Thermo MeasureTech AR900 902-928MHz HOPPING RADIO User Manual
Thermo MeasureTech 902-928MHz HOPPING RADIO
USERS MANUAL
©2005 Thermo Electron Corporation. All rights reserved.
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Thermo Electron Corporation AutoRADIO User Guide i
FCC Notification
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.
This device must be operated as supplied by Thermo Electron Corporation
(Thermo). Any changes or modifications made to the device without
express written approval from Thermo may void the user’s authority to
operate the device.
Caution The radio has a maximum transmitted output power of 1 W. It is
recommended that the transmit antenna be kept at least 9.06 inches (23
cm) away from nearby persons to satisfy FCC RF exposure requirements. ▲
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 interference 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 Thermo or an experienced radio/TV technician for help.
Note Whenever any Thermo module is placed inside an enclosure, a label
must be placed on the outside of that enclosure which includes the
module’s FCC ID. ▲
FCC Notification
ii AutoRADIO User Guide Thermo Electron Corporation
This product is licensed by the United States. Diversion contrary to
U.S. law is prohibited.
Shipment or re-export of this product outside the U.S. may require
authorization by the U.S. Bureau of Export Administration. Please
contact Thermo for assistance and further information.
Thermo Electron Corporation AutoRadio User Manual
Professional Installment
The device must be installed by professionals in accordance with responsible party’s
instruction manual.
Antenna Type
The devices uses the following antennas:
• 0 dBi monopole antenna
• 10 dBd Yagi antenna Thermo Electron #7-0132-235 with 200 ft of LMR400 coax cable
• 9 dBd colinear antenna Bluewave BMO902J with 100 ft of LMR400 coaxial cable
Thermo Electron Corporation AutoRADIO User Guide iii
Contents
Product Overview ............................................................................................. 1-1
Introduction........................................................................................ 1-1
Modes of Operation............................................................................ 1-2
Components ....................................................................................... 1-2
Specifications ...................................................................................... 1-5
Installation ......................................................................................................... 2-1
Transceiver.......................................................................................... 2-1
Software .............................................................................................. 2-1
Set Up .................................................................................................................. 3-1
Hardware Configuration ..................................................................... 3-1
Software Startup.................................................................................. 3-1
Basic Configuration ............................................................................ 3-2
Advanced Configuration ..................................................................... 3-4
Diagnostics ........................................................................................................ 4-1
Build a Network.................................................................................. 4-1
Station Properties............................................................................. 4-3
Tests ................................................................................................... 4-3
Dial..................................................................................................... 4-3
Loop Back Test ................................................................................ 4-3
RF Performance ............................................................................... 4-4
Maintenance & Troubleshooting................................................................... 5-1
Firmware Upgrade .............................................................................. 5-1
Service & Returns ............................................................................... 5-3
Warranty............................................................................................. 5-4
Chapter 1
Chapter 2
Chapter 3
Chapter 4
Chapter 5
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Thermo Electron Corporation AutoRADIO User Guide 1-1
Chapter 1
Product Overview
Thermo Electron Corporation’s AutoRADIO Wireless Modem is a
synchronized wireless networking system. Each radio in the network is a
half-duplex radio with frequency hopping spread spectrum features. In
transmit mode, the base band receives data from an upper level data source
and packetizes it into data packets. After adding the 16-bit CRC check, the
radio is set to TX mode, and the PA is ramped up to the power level
controlled by the ARM processor. The data train is then Gaussian filtered
to reduce bandwidth occupation. The filtered pulse train modulates the
frequency (FSK) generated by VCO and then converts to the desired
frequency. The RF signal is then amplified to approximately 5 dBm.
Frequency control is accomplished by the on-chip synthesizer, and the RF
signal is then filtered to remove harmonics via a band pass filter. The radio
hops frequency at a rate of 25 ms per hop.
In the receiving mode, the radio signal coming from the antenna is filtered
by the band pass filter and amplified by a low-noise amplifier (LNA). After
one conversion, the data is demodulated by an on-chip FM demodulator.
The on-chip clock recovery circuits recover the clock from the received
signal. The recovered data is then fed to the ARM processor.
A Baker code controls the frequency hopping pattern. Within the ISM
band, there are 51 hops in each cycle.
The radio also comes with RSSI, automatic gain control, and data
retransmission features.
Following is an overview of the instrument:
● Wireless, license-free FHSS modem
● Operates on the 902–928 MHz frequency band
● 16-bit CRC check for data integrity
● Nested private network
● Built-in diagnostic information
● Same footprint as Thermo’s AutoWAVE
● Low power
● Software performance optimization, no tweaking or manual adjustment
Introduction
Product Overview
Modes of Operation
1-2 AutoRADIO User Guide Thermo Electron Corporation
● Friendly hardware and software user interface
● Maintenance free
1. Normal mode: Radios are defaulted to work as point-to-multipoint. A
network consists of a master radio broadcasting to multiple slaves
and/or repeaters.
Any two radios in this network may also be set up as private network or
point-to-point using AT command set to dial the other radio ID. Once
this link is established, these two radios will reject all data from the
master or from the repeater radio.
The radios will return to point-to-multipoint mode as soon as
disconnect AT command is issued.
2. Boot Loader mode: With proper shorting on block JP3, the radio goes
into the boot loader mode, allowing for the radio firmware upgrade
function.
Refer to Figure 1–1 for locations of the following components. Also
reference the specifications section for additional detail.
● J182, antenna connector: SMA jack.
● JP3 (4-pin double row header): Radio operation mode select: normal or
boot loader (firmware updates).
● Place short-block or test jumper on pin 1 and pin 3 for boot loader
mode; none for normal operating mode.
● JP2 (5-pin double row header): Radio configuration and diagnostics
port. Must be connected in order to configure the radio via your PC or
to perform diagnostics on the network. Works with configure-
diagnostic PC cable (Thermo P/N 3-0420-024).
Modes of Operation
Components
Product Overview
Components
Thermo Electron Corporation AutoRADIO User Guide 1-3
● LEDs: Indicate activity – Carrier Detect (CD), Transmit (TX), Receive
(RX).
● Master/repeater/slave ready, idle state:
● CD = solid green
● TX = off
● RX = off
● Slave and repeater not ready:
● CD = flashing green (every second)
● TX = flashing red (every second)
● RX = flashing red (every second)
● Slave ready, sleep state:
● CD = flashing green (two times per second)
● TX = off
● RX = off
● JP1 (6-pin double row header): SPI connector. For future development.
● J320 (10-pin single row friction lock header): Firmware download.
Data interface port and power connector. Must be connected for
communications to be established. Voltage input may be 6 or 12 V.
Pin 1: Bat Pin 6: GND
Pin 2: N/C Pin 7: TX/RX+
Pin 3: N/C Pin 8: DCD/TX+
Pin 4: GND Pin 9: RTS/RX-
Pin 5: RX/TX- Pin 10: N/C
Product Overview
Components
1-4 AutoRADIO User Guide Thermo Electron Corporation
Figure 1–1.
Product Overview
Specifications
Thermo Electron Corporation AutoRADIO User Guide 1-5
Frequency Range: 902–928 MHz
Modulation: GFSK, frequency hopping spread spectrum
Channel Spacing: 500 kHz
Error Detection: 16-bit CRC
Output Power: 10 mW–1 W, programmable
Receive Sensitivity: -110 dBm at 10-6 RAW BER
Input Voltages: 9–17 V and 4.5–10 V, version dependent
Current Consumption:
Model FHSS1W12V: TX 70 mA; RX 20 mA; Sleep 12 mA
Model FHSS1W6V: TX 116 mA; RX 32 mA; Sleep 20 mA
Range: 40 miles LOS (Line of Sight)
Specifications
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Thermo Electron Corporation AutoRADIO User Guide 2-1
Chapter 2
Installation
Transceiver location typically has a significant impact on the instrument’s
performance. In general, higher placement of the antenna ensures a better
communication link. Additionally, the transceiver should be placed away
from computers, telephones, answering machines, and other similar
equipment.
Placement of the external antenna is critical to a solid data link. Other
antennas in close proximity are a potential source of interference. It is also
possible that slight adjustments in antenna placement will solve noise
problems.
Power output of the radio system, including the antenna gain, cable loss,
and insertion loss, should not exceed 36 dB.
To install the software, the operating system must be running Microsoft®
Windows® 98/NT/2000/XP (English versions). Insert the CD into the
appropriate drive. The CD should automatically start. Follow the
directions as they appear on the screen.
Transceiver
Software
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Thermo Electron Corporation AutoRADIO User Guide 3-1
Chapter 3
Set Up
1. Install the antenna to the radio board.
2. Apply power to the radio via the 2-position .200” connector on the
serial PC cable. Observe polarity.
3. Connect the diagnostic cable from the PC to JP2 (see Figure 1–1).
Using the AutoRADIO startup software, you can fine tune certain
parameters in order to optimize performance. When you open the software,
the startup screen appears.
Figure 3–1.
Select the correct communications port from this screen. The remaining
fields are read-only.
Click the Setup button to continue. On the following screen, click the
Search Connected Radio tab, and the screen displays information
pertaining to the connected instrument.
Hardware
Configuration
Software Startup
Set Up
Basic Configuration
3-2 AutoRADIO User Guide Thermo Electron Corporation
Figure 3–2.
From the screen shown in Figure 3–2, you can load the default
configuration or a previously saved configuration. You can also edit the
following parameters:
1. Radio Network ID: Enter a number from 1–255 for the radio network.
The network ID enables slaves to identify and communicate only with
masters or repeaters within the same network.
2. Station Type
a. Master Station: Designate this instrument as the master that
maintains network timing synchronization and broadcasts data to
all radios in its subnet or cell.
b. Slave Station: Designate the instrument as a slave within the
network that responds to a network master or a repeater radio.
c. Repeater Station: Designate the instrument as a repeater within the
network. A repeater radio acts as a repeater by relaying data from
the master radio or from another repeater radio; it also acts as a
slave in a network. The repeater is used to increase coverage or
distance to route radio signals around natural or manmade
obstructions.
3. Station Name: Enter a name that enables you to easily identify the
installed location. You can enter a maximum of 23 characters.
Basic Configuration
Set Up
Basic Configuration
Thermo Electron Corporation AutoRADIO User Guide 3-3
4. Radio ID: Enter a number from 1–65535 which identifies the radio.
The assigned ID should be unique for every radio within a radio
network. The maximum number of radios in the network is 65535.
5. Subnet Address: For master and slave stations, this is the number
assigned to all radios within a particular cell. For repeater stations, it is
the number of the cell to which the radio is relaying data.
6. Parent Subnet: This field is only selectable if you have set the radio as a
repeater. A repeater radio relays data from a master or a repeater radio
that has a matching subnet number with its parent subnet.
7. Hopping Key: This field is only selectable if you have set the radio as a
repeater. Enter a number from 1–50. The default setting is 1. It is very
important that the hopping key is different for every repeater located in
the same cell with the master. The different hopping key will ensure
that only repeater transmits in any instance.
Use these guidelines to help you set a hopping key:
a. Within the master radio cell, select a unique hopping key (1–25)
for each of the repeaters.
b. Select a hopping key (1–50) for any repeaters in a subsequent cell.
c. Repeaters in subsequent cells may have the same hopping key.
8. Turn off LED: Enable this power-saving feature by clicking the check
box. The 3 status indicator LEDs will turn off if checked.
9. Password: Click this button to enter or change a password. The default
password field is none. A password is not required to configure the
radio; however, if one is used, store it in a safe place where it can be
retrieved if forgotten.
Contact Thermo’s engineering department if you need to reset the
password. The radio configuration profile (filename.cfg) is needed for
this task.
10. Uart Baud Rate: Select the baud rate of the data interface port, 115.2
Kbps maximum.
11. Data Bits: This selection applies to the data interface port.
Set Up
Advanced Configuration
3-4 AutoRADIO User Guide Thermo Electron Corporation
12. Parity: This selection applies to the data interface port.
13. Stop Bits: This selection applies to the data interface port.
14. Uart mode: Select between serial RS232 or 4-wire RS485.
15. You can now save this configuration by clicking the Save As button, or
you can click the Advanced button to access additional parameters.
Figure 3–3.
Advanced
Configuration
Set Up
Advanced Configuration
Thermo Electron Corporation AutoRADIO User Guide 3-5
1. Broadcast Retry: You can set the radio to attempt up to 8 retries.
2. Synchronization Timeout: You can set this field from 250–500 ms with
50 ms increments. This setting applies to the repeater and slave radios
only. The repeater or slave radio will start the synchronization
procedure and scan for the master once it is out of sync with the master
for this amount of time.
3. Force a join with the specified parent subnet: This field is only available
if the radio is set as a slave station. If not selected, the slave radio will
try to talk to any repeater or master in a network.
4. Enable power save channel scan: This field is available if the radio is set
as a slave or repeater station. If the radio loses sync with the master, it
begins to continuously scan for the master signal. Enabling this feature
allows you to set the radio to scan only at specified intervals (0–60 s).
5. Enable Deep Sleep Mode: This field is available only if the radio is set
as a slave station. This feature causes the radio to power down once it
has completed its transmission. Insert an RS232 space signal on RTS
pin to bring the radio out of sleep mode.
6. Packet Size: Designate the size of the data packets used by the radio in
its transmission. In noisy environments, it is often beneficial to use
smaller data packet sizes to increase the chance that data is received at
the other end.
7. Radio Transmit Power: Reducing the transmit power ensures that the
radios do not overwhelm each other when used in close proximity.
Follow these guidelines when setting radio transmit power:
Table 3–1. Radio transmit power settings
Setting Power Level Used
10 dbm Low Pair or pairs of radios operating within the same or
adjoining rooms
20 dbm Medium More than one pair operating within the same facility
30 dbm Full Normal operation extending beyond a facility
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Thermo Electron Corporation AutoRADIO User Guide 4-1
Chapter 4
Diagnostics
Clicking Diagnostic from the start-up screen enables you to view the
diagnostics data from a network simultaneously with the application data.
The diagnostics window is divided into two panes. The left pane displays
all the network components, and the right pane displays the components of
the selected item only.
The first step is to build a network.
1. Right-click in the left pane, and select New Network.
2. Enter the network ID in the dialog box that appears and click OK.
Figure 4–1.
3. Right-click on the network label that is now displayed in the left pane,
and select New Station.
4. This first station should be the master.
a. Enter a name that enables you to easily identify the station.
b. Enter the subnet of the station.
c. Enter the ID.
d. You can also enter a brief description of the station.
e. Click OK.
Build a Network
Diagnostics
Build a Network
4-2 AutoRADIO User Guide Thermo Electron Corporation
Figure 4–2.
5. The left pane now displays the master station you just set up. Right-
click on it, and select New Station.
6. The dialog that opens contains the master station information. Set up
this station as a slave or repeater station. Be sure to enter the same
station ID for this unit that you entered during configuration. Click
OK.
Figure 4–3.
Diagnostics
Tests
Thermo Electron Corporation AutoRADIO User Guide 4-3
7. The station is now displayed in the right pane. Repeat this process for
each repeater or slave you want to add to this network.
Figure 4–4. Example network with one slave station
8. You can save this network setup by clicking File, Save from the main
window.
9. Repeat these steps to build additional networks as necessary.
View the configuration parameters of individual stations by right clicking
on the station and selecting Station Property.
Right-click a station in the right pane to access the tests you can perform.
This option allows point-to-point link between two radios by dialing other
radio ID. This link is most robust because transmit and received data are
acknowledged.
Note that when in this operating mode, radios will ignore messages from
other radios in the network, including master and repeater radios.
This test enables you to observe the transmit and receive performance of
the selected unit. The unit sends data to the targeted radio, and the
targeted radio returns the received data to the unit. Enter the size of the
packet to be sent and the total number of packets to send. Click Start.
Station Properties
Tests
Dial
Loop Back Test
Diagnostics
Dial
4-4 AutoRADIO User Guide Thermo Electron Corporation
Figure 4–5.
This test provides status of channel performance on the synchronization
data or beacon data and channel signal strength in a graph and text form.
Click the Enable Auto Refresh button to receive updated data every 5
seconds.
Figure 4–6.
RF Performance
Thermo Electron Corporation AutoRADIO User Guide 5-1
Chapter 5
Maintenance & Troubleshooting
Firmware in the instrument is stored in flash memory. This allows you to
update software via a serial communications link. Use the
Configuration/Diagnostic Software RS10MB0A to read the current
firmware of the radio. Refer to the following for the firmware upgrade
procedure for a 1-W radio.
1. Install the antenna to the radio board.
2. Install a short-block (jumper) at JP3 pins 1 and 3.
3. Apply power to the radio via the 2-position .200” connector on the
serial PC cable. Observe polarity.
4. Run the OKI ISFP Flash Write Utility and configure parameters as
follows (Figure 5–1):
a. Port: Select the serial port to which the device is connected
b. Baud Rate: 38400
c. Frequency: 16 MHz
d. Device ID: ML674002
e. Filename: Point to the location of the firmware
Firmware Upgrade
Maintenance & Troubleshooting
Firmware Upgrade
5-2 AutoRADIO User Guide Thermo Electron Corporation
Figure 5–1.
5. Click the Connect button in the Port Configuration section of the
screen and follow the on-screen instruction.
6. Click the Protect/Un-Protect button to put the device in the
unprotected mode.
Figure 5–2.
7. Click the Write to Flash button and follow the on-screen instructions.
Maintenance & Troubleshooting
Service & Returns
Thermo Electron Corporation AutoRADIO User Guide 5-3
8. When the firmware download is complete, return the device to the
protected mode.
9. Click the Disconnect button to disconnect the PC serial port.
10. Remove the short-block (jumper) at JP3 pins 1 and 3.
11. Recycle power into the radio board.
Figure 5–3.
This completes the firmware download procedure.
Before returning an instrument, you must contact Thermo for a Return
Material Authorization number. You can contact Thermo at:
Thermo Electron Corporation
Process Instruments Division
1410 Gillingham Lane
Sugar Land, TX 77478 USA
Phone: 713-272-0404
Fax: 713-272-2272
Web: www.thermo.com
Service & Returns
Maintenance & Troubleshooting
Warranty
5-4 AutoRADIO User Guide Thermo Electron Corporation
Thermo Electron Corporation (Thermo) products are warranted to be free
from defects in material and workmanship at the time of shipment and for
one year thereafter. Any claimed defects in Thermo products must be
reported within the warranty period. Thermo shall have the right to inspect
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Thermo shall be liable only to replace or repair, at its option, free of charge,
products which are found by Thermo to be defective in material or
workmanship, and which are reported to Thermo within the warranty
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be void if recommendations provided by Thermo or its sales representatives
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arranty