Davis Instruments GroWeatherLink, User Manual

Page 1: ...G R O W E A T H E R L I N K Software User s Guide For Windows 0 Version 1 2 0 Product 7871...

Page 2: ...ing 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 re...

Page 3: ...G R O W E A T H E R L I N K Software User s Guide For Windows 0 Version 1 2...

Page 4: ...irect Connection Installation 6 Phone Modem Connection 7 Typical Phone Modem Installation 7 Phone Modem Installation Instructions 8 A Few Notes About Phone Modem Connections 9 Hanging Up 9 Radio Multi...

Page 5: ...Set Alarms 43 Leaf Wetness 44 Display Menu 45 Bulletin 45 Summary 46 Strip Charts 46 Station Status 47 Database Menu 48 Download 48 Browse 49 Plot 49 Crop Menu 50 New Crop 50 Open Crop 51 Delete Crop...

Page 6: ...igation 85 K Factors 86 Print 87 Notes 87 Graph 87 Calculate 87 PC Degree Days 88 Adding a Degree Day Total 89 Opening a Degree Days Total 92 Deleting a Degree Day Total 93 PC Degree Day Report 93 TEC...

Page 7: ...TABLE OF CONTENTS iv...

Page 8: ...rLink Cable 4 conductor WeatherLink Isolator Unit The isolator unit provides upgraded protection against the electrical distur bances caused by ground offsets or static charges by placing an optical c...

Page 9: ...INTRODUCTION Contents of Package 2...

Page 10: ...you are attempting to make a direct connection phone modem connection or radio multi point connection Direct Connection Hardware Requirements In addition to the provided hardware check that you have...

Page 11: ...a tion of hard disk requirements Spread spectrum or UHF radio modems for each weather station and base station Davis recommends some excellent third party radio modems YDI Spread Spectrum Radio Modem...

Page 12: ...n using only the hardware and cables provided You may not use extension cables with the Link Isolator meaning that the WeatherLink must be within 48 of the PC TYPICAL DIRECT CONNECTION Short Range Mod...

Page 13: ...sole 4 Restore power to the weather station by reattaching the power adapter and battery backup The weather station should beep three times The third beep which should occur within 30 seconds indicate...

Page 14: ...without using Davis SRM 10 Attach the PC COM port adapter to a free serial port on the back of your computer Look for a male connector with 9 pins PHONE MODEM CONNECTION The instructions below explain...

Page 15: ...of the long cable coming from the WeatherLink into the jack marked L1 To LINK on the isolator unit 5 Insert the cable plug at one end of the 40 foot WeatherLink cable into the jack marked L2 To PC on...

Page 16: ...after you choose Ok or Yes to initiate a program action If you do not wish to connect press Esc before you are actually connected While connected to a phone modem station the software displays your o...

Page 17: ...HARDWARE INSTALLATION Radio Multi Point Connection 10...

Page 18: ...For performance reasons the software reads these values from the station configuration file saved on your hard disk rather than from the station itself Therefore you must set station values from the...

Page 19: ...es prompting you to indicate whether or not you wish to continue WALKTHROUGH CONFIRMATION BOX To continue choose OK To skip this step and move to the next step choose Skip To cancel the entire walkthr...

Page 20: ...he station name creates a directory for that station using the first eight characters in the station name not including punctuation and spaces and prompts you to indicate whether you want to enter the...

Page 21: ...s dialog box you may set the units of measure in which you want the software to display plot and print information UNIT PREFERENCES DIALOG BOX 8 When finished selecting units of measure choose OK The...

Page 22: ...back Link Revision Select the link revision To determine which revision you have check the manufacturing code on the back of the WeatherLink The second letter the first letter should be an L is the re...

Page 23: ...on see Finding the Correct Serial Port on page 23 or use the Modem Test to test and confirm that a modem is attached at the specified COM port 11 Once the serial port settings are correct choose OK Th...

Page 24: ...ant to set the rainfall calibration number Rain Cal on the weather station to make sure the calibration number is correct for the type of rain collector you indicated in the station setup 16 Choose OK...

Page 25: ...ompts you to indicate whether you want to set the time and date on your weather station 20 Choose OK The software opens the Set Time and Date dialog box In this dialog box you may set the weather stat...

Page 26: ...ms you that this procedure will clear the archive memory 24 Choose OK The software sets the archive interval and clears your archive memory It then prompts you to indicate whether you want to start th...

Page 27: ...ed by the sta tion s AutoClear feature as set the time at which they should be cleared each day For more detailed instructions on this dialog box see Set Auto Clear on page 42 SET AUTOCLEAR DIALOG BOX...

Page 28: ...ou may set alarm points for any of your station s alarms For more detailed instructions on this dialog box see Set Alarms on page 43 SET STATION ALARMS 30 After entering alarm thresholds choose OK The...

Page 29: ...you to indicate if you want to log leaf wetness or soil temperature data 33 Choose OK The software opens the Set Leaf Wetness dialog box From this dialog box you may configure your software and consol...

Page 30: ...setting Otherwise you must consult the documentation supplied with your modem In order to use this procedure you will need the loopback connector the short wire with a phone jack on one end and a red...

Page 31: ...RTS CONFIRMATION 6 Choose OK The software will search all standard serial ports for the loopback connector When finished the software will either inform you that it could not locate the loopback conne...

Page 32: ...ay not plot view or print humidity information The area set aside for this information on the bulletin summary screen browser etc will simply be blank MULTIPLE STATIONS The software can support the us...

Page 33: ...es the necessary communication settings serial port IRQ etc 1 Choose New from the File menu The New Station dialog box appears ADDING A NEW STATION 2 To add a station type the desired station name up...

Page 34: ...ation from the list box on the left and choose OK to open that station Delete Station You may delete a station from the software quickly and easily Deleting a station removes the station directory and...

Page 35: ...n missing weather data you can supplement one weather station s data with another The database you want to supplement is called the original data base the database that provides the missing data is ca...

Page 36: ...e original database the database with missing data 2 Choose File Merge from the File menu A Merge Data dialog box appears 3 Select the data file s that contain the data that you want to add to the ori...

Page 37: ...ig You may enter a number of station specific settings and information which help to identify each particular station 1 Choose Station Config from the Setup menu The Station Configuration dialog box a...

Page 38: ...his option The soft ware uses Daylight Savings Time information when determining net radi ation which is used in the calculation of Evapotranspiration After download create text file of last 2 days Th...

Page 39: ...baud modem use a ball point pen or paper clip to flip the dip switch on the back of the WeatherLink data logger Connection Type Choose the type of connection from the drop down list Transparent Direct...

Page 40: ...odem initialization string in the text box The default modem initialization string should work in almost all cases Before chang ing the modem string consult the online help file or the readme txt file...

Page 41: ...station at each of the specified times To clear all of the selections choose Clear Offset Time If you want the software to download this station a specific number of minutes after the selected hour s...

Page 42: ...CHOOSE UNITS 2 Select the desired units of measure for each condition Temperature Fahrenheit F or Celsius C Wind chill dew point degree days and temperature humidity index are all displayed in the sa...

Page 43: ...rent time Daylight Savings Time In order to calculate ET the software makes some assumptions about the position of the sun based the time and date If you change the time for Daylight Savings Time make...

Page 44: ...the archive interval clears your archive memory You should download data before changing archive interval see Download on page 48 1 Choose Set Archive Interval from the Setup menu The Set Archive Inte...

Page 45: ...o both the station and the station s configuration file Set Rain Cal You may set the rainfall calibration number on your weather station using the software to make sure your weather station has the co...

Page 46: ...oming from the sensor The adjusted reading indicates what the software displays adjusted for any previ ously entered calibration number SET TEMPERATURE CAL 2 Enter the desired adjusted reading and cho...

Page 47: ...ion number to convert the raw reading into the adjusted reading and saves that calibration number to the station and the station s configuration file Set Total Rain You may want to enter a total rainf...

Page 48: ...e desired low and high threshold for degree days and choose OK The software saves the thresholds Reset Period You may restart the period on the weather station using the software When the station rest...

Page 49: ...he Setup menu The Set Auto Clear dialog box appears SET AUTO CLEAR 2 To turn AutoClear on for a function or group of functions select the appropriate check box 3 Enter the time at which you want the s...

Page 50: ...or all of the standard high low alarms enter the desired alarm threshold into the text box To clear an alarm delete the contents of the text box Dew Point Turn on the dew point alarm by selecting the...

Page 51: ...ess readings To reconfigure both the software and the console simply select the appropriate sensor or leave as is and click OK Note Before changing from the soil temperature sensor to the leaf wetness...

Page 52: ...of the highs and lows from the weather sta tion and display them on the weather bulletin If you download highs and lows it takes a bit longer to open the bulletin If you do not download highs and lows...

Page 53: ...Also included on the high low summary screen are the highs and lows for each function along with the time and date they occurred The information on the high low summary is updated in the same way as t...

Page 54: ...ppears For complete instructions on using the Strip Charts see Using the Strip Charts on page 67 STRIP CHART Station Status The software includes a station status display which allows you to monitor t...

Page 55: ...see Archive Memory vs Data base on page 95 1 Choose Download from the Database menu The software will show you how many records are currently saved in the archive memory and how much of the archive m...

Page 56: ...m the Database menu The Browse window appears For complete instructions on using the Browse window see Using the Browse Window on page 78 BROWSE WINDOW Plot The GroWeatherLink software includes a plot...

Page 57: ...anagement dialog box appears CROP WATER MANAGEMENT 2 Enter the following information Crop Name Enter the name of the crop and any other identifying text into the text box Note The software uses the fi...

Page 58: ...Crop Once you have added a crop record you may open that crop record at a later date to add K Factors irrigation amounts or to view crop irrigation information 1 Choose Open Crop from the Crop menu Th...

Page 59: ...rom the Crop menu The Delete Crop dialog box appears DELETE CROP 2 Select the crop record you want to delete from the list and then choose OK The software prompts you to confirm that you want to delet...

Page 60: ...hum hour total you wish to track enter the following Name Enter the name of the crop or pest for which you want temp hum hours calculated into the text box Start Date Enter the starting date from whic...

Page 61: ...the threshold you entered Days Occurred The report shows the number of days on which temp hum hours occurred Total for prior 3 days The report shows the number of temp hum hours which occurred on each...

Page 62: ...u lated into the text box End Date Enter the ending date for which you want soil temperature hours calcu lated into the text box Temp Threshold Enter the soil temperature threshold above which you wan...

Page 63: ...n threshold above which the software should consider daylight default is 150 W m2 The software calculates the amount of time the solar radiation was above the threshold and reports that amount of time...

Page 64: ...pened into Windows Notepad from which you may copy or print the report information HOURS OF DAYLIGHT REPORT Total Hours The total hours of daylight which occurred during the selected period of time St...

Page 65: ...Degree Days list box appears PC DEGREE DAYS 2 See PC Degree Days starting on page 88 for instructions on using the degree day calculation feature Leaf Wet Hours You may track the number of hours duri...

Page 66: ...rom 0 com pletely dry to 16 maximum amount of moisture Enter the scale number above which you want the software to consider foliage wet 3 After entering all necessary information choose OK The softwar...

Page 67: ...art Date Enter the starting date for which you want chilling requirement calculated into the text box End Date Enter the ending date for which you want chilling requirement calculated into the text bo...

Page 68: ...nformation Start Date Enter the starting date for which you want ET calculated into the text box End Date Enter the ending date for which you want ET calculated into the text box K Factor Enter the K...

Page 69: ...unrise and sunset times for any location NOAA Setup The software will automatically generate reports similar to Monthly and Yearly NOAA National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration reports Enter al...

Page 70: ...ature for each month of the year into the appropriate text box Normal Precipitation Enter the normal mean precipitation for each month of the year into the appropriate text box 3 After entering inform...

Page 71: ...xport file an ASCII text file which contains the information and saves that file in the root program directory You may use the default file name if desired 4 Choose OK The NOAA Monthly Summary appears...

Page 72: ...se NOAA Summarize Year from the Reports menu The Choose Year dialog box appears CHOOSE YEAR 2 Select a year from the list 3 Enter the desired file name into the Export File text box Whenever you creat...

Page 73: ...s Menu 66 4 Choose OK The NOAA yearly summary appears NOAA YEARLY SUMMARY 5 To print choose Print from the Control menu or press Ctrl P 6 When finished double click on the Control menu in the upper le...

Page 74: ...y the axis information for only one of the variables In the strip chart shown above for example both rain and barometric pressure are plotted on the bottom strip chart though the axis button only says...

Page 75: ...k on the axis button for the desired strip chart A pop up menu appears containing the name and color of the variables plotted on this strip chart Select the desired variable from the pop up menu AXIS...

Page 76: ...low you to create strip chart templates for later use set the default strip chart setup and print the strip charts Strip chart templates save all information concerning which variables are plotted on...

Page 77: ...e File menu Set your printer options in the Print dialog box for best results be sure to choose land scape mode and then choose OK Close To close the strip chart window choose Close from the File menu...

Page 78: ...torical data To change the auto update status choose Auto Update from the Options menu When the strip charts are in auto update mode a check mark appears beside the command name Note When you change t...

Page 79: ...t from the Colors menu Note that the strip charts and the plots see Using the Plot Win dow starting on page 73 use the same color scheme Changing the default color scheme in the strip charts window wi...

Page 80: ...plot span the length of time over which you are plotting those conditions The software allows you to quickly and simply select those three elements and also includes many other use ful features which...

Page 81: ...ly find a specific date As you drag the scroll box watch the bottom of the window until the desired date appears then release the scroll box Note For plot spans which show less than a full day s worth...

Page 82: ...maximum automatically locks the axis see below Lock Axis To lock or unlock the axes of all plots click on the Lock Axis icon for the desired axis Locking the axis will cause subsequent plot spans whe...

Page 83: ...open a previously saved plot choose Open Plot from the File menu Select the desired plot in the Open dialog box and choose OK Save Plot To save a plot choose Save Plot from the File menu Enter the de...

Page 84: ...ions Gridlines You may turn the gridlines on or off for the left axis right axis and time axis separately When the gridlines are on a check mark appears beside the menu command To change the gridline...

Page 85: ...es Box in order to maximize the size of your plot When the Variables Box is hidden a check mark appears beside the menu command To turn this option on or off choose Hide Variable Box from the Options...

Page 86: ...box If data is either missing or invalid you can enter two dashes to indicate that that data point is unavailable See E T and Wind Direction above Note that certain readings i e Degree Days Wind Spee...

Page 87: ...oftware adds a note icon to the left of the record NOTE ICON To edit delete or add to an existing note double click on the note icon The Note Pad with the text of previously entered notes appears Edit...

Page 88: ...date dialog box appears CHOOSE DATE Select the desired date from the list and choose OK The software will move to the first record on the selected date Print To print data choose Print from the File m...

Page 89: ...dit menu See Edit a Record on page 79 for details on editing records Delete To delete a single record select the desired record and choose Delete from the Edit menu The software prompts you to confirm...

Page 90: ...RDS TO EXPORT Select the desired days months or years you may choose more than one and choose OK The software prompts you to enter an export file name Enter the desired file name and choose OK ENTER E...

Page 91: ...roup of records at one time choose Delete Records from the Edit menu The software prompts you to select the records you want deleted CHOOSE RECORDS TO DELETE Select the desired days months or years yo...

Page 92: ...EMENT DIALOG BOX Irrigation When you irrigate a crop enter the irrigation amount The software will automatically calculate total irrigation amounts based on your entries Note The software does not con...

Page 93: ...the station The software allows you to enter different K factors for different stages of crop development ETc for each day is calculated using the appropriate K factor For example if you enter a K fa...

Page 94: ...The software uses Windows Notepad to maintain the note file for each crop Consult your Windows documentation for a full explanation of Notepad s features and commands You should not change the file na...

Page 95: ...DEGREE DAYS The software includes a versatile degree day calculation feature which allows you to track an almost unlimited number of degree day totals This section of the manual explains how to use th...

Page 96: ...on for each degree day total Name Enter the name of the crop pest etc into the text box Start Date Enter the starting date for degree day calculations into the text box Base Temp Enter the base develo...

Page 97: ...re and the lowest temperature for a given day to calculate the average temperature for that day Note however that if the high temperature is above the upper threshold the software uses the upper thres...

Page 98: ...tes the total degree days since the start date and displays the number of accumulated degree days and the degree days left until the development total is reached DEGREE DAYS CALCULATED 5 After enterin...

Page 99: ...w degree day totals etc 1 To open a degree day total double click on the desired total or select it from the list and choose Open The Degree Day Definition dialog box for that total appears DEGREE DAY...

Page 100: ...so PC Degree Day Report The software allows you to create reports on some or all of your degree day totals The report is opened into Windows Notepad from which you may copy or print the report inform...

Page 101: ...tware calculates and displays degree days information Depending on which format you chose long short the report shows you some or all of the following information for each degree day total Start Date...

Page 102: ...rd Make sure to download data before your archive memory fills or you will have gaps in your database It is best to select the longest archive interval which suits your purpose Database The database i...

Page 103: ...very day At the specified time the software will prompt you to indicate whether or not you wish to down load data You may choose OK to continue or Cancel to quit the download If you do not make a choi...

Page 104: ...h DEGDAYS The software automatically creates a DEGDAYS directory into which it stores all PC degree day information Station Configuration File When you add a station the software creates a station con...

Page 105: ...cupy approximately 1 92 MB of disk space while the same file containing data stored at an interval of 2 hours will occupy approxi mately 16K You cannot combine database files For example if you downlo...

Page 106: ...le see Export Records on page 83 the software creates a tab delimited text file All that means is that the software creates a text file which places each record on a separate row and inserts a tab bet...

Page 107: ...TECHNICAL REFERENCE Importing WeatherLink Data into Other Programs 100...

Page 108: ...Database Ctrl Y View Summary F1 Context Sensitive Help Strip Chart Window Ctrl O Open Strip Chart Ctrl P Print Strip Chart Ctrl S Save Strip Chart F3 Zoom In F4 Zoom Out F1 Context Sensitive Help Plo...