Bird Technologies VPM3 User Manual
Virtual Power Meter
Operators Manual
Model VPM3
This is a preliminary manual. Specifications, limits, and text are subject to
change without notice. The information within this manual was as complete
as possible at the time of printing. Bird Electronic Corporation is not liable for
errors.
©Copyright 2013 by Bird Electronic Corporation
Instruction Book Part Number 920-VPM3 Rev. P1
Windows and Microsoft are registered trademarks
of the Microsoft Corporation
SeaLatch is a registered trademark of
Sealevel Systems, Inc.
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About This Manual
This manual covers the operating and maintenance instructions for the following models:
VPM3
Changes to this Manual
We have made every effort to ensure this manual is accurate. If you discover
any errors, or if you have suggestions for improving this manual, please send
your comments to our Solon, Ohio factory. This manual may be periodically
updated. When inquiring about updates to this manual refer to the part number
and revision on the title page.
Literature Contents
Chapter Layout
Introduction — Describes the features of the VPM3, lists equipment supplied
and optional equipment, and provides power-up instructions.
Program Interfaces — Describes the features of VPM program and inter-
faces with the sensors.
Power Sensors — Descriptions, features, and procedures of all the 50XX
series sensors.
Specifications — Describes system requirements.
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Table of Contents
About This Manual . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . i
Changes to this Manual . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . i
Literature Contents . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .i
Chapter Layout . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . i
Chapter 1 Introduction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1
Chapter 2 Set Up . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3
Installing the VPM . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3
Preferences . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4
General . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4
Automatically connect to sensor on startup . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4
List sensors on startup . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4
Display menu bar icons . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4
Language . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4
Installing Language Files . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4
Clear Message Box State . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5
File Locations . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5
Session Directory . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5
Preset Directory . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5
Measurement Data Directory . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5
Advanced . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6
Chart History (points) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6
Playback History (frames) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6
Connecting a Sensor . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7
Connecting the Directional Power Sensor (DPS) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8
Chapter 3 Average Power Mode. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11
Display Types . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11
Power Display . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11
Bar Graph . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11
Limit Indicators . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11
Sensor Details . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11
Sensor Status . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11
Meter Display . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13
Sensor Readings . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13
Chart Display . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14
Show Markers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 15
Show Grid . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 15
Show Points . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 15
Best Fit Data . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 15
Set Lower/Upper Delta Marker . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 15
Markers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 15
Axis Scaling . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 16
Manual Axis Scaling . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 16
Menu Bar . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 17
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File . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 17
New Sensor Session . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 17
Open . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 17
Close Session . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 17
Save Session . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 17
Save Session As... . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 17
Save Measurement Snapshot . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 17
Save Measurement Snapshot As... . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 17
Save Preset As... . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 17
Recent Sessions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 17
Recent Measurements . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 17
Preferences... . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 17
Exit . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 17
Mode . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 18
Statistical . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 18
Time Domain . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 18
Average Power . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 18
Configure . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 18
Input Offset . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 18
Match Offset . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 18
Smoothing . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19
Frequency Setpoint . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19
Duty Cycle . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19
Measurement . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19
Units . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20
Start Acquisition . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20
Stop Acquisition . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20
Max Hold . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20
Zero . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20
Log . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20
Enable Data Logging . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20
Logging Settings. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20
View . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20
Control Panel . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20
Playback Controls . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20
Details . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 21
Fullscreen Mode . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 21
Display Style . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 21
Meter Range . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 21
Smoothing . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 21
Playback . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 21
Window . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 21
Cascade Sessions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 21
Tile Sessions Horizontally . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 21
Tile Sessions Vertically . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 21
Help . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 22
User Manual . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 22
About Virtual Power Meter . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 22
About Sensor . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 22
Menu Label Keys . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 22
Configure . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 22
For Wide Band Power Sensors . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 22
For Sensor 5015 and 5015-EF . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 23
For Sensor 5014 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 24
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For Statistical Senors . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 24
Measurement . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 25
Forward and Reflected Power . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 25
Match . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 26
Forward Peak Power . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 26
Peak Average Power . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 26
Burst Average Power . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 26
Crest Factor . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 27
Complementary Cumulative
Distribution Function (CCDF) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 27
Units . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 28
File . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 29
Save . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 29
Save As . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 30
Enable Logging . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 30
Open Preset . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 30
Logging . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 30
Analyzing Logged Data . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 31
Opening .xml Files in Excel . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 31
Opening .csv Files in Excel . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 31
Zeroing a Sensor . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 32
Chapter 4 Time Domain Mode . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 33
Display . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 33
Menu Bar . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 34
File . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 34
Mode . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 34
Configure . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 34
Input Offset . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 34
Scale . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 34
Bandwidth . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 34
Frequency Setpoint . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 35
Duty Cycle . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 35
Measurement . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 35
Start Acquisition . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 35
Stop Acquisition . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 35
Enable Pulse Measurement . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 35
Zero . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 35
Trigger . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 35
Source . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 35
Mode . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 35
Edge . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 36
Level... . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 36
Delay... . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 36
Holdoff... . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 36
Manual Trigger . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 36
Zero Delay . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 36
Log . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 36
View . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 36
Window . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 36
Help . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 36
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Chapter 5 Statistical Power Mode . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .37
Display . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 38
Statistical Power Measurement Methodology . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 39
Complementary Cumulative Distribution Function (CCDF) . . . . . . . . . . 39
Example - 9 Channel CMA, One Signal . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 39
Example - LTE vs Gaussian Noise . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 39
Interpreting Statistical Data . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 39
Menu Bar . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 41
File . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 41
Mode . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 41
Configure . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 41
Scale . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 41
Run Mode . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 41
Bandwidth . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 41
Confidence Factor . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 41
Measurement . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 42
Start Acquisition . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 42
Stop Acquisition . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 42
Show/Hide Reference . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 42
Log . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 42
View . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 42
Window . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 42
Help . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 42
Chapter 6 Power Sensors . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 43
Accuracy . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 43
Sensor Uncertainty . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 43
Mismatch Uncertainty . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 44
Directional Power Sensor (DPS) Measurements . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 46
Description . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 46
43 Type Elements . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 46
APM/DPM Elements . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 46
Terminating Power Sensor (TPS) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 47
Description . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 47
Zeroing Sensor . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 47
Correction Factors . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 47
Wideband Power Sensor (WPS) Measurements . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 48
Description . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 48
Zeroing Sensor . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 48
Statistical Power Sensor (SPS) Measurements . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 49
Description . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 49
Zeroing Sensor . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 49
Chapter 7 Specifications. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 51
Minimum PC Requirements . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 51
Appendix Error Messages . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 52
Limited Warranty . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 59
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Chapter 1 Introduction
Power measurements verify and monitor the condition of a transmitter system.
To measure transmitter power, connect an external power sensor to the PC then
start the Virtual Power Meter program. Power sensors that are compatible with
the VPM are the Bird 5012B, 5014, 5015, 5015-EF, 5016B, 5017B, 5018B, 5019B,
7020, and STAT power sensors.
Note: ONLY sensors that have USB connections can be used with
VPM3 software.
The Power Meter mode has the following features:
Three display formats: numerical readout, analog dial, and chart
recording.
Display forward power, reflected power, match efficiency, peak power,
burst, and crest factor depending upon the capabilities of the sensor.
Display power measurements in Watts or dBm.
Display match units in either VSWR, Return Loss, Rho, or % Match effi-
ciency.
Adjust power and match readings for effects of attenuators, couplers,
and cable loss
Log data to a file and review
Save and recall sensor configuration setups
1
Figure 1 VPM Compatible Sensors
7022 Statistical Power Sensor (STAT)
7020 Power Sensor (WPS)
Directional Power Sensor
Wide Band Power Sensor
(WPS)
Terminating Power Sensor (TPS)
(DPS)
2
Chapter 2 Set Up
Installing the VPM
1. Insert installation CD.
2. Select Install Software when prompted.
Note: Set-up will inspect the computer for any missing operating system prerequisites. If all are present, skip to step 6.
3. Select ‘Next ‘and the install utility begins the Prerequisites Installation process.
Figure 2 Install, Prerequisites Installation
4. Review the End-User License Agreement, check “I accept the terms of the
License Agreement” and select “Install.”
Note: The install Utility will install the prerequisites. This may take
several minutes
Note: When completed, check with Microsoft® support center for
any security updates. Typically, if “Automatic Updates” are configured
on the host PC, these will be automatically flagged and selected for
download and installation.
Note: The VPM3 installation utility will launch after the OS prerequisites are installed.
5. Do one of the following:
Accept the default installation location
Select a different folder:
6. Select ‘Next’ and the installer will complete.
7. Select “Finish” to launch the VPM3 program:
Note: When the VPM3 loads for the first time, the Preferences Dialog will prompt for a default log file save location. Perform the following to complete the process.
3
8. Select the ‘Logging’ tab.
9. Enter a folder local to the PC to store log file data.
Note: This can be changed at any time in the Preferences. All active
sensor sessions must be closed before Preferences Dialog can be
opened.
10. Select the Advanced Tab.
11. Select the language in the drop down menu.
Note: For Mandarin Chinese, the East Asian languages files must be
installed. See “Language” on page 4.
Note: For any non-US English language setting, select ‘Windows’.
Any standard formats such as number and date formats from
"Regional and Language Options" found in the
Windows Control Panel will be mimicked in the VPM3 interface.
Preferences
The Preferences window will open automatically upon the first use of the VPM3.
If Preferences need to be changed at another time, it can be accessed from the
File drop down menu.
Default Settings may be restored when the Restore Default Settings button is
pressed.
General
Automatically connect to sensor on startup
When selected, the VPM3 will connect to the sensor upon the launching of the
program.
List sensors on startup
When selected, the VPM3 will list all available connectible sensors.
Display menu bar icons
When selected, the VPM3 will display the menu bar icons.
Language
Note: Default is English (US). For Chinese, the ‘East Asian languages’
files must be installed.
Installing Language Files
1. Open Control Panel>Regional>Language Options
2. Click on the Languages tab
3. Click on Supplemental language support.
4
4. Click the ‘Install files for East Asian languages’ button.
5. Follow prompts.
Note: For any language change the application, must be restarted.
Note: All active sensor sessions must be closed before Preferences
Dialog can be opened.
Clear Message Box State
When this button is pressed, the Message will delete all store messages.
Figure 3 Preferences, General
File Locations
Note: Unless changed, the default directories are located in
Documents\VPM3 directory.
Session Directory
Sets the location of the session directory. See Save As on ......
Preset Directory
Sets the location of the preset directory. See Preset on ......
Measurement Data Directory
Sets the location of the data directory. See Measurements on .....
Figure 4 Preferences, File Locations
5
Advanced
Chart History (points)
Sets the number of points to be collected in a session.
Playback History (frames)
Sets the number of frames created during a session.
Figure 5 Preferences, Advanced
6
Connecting a Sensor
Note: Refer to the individual power sensor manual for specific infor-
mation regarding its sensor connections.
7
1. Connect a power sensor to the computers USB port with a USB cable.
Note: Bird USB sensors are HID compliant devices and do not require
any driver installation. The only exception is the 7022 STAT power sensor which requires an installed driver.
Note: The 5014 and 5015 sensors LED will illuminate continually
when properly recognized by the host PC.
Note: The 5012B, 5016B, 5017B, 5018B, and 5019B sensors LED will
blink when properly recognized by the host PC.
2. Launch the VPM3.
3. Select the sensor from the sensor connection manager.
4. Press the Configure menu key, after VPM3 acquires the power sensor, See “Configure” on page 22.
Note: Multiple sensors can be connected and/or monitored simultaneously through multiple USB ports or via a powered USB hub. It can
take up to 30 seconds to detect a sensor.
Figure 6 Sensor Connection Manager
Connecting the Directional Power Sensor (DPS)
WARNING
RF voltage may be present in RF element socket. Keep element in socket during
operation.
1. Connect the Bird DPS to the a USB port on the PC using the sensor cable
provided.
2. Connect the DPS to the RF line so that the arrow on the sensor points
towards the load.
Note: The arrow on the forward element should point towards the load.
Note: The arrow on the reflected element should point towards the
source.
Note: Both elements must be either APM/DPM or 43 types, do not
mix elements.
3. Set the power on the DPM to the forward element’s power rating.
8
Figure 7 DPS Element Orientation
Connecting the Wideband Power Sensor (WPS)
1. Connect the Bird WPS to the a USB port on the PC using the sensor cable
provided.
2. Connect the WPS to the RF line so that the arrow on the sensor points
towards the load.
Connecting the Terminating Power Sensor (TPS)
CAUTION
Discharge all static potentials before connecting the TPS(-EF). Electrostatic
shock could damage the sensor.
CAUTION
When connecting the TPS or the TPS-EF, only turn the connector nut. Damage
may occur if torque is applied to the sensor body.
CAUTION
Do not exceed 2 W average or 125 W peak power for 5 μs when using the TPS
or the TPS-EF. Doing so will render the sensor inoperative.
Note: Connections are the same for the Bird 5011 and 5011-EF.
1. Connect the Bird TPS to the a USB port on the PC using the sensor cable
provided.
Note: An attenuator or directional coupler should be used with the
TPS in most applications.
Example - For an RF source with output between 0.1 and 50 W, use
a 40 dB, 50 W attenuator.
2. Connect the TPS RF input to the source (using an attenuator, if appropriate).
Note: Only connect the TPS directly to a source if the RF power will
be less than 10 mW.
Connecting the Statistical Power Sensor (SPS)
1. Connect the Bird WPS to the a USB port on the PC using the sensor cable
provided.
2. Connect the WPS to the RF line so that the arrow on the sensor points
towards the load.
9
10
Chapter 3 Average Power Mode
Display Types
Typical functions are selecting the type of measurement, type of element, units
of measure, measurement scales, offset values, and zeroing the sensor.
When a power sensor is properly connected (and detected), a status message,
located at the top of the Power Meter screen, will indicate the model number of
the power sensor (i.e., Bird model number). A popup with all decimals in the
reading will display when a mouse icon hovers over the specific reading.
Power Display
The selected measurement type is displayed in the main power display and
ancillary readings are displayed under the bar graph.
Bar Graph
The bar graph gives a visual indication of the main reading as well as displaying
the preset limits for the currently selected measurement. The scale of the graph
can be set to auto or full-scale.
Limit Indicators
'Virtual LEDs' indicate when pre-set limits have been exceeded.
Sensor Details
Provides a comprehensive display of all readings provided by the
sensor as well as all relevant configuration parameters
Sensor Status
Indicates the sensors connection status and zeroing progress.
11
Figure 8 VPM Screen, Power Display
1
8
7
6
4
5
Item Description
1 Model of connected power sensor
2 Softkey Labels
3 Display Type
4 Menu Label Keys
5 Sensor Status
6 Sensor Readings
7 Power Meter
8 Limit Indicators
2
3
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