DATAwind software manual Introduction
DATAwind software allows viewing and logging the values measured by the anemometers of the HD51.3D..., HD52.3D..., HD53LS... and WUS30F.... series. It also allows the anemometers to be configured.
1. If a USB converter is uesd, install the relevant USB drivers in the PC. The USB drivers for the RS52 (RS232/USB) and RS51K (RS485/USB) converters are included in the DATAwind software package.
2. Connect the anemometer to the PC in one of the following ways (see the anemometer user manual for details on connections):
• Anemometer RS232 port to a PC RS232 port, or alternatively to a USB port via a RS232/USB converter (e.g., RS52, usable with HD51.3D..., HD52.3D... and HD53LS...; RS52 is not recommended for WUS30F...).
Using the anemometer RS232 port, connection with the software is always possible within the first 10 seconds after powering the anemometer. Connection with the software after the first 10 seconds is only possible if the anemometer is set in configuration mode with RS232 interface (default).• Anemometer auxiliary RS485 port to a PC RS232 or USB port via a RS485/RS232 or RS485/USB converter (e.g., RS51K).
Using the anemometer auxiliary RS485 port, connection with the software is always possible. The auxiliary RS485 port is available only in HD51.3D... and WUS30F....• Anemometer main RS485 port to a PC RS232 or USB port via a RS485/RS232 or RS485/USB converter (e.g., RS51K).
Using the anemometer main RS485 port, connection with the software is possible 10 seconds after powering the anemometer and only if the anemometer is set in configuration mode with RS485 interface.• Anemometer RS422 port to a PC RS232 or USB port via a RS422/RS232 or RS422/USB converter.
Using the anemometer RS422 port, connection with the software is possible 10 seconds after powering the anemometer and only if the anemometer is set in configuration mode with RS422 interface.
3. Start the DATAwind software.
4. On the initial screen of the software set the PC COM port to which the anemometer is connected and press CONNECT with timing dependent on the type of connection made and the mode set in the anemometer:
• Connected the anemometer RS232 port and the anemometer is in configuration mode with RS232 interface: press CONNECT at any time.
• Connected the anemometer RS232 port and the anemometer is not in configuration mode or the interface for configuration mode is not set to RS232: press CONNECT within 10 seconds from anemometer power on (if the anemometer is already powered, power cycle it).
• Connected the anemometer auxiliary RS485 port: press CONNECT at any time.
• Connected the anemometer main RS485 port and the anemometer is in configuration mode with RS485 interface: press CONNECT after 10 seconds from anemometer power on (If the anemometer is not in configuration mode with RS485 interface, the connection with the software via the main RS485 port is not possible).
• Connected the anemometer RS422 port and the anemometer is in configuration mode with RS422 interface: press CONNECT after 10 seconds from anemometer power on (If the anemometer is not in configuration mode with RS422 interface, the connection with the software via the RS422 port is not possible).
The anemometer can also be connected later ("Connect" button in the toolbar in the main window of the software); in that case, select "Continue without connecting the device." The "Continue without connecting the device" option is useful in case you only want to view existing data files.
The following sections can be identified:
1. File list: list of the files in the working folder (point 4). If new files are added to the working folder after opening the software, press the Refresh button (or right-click inside this section and select Refresh) to update the file list.
2. Menu.
3. Toolbar.
4. Working folder: it is the folder containing the file with the data recorded by the Monitor function. By default, the working folder is "DATAwind_Data" contained in the "Documents" folder of the PC. The working folder can be changed by selecting the menu item Tools >> Predefined folder. Changing the working folder requires restarting the software.
5. Information about selected file: shows the properties of the file selected in the file list (model, serial number and user code of the instrument with which the data have been recorded; interval, duration and start/end date of the recording; stored quantities). When a file is selected for the first time, the contained data are automatically saved in a database; a green "progress bar" indicates the saving progress; the ABORT and DUMP buttons allow respectively to cancel and retry the saving, if not successful.
6. Status Bar: instrument and database connection info.
7. Measurements window: displays the current measurements of the connected instrument, the wind speed and direction statistical values, the status of the heating (if present) and the calculation of the altimetric parameters. The arrow on the wind rose indicates the current wind direction. The measurements window can be enlarged to full screen by selecting the icon
at the top of the section. Colors in measurement windows can be customized by selecting the menu item Tools >> Color setup.
WIND STATISTICAL VALUES
The measurements window displays the minimum, the maximum and the average (AVG) of wind speed (WS) and direction (WD) measurements.
By selecting AVG2 or AVG10, the statistical values are calculated in 2 or 10 minutes intervals respectively (on the wind rose, the orange sectors indicate the values used for AVG2 calculation, while the green sectors indicate the values used for AVG10 calculation).
By selecting INS, the minimum and maximum values are calculated starting from the reset of the statistics, while the AVG value is the same as current measurement value. To reset the statistics, press "Instrument Settings" in the toolbar, then select "Advanced setup" and press the RESET button.
ALTIMETRIC PARAMETERS
The measurements window displays the QFE and QNH parameters, used in aviation to determine the altitude of the aircrafts.
QFE is the value of the atmospheric pressure at ground level (for example, the runway of an airport), calculated as a function of the atmospheric pressure measured by the weather station and the height of the pressure sensor above ground. Entering the QFE value in an altimeter, this will indicate zero when the aircraft is on the airport runway.
QNH is the value of the atmospheric pressure at mean sea level, calculated as a function of the QFE parameter and the elevation of the place where the weather station is located. Entering the QNH value in an altimeter, this will indicate the airport elevation when the aircraft is on the runway.
To set the values required for QFE and QNH calculation, press "Instrument Settings" in the toolbar, then select "Advanced setup".
The Monitor function stores the values measured by the instrument in the PC. The data are saved in the working folder, in a file identified by the instrument serial number and starting date/time of the recording.
Monitor function configuration
Before starting recording, set it up by pressing Monitor in the toolbar and selecting Monitor Setup.
• Storing frequency: setting of the data recording interval (1/2/5/15/30 s, 1/2/5/15/30/60 min). If the storing frequency is greater than 1 second, the stored value is the average of the values measured during the set interval.
• File saving frequency: if the data recording period is long, data are saved in multiple files; the setting of this field specifies how much recording time (1/2/4/8/12/24 h) will be contained in each file.
• Saving start time: Scheduling of the recording start time (H = hour, M = minutes). If the set time is prior to the current PC time, recording wil start immediately upon activation of the Monitor function.
• Selected variable: for each of the quantities measured by the instrument, the y-axis of the graph displayed during the Monitor can be configured. One by one, select the quantities whose scale you wish to set.
• Y-axis scale: it can be Automatic (initial and full scale are determined automatically by the software according to the measured values) or Manual (the set Lower Limit and Upper Limit values are used).
• Lower limit / Upper limit: initial and full scale values of the Y-axis of the graph displayed during the Monitor, in the case of manual scale setting.
To save the settings, press Apply.
To start recording, press Monitor. Recording can also be started directly without going through the settings by pressing Monitor in the toolbar and selecting Start Monitor.
The values displayed in the Monitor window are the average of the instantaneous measurements acquired in an interval equal to the set recording interval, and the value is updated once per second (for example, if the storing frequency is 1 minute, the average of the 60 values acquired once per second in the last minute is displayed every second). On the other hand, storage of the displayed value in the data file occurs at a rate equal to the set recording interval (for example, once per minute).
MIN and MAX are the minimum and maximum values detected in the interval used for the calculation of the average measurement value displayed.
By selecting the Windows icon in the upper left corner, you can choose whether to display only the values in numerical form, only the graph (of the last 900 values, the horizontal axis shows the number of samples) or both. It is also possibile to arrange the measurement windows tiled horizontally, vertically or in cascade. By selecting the Beep option, a beep sounds (if PC audio is enabled) every time the values on the screen are updated (once per second).
A right click on a graph opens a menu containing the following commands:
• Copy: copies the current graph to the clipboard.
• Save Image As…: saves the current graph as an image file. A window will open allowing to choose the file position and format (emf, png, gif, jpg, tif, bmp).
• Page Setup...: allows setting up the page for printing the graph.
• Print...: opens the window for printing the current graph.
• Show Point Values: enables the display of the labels showing the sample date/time and the value of the variable when the mouse is on the graph line.
• Un-Zoom: cancels the last zoom performed on the graph.
• Undo All Zoom/Pan: cancels all zooms performed and restores the initial view.
• Set Scale to Default: expands the axis so as to display the variable with the best resolution possible.
To stop the Monitor window, press Exit.
To view the data recorded with the Monitor function, select the file in the file list in the main software window, press the right mouse button and select Explore. The following window opens:
In the upper right part, the list of recorded values appears. In the lower part there are the graphs of the detected quantities (by default, a graph for each quantity). In the Measures list panel it is possible to select/deselect the quantities to be displayed, to be confirmed by pressing the Apply button (the Reload button allows cancelling any unconfirmed changes to the selection of the quantities). By repeatedly pressing the Graphs button you can toggle between graphical only, tabular only or complete data display.
All the quantities can be displayed in the same graph by deselecting the Multi Graphs option. If the Multi Graphs option is deselected, the Y Axis option allows enabling/disabling the display of the Y axes (if the Multi Graphs option is selected, the Y Axis option has no effect). If changed, the Multi Graphs and Y Axis options must be activated by pressing the Apply button.
The Statistics button enables/disables the display of the statistical info: Max, Min, Avg (average), Std (standard deviation), Max-Min, Max-Avg and Avg-Min.
By pressing the Export to Excel button, an Excel worksheet with the logged data opens. By selecting the small arrow to the right of the export button, you can select the Setup Export File command to set the data separators to be used for the export: separator for date (e.g. "/"), time (e.g. ":"), decimal (e.g. ".") and field (e.g. ";").
Displaying a subset of data
To view only the data logged in a specific
time interval. Set the interval start (From field) and end
(To field) date/time, or select a predefined interval in the
Scale field, then press the
button to confirm.
The right/left arrow buttons at the bottom of the panel allow scrolling through the data by the interval set in the Scroll field. The double right arrow button scrolls to the end of the data. The ALL button restores the full view of the data.
Graphs customization
By selecting the small arrow to the right of the Graphs button, you can select the Graphs Setup command, which opens the following window:
For each quantity, the following properties can be set:
Visible: displays/hides the graph.
Color: color of the graph line.
Width: thickness of the graph line (enter an integer).
Auto scale: enable/disable the automatic scale for the Y axis.
Min / Max: minimum and maximum values of the Y axis (only if the automatic scale is disabled).
Marker: enable/disable the display of a marker in correspondence with the measurement acquisition instants.
Alarm A/B: displays a horizontal reference line in correspondance to "Alarm A/B Value".
Alarm A/B value: A/B threshold value.
Alarm A/B Shadow: can assume the "Off/Down/Up" values and allows you to color the background of the graph area below/above "Alarm A/B Value".
The Visible, Auto scale and Marker options at the top of the window simultaneously select the corresponding option for all quantities.
Press the Apply button to confirm the settings. The Reload button allows cancelling any unconfirmed changes.
Zoom and other functions for the graphs
To enlarge an area of the graph, press the left mouse button at an extreme point of the area and, keeping the button pressed, drag the mouse until a window is drawn around the region of interest, then release the button: the selected area will now occupy the entire area allocated to the graph. To return to previous zoom levels, right-click above the graph, then select Un-Zoom to return to previous zoom level or Undo All Zoom/Pan to return to the initial graph display.
In addition to the Un-Zoom functions, a right-click above a graph also makes the following commands available:
By selecting Instrument Settings in the main software window, the anemometer can be configured. A window with the following sections appears:
Info: displays information about the anemometer (model, serial number, firmware version, user ID and calibration date).
General settings: setting of user code, wind speed minimum threshold and calculation mode for mean values of wind speed and direction; heater and magnetic compass enable/disable, if available in the model.
Measuring units: setting of the units of measurement.
Analog outputs: setting of the analog outputs.
Operation mode: setting of the serial output protocol.
Configuration: setting of the physical connection interface in configuration mode.
Proprietary: setting of ASCII proprietary mode.
NMEA: setting of NMEA mode.
MODBUS-RTU: setting of Modbus-RTU mode.
SDI-12: setting of SDI-12 mode.
Advanced setup: settings of parameters for QFE, QNH and "Wind Gust" calculation; reset of wind speed and direction statistics.
Tilt(°): tilt and compass values, if available in the model.
Parameters that have been modified and not yet stored in the pyranometer are highlighted by an orange circle. To store the new settings in the transmitter, press Send.
The Read button re-reads the configuration stored in the instrument (canceling any changes not yet stored).
The current configuration (including any changes not yet stored in the instrument) can be saved in the PC, in a text file, by pressing Save. The configurations saved in the PC can be recalled by pressing Open.
• User code: alphanumeric code identifying the instrument. Maximum length 34 characters.
• Heating: heating enabling/disabling in the models equipped with the option.
• Enabling magnetic compass: enabling/disabling compensation of wind speed and direction measurements with the magnetic compass, in the models in which it is available.
• Wind speed threshold: speed value below which the direction measurement is frozen at the last detected value (direction determination may be inaccurate if the wind speed is very low).
• Time interval for the calculation of average speed and average direction: the wind average speed and the average direction are calculated with reference to the set time interval (in seconds).
• Method for the calculation of average wind speed and direction: selecting vector averaging, the average of the values along each Cartesian axis (U, V, W) available in the instrument is calculated; the average intensity and the average direction are those determined by the average coordinates. Selecting scalar averaging, the average intensity is calculated as the average of intensities without considering the direction; the average direction is calculated as the average of directions and expressed according to the extended characteristic (see the instrument operating manual for details on the extended characteristic).
• Wind speed measuring unit: m/s, cm/s, km/h, knot, mph.
• Temperature measuring unit: °C, °F.
• Atmospheric pressure measuring unit: hPa, mmHg, inchHg, mmH20, inchH20, atm.
• Rain measuring unit: mm, inch.
• Rainfall per tip: tipping bucket resolution in mm for the models with rain gauge.
• Resolution: Number of decimal digits with which the measurement is displayed by the software. The resolution setting is saved in the PC, not in the instrument; therefore, if the PC is changed, the resolution must be set again (if different from default).
Select what you want to associate the ANx analog outputs with (2 or 3 depending on the anemometer model), the behavior of the outputs (offset or no offset, direct or inverted), and the wind speed value you want to match the full scale of the analog output with.
Associating the Cartesian components (U, V, W) with the outputs, the range of the outputs is ±f.s., where f.s. is the set wind speed full scale value.
Select the serial output protocol.
ATTENTION : the selected mode will be active the next time the instrument is switched on.
Select the physical connection interface in configuration mode: RS232, RS485 or RS422.
• Interface: selection of the physical connection interface for ASCII proprietary mode (RS232, RS485 or RS422).
• Baudrate: selection of the Baud Rate for ASCII proprietary mode.
• Parity and stop bits: selection of the communication parameters for ASCII proprietary mode.
• String sending interval: setting of time interval, in seconds, between the transmission of two consecutive strings containing the values measured in RS232 Proprietary mode.The parameter can be configured only in some anemometer series.
• Measurements order in the string sent in RS232 RS485 modes: choose the order in which the quantities will appear in the string sent by the instrument in ASCII proprietary mode. The order is configurable only in some anemometer series.
• NMEA Baud rate: selection of the Baud Rate for NMEA mode.
• NMEA interface: selection of the physical connection interface for NMEA mode (RS232, RS485 or RS422).
• NMEA parity and stop bits: selection of the communication parameters for NMEA mode.
• NMEA string sending interval: setting of time interval, in seconds, between the transmission of two consecutive strings containing the values measured in NMEA mode.
• MODBUS address: setting of the instrument address for Modbus-RTU mode.
• MODBUS baud rate: selection of the Baud Rate for Modbus-RTU mode.
• MODBUS interface: selection of the physical connection interface for Modbus-RTU mode (RS232, RS485 or RS422).
• MODBUS parity and stop bits: selection of the communication parameters for Modbus-RTU mode.
• Waiting time after MODBUS transmission: selectable between "Wait 3.5 characters" (according to Modbus protocol) and "Immediate reception".
Select the instrument address for SDI-12 mode (0...9, a...z, A...Z).
• Airport elevation: enter the elevation (altitude above mean sea level) of the airport (at ground or runway level, not at the level of the weather station with the pressure sensor).
• Airport elevation above pressure sensor: enter the height of the weather station with the pressure sensor above ground or runway level.
• Reset min-max data of the wind: press RESET to reset wind speed and direction statistics.
• GUST setup - Calc method: selection of vector or scalar method for the calculation of averages in “Wind Gust” measurement.
• GUST setup - Integration period : setting of the time interval, in seconds, for the calculation of averages in “Wind Gust” measurement.
• GUST setup - Observation period : setting of the time interval, in seconds, for detecting the maximum of the averages in “Wind Gust” measurement.
Warning: the elevation values required for the calculation of QFE and QNH are saved in the PC, not in the instrument; therefore, if the PC is changed, the parameters must be set again.
Display of Tilt angles in models equipped with the optional sensor.
Warning: to update the firmware, the anemometer RS232 port must be connected to the PC (possibly via RS232/USB converter) and there must be no ongoing connection with the software (if so, press Disconnect in the toolbar). In addition, the anemometer must be in configuration mode.
1. Select the menu item Tools >> Firmware Loader.
2. Select the PC COM port to which the anemometer is connected. Set the Baud Rate to 115200 and select 8N2 option.
3. Press Browse... and select the update file in the PC.
4. Press Start and wait for the message indicating the completion of the operation.
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Connect |
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Disconnect Disconnects the instrument from the software (available only if the instrument is connected. |
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Monitor Acquires the instrument measures in real time on PC. |
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Instrument settings Configures the instrument operation parameters. |
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Refresh Updates the list of files in the working folder. |
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Help Opens the software online manual. |
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Exit Closes the software. |
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File >> Start monitor: starts Monitor function.
File >> Monitor setup: configures the Monitor function.
File >> Exit: closes the software.
Tools >> Serial Connection: COM port settingn.
Tools >> Connect: connects the instrument to the software (available only if the instrument is not connected).
Tools >> Disconnect: disconnects the instrument from the software (available only if the instrument is connected).
Tools >> Instrument settings: configuration of instrument operation parameters.
Tools >> Predefined folder: setting of the working folder.
Tools >> Firmware Loader: updates the instrument firmware.
Tools >> Color setup: customization of colors in measurement windows.
View >> Toolbar: enables/disables the toolbar.
View >> Status Bar: enables/disables the status bar.
View >> View details: displays files as a list with details (date, dimension, ...).
View >> View icons: displays files as icons.
Help >> DATAwind Manual: opens the software online manual.
Help >> DATAwind License: opens the end user license agreement.
Help >> Language: selection of the software language.
Help >> About...: information on the software version.
07/2024