eeeeeeeee B 3 B 2 4 Sync Timer Setting ec eecsesecseeeecsseeeesseceeeeeesecaeeesnereeeeaees B 3 B 2 5 Number of Retry Failures cee ceescsseecessecseeeecneeeeseeceeeeeeaees B 3 B 3 Received Signa
21. eeeecseeecseeeeeeeeeees 18 9 Item 14205 900 MHz Yagi 6 dBd w Mount eee eee eee eee tees 18 10 Item 14221 900 MHz Omnidirectional Collinear 3 dBd w Mounts 18 11 Item 15970 900 MHz Indoor Dipole 1 dBd Window Wall Mounted i ss 2s sassesesspe tesssesstinhioe ap er EEE E eS EEEE EaR 19 12 Item 16005 2 4 GHz Omnidirectional 1 2 Wave Whip 0 dBd 19 13 Item 16755 2 4 GHz Enclosed Yagi 13 dBd w Mounts 06 20 14 Example COAX RPSMA L Cable for Yagi or Omni Colinear 20 15 Antenna Surge ProtectOr eee ee eecesecesecssecneecseecaeeeseseeeeeeeeesenseensees 20 16 Enclosure with Antenna Surge Protector for RF401 n se 22 17 Default DevConfig Screen for Setting up the RF401 radios OS4 Or higher cerai ee isn an gua aaihiuauedilonwn aga aees 23 18 PakBus tab in DevConfig with Default Settings ceeeeeeeeeeeees 28 19 Select RF4XX for connection type for a multipoint non PakBus NWO 336 ee ae e des ee T E A odes ee a 30 20 For the datalogger settings the baud rate must match the radio s RS 232 Daud rate 2 c csucsscsscesskssesesstse th scnssssesedaiseestnassovedbseesveshocssues 30 21 Default Screen for the RF400 Standard Setup in LoggerNet 4 31 22 Default Screen for the RF400 Remote Standard Setup in LoggerNet 4 32 23 Point to Multi Point Network with Two Routers cee ceeeeseeeeeeeees 34 24 Point to Multi Point Network as Displayed in PakBus Graph
22. is set to PakBus Aware these Hello Request packets are sent alternately from PakBus node 4088 and 4089 That is the radio temporarily assumes the PakBus identity of 4088 or 4089 until it finds the PakBus address of the attached device The reason for alternating between these two addresses is in case the attached node has the same address CAMPBELL SCIENTIFIC COMPANIES Campbell Scientific Inc CSI 815 West 1800 North Logan Utah 84321 UNITED STATES www campbellsci com info campbellsci com Campbell Scientific Africa Pty Ltd CSAf PO Box 2450 Somerset West 7129 SOUTH AFRICA www csafrica co za sales csafrica co za Campbell Scientific Australia Pty Ltd CSA PO Box 8108 Garbutt Post Shop QLD 4814 AUSTRALIA www campbellsci com au info campbellsci com au Campbell Scientific do Brazil Ltda CSB Rua Apinag s nbr 2018 Perdizes CEP 01258 00 S o Paulo SP BRAZIL www campbellsci com br vendas campbellsci com br Campbell Scientific Canada Corp CSC 14532 131 Avenue NW Edmonton Alberta T5L 4X4 CANADA www campbellsci ca e dataloggers campbellsci ca Campbell Scientific Centro Caribe S A CSCC 300N Cementerio Edificio Breller Santo Domingo Heredia 40305 COSTA RICA www campbellsci cc info campbellsci cc Campbell Scientific Ltd CSL Campbell Park 80 Hathern Road Shepshed Loughborough LE12 9GX UNITED KINGDOM www campbellsci co uk e sales campbellsci co uk Cam
23. radiated heat from the oven element by placing the coiled cable on a large cookie sheet or a sheet of aluminium foil See Section 3 3 4 for information on weatherproofing the antenna cable 7 Radio receiver is de sensing from nearby transmitter This problem can be observed from LED behaviour when operating a hand held radio near an RF401 or RF430 that is receiving collected data from a remote station If you key a hand held 150 MHz or 450 MHz transmitter even though its frequency of operation is far removed from the 900 MHz band its close proximity to the base RF401 or RF430 can overwhelm de sense the RF401 or RF430 receiver resulting in failed packets and LoggerNet retries This problem could also occur if your radios are at a site near commercial transmitters or repeaters In general it is best to avoid such sites especially the high power FM or AM transmitter antenna sites which can change at any time with added equipment It is possible to avoid de sensing in some cases if the RF401 or RF430 link is solid enough due to the proximity of your remote radios high antenna gains and directionality high elevation and sufficient distance separation between the RF401 and RF430 and commercial transmitter antenna Try horizontal polarization of antennas A field test in such situations is essential 8 There is insufficient signal strength There are some things you can try to get that extra few dBs of signal strength sometimes neces
24. systems and assume driver files have been copied to the PC Table 1 PC Driver Installation Connect the RF430 radio to a computer USB port via the USB cable The Found New Hardware Wizard window will open Select No not this time when asked to connect to Windows Update then click Next Select Install the software automatically then click Next If the Windows Security window appears select Install this driver software anyway to continue Click Finish to close the found New Hardware Wizard window Connect the RF430 radio to a computer USB port via the USB cable The Found New Hardware window will open Click on Locate and install driver software If the Windows Security window appears select Install this driver software anyway Windows XP Windows Vista Windows 7 Connect the RF430 radio to a computer USB port via the USB cable Windows 7 configures the driver automatically RF401 series and RF430 series Spread Spectrum Radio Modems d If using an RF401 plug AC adapter into AC outlet and plug barrel connector into the base radio s Power jack The RF430 is powered through its USB port After connecting the radio to its power source you will see the red Pwr TX LED light immediately followed by the green RX LED in about 5 seconds The green LED goes off after a second and the red after ten seconds indicating a successful power up The red
25. the RF path 3 3 Antenna Considerations 3 3 1 Line of Sight The single most important factor in radio performance is antenna placement As Appendix H states height is everything The two radios must be able to see each other if distances over a mile or two are required This can be accomplished with a mast or tower 11 RF401 series and RF430 series Spread Spectrum Radio Modems 3 3 2 Mounting The higher the gain of a yagi antenna the more important it is to aim the yagi precisely and mount the yagi solidly to prevent movement due to strong winds large birds etc 3 3 3 Antenna Cable Routing The antenna cable should be routed in a protected area and made secure against damage from wildlife wind and vandalism 3 3 4 Antenna Cable Weather Sealing The presence of water inside the antenna cable s plastic sheath can attenuate your transmitted and received signals significantly The RF energy instead of travelling the length of the cable with little loss is absorbed according to the amount of water present like in a microwave oven A small amount of water can ruin a once good communication link When moisture gets inside the sheath it is very difficult to remove Some careful cable handling even pinholes can let in significant amounts of water thoughtful cable routing and good weather proofing can prevent this Apply a 1 8 inch thick coat of pure silicone rubber compound RTV 1 where the cable connec
26. the propagation path between the radios including terrain foliage and man made structures Elevating one or both of the antennas essentially raises the signal path allowing the direct wave to better avoid absorption or reflection which can sometimes be more helpful than adding higher gain antennas GAIN ANTENNAS Increasing antenna gains improves signal strength and distance For example the substitution of a 9 dBd yagi antenna where a 0 dBd omnidirectional existed theoretically extends the attainable distance by a factor of 2 8 Adding 9 dBd yagi antennas on both ends in place of 0 dBd whip antennas theoretically extends the distance by a factor of 7 9 The higher the yagi s gain the narrower the beam width and the more critical it is that it be aimed right on target H 1 RF401 and RF430 Series Spread Spectrum Radio Modems H 2 How Far Can You Go Distance Estimates for Spread Spectrum Radios Overview Link Analysis There is a great deal of interest in estimating the distance you can expect to achieve with the RF401 radios Also of interest are the effects of cable length antenna gain and terrain Some of these items are easy to quantify cable loss for instance others are difficult to quantify such as the effect of ground reflections They are all important though and affect how well the RF system performs Probably the best approach to take in making range estimates is to do a site survey that considers the topogr
27. worst case is that the path loss increases as the 4 power of the distance instead of the 2 power This changes the distance term in the path loss equation to 40 x log d dB Then with each doubling of distance the path loss increases by 12 dB instead of 6 dB Vegetation Losses due to vegetation trees bushes etc cause the path loss to increase by the 3 to 4 power of the distance instead of the 2 power This is just like in the severe ground reflection case above Rain Snow and Fog Below 10 GHz these don t have much effect on path loss see Ground Reflections H 5 RF401 and RF430 Series Spread Spectrum Radio Modems Real World Distance Estimates From the above discussion of departures from the ideal free space path loss it is clear that we should usually use something other than the 2 power distance table Here is a table which gives calculated path loss Lp values at 900 MHz for the 2 3 and 4 powers of distance the equations for 915 MHz are Lp 2 power 95 8 20 x log d dB d in miles Lp 3 power 95 8 30 x log d dB d in miles Lp 4 power 95 8 40xlog d dB d in miles Example calculated Lp values in dB Table H 1 900 MHz Distance vs Path Loss Lp in dB per Three Path Types Path Type 2mi 4mi 6mi 8mi 10mi 14mi 18 mi 22mi 26mi 30 mi 2 power 102 108 111 114 116 119 121 123
28. 0 default unless there is a neighbouring network e Radio Address Use 0 default only used when Protocol setting is Transparent e Hop Sequence Use 0 default unless there is a neighbouring network e Standby Mode lt 4 mA second default e Retry Level Use Low default User Manual RX LED Test To determine if there is a neighbouring radio network in operation using the same hopping sequence as yours stop communications on your network and observe your radio s green LED for activity A flashing green LED would indicate that there is a nearby network using the same hopping sequence e Click apply after changing settings AC Adapter LoggerNet Datalogger CS VO Figure 3 RF401 Basic Point to Point Network 3 2 2 Step 2 Set Up Remote RF401 a Connect an antenna or antenna cable with Yagi or omnidirectional antenna attached to the RF401 antenna jack The separation between the base RF401 antenna and the remote RF401 antenna can be any convenient distance see Section 3 3 and 4 4 b Use the SC12 serial cable to connect the datalogger CS I O port to the remote RF401 radio s CS I O port The CS I O port on newer dataloggers applies power to the remote RF401 With older dataloggers lacking 12 V on pin 8 see Table 2 you can power the RF401 using a Field Power Cable see above hardware list between the datalogger s 12 V output terminals and the RF401
29. 0 ME Baud Rate Hop Sequence 0 4 Net Address 0 Radio Address 0 Power Mode lt 2ma 1 second Retry Level Low RS 232 Baud Rate PC Serial Port sk Specifies the baud rate that will be used on the RS 232 port apply _ cancel Factory Defaults ReadFile _ summary Figure D 5 DevConfig Deployment panel showing the RF401 setup for Example 1 Select Net Address 0 which matches the CR206 X s address The Radio Address is fixed at 0 when the Protocol is PakBus Aware Select lt 2ma 1 Sec Header for the Power Mode Select Retry Level Low Entry of a PakBus Address is disabled in DevConfig for the PakBus Aware protocol D 5 RF401 and RF430 Series Spread Spectrum Radio Modems D 3 Example Setup 2 Router to CR206 X The following is a typical setup of an RF401 cabled to a router datalogger and linked to a CR206 X in a PakBus network PC running LoggerNet RF401 1 Software NA NN RF401 2 CR1000 CR206 CR206 X Example Setup 2 see Figure D 6 1 Enter PakBus Address 1 2 Select PakBus Aware for RF Protocol 3 Select Hop Sequence 0 4 Select Network Address 0 5 The Radio Address is fixed at 0 when the RF Protocol is PakBus 6 Select Power Mode 1 Sec with Long Header to economize station power Device Configuration Utility 1 14 DAR Fie Language Options Help Device Type poyma L A PakBus Address 1
30. 00 supply the RF401 receives 12V power and you will see the LEDs light in their power up sequence Remote RF401s normally connect to datalogger CS I O ports via SC12 cables Powering up the datalogger will start the RF401 operating Install an antenna or antenna cable and yagi or collinear and you are ready to collect data Appendix J Monitor CSAT3 via RF401 Series Procedure for installing a pair of RF401 series spread spectrum radios for monitoring a CSAT3 system at a distance This function has traditionally been implemented by running a short haul modem cable between CSAT3 and PC HARDWARE REQUIREMENTS Two RF401s mounting bracket option available Two RF401 antennas and possibly cables see Section 4 4 for options Remote station 12V Field Power Cable Item 14291 or if 120 Vac is available AC adapter Item 15966 9 pin male to 9 pin male null modem serial cable CSI Item 14392 PC with DevConfig for RF401 setup if neighbouring RF401s Spare PC COM port COMx RF401 SETUP 1 2 3 4 Plug AC adapter into 120 Vac outlet plug barrel connector into base RF401 and wait 10 seconds for RF401 to initialize Connect 6 ft cable from base kit between PC COM port and base RF401 RS 232 port Access DevConfig see Section 5 1 Configure the base radios s follows a Active Interface leave at default Auto Sense b Network Address can be default 0 if no neighbouring RF401 netwo
31. 01 and RF430 Series Spread Spectrum Radio Modems CST s COAX RPSMA L uses LMR 195 antenna cable Cable loss is proportional to length as the following table illustrates LMR 195 Cable Loss vs Length 900 MHz LENGTH LOSS ft dB 100 11 1 50 5 6 25 2 8 10 1 1 6 0 7 Antenna Gain Antenna gain is specified either in dBi decibels of gain relative to an isotropic radiator or in dBd decibels of gain relative to a dipole The relationship is dBi dBd 2 15 Some antennas that are FCC approved for use with the RF401 series are Mfg Antenna Type Band Model CSI Item dBd dBi Size Gain Gain Astron Omni 1 2 wave 900 MHz AXH900 RP SMA R 14204 0 2 15 6 75 Antenex Collinear 900 MHz FG9023 14221 3 5 15 24 MaxRad Yagi 900 MHz BMOY8905 14201 9 11 15 21 4 LINX Omni 1 2 wave 2 4 GHz ANT 2 4 CW RCT RP_ 16005 0 2 15 4 5 MaxRad Enclosed Yagi 2 4 GHz WISP24015PTNF 16755 13 15 1 17 H 4 Receiver Sensitivity Receiver sensitivity is usually specified in dBm for a specific bit error rate BER The transceiver module used in the RF401 RF411 RF430 or RF431 is specified at 110 dBm at 10 raw BER If the received signal strength is greater than the receiver sensitivity a link can be established Any excess signal strength above the receiver sensitivity is link margin and is a very good thing a minimum
32. 1 and RF430 Series Spread Spectrum Radio Modems remote s address mask to 3fh 3ffh so that it will only receive a 16 bit address match Network and Radio but the base s address mask to 3fh Oh so it will receive any packet that has the same Network Address and hopping sequence regardless of Radio Address Combined Network Radio Addresses If programming PC208W for Point to Multipoint networks the Generic Dial Strings require the combined 16 bit addresses of the RF401s to be called The RF401 Setup Menu in Standard Setup Radio Address calculates and displays the combined network and radio address when you enter the network and radio address values Following are some examples NET ADDRESS RADIO ADDRESS decimal decimal COMBINED 16 BIT ADDRESS hexadecimal 0000 0001 0002 0003 0004 0005 0006 0007 0008 0009 000A 000B 000C 000D 000E OOOF 0010 0011 0012 0013 0014 0015 0016 0017 0018 0019 000A j N N NINININ NIN m m m m m m D S ive N N olojlolololoj ojlolojlolojlolo olojloloololololiojlolojloliojlojojolojojo Wo Qo Oo 1022 1023 03FE 03FF 0400 0401 0800 C 2 Appendix C Address and Address Mask NET ADDRESS RADIO ADDRESS COMBINED 16 BIT ADDRESS decimal decimal hexadecimal C 3 Appendix D Setting Up RF401 to CR206 X Communications Certain CR206 X settings must mat
33. 124 125 3 power 105 114 119 123 126 130 133 136 138 140 4 power 108 120 127 132 136 142 146 149 152 155 The following table helps select a Path Type in the above Distance vs Path Loss table to best fit your situation Table H 2 Path Type vs Path Characteristics Selector Path Type Path Characteristics 2 power Mountaintop to mountaintop or Tall antenna towers Line of sight 3 power Dominantly line of sight Low antenna heights Some trees 4 power At water s edge very reflective Across field of grain reflective Lots of Trees absorptive Examples Some examples will help illustrate the tradeoffs in a link analysis These examples will all use the RF401 900 MHz radio and will use 107 dBm as the required power level at the radio receiver This is 3 dB higher than the quoted sensitivity of 110 dBm which will give us a 3 dB margin H 6 Appendix H Distance vs Antenna Gain Terrain and Other Factors Here s the equation we will use from the first page Pt Lt Gt Lp Gr Lr Pr Example 1 Antenex FG9023 antennas on each end 20 of LMR195 cable on one end 10 of LMR195 on the other end antennas at 10 height fairly open terrain with a few trees How far can I go Pt 20 dBm Lt 20 x 11 1 dB 100 ft 2 22 dB Gt Gr 3 dBd 5 15 dBi Lr 10 x 11 1 dB 100 ft 1 11 dB Use 107 dBm for Pr solve for Lp Lp 135 dB Use the 3 to
34. 1s normally connect to datalogger CS I O ports via SC12 cables Powering up the datalogger will start the RF401 operating Install an antenna or antenna cable and yagi or collinear and you are ready to collect data l 5 RF401 and RF430 Series Spread Spectrum Radio Modems 1 2 Non PakBus Network Where a phone to RF401 Base is desired in a non PakBus network the following configurations will provide Point to Point or Point to Multipoint communications using the RF401 Transparent protocol To have a base datalogger in this configuration requires that another RF401 be added at the base 1 HARDWARE REQUIREMENTS prosp RF401s COM220 A100 Null Modem and either the PS100 or CH100 AC charger CSI Item 9591 or solar panel Two SC12 cables one included with RF401 and one with COM220 2 POINT TO POINT COMMUNICATIONS Transparent Protocol PC Modem COM220 A100 PS100 RF401 RF401 Mixed array Datalogger null modem LoggerNet SETUP a d f g Setup ComPort_1 PhoneBase PhoneRemote RF401 RF401Remote CRIOX ComPort_1 default settings PhoneBase 1 Maximum Baud Rate 9600 2 Modem Pick List per PC s phone modem 3 Extra Response Time 0s PhoneRemote input base site s phone number RF401 make Attention Character leave the rest defaults RF401Remote Radio Address 0 leave the rest defaults CR10X default settings schedule collections as desir
35. 4 power tables Range from 9 4 power to 22 3 power miles Example 2 Base has MaxRad BMOY8905 Yagi with 50 of LMR195 cable on a 30 tower also a lightening protection device with a VSWR of 1 1 75 remote also has a MaxRad BMOY8905 Yagi with 5 of LMR195 cable on a 4 pole Terrain is mostly flat with sagebrush How far can I go Pt 20 dBm Lt 50 x 11 1 dB 100 ft 5 55 dB Gt 9 dBd 11 15 dBi Lr 5 x 11 1 dB 100 ft 55 dB Gr 9 dBd 11 15 dBi Need to include the loss from the surge arrestor VSWR of 1 1 75 34 dB loss Use 107 dBm for Pr solve for Lp Lp 143 dB Use the 3 to 4 power tables Range from 14 4 power to 30 3 power miles Example 3 You need to run 125 of cable for the transmitter How much loss if I use LMR195 cable 125 x 11 1 dB 100 13 9 dB How much loss if I use LMR400 cable 125 x 3 9 dB 100 4 9 dB If I am using path loss from the 2 power table and operating fine at 8 miles with LMR195 cable how much more range could I expect if I use LMR400 cable assuming similar terrain 13 9 dB 4 9 dB gt 9 dB more link margin Loss at 8 miles 114 dB could tolerate 114 9 dB 123 dB loss gt gt gt 22 miles 14 miles more H 7 RF401 and RF430 Series Spread Spectrum Radio Modems H 8 Appendix I Phone to RF401 Series 1 1 PakBus Network Use of the Network Planner may be the easiest method of configuring a phone to RF
36. 401 PakBus network see Figure I 1 The Network Planner is a tool available in LoggerNet 4 0 or higher In the Network Planner select each device from a list and use the link tool to indicate physical communication The Network Planner calculates the optimum settings for each device and can send the settings to each device Refer to the LoggerNet manual for more information about the Network Planner Network Planner C ARCHIVE Customer Projects TX WMichael Williams com220_rfbase nwp File Edit Yiew Options Help Device Palette py L100 B wus B NL120 scios a 50328 505324 Ma 50929 59328 srmsa Phone Modems S amp P comzio me comz20 SF comsi0 me COM320 amp Cellular Phone Modem Radios 53108 A RF3iOM Qay RF401 Ay RF411 Ay RF416 Ay RF430 Ady RF431 Ady RF432 SA RF450 Configure Devices Hide Completed Program settings for COM220_1 RF401 Program settings For CR1000_1 CR1000 Program settings For CR1000_1 RF401 EQ Configure LoggerNet server LoggerNet_1 LoggerNet LoggerNet_1 j The LoggerNet server LoggerNet_1 LoggerNet at localhost was last configured on Thursday August 13 2009 09 47 28 a COM220_1 w 38 Click here to reconfiqure Station Summary COM220_1 COM220 dh i Se COM220 Phone Modem Vay Edit Properties CR1000_1 Links to Other Devices e COM220_1 RF401 ME e LoggerNet_1 Phone Modem Phone Link
37. 8 ms time slots to create among which to randomly re send a packet which has failed to get an ACK packet response The allowable range is 0 to 255 If packets are failing because of periodic noise or signals specifying more time slots for random retries will improve the chances for successful retry packet delivery Increasing the number of time slots however results in longer average retry delays which will lower data throughput B 2 3 Number of Bytes Transmitted before Delay This feature prevents radios which have lots of data to transfer from tying up a network until it is finished The range of settings is 1 to 65535 The default value is 400 bytes This setting forces an RF401 to pause long enough after sending the specified number of bytes for another radio to send some data B 2 4 Sync Timer Setting This setting determines how often sent packets will include hop synchronization information in the headers The default setting is 0 which specifies that every packet will contain hop sync information A value greater than zero specifies the interval at which a packet will contain hop sync information The allowable range is 0 to 255 in units of 100 ms All radios in the network should have the same Sync Timer Setting For example if you input a value of 50 then packets with hop sync info will be sent out every 5 seconds improving shortening the response time of a transmit response sequence Even though this shortens the time requi
38. 900 MHZ 0 dBd ANTENNA OMNI WAVE WHIP RPSMA STRAIGHT LINX 3 2 inches long 14204 900 MHZ 0 dBd ANTENNA OMNI 1 2 WAVE WHIP RPSMA RT ANGLE ASTRON 6 75 inches long 14221 900 MHZ 3 dBd ANTENNA OMNI COLLINEAR ANTENEX FG9023 24 inches tall W FM2 MOUNTS fits 1 in to 2 in O D mast requires an antenna cable see Section 4 5 15970 900 MHZ 1 dBd ANTENNA INDOOR OMNI 2 WAVE DIPOLE 10 ft cable with SMA connector to attach to the radio window or wall mounted by sticky back 4 inches wide 14205 900 MHZ 6 dBd ANTENNA YAGI LARSEN YA6900 TYPE N F boom length 17 25 inches longest element 7 25 inches W MOUNTS fits 1 in to 2 in O D mast requires an antenna cable see Section 4 5 14201 900 MHZ 9 dBd ANTENNA YAGI MAXRAD BMOY8905 TYPE N F boom length 21 4 inches longest element 6 4 inches W MOUNTS fits 1 in to 2 in O D mast requires an antenna cable see Section 4 5 16005 2 4 GHz 0 dBd ANTENNA OMNI WAVE WHIP RPSMA RT ANGLE LINX ANT 2 4 CW RCT RP 4 5 inches long CAUTION User Manual 16755 2 4 GHz 13 dBd ANTENNA ENCLOSED YAGI allows vertical or horizontal polarization MAXRAD WISP24015PTNF boom length 17 inches diameter 3 inches W END MOUNT to fit 1 to 2 in O D mast requires antenna cable and possibly a surge protector see Section 4 5 FCC OET Bulletin No 63 October 1993 Changing the antenna on a transmitter can significantly increase or decrease the str
39. Bus Node setting is intended for radios used as stand alone routers RF400 radios can be upgraded to RF401 radios by sending the RF400 to Campbell Scientific an RMA is required 1 4 2 CR205 CR210 CR215 Dataloggers On September 15 2005 the CR206 CR211 and CR216 dataloggers replaced the CR205 CR210 and CR215 dataloggers respectively The newer dataloggers internal radios have two RF Protocol settings which are PakBus and Transparent The PakBus setting is used with RF430 radios and RF401 radios set to PakBus Aware or PakBus Node The Transparent RF protocol setting is required when the network contains older equipment e g RF400s CR205s 2 Specifications POWER e Voltage 9 to 18 VDC e Current 75 mA typical during transmit RF401 series 78 mA typical during transmit RF430 series 24 mA typical receiving a signal RF401 RF411 36 mA typical receiving a signal RF416 26 mA typical receiving a signal RF430 RF431 40 mA typical receiving a signal RF432 User Manual Quiescent Current in Standby Modes Advanced Setup Standard Avg Quiescent Current mA Standby Mode Setup RF401 RF430 RF411 RF416 RF431 RF432 24 0 33 0 26 2 39 8 0 no duty cycling 1 3 9 5 5 5 7 9 2 3 2 2 0 2 8 2 4 3 8 4 3 1 1 1 5 1 6 2 4 5 0 64 0 84 1 1 1 5 6 0 40 0 50 0 60 0 75 7 4 Not receiving a signal nor transmitting PHYSICAL e Size e Weight e Operating temp range e
40. DIP Switch Settings 12 3 4 5 6 78 open open open open open open open Figure l 1 Configuring a phone to RF401network using the Network Planner Tool The Network Planner is available in LoggerNet version 4 or higher The following configuration provides both point to point and point to multipoint communications A PakBus datalogger can be placed at the phone to RF location which eliminates the need for the null modem The datalogger needs to be set up as a router with beaconing Typically the COM220 phone modem is set as SDC7 and the RF401 as SDC8 1 HARDWARE REQUIREMENTS RF401s with OS4 or greater COM220 A100 PS 100 or CH100 AC charger CSI Item 9591 or solar panel Two SC12 cables one included with RF401 and one with COM220 ep BosE l 1 RF401 and RF430 Series Spread Spectrum Radio Modems POINT TO MULTI POINT COMMUNICATIONS PakBus Protocol PC Modem COM220 A100 PS 100 RF401 RF401 PakBus DL null modem LoggerNet SETUP a Setup ComPort_1 choose appropriate ComPort PhoneBase PhoneRemote PakBus Port CR1000_1 CR1000_2 b ComPort_1 default settings c PhoneBase see Figure I 2 1 Maximum Baud Rate 38400 2 Modem Pick List per PC s phone modem 3 Extra Response Time 0s d PhoneRemote input base site s phone number see Figure I 3 e PakBus Port Maximum Baud Rate 38400 f CR1000_1 see Figure I 4 1 PakBus Ad
41. Edit Modem Database lt default modem gt v Advanced Extra Response Time Delay Hangup i problems found with settings for the selected device Figure l 2 Phone base configuration RF401 and RF430 Series Spread Spectrum Radio Modems X Setup Screen BEE No problems found with settings for the selected device Figure l 3 Enter the base site s phone number Appendix I Phone to RF401 Series X Setup Screen Eile View Network Tools Options Help Kp i Add Root Add Delete Rename Lin Reds Ez View Network Map Sy COM3 EB cro crio S hs LoggerNet_1 phone base MRE COM220_1 phone rem ardware Schedule Data Files Clock Program Image Files Notes Sy pkb 4001 Standad lt a ee v Communications Enabled marcriOe Z CallBack Enabled PakBus Address Advanced Maximum Packet Size Security Code Delay Hangup 00 s 000 ms Scheduled Data Collection is disabled Figure l 4 Enter 250 for the Maximum Packet Size 4 HARDWARE After configuring LoggerNet and the RF401s you are ready to set up hardware The A100 null modem connectors connect via SC12 cables to the COM220 and the base RF401 CS I O port Connect the site phone line to COM220 Connect power to the PS100 Connect antenna to RF401 When you turn on the PS100 supply the RF401 receives 12V power and you will see the LEDs light in their power up sequence Remote RF40
42. F411 We recommend AC adapter Item 15966 or a Field Power Cable Item 14291 connected to a 12V battery pack or 12V power supply b Choose an open area free of large metal objects within 10 feet of the RF401 RF41 1s can be indoors or outdoors c Attach a 1 4 wave omni antenna Item 14310 to base RF401 RF411 d Set up remote RF401 RF411 with NO antenna e Separate RF401 RF411s by 5 feet Type 8 groups of 5 characters on the terminal aaaaabbbbbccccc etc g You should receive 100 of the characters h With bad or missing wave OMNI antenna you should get few to no characters echoed back Be careful to not exceed maximum supply voltage of 18 VDC to RF401 RF411 Use quiet power supply without noise or hum a 12V lead acid battery is fine if no trickle charger is attached during the tests Appendix K RF401 RF411 Pass Fail Tests gt Examples of large metal objects a steel filing cabinet steel trim on cubicle dividers or steel shelving Especially avoid such metal objects facing the RF401 RF411s broadside The idea is to avoid significant reflected signals because they can add to or subtract from the direct wave signal making test results vary a lot according to exact location A fully absorbent rf environment with no reflections would be ideal 2 TESTING YAGI or COLLINEAR ANTENNA a Connect 12V power to base RF401 RF411 and remote RF401 RF411 We recommend AC adapter Item 15966 or a
43. F430 Series Spread Spectrum Radio Modems D 2 Address Enter 0 if the RF Protocol setting is PakBus If the RF Protocol setting is Transparent enter a number from 0 to 1023 This number must match the Radio Address setting for all RF401 radios in the network The Address setting must also match the setting for all other CR206 X dataloggers in the network Power Mode Enter a radio Power Mode that works with the RF401 s power mode see Table D 1 Typically the power mode setting should be 1 Sec with Long Header or 8 Sec with Long Header Although these power modes introduce 1 second or 8 seconds respectively of latency they use less power than the always on modes With settings other than always on the radio receivers turn on periodically for 100 milliseconds It is therefore necessary for the transmitting radio to send a long header to assure that the duty cycling receiver on the other end hears it see Figures D 2 and D 3 Table D 1 CR206 X Power Modes and the Recommended Corresponding RF401 Power Modes CR206 X Power Mode Recommended RF401 Power Mode Always On lt 24ma Always On No header Pin Enabled lt 24ma Always On No header 1 Sec lt 24 ma Always On 1 Sec Header 1 Sec with Long Header lt 2ma 1 Sec Header 8 Sec lt 24ma Always On 8 Sec Header 8 Sec with Long Header lt 0 4ma 8 Sec Header Wakeup Initiative Payhond ee seeee
44. Fail Tests This appendix describes a method to functionally test RF401 RF411 system components including e PCCOM port e SC12 serial cable e RF401 RF411 e RF401 RF411 Antenna Hardware Software Required PC with one available COM port v v Terminal Program HyperTerminal or Procomm v Two RF401 RF411s v Two SC12 serial cables 4 wave OMNI antenna CSI Item 14310 v Two power supplies rated 12 Volts 1 Amp recommend AC adapter Item 15966 and any 12 V battery pack with Field Power Cable Item 14291 The following descriptions tell how to build an RF401 RF411 loop back test system Recommendations are given as to where to place the system to avoid rf reflections see TESTING 1 4 Wave Antenna footnote in this appendix The basic parts of the system are 1 PC running a terminal program and a serial cable from PC COM port to base RF401 RF411 2 Base RF401 RF411 3 Remote RF401 RF411 with RS 232 port jumper wire between TX pin 2 and RX pin 3 for data loop back Build the RF401 RF411 test system in the order shown 1 TESTING SC12 CABLE and PC COM PORT 2 TESTING RF401 RF411s 3 TESTING ANTENNAS Label components of the system known good as they pass the test TESTING SC12 CABLE and PC COM PORT 1 Runa terminal program such as HyperTerminal or Procomm a Baud rate 9600 b Data Parity Stop Bits 8 N 1 c Flow control none d Emulation TTY e ASCII f COMI or
45. Figure 18 PakBus tab in DevContig with Default Settings The settings entered in DevConfig s PakBus tab are only used when the radio is set to the PakBus Node protocol The PakBus Node protocol setting is for standalone RF routers repeaters In this mode the radio is not attached to any datalogger or PC it is ONLY a RF router Each standalone router in a network needs a unique PakBus address 28 User Manual Defaults can often be used for the other settings provided in the PakBus tab The default settings are shown in Figure 18 Beacon Interval Setting in units of seconds governs the rate at which the radio will broadcast PakBus messages in order to discover any new PakBus neighbouring nodes For the router configuration this is broadcast over RF otherwise it is broadcast on the wired port It will also govern the default verification interval if the value of the Verify Interval XXX setting is zero Verify Interval Setting specifies the interval in units of seconds that will be reported as the link verification interval in the PakBus hello transaction messages It will indirectly govern the rate at which the radio will attempt to start a hello transaction with a neighbour if no other communication has taken place within the interval Central Router Setting specifies a PakBus address for a router that is able to work as Central Router By specifying this setting the radio will be configured as a Branch Router meaning that it wi
46. Humidity RF INTERFACE e Transceiver modules e Frequency bands e Interface ports e RS 232 Baud Rates e USB Baud Rate e Mode e Channel capacity e Transmitter output e Receiver sensitivity e Antenna impedance e Interference reject e RF packet size e Error handling 4 75 x 2 75 x 1 3 inches 12 1 x 7 0 x 3 3 cm 0 5 Ibs 225 g 25 C to 50 C 0 to 95 RH non condensing MaxStream RF401 RF430 9XStream XO9 009 RF411 RF431 9XStream XH9 009 RF416 RF432 24XStream X24 009 RF401 RF430 910 5 to 917 7 MHz RF411 RF431 920 0 to 927 2 MHz RF416 RF432 2 45015 to 2 45975 GHz CS I O 9 pin RF401 series only RS 232 9 pin 4 wire Tx Rx CTS GND USB Port RF430 series only 38 4 K default 19 2 K 9600 4800 1200 bps 38 4 K default 19 2 K 9600 4800 1200 bps OS1 only supported 38 4 kbps Frequency hopping spread spectrum FHSS 25 hop channels 7 hopping sequences direct FM frequency control 65 535 addresses 100 mW nominal 50 mW RF416 RF432 110 dBm at 10 bit error rate 104 dBm for RF416 50 Q unbalanced SMA male connector 70 dB at pager and cellular phone frequencies RF401 RF411 RF430 RF431 up to 64 bytes half duplex RF packet CRC failure detection rejection or configurable retry levels RF401 series and RF430 series Spread Spectrum Radio Modems 3 Installation 3 1 Site Considerations Location of a radio near commercial transmitt
47. LED then begins to flash on and off The red LED flashes once every half second in the default lt 4 mA sec Cycle standby mode as the radio wakes up briefly and listens for RF transmissions with an average current consumption less than 4 mA e Access the Device Configuration DevConfig Utility to configure radio see Section 5 1 for more information e Active Interface Use AutoSense default e Protocol Use PakBus Aware default for RF430s and RF401s with OS4 or higher if remote radio is connected to a PakBus datalogger CR200 X CR800 CR1000 CR3000 Otherwise use Transparent default for RF401 s with OS3 or lower e SDC or CSDC Address Use default 7 only needed if remote radio is connected to a PakBus datalogger e RS 232 Baud Rate Use 38 4 kbps setting if the datalogger attached to the remote radio supports 38 4 kbps Use 9600 kbps setting if the datalogger does not support 38 4 kbps e g CR200 X CR10X CR510 The 38 4 kbps setting is default for RF401 radios with OS4 or higher and all RF430 radios RF430 radios with OS1 only support 38 4 kbps NOTE If the RF430 s operating system is prior to OS2 its USB port will only communicate at 38 4 kbps Therefore the RF430 operating system will need to be updated to a newer version if the network will contain dataloggers that do not support 38 4 kbps Operating system updates are available from www campbellsci com downloads e Net Address Use
48. RF401 series and RF430 series Spread Spectrum Radio Modems Figure 13 Item 16755 2 4 GHz Enclosed Yagi 13 dBd w Mounts Figure 14 Example COAX RPSMA L Cable for Yagi or Omni Colinear Figure 15 Antenna Surge Protector 20 User Manual 4 5 Antenna Cables and Surge Protection 4 5 1 Antenna Cables The 14201 14203 14205 14221 and 16755 antennas require an antenna cable either 1 the COAXRPSMA or 2 the COAXNTN with surge protector see Figures 14 and 15 Indoor omnidirectional antennas are either supplied with an appropriate cable or connect directly to the radio 4 5 2 Electro static Issues Many radio installations are out of doors and therefore susceptible to lightning damage especially via the antenna system Also depending on climate and location electro statically charged wind can damage sensitive electronics if sufficient electric charge is allowed to accumulate on the antenna and cable To protect against this CSI offers the Item 14462 Antenna Surge Protection Kit The COAXNTN L cable is a low loss RG8 coaxial cable that requires the 14462 surge protector in order to connect to the radio The RG8 Antenna Surge Protector are recommended in preference to the COAXRPSMA in the following applications e When the antenna cable length exceeds 10 feet e When use of COAXRPSMA would result in too much signal loss see page H 3 e When the radio will be used in an environment susceptible to lightning or
49. Radio has low or weak battery voltage or 12 VDC supply voltage The power supply battery may not be charging properly due to solar panel orientation poor connection or due to a charging transformer problem The battery itself may have discharged too low too many times ruining the battery Lead acid batteries like to be topped off Power supply must be able to sustain at least 9 6 V datalogger minimum even during 75 mA transmitter bursts lasting only a few milliseconds 35 RF401 series and RF430 series Spread Spectrum Radio Modems 4 Radio is lightning damaged Swap in a known good radio with the same settings and see if this cures the problem Lightning damage can occur leaving no visible indications A near miss can cause damage as well as a more direct hit with evidence of smoke see Appendix K for pass fail tests 5 Antenna and or cable is lightning damaged Swap in a known good antenna and or cable Hidden damage may exist 6 Moisture is in coaxial antenna cable It is possible that moisture has penetrated inside the plastic sheath of the coaxial cable Water inside the cable can absorb RF energy and attenuate the transmitted signal the received signal would also be attenuated It is difficult to dry out the interior of a coaxial cable Substitution of a dry cable is recommended Placing a wet cable in a conventional oven at 160 F for a couple of hours should dry it out Shield the antenna cable against damage from
50. TIVONVIA JASA CAMPBELL SI SCIENTIFIC WHEN MEASUREMENTS MATTER RF401 and RF430 Series including RF416 Spread Spectrum Data Radios Modems Issued 5 5 15 Copyright 2009 2015 Campbell Scientific Inc Printed under licence by Campbell Scientific Ltd CSL 864 Guarantee This equipment is guaranteed against defects in materials and workmanship This guarantee applies for 24 months from date of delivery We will repair or replace products which prove to be defective during the guarantee period provided they are returned to us prepaid The guarantee will not apply to e Equipment which has been modified or altered in any way without the written permission of Campbell Scientific e Batteries e Any product which has been subjected to misuse neglect acts of God or damage in transit Campbell Scientific will return guaranteed equipment by surface carrier prepaid Campbell Scientific will not reimburse the claimant for costs incurred in removing and or reinstalling equipment This guarantee and the Company s obligation thereunder is in lieu of all other guarantees expressed or implied including those of suitability and fitness for a particular purpose Campbell Scientific is not liable for consequential damage Please inform us before returning equipment and obtain a Repair Reference Number whether the repair is under guarantee or not Please state the faults as clearly as possible and if the product is out of th
51. a good idea to choose a unique hopping sequence User Manual 4 1 2 Radio Configuration NOTE The RF401 and RF430 radios are designed to be easily installed and for many applications the radios work out of the box using the default settings RF401s with operating systems of OS4 or higher and RF430s are configured for PakBus networks These radios have a Protocol setting of PakBus Aware and an RS 232 Baud Rate of 38 4 K RF401 radios with an operating system of OS3 or lower have a Protocol setting of Transparent and an RS 232 baud rate of 9600 The 9600 baud rate needs to be used if the network contains older dataloggers e g CR510 CR10X or other devices that do not support the 38 4 K baud rate If the RF430 s operating system is prior to OS2 its USB port will only communicate at 38 4 kbps Therefore the RF430 operating system will need to be updated to a newer version if the network will contain dataloggers that do not support 38 4 kbps Operating system updates are available from www campbellsci com downloads If the default settings need to be changed our Device Configuration Utility DevConfig is often the preferred method to use see Section 5 1 DevConfig provides the settings for the standard setup see Appendix B for the advanced setup menu If the spread spectrum radios are used in a PakBus network the radios may also be configured using the Network Planner or PakBus Graph The Network Planner assists you in de
52. adio s 12 Volt power The RSS reading is a relative signal level indication expressed in dB decibels Readings may vary up to 10 dB from radio to radio for a given received signal level The weakest signal reading is around 25 dB and the strongest signal reading is near 86 dB Although the RSS readings are not absolute they will be of value in such activities as e determining the optimal direction to aim a yagi antenna e seeing the effects of antenna height location e trying alternate reflective paths e seeing the effect of seasonal tree leaves B 4 Advanced Setup Standby Modes B 4 The Standard Setup menu selections should fill the majority of user needs The following information is given in case you need to program a non standard standby mode The Standard Setup menu selections do not correspond with Advanced Setup menu entries For example selecting a 3 in the Standard Setup menu selects lt 2 mA 1 sec Cycle whereas entering a 3 in the Advanced Setup menu selects lt 4 mA 1 2 sec Cycle Appendix B Advanced Setup Menu Table B 1 Advanced Setup Menu STANDBY oe Wake up Interval ene CURRENT red LED flash interval DELAY lt 24mA 0 constant 0 sec lt 4mA Y2 sec V2 sec lt 2mA 1 sec 1 sec lt 1lmA 2 sec 2 sec lt 0 6 mA 4 sec 4 sec lt 0 4mA 8 sec 8 sec Shaded modes 1 2 not available Standard Setup menu selection 1 Standard Setup menu selection 2 Standard Set
53. adio Address Settings only four Net Addresses are available 0 3 Combining the seven unique hop sequences with the four Net Addresses provides a total of 28 4x7 unique combinations for networks This is far fewer combinations than available for the RF400 radios increasing the likelihood of RF401 networks that merge unexpectedly Also there is potential for interference from RF400 radios RF400 radios with Net Addresses of 28 44 52 and 56 will interfere with and be interfered by RF401 or RF430 radios with Net Addresses of 0 1 2 and 3 respectively The RF400 Net Address of 60 will interfere with ALL RF401 Net Addresses Therefore if RF400 radios and RF401 RF430 radios will be in the same RF proximity do not use 28 44 52 56 or 60 for the RF400s Net Addresses A positive side effect of the RF PakBus protocol is that the node that is attached to the RF401 RF430 datalogger or server will only receive PakBus packets that are addressed to it or globally addressed packets The rest of the packets are filtered out by the radio This will reduce the overall current consumption of the datalogger When the Protocol is set to one of the PakBus protocols the radio discovers the PakBus address of the attached node by looking at the header of any outbound PakBus packet If no outbound packet could be a beacon or Hello or anything else is sent for 6 minutes the RF401 will send a Hello Request packet to the attached node If the protocol
54. any available COM port K 1 RF401 and RF430 Series Spread Spectrum Radio Modems NOTE With some versions of HyperTerminal after changing a setting it is necessary to do a Call Disconnect or Disconnect followed by a Call Connect or Call for the new setting to register 2 Connect an SC12 to the selected PC COM port either directly or via known good RS 232 cable 3 Temporarily short together pins 2 and 3 RX and TX of the SC12 cable s male connector using a small 22 24 gage copper wire PC card jumper or flat bladed screwdriver Take care to connect only pins 2 and 3 123 45 6 78 9 End view of male SC12 Connector 4 Press any alpha numeric keys on PC keyboard NOTE Make sure that Properties Settings ASCII Setup Echo characters locally or the equivalent Procomm setting is NOT enabled 5 Ifthe SC12 cable is good you will see characters echo to the screen as you press the keys 6 Remove the short circuit from the SC12 connector Key presses should now cease to echo back 7 Test the SC12 cable s female drop by gently inserting a u shaped portion of paper clip into pins 2 and 3 and repeating steps 4 to 6 inclusive 5 432 1 9 8 7 6 End view of female SC12 Connector CAUTION Be sure to remove shorts between pins 2 and 3 when done TESTING RF401 RF411s After verifying the functionality of the terminal program and the integrity of the serial cab
55. aphy location of antennas and radios and cable lengths make some assumptions about the path losses and see if there is still some net gain If there is or if it is close the next course is to actually try it out In an RF system there are gains transmitter power antenna gains and receiver sensitivity gain and losses cable loss and path loss If the gains exceed the losses you have a connection any excess is the link margin Parenthetical values pertain to 2 4 GHZ EXAMPLE GAINS EXAMPLE LOSSES Transmitter Power 20 17 Transmitter Cable 3 Transmitter Antenna 6 Free Space 120 Receiver Antenna 6 Receiver Cable 3 Receiver Sensitivity gain 110 104 TOTAL GAINS 142 133 dB TOTAL LOSSES 126 dB Link Margin Total Gains Total Losses 142 133 126 16 7 dB A minimum of 6 dB of link margin is recommended Here is a block diagram of the various components of gain loss Radio Transmitter Cable Loss Antenna Free Space Antenna Cable Radio Gain Loss Gain Loss Receiver Appendix H Distance vs Antenna Gain Terrain and Other Factors Where Pt gt transmitter output power in dBm 20 dBm in the case of the RF401 or RF411 Lt gt cable loss between transmitter and antenna in dB see Cable Loss section Gt gt transmit antenna gain in dBi dBi dBd 2 15 Lp gt __ path loss between isotropic antennas in dB see Tables H 1 H 2 Gr gt receive antenna gain in dBi
56. c Cycle Select desired Retry Level None Low Medium or High according to the level of RF collisions you expect This depends on how many neighbouring RF401s in and out of your network and the frequency of transmissions Retries can for example reduce pauses in real time monitoring of Input Locations Click the Apply button F 2 Remote Station Setup Transparent Protocol 1 Point to point F 2 a C Complete the steps above making the remote station s Network Address Radio Address and Hopping Sequence the same as the base station s While in DevConfig verify that the Active Interface configuration is Auto Sense and set the Standby Mode the same as the base RF401 default 2 ok Save your configuration by clicking the Apply button 2 Point to multipoint a Complete the steps in Section F 1 making the remote stations Network Addresses and Hopping Sequences the same as the base station s While in DevConfig verify that the active interface is Auto Sense and give each remote RF401 a unique Radio Address You should label each RF401 with masking tape indicating the configured network address radio address hopping sequence etc Save your configuration by click the Apply button F 3 Appendix F Non PakBus Example Configurations LoggerNet Configuration Transparent Protocol There are two ways of configuring the Setup map for a point to point network You can re
57. ch the RF401 settings for communications between the datalogger and radio to be successful The factory default settings of these devices may not match D 1 CR206 X Setup Information 1 Access the Deployment panel in DevConfig see Figure D 1 Device Configuration Utility 1 14 File Language Options Help Tonya Deployment a PakBus Address 1 Hop Sequence 0 Network 0 2 Address Power Mode 1 Sec with Long Header wal Ignore RF Protocol PakBus Aware w RF Network Address Specifies the radio network address of the built in radio This setting should be set to match the network address for the RF400 base used to communicate with the datalogger PC Serial Port Baud Rate Apply Read File Summary Figure D 1 CR206 Setup Main Menu 2 PakBus Address Must match the PakBus Address in LoggerNet 3 RF Protocol Select PakBus Aware if the RF401s and RF430s in your network are set to PakBus Aware or PakBus Node The Transparent setting must be used if your network includes CR205 dataloggers or RF400 radios If Transparent is used all dataloggers and radios in the network must be set to Transparent 4 Hop Sequence Must match all of the RF401 and RF430 radios and other CR206 X dataloggers in the network 5 Network must match the Network Address setting for all RF401 or RF430 radios in the Network All other CR206 X dataloggers must also have the same Network setting D 1 RF401 and R
58. communications and must accept any interference that they receive Most Campbell Scientific users operate in open or remote locations where interference is unlikely If there is a problem interference can be reduced using methods such as moving the device reorienting or using a different type of antenna or adding RF shielding The RF401 series and RF430 series radios can provide up to one mile transmission range when using an inexpensive whip antenna The radios can provide up to 10 mile transmission range when using a higher gain directional antenna at ideal conditions Compatible antennas are described in Section 4 4 Line of sight obstructions and RF interference will affect the transmission distance See Appendix H for a discussion of antenna gain and other factors affecting distance You may test the radio communications onsite by using the 21107 900 MHz Spread Spectrum Demo Kit contact Campbell Scientific for more information Campbell Scientific does not recommend using RF401 series and RF430 series radios in networks containing RF450 radios The RF450 radios will interfere with the transmission of the RF401 series and RF430 series radios No product using the 24XStream radio including the RF416 and RF432 will be available for sale in Europe after 1 1 2015 due to changes in EU legislation Consequently purchase of the RF416 or RF432 is not recommended for use in Europe in new networks that may require future expansio
59. compatible PC with one available COM port or USB port 2 LoggerNet installed 3 2 1 Step 1 Set Up Base RF401 or RF430 a Connect an antenna or antenna cable with Yagi or omnidirectional antenna attached to the radio s antenna jack The main objective is to provide an antenna If you should transmit without an antenna attached there will be no equipment damage as the transmitter is protected against load mismatch The separation between the base radio antenna and the remote radio antenna can be any convenient distance See Sections 3 3 and 4 4 for antenna considerations and options b If using an RF430 go to step c If using an RF401 use the RS 232 serial cable to connect the RF401 s RS 232 port to the PC s RS 232 port Then go to step d User Manual If using an RF430 install the USB drivers to the PC by doing the following procedures Install drivers BEFORE connecting the RF430 to the PC e Obtain software drivers from one of the following sources Source 1 Insert the CD supplied with a new RF430 The CD should auto run and present a menu if not open AutoRun exe Click on Install Drivers button Source 2 Obtain the file at www campbellsci com downloads and copy it to a PC drive Open the file and follow the prompts e Follow the on screen prompts to copy driver files to the PC e Install drivers for RF430 as outlined in Table 1 PC Driver Installation Procedures differ for different Windows operating
60. d appear on screen with good yagi collinear antenna h Removing yagi collinear antenna you should get no echoed characters Appendix L RF401 RF411 Average Current Drain Calculations For remote sites with tight power budgets due to solar or battery power supplies the following will help determine average current consumption The RF401 RF411 s average current drain is based on e Standby mode of RF401 RF411 e Data collection interval e Number of data points collected e Time of inactivity to sleep selection STANDBY MODES Table L 1 Advanced Setup Menu STANDBY DEFAULT LONG STANDBY AVG RECEIVE TIME OF INACTIVITY HEADER MODE CURRENT TO SLEEP LENGTH Is sec L lt 4mA 5 700 ms lt 2mA 5 1200 ms lt 1mA 5 2200 ms 6 lt 0 6mA 5 4200 ms i lt 0 4mA 5 8200 ms Standard Setup menu selection 1 Standard Setup menu selection 2 Standard Setup menu selection 3 Standard Setup menu selection 4 Pune CALCULATIONS BASE The average current drain of a base RF401 RF411 configured for scheduled collections has 5 contributors 1 The STANDBY AVG RECEIVE CURRENT Is 2 The average transmit current of LONG HEADER Ih 3 The average transmit current of data request transmissions Iq 4 The average receive current of data receptions Ir 5 The average receive current of time of inactivity to sleep Ii L 1 RF401 and RF430 Series Spread Spectrum Radio Modems The base RF401 RF411 s t
61. d to a PakBus datalogger CR800 CR850 CR1000 CR3000 Choose ME if the RF401 is connected to a mixed array datalogger CR510 CR10 X CR23X The ME Master setting should be chosen if a COM200 series phone modem or another ME configured device is connected to a base RF401 s CS I O port The baud rate of both the COM200 series modem or other device and the RF401 radio must be the same see Section 5 2 2 5 PakBus Router should be chosen if the radio will be used as a standalone RF router repeater When this is chosen the Protocol should be set to PakBus Node see Section 5 2 2 3 5 1 2 2 SDC Address or CSDC Address 5 2 2 3 Protocol This parameter is called SDC Address for RF401 radios with OS4 or higher and RF430 radios It s called CSDC Address for RF401 radios with OS3 or lower The parameter is used when the radio is connected to a PakBus datalogger e g CR200 X CR800 CR850 CR1000 or CR3000 Valid settings are 7 8 10 or 11 the default is 7 The protocol choices are Transparent PakBus Aware and PakBus Node The default setting is PakBus Aware RF401s with OS4 or higher or RF430s or Transparent RF401s with OS3 or lower The Transparent setting must be chosen if the network contains the retired CR205 dataloggers or the retired RF400 radios When the Transparent protocol is used all CR206 X dataloggers RF401 radios and RF430 radios must be set to Transparent The PakBus Aware and PakBus Node protocols are
62. data LoggerNet monitor CTS to prevent buffer over run The radio can transmit RF packets slightly in excess of 9600 baud When RF packets are received by the radio that data is immediately sent to the active interface port without flow control no RTS For many applications the radio works fine with no flow control The need for flow control arises when longer standby modes are used where more data could be sent than the 640 byte buffer can hold before transmittal For example if the radios are in Standby Mode 6 see Appendix B 4 the radio needs to buffer incoming RS 232 data for up to 8 seconds while waiting for the other radio to wake up before transmitting it Also if the radio is doing a lot of retries that can take extra time and require flow control to avoid buffer over run CS VO Port The RF401 s CS I O port is Campbell Scientific s input output port It is not a standard RS 232 pin out The following table provides pin out information on the port when connected to a datalogger E 1 RF401 and RF430 Series Spread Spectrum Radio Modems E 2 CS I O CONNECTOR 9 PIN D SUB MALE PIN FUNCTION T O DESCRIPTION 1 5V I Sources 5 VDC to power peripherals 2 GND GND for pin 1 and signals 3 Ring O Raised by modem to put datalogger into telecommunications mode 4 RX O Serial data receive line 5 Modem Enable I Raised when datalogger determines that associated modem raised the ring line 6 S
63. des when the network is composed of more than one RF hop RF400 networks needed to be in Always ON mode e Reduced power consumption by the datalogger as the radios perform packet address filtering e Faster communication due to elimination of some of the small link state packets e Automatic selection of the best RF path when there is a marginal RF link in parallel with a good RF path based on RF signal strength Detailed information on the PakBus Aware and PakBus Node protocols is provided in Appendix M 5 1 2 4 RS 232 Baud Rate If the Active Interface setting is AutoSense or RS 232 enter the RS 232 Baud Rate The default setting is 38 4 K for RF401 radios with OS4 or higher and for RF430 radios The default is 9600 for RF401s with older operating systems The 9600 baud rate needs to be used if the network contains CR200 X dataloggers older dataloggers e g CR510 CR10X or other devices that do not support the 38 4 K baud rate 25 RF401 series and RF430 series Spread Spectrum Radio Modems 26 NOTE If the RF430 s operating system is prior to OS2 its USB port will only communicate at 38 4 kbps Therefore the RF430 operating system will need to be updated to a newer version if the network will contain dataloggers that do not support 38 4 kbps Operating system updates are available from www campbellsci com downloads When the radio is connected to a PC the baud rate selections in Lo
64. designed to work in conjunction with PakBus to compensate for the interference and collision problems inherent in RF networks These protocols accomplish this primarily User Manual by using RF level packet acknowledgements and retries This is done for any size network CAUTION Do not mix the Transparent protocol with any of the PakBus protocols This will produce RF traffic without any RF communications One of the PakBus protocols is preferable when using dataloggers with the PakBus operating system e g CR200 X s CR800 CR850 CR1000 CR3000 as it greatly increases the reliability of the RF communications compared to using the Transparent mode which is the only protocol of the RF400 When the PakBus protocols are used for most networks all radios can be set up identically The PakBus Aware setting is the simplest mode and does not require a PakBus address The PakBus Node protocol is useful when a standalone router is required where the radio is assigned its own PakBus Address see Section 5 1 3 The PakBus Node protocol also allows our software to access the radio s RSSI received signal strength indication To summarize the advantages of using the PakBus Aware and PakBus Node Protocols compared to the Transparent protocol are e Greater immunity to interference and RF collisions by using RF retries e Ability to have standalone RF router repeaters up to 8 repeaters e Ability to use the duty cycling mo
65. dios miles 14204 OMNI 2 Wave 0 dBd Whip Virtual line of sight on valley floor with 2 to wetland foliage 14204 OMNI 2 Wave 0 dBd Whip 14204 OMNI 2 Wave 0 dBd Whip Line of sight across a valley on foothills 10 to approximately 300 feet above the valley 14204 OMNI Wave 0 dBd Whip _ floor on each end 14204 OMNI 2 Wave 0 dBd Whip Line of sight across a valley on foothills 35 to approximately 300 feet above the valley 14201 9 dBd YAGI floor on each end dBd decibel level compared to a simple dipole antenna LINE OF SIGHT You should arrange for a line of sight signal path between radios At 900 MHz or 2 4 GHz there is little signal bending however there is reflection from hills water and conductive objects Sometimes reflections provide a helpful path around an obstacle There can be some trees and bushes in the signal path with reduction in signal strength but a hill will block the signal effectively Thick trees can limit range to as little as 800 feet Where possible avoid buildings and other man made structures in the signal path as they absorb or reflect some of the direct wave possibly below the level needed for communications ANTENNA HEIGHT In situations where the radio antennas are situated virtually line of sight the elevation of antennas by choice of site or by installing a tower or mast can substantially increase signal strengths The amount of increase depends on factors in
66. dios are programmed to use the character as the Attention Character However if the radio is being used in a communications link that includes a phone modem you will most likely need to change this character in the radio setup and on LoggerNet s Setup Screen Most phone modems use as the reset character and sending this character unexpectedly will reset the modem and terminate the communications link Advanced Maximum Packet Size Data is transferred in chunks called packets For most devices the default value is 2048 byes The value entered in this field can be changed in 32 byte increments If a communications link is marginal reducing the packet size may improve reliability 5 2 1 2 Standard Setup RF400 Remote X Setup Screen File View Network Tools Options Help dp AddBoot Add Delete Rename Network Map 2 Sy COM3 lga RF400 es GEES CRICK lew RF400Remote RF400Remote Hardware Notes Standard Y Communications Enabled Maximum Time On Line 00h 00m 00s Network Address Radio Address Advanced Maximum Packet Size No problems found with settings for the selected device Figure 22 Default Screen for the RF400 Remote Standard Setup in LoggerNet 4 NOTE User Manual Communication Enabled Before communication can take place all devices in the chain must be enabled When this box is selected the RF400 radio is enabled for communication Maximum Time On Line Th
67. dress enter address for this CR1000 2 Maximum Packet Size 250 g CRI1000_2 1 PakBus Address enter address for this CR1000 2 Maximum Packet Size 250 RF401 CONFIGURATION a Base RF401 1 Active Interface ME Master 2 Protocol PakBus Aware 3 CS I O ME Baud Rate 38 4 K b Remote RF401 1 Active Interface Datalogger SDC 2 SDC Address 7 3 Protocol PakBus Aware If there is a neighbouring RF401 network you should change the Hopping Sequence of base and remote RF401s to a new setting to avoid interference RX LED Test To determine if there is a neighbouring RF401 network in operation using the same hopping sequence as yours stop communications on your network and observe RF401 green LEDs for activity At this point any green LED activity would indicate that there is a nearby network using the same hopping sequence Appendix I Phone to RF401 Series 3 COM220 Dip Switches Dip Switch Position Open Open Open Closed Open Open Open Open OADM HRWNH NOTE Refer to the COM220 manual for more information about the COM220 Dip Switches X Setup Screen File View Network Tools Options Help a 3 3 3 A Add Root Add Delete Rename Undo Redo Network Map S Xy COM3 PhoneBase PhoneBase Bh PhoneBase Herd PhoneRemote ardware Notes lt q PakBusPort Standard a CR1000 Communications Enabled a CN1000_2 Maximum Baud Rate 38400 v
68. e Apply l Cancel Factory Defaults Read File Summary Figure 17 Default DevConfig Screen for Setting up the RF401 radios OS4 or higher 23 RF401 series and RF430 series Spread Spectrum Radio Modems 24 5 1 2 1 Active Interface NOTE The only Active Interface settings that are available for the RF430 radios are Auto Sense and RS 232 When changing the RF430 active interface it is necessary to cycle power to the RF430 for the change to take effect The factory default setting for Active Interface is Auto Sense It is designed to automatically configure the radio s port for common user situations For the RF401 Auto Sense determines whether or not a datalogger or PS100 with an A100 adapter is connected to the radio by looking for 5 V on the CS I O pin 1 If 5 V is present Auto Sense selects the RF401 s CS I O port Not finding 5 V on CS I O pin 1 Auto Sense selects the RS 232 port For the RF430 AutoSense looks for activity on the USB port If activity is present AutoSense selects the USB port If powering an RF401 from the CS I O port but communicating via the RS 232 port the RS 232 setting needs to be chosen The RS 232 setting can also be chosen if the radio is connected to a datalogger s RS 232 port The Datalogger SDC and Datalogger Modem Enable settings are used when an RF401 is connected to the datalogger s CS I O port Choose the SDC setting if the RF401 is connecte
69. e guarantee period it should be accompanied by a purchase order Quotations for repairs can be given on request It is the policy of Campbell Scientific to protect the health of its employees and provide a safe working environment in support of this policy a Declaration of Hazardous Material and Decontamination form will be issued for completion When returning equipment the Repair Reference Number must be clearly marked on the outside of the package Complete the Declaration of Hazardous Material and Decontamination form and ensure a completed copy is returned with your goods Please note your Repair may not be processed if you do not include a copy of this form and Campbell Scientific Ltd reserves the right to return goods at the customers expense Note that goods sent air freight are subject to Customs clearance fees which Campbell Scientific will charge to customers In many cases these charges are greater than the cost of the repair LE CAMPBELL SCIENTIFIC Campbell Scientific Ltd 80 Hathern Road Shepshed Loughborough LE12 9GX UK Tel 44 0 1509 601141 Fax 44 0 1509 601091 Email support campbellsci co uk www campbellsci co uk Important information regarding use of the RF416 in Europe please read as this includes important legal information Licensing Antenna This manual covers all variants of the RF401 series of radios made by Campbell Scientific Only the RF416 model radio is currentl
70. ed RF401 CONFIGURATION a Base RF401 1 Active Interface ME Master 2 Protocol Transparent 3 CS I O ME Baud Rate 9600 Remote RF401 1 Active Interface ME 2 Protocol Transparent 3 CS T O Baud Rate 9600 Appendix I Phone to RF401 Series NOTE If there is a neighbouring RF401 network you should change the Hopping Sequence of base and remote RF401s to a new setting to avoid interference RX LED Test To determine if there is a neighbouring RF401 network in operation using the same hopping sequence as yours stop communications on your network and observe RF401 green LEDs for activity At this point any green LED activity would indicate that there is a nearby network using the same hopping sequence 3 POINT TO MULTIPOINT COMMUNICATIONS Transparent Protocol PC Modem COM220 A100 PS 100 RF401 RF401 DL1 aain RF401 DL2 LoggerNet SETUP a gt Toa th op Setup ComPort_1 PhoneBase PhoneRemote RF401 RF401Remote CR10X RF401Remote_2 CR10X_2 ComPort_1 default settings PhoneBase 1 Maximum Baud Rate 9600 2 Modem Pick List per PC s phone modem 3 Extra Response Time 0s PhoneRemote input base site s phone number RF401 make Attention Character leave the rest defaults RF401Remote make Radio Address 1 leave the rest defaults RF401Remote_2 make Radio Address 2 leave the rest defaults
71. eee H 6 K 1 900 MHz Gain Antenna Test Distances eseeeeeeeeeereeeeeereeeeeeree K 6 L 1 Advanced Setup Menu sssesssseesserseesesrresrsresrssreerssesreererresresrenresenere L 1 vi CAUTION To avoid damage to the RF401 any AC adapter used must have a DC output not exceeding 16 5 volts measured without a load Over voltage damage is not covered by the terms of the Campbell Scientific Guarantee See Power Supplies Section 4 4 for AC adapter requirements Power plug polarity RF401 series and RF430 series Spread Spectrum Radio Modems 1 Introduction NOTE NOTE CAUTION CAUTION This manual discusses the RF401 series and RF430 series spread spectrum radios Spread spectrum radios spread the normally narrowband information signal over a relatively wide band of frequencies This allows the communications to be more immune to noise and interference from RF sources such as pagers cellular phones and multipath The RF401 series and RF430 series radios reduce susceptibility to RF interference from other spread spectrum devices by providing user selectable frequency hopping patterns You do not need a communications authority license for the RF401 series or RF430 series configurations described in this manual including U S Government Agencies regulated by NTIA Annex K Spread spectrum radios like all FCC Part 15 devices are not allowed to cause harmful interference to licensed radio
72. electro static build up 4 5 3 Antenna Surge Protector Kit The Surge Protector Kit for the RF401 and RF430 radios includes the following e Polyphaser protector e 18 inches of COAX RPSMA to connect the tail end of surge protector to the RF401 or RF430 e Ground wire lead e Screw and grommet to secure ground wire and polyphaser to backplate of enclosure The surge protector has female type N connectors on both ends one for connection to the COAXNTN L cable and the other for connection to the 18 inch length of COAXRPSMA cable included in the kit The COAXRPSMA cable is an LMR195 type that terminates in a type N Male connector on the antenna end and a Reverse Polarity SMA RPSMA connector on the radio end 21 RF401 series and RF430 series Spread Spectrum Radio Modems Figure 16 Enclosure with Antenna Surge Protector for RF401 5 Software 5 1 DevConfig RF401s with operating systems of OS4 or higher and RF430s are configured for PakBus networks If the default settings need to be changed our Device Configuration Utility DevConfig is often the preferred method to use DevConfig provides the settings for the standard setup see Appendix B for the advanced setup menu DevConfig is included with Campbell Scientific s PC400 and LoggerNet datalogger support software and can also be downloaded at no charge from our website DevConfig is intended to facilitate the setup process 5 1 1 Using DevConfig The fol
73. ength of the signal that is ultimately transmitted Except for cable locating equipment the standards in Part 15 are not based solely on output power but also take into account the antenna characteristics Thus a low power transmitter that complies with the technical standards in Part 15 with a particular antenna attached can exceed the Part 15 standards if a different antenna is attached Should this happen it could pose a serious interference problem to authorized radio communications such as emergency broadcast and air traffic control communications In order to comply with the FCC RF exposure requirements the RF401 and RF430 may be used only with approved antennas that have been tested with these radios and a minimum separation distance of 20 cm must be maintained from the antenna to any nearby persons Read Appendix A of this manual for important FCC information Figure 6 Item 14310 900 MHz Omnidirectional 1 4 Wave Whip 0 dBd Figure 7 Item 14204 900 MHz Omnidirectional 1 2 Wave Whip 0 dBd 17 RF401 series and RF430 series Spread Spectrum Radio Modems Figure 8 Item 14201 900 MHz Yagi 9 dBd w Mounts Lj E a Figure 9 Item 14205 900 MHz Yagi 6 dBd w Mounts i Figure 10 Item 14221 900 MHz Omnidirectional Collinear 3 dBd w Mounts 18 User Manual Figure 11 Item 15970 900 MHz Indoor Dipole 1 dBd Window Wall Mounted Figure 12 Item 16005 2 4 GHz Omnidirectional 1 2 Wave Whip 0 dBd 19
74. ere is a neighbouring RF401 network in operation using the same hopping sequence as yours stop communications on your network and observe RF401 green LEDs for activity At this point any green LED activity would indicate that there is a nearby network using the same hopping sequence 12 V power for the base RF401 is typically supplied using the AC adapter shown in Figure G 1 The remote RF401 is typically powered via the datalogger s CS I O port Refer to Section 4 2 for more information about power supplies G 1 RF401 and RF430 Series Spread Spectrum Radio Modems G 2 NOTE With short haul modems it is necessary to configure the base station RF401 s RS 232 Auto Power Down Enable in the Advanced Setup Interface Parameters menu to mode 0 which will maintain the radio s RS 232 port always active This results in an additional constant 2 mA current drain by the RF401 If you don t do this the base RF401 s RS 232 port will turn off 30 seconds after activity and the attached SRM 5A which gets its power from the port will not receive any messages from the PC Refer to Appendix B for information about the Advanced Setup menu Appendix H Distance vs Antenna Gain Terrain and Other Factors You may test the radio communications by using the 21107 900 NOTE MHz Spread Spectrum Demo Kit contact Campbell Scientific for more information RF Path Examples Distance Achieved Antennas Path Between Ra
75. ers such as at certain mountaintop sites is not recommended due to possible de sensing problems for the radio A powerful signal of almost any frequency at close range can simply overwhelm a receiver Lower power and intermittent repeater sites may not be a problem Test such a site with a representative setup before committing to it see Troubleshooting Section 6 Keep in mind that commercial sites tend to evolve Such a site may work now but could change in the future with the addition of new equipment 3 2 Quick Start Point to Point or PakBus ZB This section is intended to serve as a primer enabling you to quickly build a simple system and see how it operates This section describes in four steps how to set up a pair of radios in a direct connect point to point or PakBus network We recommend that you do this before undertaking field installation For additional help on point to point networks and for help on creating point to multipoint networks refer to Software Section 5 and Appendix F For this system you will need the following hardware or the equivalent Two radios either two RF401s or an RF430 and an RF401 Two antennas AC adapter Item 15966 RS 232 serial cable or USB cable SC12 cable included with RF401 Datalogger e g CR800 CR1000 CR3000 Field Power Cable Item 14291 if datalogger or wiring panel doesn t have 12 V on pin 8 of CS I O port Sore Pe Noe You will also need 1 AnIBM
76. erything Here are some additional propagation effects that increase the path losses Diffraction This is caused by objects close to the line of sight path Real world examples of this would be hills buildings or trees The object may not be in the direct line of sight but if it is close enough it will cause the RF to diffract around the object giving additional path loss Close enough is a function of frequency path length and position of the obstacle along the path An example at 900 MHz a 10 mile path length with an obstacle halfway along the path will see diffraction losses from an obstacle within 70 ft of line of sight The amount of loss would be from 6 dB to 20 dB depending on the obstacle surface A sharp edge like a rock cliff would give the minimum loss 6 dB while a rounded hill would give the maximum loss 20 dB Ground Reflections These are caused by the RF signal being reflected from the ground or water and undergoing a phase shift so that it destructively interferes with the line of sight signal The conditions that cause this the most are propagation over water or over a low lying fogbank The reflected signal suffers little attenuation gets out of phase and interferes with the main signal If antennas need to be sited near water they should be positioned away from the water s edge so that the ground vegetation attenuates the reflected RF The result of the reflection and interference
77. es caused due to incorrect installation or non compliance with local regulations Not all antennas shown in this manual for the RF416 are legal to use in Europe because there is a lower power limit compared to the US and other territories Several antennas are offered in Europe to satisfy the needs for various base station and remote station requirements 2 4 ANT1 2 4GHz Omni 2 wave Whip OdBd Antenna for Internal use only 2 4 ANT2 2 4GHz 2 5dBi Body Mount Waterproof Antenna shown mounted to a Campbell Scientific Enclosure 2 4 ANT3 THROUGH WINDOW 2 4GHz ANTENNA C W 3M CABLE Note To comply with current EU regulations the total gain of the antenna minus loss in the cable should not exceed 3dB Effective Range This is discussed in some detail in Appendix H To summarise the lengthy analysis there and allowing for the restriction on gain of antenna in Europe the practical limit for installation near ground level is around 1km with line of sight The following table gives indicative maximum ranges for other configurations using the 3 dBi antenna Distance Achieved Path Between Radios metres 50 In buildings through one or two light brick walls Virtual line of sight on valley floor with 100 wetland foliage Line of sight across a valley on foothills 2500 approximately 100m above the valley floor on each end Power consumption The quiescent power consumption of the RF416 is hi
78. ets to use fewer RF packets For example a 1000 byte PakBus packet that is normally sent in 16 64 byte RF packets will be sent in four 256 byte RF packets Reducing the number of RF packets sent to the receiving radio minimizes the interleaving of RF packets which is a common cause of framing errors in the PakBus packets M 1 RF401 and RF430 Series Spread Spectrum Radio Modems M 4 Establishing an Ad Hoc Point to Point Link NOTE A point to point link with the destination radio is set up using the unique PakBus address in the packet header along with the source destination address of the radio module The packet acknowledgement and retry features of the radio module can be enabled using this point to point link These features provide a high degree of recovery from the inevitable RF packet collisions Packets sent to the radio using the PakBus broadcast address are transmitted over the RF broadcast address received by all radios and not acknowledged In networks containing more than two radios RF401s with OS3 or lower should not use retries if their protocol is set to Transparent Otherwise RF acknowledgements will collide M 5 Net and Radio Address Settings M 6 Hop Metric The RF PakBus Protocol changes the Radio Address and Radio Mask settings on a packet by packet basis when an ad hoc point to point link is established Therefore the PakBus Aware and PakBus Node protocols ignore the Radio Address and Radio Mask settings
79. face device e g 0929 9 pin cable or SC324 SC32B Optically Isolated RS 232 Interface Setup Summary Communication Test Datalogger Clock Send Program Data Files Scheduled Collection Wizard Complete Figure 19 Select RF4XxX for connection type for a multipoint non PakBus network EZSetup Wizard CR1000 CR1000 Progress Datalogger Settings Introduction Baud Rate Enter the baud rate that will be used in communicating Bbo with the datalogger Note The max baud rate for Communication Setup Rca SC32A interfaces is 19 200 bps The max for SC929 is 38 400 bps Datalogger Settings PakBus Address A unique PakBus address is used to identify the a datalogger in the PakBus network Enter the PakBus address that was set on the datalogger Valid range is 1 4094 Suggested range is 1 3999 Communication Test Security Code If a security code is set on the datalogger it must be a entered here for communication and data collection to Setup Summary Datalogger Clock occur 0 means security will not be used Send Program Estra Response Time If the datalogger requires extra time to respond enter 00 seconds the extra response time Data Files Scheduled Collection Max Time On Line Because some links are costly it may be desired to O0h 00 m 00 have the connection closed automatically Enter the We maximum time for a connection to stay online 0 means stay online until the user disconnects W
80. fault long header length 700 ms T ms 60 000 ms if eh SA 60 000 ms pz 45 ms 20 ms 60 000 ms x24 mA 0 026 mA i US x 24mA 2mA using default time of inactivity to sleep 50 60 000 ms It 6 9 mA As in Example 1 the standby mode current long header and the time of inactivity to sleep currents dominate the average RF401 RF411 current drains so the calculated values for remote and base RF401 RF411s are nearly equal Larger data collections would make the Ir contribution more significant Appendix L RF401 RF411 Average Current Drain Calculations EXAMPLE 3 Base RF401 RF411 in lt 0 4 mA 8 sec Delay standby mode The RF401 RF41 1s in this example are configured for the lowest possible average standby mode current Advanced Setup Menu selection 7 The same amount and frequency of data are collected as in Example 1 It Is Ih Iq Ir Ii Calculating each term Is table mA value 0 4 mA _ L ms xT3 mA 8200 ms Ih x73mA 10mA long header length 8200 ms T ms 60 000 ms 20 mS 73 mA 0 025 mA 60 000 ms 45 ms 20 ms 24 mA 0 026 mA 60 000 ms li Zouo msy x 24mA 2mA using default time of inactivity to sleep 50 60 000 ms It x 12 4 mA L 5 RF401 and RF430 Series Spread Spectrum Radio Modems EXAMPLE 4 Remote RF401 RF411 in lt 0 4 mA 8 sec Delay standby mode The RF401 RF41 1s in this example are configured for the lo
81. figure one of those it will be necessary to also configure each of the three bulleted parameters above In any case be sure to select the same Standby Mode for all of the radios in the network For more details see Appendix B 4 For point to multipoint networks the retry level must be set to none if an RF401 radio has an operating system of OS3 or lower and the protocol setting is Transparent There are four Retry Level settings available in DevConfig see Table 5 All radios in the network should be configured for the same Retry Level The default setting is Low RF401 radios with OS4 or higher and RF430 radios or None RF401 radios with OS3 or lower Further choices are available in the Advanced Setup menu see Appendix B 2 Table 5 Standard Retry Levels Retry Maximum Time Slotsfor Bytes Transmitted Level Retries Random Retry Before Delay None 0 0 65535 Low 3 1 400 Medium 5 2 400 High 7 3 400 27 RF401 series and RF430 series Spread Spectrum Radio Modems 5 1 3 PakBus Tab CSI Device Configuration Utility File Help Device Type Deployment RF401 AF411 RF416 Allowed Neighbors PakBus Address B eaa iea _ Beacon Interval a Verify Interval 5 Central Router e Add Range Remove Range PakBus Address Specifies the PakBus address of the RF401 Serial Port COM1 Baud Rate 9600 Disconnect Apply Factory Defaults Read File
82. for radios set to PakBus Aware or PakBus Node valid entries are 0 to 63 for the Transparent protocol Refer to Appendix C for more information about the Net Address 5 1 2 8 Radio Address The radio address setting is only used when the radio s protocol setting is Transparent For two radios to communicate their radio addresses must be set to the same number The factory default radio address is 0 zero valid addresses are 0 to 1023 For simple point to point installations the radio s default settings should work unless there is a neighbouring network which uses the default setting Refer to Appendix C for more information about the Radio Address 5 1 2 9 Power Modes 5 1 2 10 Retry Level NOTE User Manual The radio s average idle current can be set with the following Standby Modes default setting shaded Table 4 Standard Setup Menu Advanced Maximum Duty DevConfig Standby Response Cycle Setting Mode Delay lt 24 mA always on oo 100 ms Maximum time it takes to get an RF Packet sent and for the other radio to respond The Standard Setup standby modes automatically configure e Time of Inactivity to Sleep e Time of Inactivity to Long Header e Long Header Time The default mode is the Standard Setup menu selection of lt 4 mA and sec Cycle There are standby modes available in addition to those in the above table They can be accessed in the Advanced Setup menu however if you con
83. frm Receive Mode p gt Sleep Mode 1 second bt tA L Idle Mode Kims 10 20 Time seconds Figure D 2 This graph represents a transmitting radio that uses a long header and a receiving radio that is in a sleep cycle The length of the wake up initializer exceeds the time interval of cyclic sleep ensuring that the receiver detects the wake up initializer and receives the payload i e transmitted data NOTES Appendix D Setting Up RF401 to CR206 X Communications Wakeup inibult aa Data Payload eee w em me Shep Mode 1 secou H Sheep Mixte iseni assal ka j L e Made itin Time seconds Figure D 3 This graph represents a radio that transmits a wake up initializer that is shorter than the cyclic sleep of the receiving radio The receiver does not detect the wake up initializer and remains asleep missing the data transmission 1 Any radio that is transmitting to a sleeping radio must have a long header that spans the sleep duty cycle 2 When a CR206 X or RF401 transmits to another CR206 X or RF401 the receiving radio knows when the originally transmitting radio is awake and not duty cycling This allows the radio to only transmit a long header when it is needed Below is a description of all of the Power Mode options e No Radio datalogger model has no radio not used with this application e Always ON tadio always on 25 mA continuous current drain does not transm
84. ggerNet Datalogger Support Software must agree with the baud rate setting for the radio In the AutoSense mode if the RF401 is connected to a datalogger s CS I O port the RS 232 Baud Rate is irrelevant since the RF401 communicates with the datalogger in the SDC mode 5 1 2 5 CS VO ME Baud Rate This setting is only used if the active interface is set to Datalogger Modem Enable or ME Master The default value of 9600 is typically used if the active interface setting is Datalogger Modem Enable When the active interface is ME Master this baud rate must match the baud rate of the COM200 series modem or other device 5 1 2 6 Hop Sequence NOTE 5 1 2 7 Net Address The hopping sequence must be the same for all radios in your network The default value of 0 is typically used unless there are neighbouring RF401 RF430 networks Ideally neighbouring radio networks use different hop sequences to prevent interference Valid entries are 0 to 6 To determine if there is a neighbouring RF401 RF430 network in operation using the same hopping sequence as yours stop communications on your network and observe the radio s green LED for activity A flashing green LED indicates that there is a nearby network using the same hopping sequence Use the default net address of 0 unless a neighbouring RF401 RF430 network is using this setting All spread spectrum radios in your network must have the same net address setting Valid entries are 0 to 3
85. gher than the RF401 See the table in section 2 for exact details Note that when using the advanced setup the selection options for different standby modes infer certain current consumptions relating to that mode These figures are for the RF401 Please refer back to section 2 for the exact power use by the RF416 PLEASE READ FIRST About this manual Please note that this manual was originally produced by Campbell Scientific Inc primarily for the North American market Some spellings weights and measures may reflect this origin Some useful conversion factors Area 1 in square inch 645 mm Mass 1 oz ounce 28 35 g 1 Ib pound weight 0 454 kg Length 1 in inch 25 4 mm 1 ft foot 304 8 mm Pressure 1 psi Ib in 68 95 mb 1 yard 0 914 m 1 mile 1 609 km Volume 1 UK pint 568 3 ml 1 UK gallon 4 546 litres 1 US gallon 3 785 litres In addition while most of the information in the manual is correct for all countries certain information is specific to the North American market and so may not be applicable to European users Differences include the U S standard external power supply details where some information for example the AC transformer input voltage will not be applicable for British European use Please note however that when a power supply adapter is ordered it will be suitable for use in your country Reference to some radio transmitters digital cell phones and aerials may also not be app
86. ime limit is exceeded A value of 0 in this field indicates that there is no time limit on maintaining a connection to the device When the device is connected in the Connect Screen and the time limit approaches a dialog box is displayed warning the user that Max Time On Line is about to be exceeded The dialog box has Reset Max Time and Don t Reset buttons If the Reset Max Time button is pressed the Max Time On Line counter will be reset If the Don t Reset button is pressed or if no button is pressed the connection will be terminated when Max Time On Line is reached The format for this field is 00 h ours 00 m inutes 00 s econds 31 RF401 series and RF430 series Spread Spectrum Radio Modems 32 NOTE If you are using LoggerNet Admin or LoggerNet Remote 4 0 or higher and using the Connect Screen to connect to a remote server that is running an older version of LoggerNet the behaviour will be different than described above When connecting to a LoggerNet 3 4 1 server you will be disconnected with no advanced warning when Max Time On Line is reached A message will be displayed indicating that Max Time On Line has been reached When connecting to servers older than LoggerNet 3 4 1 the behaviour will be variable Generally you will be disconnected at some point but the timing of the disconnect will not be predictable Attention Character Enter the character that will be used to reset the radio modem By default the ra
87. imes that are seen in PakBus Graph HopMetric Code Time 0 200 msec or less 1 1000 msec 2 5000 msec 3 10000 msec 4 20000 msec The duty cycle portion of the hop metric is M 7 RF Router Appendix M PakBus Networking Details Standby Mode Hop Metric lt 24mA Always On 0 lt 4mA 1 2 sec Cycle 1 lt 2mA 1 sec Cycle 1 lt 4mA 8 sec Cycle 2 The signal strength portion of the hop metric is determined by Signal level for upper threshold of hop metric going from 2 gt 1 gt 60 80 dBm Signal level for lower threshold of hop metric going from 1 gt 2 gt 49 94 dBm These two hop metrics are added together to give the composite hop metric For example if the radio was always ON and signal level gt 60 the composite hop metric would be 1 1000 msec If the radio was doing the 1 2 sec Cycle and signal level was lt 49 the composite hop metric would be 3 5000 msec The signal strength that is used for the hop metric is averaged and incorporates hysteresis so that it neither changes quickly nor sporadically The radio keeps track of the averaged signal strength for 10 individual neighbouring nodes 30 for the RF Router mode RF401 or RF430 radios using PakBus Node protocol can be set as a PakBus RF router In this mode the radio is not attached to any datalogger or PC it is ONLY a RF router The radio will maintain a routing table discover additional nodes and route PakBus packets based on its routing table
88. is field is used to define a time limit for maintaining a connection to the device This may be useful in avoiding costly communication costs in the event that a connection to a station is inadvertently maintained for a long period of time Maximum Time On Line applies to both scheduled connections and manual connections However for manual connections from the Connect Screen it is always best to manually disconnect rather than relying on LoggerNet to disconnect for you When the device is contacted on a schedule communication with the device will be terminated once this time limit is exceeded A value of 0 in this field indicates that there is no time limit on maintaining a connection to the device When the device is connected in the Connect Screen and the time limit approaches a dialog box is displayed warning the user that Max Time On Line is about to be exceeded The dialog box has Reset Max Time and Don t Reset buttons If the Reset Max Time button is pressed the Max Time On Line counter will be reset If the Don t Reset button is pressed or if no button is pressed the connection will be terminated when Max Time On Line is reached The format for this field is 00 h ours 00 m inutes 00 s econds If you are using LoggerNet Admin or LoggerNet Remote 4 0 and using the Connect Screen to connect to a remote server that is running an older version of LoggerNet the behaviour will be different than described above When connecting
89. it wakeup header alternatively you may check the Ignore box to disregard the Power Mode setting and keep the radio always on e 1 Sec radio wakes up every second for 100 msec to look for wakeup header 2 mA current drain does not transmit wakeup header This option has the minimum latency but should not be used if the receiving radio has a sleep cycle e 1 Sec with Long Header radio wakes up every second for 100 msec to look for wakeup header 2 mA current drain transmits a 1 2 second wakeup header if needed e 8 Sec with Long Header radio wakes up every 8 seconds for 100 msec to look for wakeup header 0 5 mA current drain transmits a 8 2 second wakeup header if needed e 8 Sec radio wakes up every 8 seconds for 100 msec to look for wakeup header 0 5 mA current drain does not transmit wakeup header This option should not be used if the receiving radio has a sleep cycle e Pin Enabled tradio is program controlled does not transmit wakeup header D 3 RF401 and RF430 Series Spread Spectrum Radio Modems D 2 Example Setup 1 LoggerNet to CR206 X The following is a typical setup for an RF401 connected to PC with a link to a CR206 X always a leaf node never a router in a PakBus network PC running cen men Software CR206 CR206 X Setup for Example 1 see Figure D 4 1 Enter PakBus Address 1 2 Select PakBus Aware for RF Protocol 3 Select Hop Sequence 0 4 Select Network Address 0
90. izard Complete Figure 20 For the datalogger settings the baud rate must match the radio s RS 232 baud rate 30 User Manual 5 2 1 1 Standard Setup RF400 X Setup Screen File View Network Tools Options Help o Add Root Add Delete Rename Network Map COM3 BAE oo lgs RF400Remote a CRIO DER EZ View ley RF400 RF400 Hardware Notes Standard V Communications Enabled Maximum Time On Line 00h 00 m 00s Attention Character Advanced Maximum Packet Size No problems found with settings for the selected device Figure 21 Default Screen for the RF400 Standard Setup in LoggerNet 4 Communication Enabled Before communication can take place all devices in the chain must be enabled When this box is selected the radio is enabled for communication Maximum Time On Line This field is used to define a time limit for maintaining a connection to the device This may be useful in avoiding costly communication costs in the event that a connection to a station is inadvertently maintained for a long period of time Maximum Time On Line applies to both scheduled connections and manual connections However for manual connections from the Connect Screen it is always best to manually disconnect rather than relying on LoggerNet to disconnect for you When the device is contacted on a schedule communication with the device will be terminated once this t
91. l Strength ee eeeeeseesecseeeeceeeeecsseceeesecseeeeeeeeeeeaees B 4 B 4 Advanced Setup Standby Modes 000 ee ceseceseceseceeecneeeeeeneeeeeees B 4 C Address and Address Mask eee C 1 D Setting Up RF401 to CR206 X Communications D 1 D 1 CR206 X Setup Information cc cceecceeseeesceeeceeeceeeeseeesecneeeeeeeneees D 1 D 2 Example Setup LoggerNet to CR206 X oe ee ceeceeceeeeeeee eee D 4 D 3 Example Setup 2 Router to CR206 X 0 eee ceeeceeecseeeneeeeeeeeees D 6 E Port Pin Descriptions cesses E 1 F Non PakBus Example Configurations F 1 F 1 Direct PC to RF401 Series Base Station Setup Transparent Protocol F 1 F 2 Remote Station Setup Transparent Protocol 0 0 0 ee eeeeeeeeeeeeeees F 2 F 3 LoggerNet Configuration Transparent Protocol ceeeeseeeeeeees F 3 F4 PC208W Configuration ceeeeccsseseeesecseeeeceeseecsaeeecesecaeesesnereeeeaeeees F 4 G Short Haul Modems G 1 H Distance vs Antenna Gain Terrain and Other Factors PEATE E EEN A had seeume cede H 1 l Phone to RF401 Series l 1 L1 PakBus Network nerenin cena rra i e EEEn EER S I 1 1 2 Non PakBus Network ee nenn t aeaieie n EE T AAE AEAEE I 6 J Monitor CSAT3 via RF401 Series J 1 K RF401 RF411 Pass Fail Tests 00 ee K 1 L RF401 RF411 Average Current Drain Calculations L 1 M PakBus Networking Details 0 0 c cee M 1 M 1
92. le and COM port proceed as follows 1 Connect 12V power to an RF401 RF411 Field Power Cable Item 14291 with 12V battery pack attached see step 12 below 2 Connect first RF401 RF411 s RS 232 port to the PC COM port NOTE NOTE Appendix K RF401 RF411 Pass Fail Tests 3 Runa terminal program such as HyperTerminal or Procomm a Baud rate 9600 b Data Parity Stop Bits 8 N 1 c Flow control none d Emulation TTY e ASCII f Desired COM port Make sure that Properties Settings ASCII Setup Echo characters locally or the equivalent Procomm setting is NOT enabled 4 Press Program button on RF401 RF411 5 Select 3 to restore defaults then select 5 to save parameters and exit The presence of a neighbouring RF401 RF411 network with default settings could interfere with your tests see Section 5 3 1 4 d for detection method 6 Repeat steps 1 to 5 inclusive with second RF401 RF411 7 Label the RF401 RF411 connected to the PC COM port as Base 8 Place the two RF401 RF41 1s side by side with antenna connectors 1 1 8 inches apart on a non metallic surface see Figure K 1 Figure K 1 Loop back Test without Antennas 9 Make sure that no antennas are attached to the RF401 RF411s 10 Label the other RF401 RF411 Remote 11 Insert jumper into the Remote RF401 RF411 s RS 232 connector pins 2 and 3 using a U shaped portion of a paper clip all
93. licable according to your locality Some brackets shields and enclosure options including wiring are not sold as standard items in the European market in some cases alternatives are offered Details of the alternatives will be covered in separate manuals Part numbers prefixed with a symbol are special order parts for use with non EU variants or for special installations Please quote the full part number with the when ordering Recycling information At the end of this product s life it should not be put in commercial or domestic refuse but sent for recycling Any batteries contained within the product or used during the products life should be removed from the product and also be sent to an appropriate recycling facility Campbell Scientific Ltd can advise on the recycling of the equipment and in some cases arrange collection and the correct disposal of it although charges may apply for some items or territories For further advice or support please contact Campbell Scientific Ltd or your local agent fz CAMPBELL Ly SCIENTIFIC Campbell Scientific Ltd Campbell Park 80 Hathern Road Shepshed Loughborough LE12 9GX UK Tel 44 0 1509 601141 Fax 44 0 1509 601091 Email support campbellsci co uk www campbellsci co uk Contents PDF viewers note These page numbers refer to the printed version of this document Use the Adobe Acrobat bookmarks tab for links to specific sections T IRTFOGUGHION iitescc
94. ll not be required to keep track of neighbours of any routers except those in its own branch Configured in this fashion the radio will ignore any neighbour lists received from addresses in the central router setting and will forward any messages that it receives to the central router if it does not have the destination address for those messages in its routing table 5 2 LoggerNet 5 2 1 Setup Screen If the radio is being used in a point to point network one base radio to one remote radio or in a PakBus network where all of the settings in the radios are identical then the communications link can be depicted on the device map as a direct connection COM Port with datalogger or PakBus routing device attached no radios shown in the device map However in a point to multipoint network where all remote radios have a separate address the radios are depicted on the device map See Figures 19 and 20 29 RF401 series and RF430 series Spread Spectrum Radio Modems EZSetup Wizard CR1000_2 CR1000 Progress Connection Type Introduction Select the mode of communication that will be used for this datalogger Communication Setup Direct Connect Datalogger Settings Phone Modem IP Port RFS5 RFSRX RF 4 Non PakBus direct connection consists of a datalogger with an RS 232 port connected to the serial port on the computer If the datalogger has only a CS 1 0 port then the connection is through an appropriate inter
95. lowing are the steps required for accessing DevConfig 1 Power the radio Typically this is done by using the AC wall charger 2 Connect the radio to the PC A standard 9 pin serial cable is used to connect the radio s RS 232 port to the PC s RS 232 port If using an RF430 the radio is typically connected to the PC s USB port via the USB cable 3 Launch DevConfig 4 Click on RF401 or RF430 for the device type in DevConfig 22 User Manual 5 wm Select the port matching the COM or USB port on the PC in which the radio is connected 6 Click on the Connect button on the bottom left of the DevConfig screen wm 7 wa Press the Setup button on the radio and DevConfig will display the Deployment panel defaulting to the RF401 RF411 RF416 or RF430 RF43 1 RF432 tab see Figure 17 8 wm Click Apply after changing settings 5 1 2 RF401 RF411 RF416 or RF430 RF431 RF432 Tab Device Configuration Utility 1 12 File Language Options Help Deployment Device Type SS RF401 RF411 RF416 pakBus Serial Number o oS Version 4 Active Interface Auto Sense Y SDC Address 7 Protocol PakBus Aware R5 232 Baud Rate 38 4K V C5 1O ME Baud Rate 250 a Hop Sequence f ps Net Address lo Radio Address Power Mode lt 4ma 1 2 second v Retry Level Low v Serial Number Stores the serial number of the device PC Serial Port Baud Rat
96. n RF401 series and RF430 series Spread Spectrum Radio Modems 1 1 RF401 series Radios The RF401 series radios have a CS I O port and an RS 232 port see Figure 1 These radios can serve as a field modem radio while connected to the datalogger or as a base station modem radio when connected to a PC s RS 232 port The following models are available e RF401 915 MHz Spread Spectrum Radio transmits data to another RF401 radio an RF430 radio a CR206 X datalogger or an AVW206 interface The 915 MHz frequency is used in the US Canada e RF411 922 MHz Spread Spectrum Radio transmits data to another RF411 radio an RF431 radio a CR211 X datalogger or an AVW211 interface The 922 MHz frequency is used in Australia Israel e RF416 2 4 GHz Spread Spectrum Radio transmits data to another RF416 radio an RF432 radio a CR216 X datalogger or an AVW216 interface The RF416 is intended mainly for certain European and Asian markets This product should not be used in new installs in Europe after 1 1 2015 Figure 1 The RF411 is one of the models available of our RF401 series radios NOTE Unless specified otherwise throughout this manual RF401 refers to the RF401 RF411 and RF416 radios 1 2 RF430 series Radios The RF430 series radios have a USB port and an RS 232 port see Figure 2 The RF430 can only be configured through the USB port Usually these radios connect to a PC s USB port to serve as base station modems radi
97. n sections it is possible to combine methods in datalogger communications Some examples RF401 series and RF430 series Spread Spectrum Radio Modems e Short Haul modem to radio PC to short haul modems to radios to datalogger see Appendix G e Ethernet network to radio PC to Internet to NL100 to radio to datalogger use LoggerNet IPPort remote IP address port number 1 4 Retired Spread Spectrum Radios 1 4 1 RF400 series Radios CAUTION On May 2 2005 the RF401 RF411 and RF416 replaced the RF400 RF410 and RF415 respectively The newer radios have a choice of three communication protocol settings The three protocol settings are Transparent PakBus Aware and PakBus Node Transparent is the protocol used by the RF400 RF401 and RF430 radios in networks that also have RF400 radios must use the Transparent protocol setting Transparent is the default setting for RF401 radios with operating systems of OS3 or lower Do not mix the Transparent protocol with any of the PakBus protocols This will produce RF traffic without any RF communications The PakBus Aware and PakBus Node settings make the radios easier to use in a PakBus network Radios set to PakBus Aware and radios set to PakBus Node can be in the same network PakBus Aware is the default setting for RF430 radios and RF401 radios with an operating system of OS4 or higher The PakBus Aware setting is the simplest to use and does not require a PakBus address The Pak
98. nfigured for lt 4 mA 1 2 sec Cycle the default standby mode The remote station operates on solar power and we are interested in knowing the average current drain contribution of the RF401 RF411 From the above section It Is Id Ir Ii Calculating each term Is table mA value 4 mA ja SON a3 A a A ONE T ms 60 000 ms r ak 0 008mA 60 000 ms 5000 ms f S _ x 24mA 2mA 60 000 ms It 6 1 mA The dominant average current drain contributors are the standby mode current and the time of inactivity to sleep currents If large quantities of data per minute were being generated collected then Id would become a significant contributor In this example the time of inactivity to sleep could be reduced because only 10 data points are sent per collection Try a value of 10 instead of 50 reducing the Ii contribution from 2 mA to 0 4 mA L 3 RF401 and RF430 Series Spread Spectrum Radio Modems L 4 EXAMPLE 2 Base RF401 RF411 in default standby mode The base RF401 RF411 in the above example does more receiving and less transmitting than the remote RF401 RF411 so you might expect less average current drain however the amount of data being transmitted per minute is small and the long header required is significant Here are the results It Is Ih Iq Ir Ii Calculating each term Is table mA value 4 mA _ L ms xBmA 700 ms Th x73mA 0 875mA_ de
99. o to an appropriate 12 Vdc power supply The 14291 Field Cable connects to the radio s Power jack The field cable is required for the following situations e RF401 series radio connected to the datalogger s RS 232 port instead of the CS I O port e RF430 series radio connected to the datalogger RF430 series radios do not have a CS I O port e Datalogger purchased before December 1997 see Table 2 in Section 3 If ac power is available the 15966 wall charger may also be used to power the radio see Section 4 2 1 If powering the RF401 from the CS I O port but communicating via the RS 232 port be sure to select RS 232 as the Active Interface so that the CS I O port is not automatically selected by Auto Sense 4 2 3 Non datalogger Remote Site Radio to MD485 networks and radio to phone networks require a power supply with a null modem port at the non datalogger site An A100 adapter used with a PS100 power supply provides this capability The PS100 is recharged via a wall charger or a solar panel 4 3 Serial and USB Cables NOTE An RF401 base station must use the included 10873 RS 232 cable to connect the RF401 s RS 232 port to the PC COM port An RF430 base station normally uses the included USB cable to connect the RF430 s USB port to the PC s USB port An RF430 base station can also be connected to the PC COM port via the 10873 RS 232 cable A remote RF401 normally uses the included SC12 cable to connect the
100. of 6 dB of link margin should be sought Path Loss We have combined in this section the normal free space path loss only seen in mountaintop to mountaintop scenarios with loss due to ground reflections diffraction leaf forest absorption etc It is all loss A starting point is the free space path loss Here are two equations for this Lp dB 32 4 20 x log f 20xlog d dB f in MHz d in km Lp dB 36 6 20 x log f 20 x log d dB f in MHz d in miles Appendix H Distance vs Antenna Gain Terrain and Other Factors Here is a table showing the free space path loss in dB Note the effect of frequency Frequency Distance l mi 2mi 4mi 8mi 10mi 16mi 22mi 26mi 30 mi 400 MHz 89 95 101 107 109 113 115 117 118 915 MHz 96 102 108 114 116 120 123 124 125 2 4 GHz 104 110 116 122 124 128 131 133 134 Notice the relationship between path loss and distance each time you double the distance you lose 6 dB of signal under free space conditions Or put another way if you add 6 dB of gain for example with 6 dB of additional antenna gain or 6 dB less cable loss you can double the distance for free space conditions As mentioned before free space conditions are the ideal but seldom actually seen The higher the antenna height relative to the terrain in the line of sight path the closer to free space conditions Antenna height is ev
101. ond delay ii T sends quoted string w o waiting for a character echo iii is string sent to put RF401 in AT Command mode use other character if phone modems in path iv R OK 9200 waits up to 9 2 sec for RF401 OK response v ATDT3001 changes radio address to talk to remote RF401 with network address of 12 and radio address of 1 This is a hexadecimal number see Appendix C for example combined hexadecimal network radio addresses and is calculated by Setup Menu at Main Menu Standard Setup Radio Address vi ATCN ends RF401 AT Command mode b Datalogger extra response time 0 mS F 5 RF401 and RF430 Series Spread Spectrum Radio Modems Setup Connections 103001 B COM L it D1000T R OK 9200 T ATDT 3001 Figure F 2 PC208W Datalogger Generic Dial String F 6 Appendix G Short Haul Modems Set SRM 5A at PC end to DCE mode Set SRM 5A at RF401 end to DTE mode The PC to SRM SA cable is typically a 9 pin female to 25 pin male CSI Item 7026 The SRM 5A to RF401 cable is 25 pin male to 9 pin male available as CSI Item 14413 Setup LoggerNet as direct connect refer to Section 3 2 3 AC Adapter SRM SA Short haul Modems DTE Figure G 1 Short Haul Modem to RF401 Setup Configure RF401s for point to point see Quick Start Section 3 2 Default settings should work unless there is a neighbouring network RX LED Test To determine if th
102. or the base RF401 RF411 because by selecting a lower current standby mode the base RF401 RF411 must generate a longer long header which involves more transmit time at 73 mA However the remote site will normally benefit from a lower standby mode current since it does not usually transmit a long header If the remote station is doing call backs then the remote RF401 RF411 must initiate the connection by sending a long header so the remote RF401 RF411 s average current drain may be higher than that of the base RF401 RF411 Data collection may be a mixture of scheduled calls and call backs possibly event driven As collection intervals become longer the effects of time of inactivity to sleep and data amount lessen and the average current drain approaches the stated standby mode current L 9 RF401 and RF430 Series Spread Spectrum Radio Modems L 10 Appendix M PakBus Networking Details M 1 PakBus Aware PakBus Node and RF PakBus Both the PakBus Aware and PakBus Node settings use the RF PakBus Protocol allowing radios with these settings to coexist in the same network i e some radios can be PakBus Aware and some PakBus Nodes The PakBus Aware protocol does not require the assignment of a unique PakBus address whereas each radio with the PakBus Node protocol must have a unique address the default PakBus address is 1 The PakBus Node protocol also allows the radio to be set up as a standalone RF Router
103. os The RF430 series radios may also connect to the datalogger s RS 232 port to serve as a field modem requires a null modem cable and a field power cable The following models are available User Manual e RF430 915 MHz Spread Spectrum Radio transmits data to another RF430 radio RF401 radio or a CR206 X datalogger The 915 MHz frequency is used in the US Canada e RF431 922 MHz Spread Spectrum Radio transmits data to another RF431 radio an RF411 radio or a CR211 X The 922 MHz frequency is used in Australia Israel e RF432 2 4 GHz Spread Spectrum Radio transmits data to another RF432 radio an RF416 radio or a CR216 X The RF432 is intended mainly for certain European and Asian markets This product should not be used in new installs in Europe after 1 1 2015 NOTE If the RF430 s operating system is prior to OS2 its USB port will only communicate at 38 4 kbps Therefore the RF430 operating system will need to be updated to a newer version if the network will contain dataloggers that do not support 38 4 kbps Operating system updates are available from www campbellsci com downloads Figure 2 RF430 has a USB port allowing it to be connected directly to a PC s USB port NOTE Unless specified otherwise throughout this manual RF430 refers to the RF430 RF431 and RF432 radios 1 3 Combination Mode Communications Besides the direct to PC communications described in the Quick Start and Installatio
104. otal average current It can be calculated over an interval T as follows It Ist th Iq Ir h Is table value Ih Es x73 mA where L is the long header length T ms Iq 200s x73mA T ms Ir 45 ms Ams per data pomt x24mA 4 ms per high res data point T ms li es x 24mA using default time of inactivity to sleep 50 T ms REMOTE The average current drain of a remote RF401 RF411 being collected on schedule has 4 contributors 1 The STANDBY AVG RECEIVE CURRENT Is 2 The average transmit current from data transmission Id 3 The average receive current of data request receptions Ir 4 The average receive current from time of inactivity to sleep Ii The remote RF401 RF411 s total average current It can be calculated over an interval T as follows It Is Id Ir Ii Is table mA value _ 45 ms 2 ms per data point Id x73 mA 4 ms per high res data point T ms fps pane T ms li ae a x 24mA using default time of inactivity to sleep 50 ms L 2 Appendix L RF401 RF411 Average Current Drain Calculations EXAMPLE 1 Remote RF401 RF411 in default standby mode There is a Point to Point system with base RF401 RF411 and remote RF401 RF411 The remote station senses weather conditions and sends low resolution data to final storage The base station collects 10 data points from the remote station once per minute Both stations are co
105. owing data received from base RF401 RF411 to be transmitted back to terminal screen by remote RF401 RF411 K 3 RF401 and RF430 Series Spread Spectrum Radio Modems NOTE CAUTION 9 8 7 6 RF401 RF411 s RS 232 Connector female 12 Connect 12V power to Remote RF401 RF411 Field Power Cable Item 14291 connected to a 12V battery battery can be an 8 cell pack of alkaline A C or D cells or a lead acid battery If your 12V power supply is a battery pack or rechargeable battery make sure that the batteries are fresh or well charged so they can supply the 75 mA peak current needed when the RF401 RF411 is transmitting in order to obtain valid test results For safety people should maintain 20 cm 8 inches distance from antenna while RF401 RF411 is transmitting 13 Type 8 groups of 5 characters on the terminal aaaaabbbbbccccc etc 14 You should see 100 of the characters typed echo back to the screen TESTING ANTENNAS After setting up the terminal program and verifying the integrity of the COM port serial cable and RF401 RF411s you are ready to test an RF401 RF411 antenna Prepare to test an antenna by e Orienting RF401 RF41 1s so that the antenna connectors are on top e Fastening RF401 RF411s to cardboard boxes or other non metallic structures maintaining antenna connectors 20 inches above the floor 1 TESTING Wave Antenna a Connect 12V power to base RF401 RF411 and remote RF401 R
106. pbell Scientific Ltd France 3 Avenue de la Division Leclerc 92160 ANTONY FRANCE www campbellsci fr info campbellsci fr Campbell Scientific Spain S L Avda Pompeu Fabra 7 9 Local 1 08024 BARCELONA SPAIN www campbellsci es info campbellsci es Campbell Scientific Ltd Germany Fahrenheitstrasse13 D 28359 Bremen GERMANY www campbellsci de info campbellsci de Campbell Scientific Beijing Co Ltd 8B16 Floor 8 Tower B Hanwei Plaza 7 Guanghua Road Chaoyang Beijing 100004 P R CHINA www campbellsci com info campbellsci com cn Please visit www campbellsci com to obtain contact information for your local US or International representative
107. point operation the RF401 can temporarily be put into AT Command Mode by sending a string of three ASCII characters The default sequence to enter AT Command mode is No characters sent for one second before command character characters sent default command mode entry character No characters sent for one second after command mode character RF401 responds by sending OK lt CR gt n a aed The AT Command mode characters are sent by PC208W along with other commands to change the base RF401 s Radio Address to talk to the desired remote RF401 see point to multipoint below a Point to point 1 Device Map COM1 CR10X1 2 Set station CR10X1 baud rate to 9600 baud in network map 3 Datalogger extra response time 0 mS b Point to multipoint Transparent Protocol 1 Device Map COMI Generic 1 10X3001 10X3005 2 Set Generic Modem baud rate to 9600 in device map Appendix F Non PakBus Example Configurations 3 Generic Modem Settings a Make DTR Active b Hardware Flow Control c Extra Response Time Standby Mode Max Response Delay 200 ms see Table D 1 i OmS with 24 mA Standby Mode ii 1200 mS with 1 2 sec cycle default Standby Mode delay iii 4200 mS with 2 sec cycle Standby Mode delay 4 Datalogger Station Settings a Example Dialled Using Generic Dial String D1000 T R OK 9200 T ATDT30014m R OK 1200 T ATCN m R OK 1200 i D1000 creates a 1 sec
108. present the RF401s in the Setup map as RF400s or simply leave them off The simple map usually results in a quicker connection and requires less typing 1 Point to point not represented a Setup map ComPort_1 CR10X 2 Point to point represented a Setup map ComPort_1 RF400 RF400Remote CR10X 3 The station s Maximum Baud Rate is typically 9600 4 Extra Response Times are typically 0 s In the case of point to multipoint the RF401s are always represented in the LoggerNet Setup map as an RF400 so that LoggerNet can temporarily change the base RF401 s Radio Address to communicate with one out of a group of remote RF401s 1 Point to multipoint a Setup map ComPort_1 RF400 RF400Remote_1 CR10X_1 RF400Remote_2 CR10X_2 RF400Remote_3 CR10X_3 2 All RF400Remotes have the same Network Address but each RF400Remote must have a unique Radio Address F 3 RF401 and RF430 Series Spread Spectrum Radio Modems 6 dBd Yagi RF400 CS 1 0 DATALOGGER CS 1 0 0 dBd Half wave L RF400 3 Extra Response Times are typically 0 s 3 dBd Omni Collinear 9 dBd Yagi CS I O CS 1 0 DATALOGGER RS 232 RF400 DATALOGGER CS I O CS 1 0 AC Adapter Figure F 1 Point to Multipoint System F 4 PC208W Configuration F 4 For point to multi
109. r the base RF401 CSAT3 SETUP 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 Power CSAT3 off and then back on Connect CSAT3 s RS 232 cable to the desired PC COM port Run CSAT32 software Select correct COM port if necessary under Settings Communication Enter Terminal mode bottom tab Open Port if not already open Press Enter a couple of times to get gt prompt Enter br 0 and press Enter to send it to CSAT3 to configure RS 232 communications to 9600 baud Enter ri 1 and press Enter to send it to CSAT3 to turn on RS 232 drivers if you want to save this setting in non volatile RAM refer to CSAT3 Instruction Manual Appendix B 10 Return to Data mode bottom tab HARDWARE SETUP a 2 Base station a Plug AC adapter into 120 VAC outlet and barrel connector into DC Pwr jack on base RF401 b Connect 6 ft cable from base kit between PC COM port of choice and RF401 RS 232 port Remote station a Connect 12 V power supply to RF401 can be either 120V AC adapter or 12V Field Power Cable b Connect 9 pin male to 9 pin male null modem cable from CSAT3 RS 232 connector to RF401 s RS 232 connector c You are ready to start taking measurements TROUBLESHOOTING 1 2 If your readings appear off scale try closing CSAT32 and running it again If not communicating with anemometer make sure RS 232 driver is turned on see CSAT3 SETUP Appendix K RF401 RF411 Pass
110. red to send x amount of data the throughput is still affected by the CS I O or RS 232 port baud rate setting B 2 5 Number of Retry Failures This reading is available in Setup Menu Advanced Setup Radio Parameters Radio Diagnostics It indicates the number of times that the RF401 has re transmitted the specified Number of Retries but failed to get an ACK packet from the receiving radio For example if the Number of Retries is set to 3 the transmitting radio will send the same packet up to 3 times each time looking for an ACK B 3 RF401 and RF430 Series Spread Spectrum Radio Modems packet back from the receiving radio If it does not receive an ACK packet after sending the packet 3 times the transmitting radio will increment its Number of Retry Failures count Ifa radio is configured to do retries it will produce an ACK packet for every RF packet that it receives addressed to it that has a valid CRC If 0 retries are configured the receiving radio will simply throw away any packet that fails the CRC This reading is cleared upon exiting Setup Menu or cycling radio 12 V power B 3 Received Signal Strength Beginning with SW Version 6 420 the radios provide a means of knowing the signal strength of the last packet received addressed to it that had a valid CRC To see this reading enter the radio s Setup Menu Advanced Setup Radio Parameters Radio Diagnostics menu RSS readings are cleared upon exiting the Setup Menu or cycling the r
111. rence to radio or television reception which can be determined by turning the equipment off and on the user is encouraged to try to correct the interference by one or more of the following measures Reorient or relocate the receiving antenna Increase the separation between the equipment and receiver Connect the equipment into an outlet on a circuit different from that to which the receiver is connected Consult the dealer or an experienced radio TV technician for help This device complies with part 15 of the FCC Rules Operation is subject to the following two conditions 1 This device may not cause harmful interference and 2 This device must accept any interference received including interference that may cause undesired operation A 1 RF401 and RF430 Series Spread Spectrum Radio Modems A 2 Appendix B Advanced Setup Menu B 1 Accessing the Advanced Menu The standard Setup Menu is described in Section 5 1 The advanced Setup Menu can be accessed by configuring a terminal emulator program such as Procomm or HyperTerminal to 9600 baud 8 N 1 Connect the radio to the PC via the RS 232 or USB cable and press the program button on the radio The advanced setup menu is shown below 1 Advanced Setup a Radio Parameters i Radio Address Parameters 1 2 3 4 5 ii d 2 3 4 Net Address 0 63 Radio Address 0 1023 Net Address Mask 0 3fh
112. rereeee 12 4 System Components 12 4 1 RF401 or RF430 Radios eee eceseecsseceesecneeeeceseeecesecaeesecneseeeaeeseenees 12 4 1 4 Indicator EED Senine aR wien tie deans 12 4 1 2 Radio Configurations asinn oinera i ri a iE e 13 4 2 Power SUppli S nrinn e nen E E N 13 4 2 1 Base Radio Site radio connected to a PC cecceeeseesseceseeeeeees 13 4 2 2 Remote Sites with Datalogger eseeeeeeeseeeereeereeeersesrrrrererserserreee 15 4 2 3 Non datalogger Remote Site sseseeeesessseseeseererserrerrerersrseereeress 15 4 3 Serial and USB Cables iniii a ai aas ai Ea 15 44 Compatible Antennas eiere orr pestes eesi peria S 16 4 5 Antenna Cables and Surge Protection sssseeseeseseseererereerereersrrrrerereereee 21 4 5 1 Antenna Cables sen a eaa ae a EEEE ET E NERE ESE 21 4 5 2 Electro static Ssues cinean ia n a 21 4 5 3 Antenna Surge Protector Kit eecsesecssseeceeceeeeceseceeeseeneeeeens 21 5 SOR WANE oes so eee os excess oe Soa EA AEREA 22 5 1 DevGonhigis s aisiisiehos eo a daw thst amas aie 22 5 1 1 Using DevContig ss tices sssasvas ee enrenar assis EES SERE EEEa E aois 22 5 1 2 RF401 RF411 RF416 or RF430 RF431 RF432 Tab 0 eee 23 9 1 2 1 Active Interface Dsn eaea e eip ieS ies ete 24 5 1 2 2 SDC Address or CSDC Address sssseeeeeseeeeeeerseeeereeeeee 24 52 2 3 Protocol re r E EE E N EAS 24 5 1 2 4 RS 232 Baud R te mincio arinn eia E a 25 5 1 2 5 S O ME Ba d R tsepa e aia aE ieas 26 91526 Hop
113. ress from 0 63 Unless there is a neighbouring network leave network address 0 The Network Address must be the same throughout the network of RF401s Select a Radio Address 0 1023 The radio addresses must be the same in point to point communications for point to multipoint communications you could set the base RF401 to 0 and the remotes to 1 2 3 etc It is a good idea to label each RF401 indicating the configured network address radio address hopping sequence etc Select a Hopping Sequence 0 6 The hopping sequence must be the same for all RF401s in the network If there happens to be a neighbouring RF401 network using the same hopping sequence you should change to a different one in case their network and radio addresses happen to match yours and to reduce retries RX LED Test To determine if there is a neighbouring RF401 network in operation using the same hopping sequence as yours stop communications on your network and observe an RF401 green LED for activity A flashing green LED would indicate that there is a nearby network using the same hopping sequence Select 9600 for RS 232 Baud Rate F 1 RF401 and RF430 Series Spread Spectrum Radio Modems Select desired Standby mode lt 24 mA Always on lt 4 mA sec Cycle etc according to your power budget All RF401s in the network must be in the same Standby Mode The default setting is a good starting point lt 4 mA se
114. rks are operating otherwise choose a different network address see RX LED Test below c Radio Address can be default 0 d Hopping Sequence can be default 0 if no neighbouring RF401 networks are operating otherwise choose a different hopping sequence RX LED Test To determine if there is a neighbouring RF401 network in operation using the same hopping sequence as yours stop communications on your network and observe RF401 green LEDs for activity At this point any green LED activity would indicate that there is a nearby network using the same hopping sequence The other network s network and or radio addresses might be different than yours so having the same hopping sequence isn t necessarily a serious problem but having an exclusive hopping sequence results in fewer retries e Standby Mode leave at default 2 f Retry Level if RF noise is a problem try Low or a higher level to see if response improves g RS 232 Baud Rate use the default 9600 for RF401 radios with OS3 or earlier For RF401 radios with OS4 or higher change the setting to 9600 J 1 RF401 and RF430 Series Spread Spectrum Radio Modems J 2 5 Repeat steps 1 4 with the remote RF401 Temporarily use 6 ft cable and AC adapter during the remote RF401 setup CSAT3 monitoring requires a Point to Point network so you should configure all remote RF401 settings the same as you did fo
115. rreerssen G 1 I 1 Configuring a phone to RF401 network using the Network Planner TOO ls s sscsteecpeaitevesecssees fut tees teubeven rssnisesbanseves oles E I 1 I 2 Phone base configuration cc eeceescseeeceseeeeesecseeecneeeecaeeeeesesaeeeeens 1 3 I 3 Enter the base site s phone number 0 0 0 0 eeeeeeeeceeteeeeceseeeeeseeneeeeens 1 4 I 4 Enter 250 for the Maximum Packet Size eee eceseeeeesecneeeecneeeeeeaees I 5 I 5 LoggerNet Point to Multipoint Setup cc ceeeeeeecseeeeceeeeeeeeeeeeene 1 8 K 1 Loop back Test without Antennas 0 cc ceeeceseeceseceeeeceeeeeeeeeeeaees K 3 K 2 Vertically Polarized 9 dBd 900 MHz Yagi ossee K 5 K 3 3 dBd 900 MHz Collinear Omni Antenna cee eeeeeeeeereeteeeees K 5 List of Tables 1 PC Driver Installation ainin Ainiin eni nanii 7 2 Lacking 12V on CS VO Pin 8 0 eee n nan ii a a Es 10 3 15966 s Voltage Regulation oo eceseessssecseeeeceeeeecsseceessecaeeseenereeeaeeess 14 4 Standard Setup Menu seee dc sat set couse aeee e eea os ators saeene 27 5 Standard Retry Levels orep eso ee n e Debeiegbes Ee EE E 27 B 1 Advanced Setup MenU sssessseeessereeseessererrssesresesreereserrrssesrreresresess B 5 D 1 CR206 X Power Modes and the Recommended Corresponding RF401 Power ModesS isiiieipesre teniss tanssissa D 2 H 1 900 MHz Distance vs Path Loss Lp in dB per Three Path Types H 6 H 2 Path Type vs Path Characteristics Selector seeseeeeeeeeeeeeeeereee
116. rrent 170 uA of the RF401 or RF430 in its default and other standby modes allows the supply voltage to rise at times virtually to its open circuit level The RF401 or RF430 radio will sustain damage if the Power jack voltage ever exceeds 18 Volts 120 VAC line voltages vary from location to location and from time to time so observing a 16 5 VDC maximum is wise Unconsidered AC adapter selection raises the spectre of over voltage damage to the RF401 and non warranty repairs There are several things to consider Beware of AC adapters outputting an AC voltage An AC adapter can output the correct voltage but the wrong polarity The centre conductor of the barrel connector must be positive The AC adapter must also be capable of supplying the instantaneous peak currents demanded by the RF401 transmitter The best approach is to obtain the AC adapter recommended by CSI Item 15966 If this is not possible obtain an AC adapter that matches the voltage vs current characteristics shown below To be sure that the candidate AC adapter s no load voltage is below the 16 5 VDC recommended maximum measure the output with a DC voltmeter while the AC adapter is plugged into the outlet but not powering anything User Manual 4 2 2 Remote Sites with Datalogger NOTE At the remote site an RF401 radio is usually powered by the datalogger through its CS I O port Alternatively the 14291 Field Cable can be used to connect the radi
117. sary for a dependable RF link The drop in signal going from Winter no deciduous tree leaves to Spring sometimes requires a little more signal a Raise the antenna height using a mast tower or higher terrain Often a little extra height makes the difference b Change to a higher gain antenna 36 10 11 User Manual c Ifin a multi path situation such as inside a reflective building or canyon try pointing the antenna in unlikely directions while looping back data see Pass Fail Appendix K from the remote radio and typing characters in HyperTerminal Sometimes a particular reflected signal will be stronger than the direct wave d Change polarization element orientation of all antennas in your network yagi or collinear from vertical to horizontal or vice versa Radios are experiencing interference from neighbouring 900 MHz transmitters There are some measures you can take to reduce interference from neighbouring 900 MHz transmitters a Move base station as far as possible from offending transmitter antenna b Install 9 dBd Yagi and position station so that offending transmitter is located behind or to the side of the yagi to take advantage of yagi s front to back or front to side ratio back and side signal rejection c Change polarization element orientation of all yagi and collinear antennas in your network to see if that reduces effects of offending transmitter PC208W dnd file is corrupted
118. scctcatiadesstizcccaunseresepeceaedien smuesneeteceababluse 1 1 1 RF401 series RAA OS a aeee naa a a RE EEEE 1 1 2 RF430 SerieS Radi OS me einne e e ER 2 1 3 Combination Mode Communications ceccceeceeeeeeeeceseceeeeseeneeeneeens 3 1 4 Retired Spread Spectrum Radios 0 ce eeeeeescseeesceseeecsseceeesecseeeenereeeeaees 4 1 4 1 RF400 series Radios sssseneeeseeeeseeseeseesetsrsteeesserersresersesseenessesersee 4 1 4 2 CR205 CR210 CR215 Dataloggers 0 ee eceseeeeetecreeeecneeeeeeeeee 4 2 Specifications scidirecco dd cuuiemian mecca eh oceania reales 4 3 UNS UNE RUL OUD thse cece oh td Neca ees aii 6 3 1 Site Considerations nserver riii ieor i sie riei EKE e eai 6 3 2 Quick Start Point to Point or PakBus cceccecssccescesssecesecesseecsseeeeeens 6 3 2 1 Step 1 Set Up Base RF401 or RF430 eeeeeeseesererseeererreren 6 3 2 2 Step 2 Set Up Remote RF401 ooo eee eeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeseeneees 9 3 2 3 Step 3 LoggerNet Set up ee ec eeceseceseccreeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeenees 10 32 4 Step 4 Connect isi ave lint Mahi el E at 11 3 3 Antenna Considerations cccceccessceesceeeceeeeseceeceecaeeeaeeeeeesseeereeerensees 11 3 3 1 Vane OF Sight 3 sescdscets deceit E E EE EE 11 3 3 2 MODNE aree seas epetan ai Ee e E EEA EEEIEE SNEER ESS 12 3 3 3 Antenna Cable Routing s eessseeesseeeseseresrsrrsrssrrressesrreresresresreersee 12 3 3 4 Antenna Cable Weather Sealing eeeeeeeeeeereeeeeereerersrrreree
119. see section If it is not enabled as a router it will appear in PakBus Graph as a leaf node to the attached datalogger or server as long as the datalogger is a router that doesn t exclude via the Hello list the address of the radio The RF PakBus Protocol works in conjunction with PakBus and compensates for the interference and collision problems inherent in RF networks The RF PakBus Protocol 1 Minimizes the number of small link state packets transmitted over RF 2 Maximizes the RF packet size 3 Establishes an ad hoc point to point link with RF packet acknowledgments and retries M 2 Minimizing the Number of Small Link State Packets Empty PakBus link state packets are responded to locally over the wired interface of the radio rather than sending them out over RF and having the response come back over RF This is beneficial because it reduces RF traffic Specifically the link state packets that are handled locally or spoofed are e RING packets response is a READY packet e FINISHED packets response is an OFF packet e PAUSE packets response is a FINISHED packet e OFF packet no response generated M 3 Maximizing the RF Packet Size The radio module s RF packet size is changed from the default 64 bytes to its maximum 256 bytes and the baud rate is increased to 38 4 kbps Changing the packet size and baud rate allows PakBus packets smaller than 256 bytes to fit within one RF packet and larger PakBus pack
120. signing PakBus networks Refer to Sections 5 2 2 and 5 2 3 for more information 4 2 Power Supplies NOTE Appendix L provides information about calculating current drain for your system 4 2 1 Base Radio Site radio connected to a PC The USB port supplies power to the RF430 If an RF401 is used as a base radio the 15966 wall charger typically supplies 12 Vdc power to the radio The barrel connector of the wall charger connects to the radio s Power jack Table 3 shows the CSI AC adapter Item 15966 voltage regulation typical while plugged into an AC outlet delivering 120 0 VAC 13 RF401 series and RF430 series Spread Spectrum Radio Modems 14 Table 3 15966 s Voltage Regulation Current Drain Resistive Load AC Adapter Output mA Ohms Volts 0 no load open circuit 12 22 122 100 Q 12 20 807 15 Q 12 11 CAUTION The voltage regulation of the 15966 is exceptionally good Power connector polarity inner conductor positive a ee There are many AC adapters available with barrel connectors plugs that will fit the RF401 or RF430 Some of these including the CSI AC adapter Item 272 will cause immediate damage if plugged into the RF401 or RF430 even briefly It is also possible to damage the RF401 or RF430 with an AC adapter labelled as low as 12 VDC because it may output an open circuit no current drain voltage exceeding the maximum The very low quiescent cu
121. t connection consists of a datalogger Datalogger Settings Phone Modem with an RS 232 port connected to the serial IP Port port on the computer If the datalogger has RFS5 AF Sex only a CS 1 0 port then the connection is RF Non PakBus through an appropriate interface device e g C929 9 pin cable or SC324 SC32B Optically Isolated RS 232 Interface Setup Summary Communication Test Datalogger Clock Send Program Data Files Scheduled Collection Wizard Complete 4 Previous Next gt Cancel Connection Help Figure 4 Point to Point or PakBus communications select direct connect as the connection type User Manual b For the datalogger settings set the Baud Rate to match the radio s RS 232 baud rate The radio s default RS 232 baud rate is 38 4 kbps The datalogger Extra Response Time can be left at 0 see Figure 5 CAUTION For safety maintain 20 cm 8 inches distance between antenna and any nearby persons while the radio is transmitting EZSetup Wizard CR1000 CR1000 Progress Datalogger Settings Introduction Baud Rate Communication Setup gt Datalogger Settings PakBus Address Setup Summary g Communication Test Security Code fo Datalogger Clock L Send Program Extra Response Time 00 seconds Data Files Max Time On Line 00h 00 m 00s Scheduled Collection Wizard Complete 4 Previous Next gt Enter the baud rate that will be used in communicating
122. then use a link tool to draw lines indicating the physical communication links between devices and an activity tool to indicate activities that will take place between devices schedule data collection call back one way data messages or get set variable transactions between dataloggers The Network Planner calculates the optimum settings for each device in the network and then allows you to send these settings to the device or save them for later download via the Network Planner or the Device Configuration utility If any change is made to a device in the network that change is propagated to any other devices in the network that are affected The configuration can then be imported into LoggerNet s network map providing a start to finish solution for PakBus network setup Refer to the LoggerNet manual for more information on the Network Planner 5 2 3 PakBus Graph PakBus Graph is a LoggerNet utility that graphically depicts the devices and connections in a PakBus datalogger network In PakBus graph the LoggerNet server is typically represented by PakBus address 4094 and each of the PakBus dataloggers that have been configured in Setup will be shown by the PakBus address in brackets followed by its name assigned through LoggerNet setup Because the radio networking protocols are used to direct packets not PakBus protocols the network s representation in PakBus Graph may be significantly different than one would expect Figure 23 depic
123. to a LoggerNet 3 4 1 server you will be disconnected with no advanced warning when Max Time On Line is reached A message will be displayed indicating that Max Time On Line has been reached When connecting to servers older than LoggerNet 3 4 1 the behaviour will be variable Generally you will be disconnected at some point but the timing of the disconnect will not be predictable Network Address Enter the network address that is set up in the RF400 radio A unique network address is required only if there is more than one network of dataloggers within the communication range of the network you are configuring otherwise the default of 0 can be used All devices in a network must have the same radio network address Valid Radio Net Addresses are 0 through 63 Radio Address This is the unique radio address for the remote radio Valid addresses are 0 through 65 535 Advanced Maximum Packet Size Data is transferred in chunks called packets For most devices the default value is 2048 byes The value entered in this field can be changed in 32 byte increments If a communications link is marginal reducing the packet size may improve reliability 33 RF401 series and RF430 series Spread Spectrum Radio Modems 34 5 2 2 Network Planner LoggerNet 4 0 or higher includes the Network Planner a tool for designing PakBus Datalogger Networks First PakBus devices are selected from a list and placed on the network design palette You
124. tor screws onto the antenna connector apply after the connector is in place allowing future removal and 2 at the junction between plastic cable sheath and cable connector If carefully done this should last for years An alternative approach is to wrap self vulcanizing rubber tape around these same areas of the antenna connector cable connector and cable sheath This tape can be purchased at most electrical supply stores see Troubleshooting Section 6 item 6 4 System Components 12 4 1 RF401 or RF430 Radios 4 1 1 Indicator LEDs The radios have a red LED labelled Pwr TX and a green LED labelled RX When 12V power is applied the red LED lights for ten seconds About 3 seconds after power up the green LED lights for a second Ten seconds after power up the selected standby mode begins to control the red LED The red LED lights to indicate when the receiver is actively listening When the receiver detects RF traffic header or data with the same hopping sequence the red LED will light steadily When the RF401 is transmitting the red LED will pulse OFF as the RF packets are transmitted it will not be on solid Green LED activity indicates that there is an RF signal being received whose hopping sequence corresponds to the configured hopping sequence of the RF401 This does not necessarily mean that the network radio address of the received packet corresponds with that of the RF401 where a neighbouring network exists it is
125. ts the physical network of six dataloggers and one LoggerNet server Dataloggers numbered 1 and 2 route packets to other dataloggers from the LoggerNet server Figure 23 Point to Multi Point Network with Two Routers This same network will be depicted in PakBus Graph as shown in Figure 24 The radios are doing the networking not the PakBus dataloggers User Manual 1 Sitet_ P Pa K P Fi Figure 24 Point to Multi Point Network as Displayed in PakBus Graph 6 Troubleshooting If you can t connect check out these possible causes 1 Datalogger or Wiring Panel lacks 12 V power on pin 8 of CS I O port The RF401 should go through its initialization with red and green LEDs lighting see Section 4 1 1 when serial cable is connected if 12 V is present on CS I O connector see Quick Start Table 2 If needed obtain the optional Field Power Cable CSI Item 14291 to connect between datalogger 12 V output terminals and RF401 Power jack to supply power to the RF401 Active Interface is set wrong This setting should normally be Auto Sense unless you have a phone to radio base station with COM220 phone modem which requires the ME Master setting or you have a PakBus datalogger requiring Datalogger SDC due to another M E peripheral present You could set the Active Interface to RS 232 or Datalogger Modem Enable if that is its permanent assignment otherwise Auto Sense may be better
126. up menu selection 3 Standard Setup menu selection 4 Standard Setup automatically configures the following three parameters appropriately If you configure a standby mode from the Advanced Setup menu you must also manually configure these parameters according to the following guidelines 1 Time of Inactivity to Sleep 2 Time of Inactivity to Long Header 3 Long Header Time The first two parameters should be set to about the same value What this value is will depend upon the nature of the anticipated activity The defaults are 5 seconds and 4 8 seconds so if you go more than 4 8 seconds without activity a long header is sent and a corresponding 5 second receive delay will be experienced In general these inactivity timers should be set so that the RF401 stays on receiving or transmitting not in standby mode longer than the quiet times during communication You can experiment with this to see how it works TIME OF INACTIVITY TO SLEEP The amount of receiver inactivity time desired before entering Standby Mode This number is only valid in receive and duty cycling modes Valid numbers range from 1 to 65535 The default number is 50 for 5 seconds TIME OF INACTIVITY TO LONG HEADER Set time before Long Header occurs The time of inactivity on the wireless modem s receive pin before a long header is issued The valid number range is from 0 to 65535 65535 selects no long header at all The default is 48 for 4 8 seconds B 5
127. ve to power RS 232 devices 1 gt RS 232 TX automatically powers down when no activity for 30 sec iii RS 232 Parameters 1 RS 232 Baud Rate 0 gt 1200 1 gt 4800 2 gt 9600 3 gt 19 2k 4 gt 38 4k 2 RS 232 Parity 0 gt None 1 gt Odd 2 gt Even 3 RS 232 Character Length 0 gt 8 bits 1 gt 7 bits 4 RS 232 Stop Bits 0 gt 1 1 gt 2 Restore Defaults Show All Current and Default Settings Save All Parameters and Exit Setup Exit Setup without Saving Parameters Appendix B Advanced Setup Menu B 2 Error Handling and Retries In the RF module received packets are analyzed for data corruption with an embedded CRC The radio rejects a received packet doesn t send it out a port if the packet s header address fails to match the radio address if an RF module receive error is detected or if the RF packet s CRC test fails B 2 1 Number of Retries This setting specifies the maximum number of times an RF401 will re send a packet failing to get an ACK response The default setting is zero which inactivates retries The allowable range is 0 to 255 Entering a number greater than zero activates retries A receiving radio responds to the sending radio with an ACK packet for every RF packet that it receives addressed to it that has a valid CRC B 2 2 Number of Time Slots for Random Retry This setting is active when the Number of Retries is greater than zero It specifies the number of 3
128. west possible average standby mode current Advanced Setup Menu selection 7 The same amount and frequency of data are collected as in Example 1 It Is Id Ir Ii Calculating each term Is table mA value 0 4 mA jd a EMDEN ms a pA a S a aA ODEA T ms 60 000 ms 20s 24mA 0 008 mA 60 000 ms 5000 ms i _ x 24mA 2mA 60 000 ms It 2 4mA In this example the dominant average current drain contributor becomes the time of inactivity to sleep current L 6 Appendix L RF401 RF411 Average Current Drain Calculations EXAMPLE 5 Base RF401 RF411 in default lt 4 mA 1 sec Delay standby mode The RF401 RF41 1s in this example are configured for the default average standby mode current The same amount of data 10 data points are collected as in Example 1 however the frequency of collection is changed from once a minute to once an hour It Is Ih Iq Ir Ii Calculating each term Is table mA value 4 mA Ih LS 73 mA TOOMS erin A 0 014mA long header 700 ms T ms 3 600 000 ms 20 ms x73 mA 0 0004 mA 45 ms 20 ms 3 600 000 ms 3 600 000 ms x24 mA 0 0004 mA 3 600 000 ms 2000 Ms x 24mA 0 033 mA using default time of inactivity to sleep 50 It 4 1 mA L 7 RF401 and RF430 Series Spread Spectrum Radio Modems EXAMPLE 6 Base RF401 RF411 in lt 0 4 mA 8 sec Delay standby mode The RF401
129. y legal for use within Europe although other models may be supplied to European customers for use outside of EU When reading the manual care must be taken to ensure the details relate to the RF416 version of the radio as details relating to licensing range power use and antennas are significantly different compared to the other models A summary of important differences is given below The RF416 and CR216 radio modules have been tested and certified to the ETS 300 328 standard As of August 2006 approval for sale has been sought in Belgium France Germany Holland Netherlands Italy Lichtenstein Norway Portugal Romania Spain Switzerland Turkey and the United Kingdom Some other countries do not require formal approval only compliance to the standard The radios operate in the 2 4 GHz waveband and in general no license is required to use these radios if used as approved However in some countries e g France Italy and The Netherlands use of such radio apparatus outdoors is restricted and may require a license If in doubt please contact your local radio authority before using the RF416 and CR216 In all countries use of high gain antenna which increases the effective isotropic radiated power EIRP over 100mW is currently prohibited The antenna and cables supplied by Campbell Scientific in Europe are carefully selected to ensure that this limit is not breached Note Campbell Scientific will not accept liability for any damag
130. ynchronous Device I Used by datalogger to address Enable synchronous devices can be used as a printer enable 7 CLK Handshake IO Used by datalogger with SDE and TX lines to transfer data to synchronous devices 8 12V supplied by PWR Sources 12 VDC to power datalogger peripherals 9 TX I Serial data transmit line I Signal Into the RF401 0 Signal Out of the RF401 Appendix F Non PakBus Example Configurations The following procedures explain how to build a basic RF401 point to point network and a point to multipoint network with base station connected directly to the PC COM port The PC should be running LoggerNet or PC208W The remote station can consist of a radio connected to a datalogger F 1 Direct PC to RF401 Series Base Station Setup Transparent Protocol 1 Connect the radio s RS 232 port to a PC COM port using a straight through serial cable Item 10873 or equivalent Use a 25 pin to 9 pin adapter if necessary This hardware configuration can serve 1 to do the set up of the radio and 2 for base station communications with datalogger s in point to point or point to multipoint networks 2 Access DevConfig see Section 5 1 a Leave Active Interface in Auto Sense default setting for most applications In Auto Sense the RF401 will test for 5 V on CS T O port pin 1 to determine if a datalogger is present and if so select the CS I O port Use Transparent Protocol Select a Net Add

RF401 and RF430 Series - Bad Request

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