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Broadweigh
Instructions Manual
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Mantracourt BroadWeigh User Manual

BroadWeigh User Manual
mantracourt.com
BroadWeigh
Dynamic Wireless Load Monitoring
1
Introduction / Overview ...................................................................................................... 5
Navigating This Manual ........................................................................................................ 5
Product Quick Locator ........................................................................................................ 5
Broadweigh Basic Principles ................................................................................................. 6
Transmitters & Receivers ................................................................................................... 6
Transmitters ................................................................................................................ 6
Receivers .................................................................................................................... 6
Radio Channel and Group Key .............................................................................................. 6
Radio Channel .............................................................................................................. 6
Group Key ................................................................................................................... 6
Configuring Multiple Modules to Use the Same Radio Settings ....................................................... 7
ID and Data Tags .............................................................................................................. 7
Transmitter Module Modes of Operation ................................................................................. 7
Normal ....................................................................................................................... 7
Configuration ............................................................................................................... 7
Sleep ......................................................................................................................... 7
Transmitter Module Sleep Delay Settings ................................................................................ 7
Pairing .......................................................................................................................... 8
Pairing From Broadweigh Toolkit ....................................................................................... 8
Pairing From a Receiver Module ......................................................................................... 8
Soft Pairing .................................................................................................................... 8
Configuring an Attached Base Station ..................................................................................... 8
Asynchronous Operation and Logging ..................................................................................... 9
Bandwidth ...................................................................................................................... 9
Repeaters and Repeater Subgroups ....................................................................................... 9
Broadweigh Toolkit ........................................................................................................... 10
Common Toolkit Pages ....................................................................................................... 10
Setup Base Station Communications ..................................................................................... 10
Analyser ....................................................................................................................... 11
Channel Monitor ............................................................................................................. 12
Home ........................................................................................................................... 14
Connecting to a remote module........................................................................................ 14
Connecting to the attached base station module ................................................................... 15
Manual Connection ....................................................................................................... 15
Information ................................................................................................................... 16
Battery and Radio Levels ................................................................................................... 17
Battery and Radio Levels Advanced ...................................................................................... 18
Radio Settings ................................................................................................................ 19
Radio Settings Advanced ................................................................................................... 20
Save and Restore ............................................................................................................ 21
Transmitter Modules .......................................................................................................... 22
BW-S325, BW-S475 ........................................................................................................... 22
Overview ................................................................................................................... 22
Order Codes ................................................................................................................ 22
BW-S325 .................................................................................................................. 22
BW-S475 .................................................................................................................. 22
Orientation & Identification ............................................................................................ 23
Connections ................................................................................................................ 24
Connecting Power. ..................................................................................................... 24
Configuration .............................................................................................................. 25
Units ...................................................................................................................... 25
Zero Settings ............................................................................................................ 26
Data Rates and Quality ................................................................................................ 27
Advanced Settings ...................................................................................................... 29
Enclosure & Mounting .................................................................................................... 30
Dimensions .............................................................................................................. 30
BW-S325 BroadWeigh Shackle 3.25T dimensions ............................................................... 30
BW-S475 BroadWeigh Shackle 4.75T dimensions ............................................................... 30
Opening the Case....................................................................................................... 31
LED Indicator ............................................................................................................ 31
Specification ............................................................................................................... 32
Radio Range ............................................................................................................. 32
BW-WSS ........................................................................................................................ 33
Overview ................................................................................................................... 33
2
Order Codes ................................................................................................................ 33
BW-WSS .................................................................................................................. 33
Connections ................................................................................................................ 34
Power .................................................................................................................. 34
Configuration .............................................................................................................. 35
Data Rates and Quality ................................................................................................ 35
Units ...................................................................................................................... 37
Advanced Settings ...................................................................................................... 38
Enclosure & Mounting .................................................................................................... 39
Antennas .................................................................................................................... 39
Specification ............................................................................................................... 39
Radio Range ............................................................................................................. 40
Receiver Modules .............................................................................................................. 41
BW-HR ......................................................................................................................... 41
Overview ................................................................................................................... 41
Order Codes ................................................................................................................ 41
BW-HR .................................................................................................................... 41
Connections ................................................................................................................ 42
Power ..................................................................................................................... 42
Operation ................................................................................................................... 43
View readings ........................................................................................................... 43
Keys ....................................................................................................................... 43
Indicators ................................................................................................................ 43
Errors ..................................................................................................................... 44
Special Modes ........................................................................................................... 44
Configuration .............................................................................................................. 45
Display Format .......................................................................................................... 45
Settings .................................................................................................................. 47
Enclosure & Mounting .................................................................................................... 48
Antennas .................................................................................................................... 48
Specification ............................................................................................................... 49
Radio Range ............................................................................................................. 49
BW-RM1 ........................................................................................................................ 50
Overview ................................................................................................................... 50
Order Codes ................................................................................................................ 50
BW-RM1 .................................................................................................................. 50
Connections ................................................................................................................ 51
Power ..................................................................................................................... 51
Connections & Indicators ............................................................................................. 51
LEDs....................................................................................................................... 51
Inputs ..................................................................................................................... 51
Operation ................................................................................................................... 52
Configuration .............................................................................................................. 53
Input Settings ........................................................................................................... 53
Relay Settings ........................................................................................................... 54
Operation and Hysteresis Settings ................................................................................ 55
Relay Settings Advanced .............................................................................................. 56
Alarm Settings .......................................................................................................... 57
Enclosure & Mounting .................................................................................................... 58
Antennas .................................................................................................................... 58
Specification ............................................................................................................... 59
Radio Range ............................................................................................................. 59
Base Stations & Repeater Modules ......................................................................................... 60
BW-BSue ....................................................................................................................... 60
Overview ................................................................................................................... 60
Order Codes ................................................................................................................ 60
Connections ................................................................................................................ 60
Configuration .............................................................................................................. 61
Home ..................................................................................................................... 61
Radio Settings ........................................................................................................... 62
Advanced Settings ...................................................................................................... 63
Enclosure & Mounting .................................................................................................... 64
Antennas .................................................................................................................... 64
Specification ............................................................................................................... 65
3
Radio Range ............................................................................................................. 65
BW-AR .......................................................................................................................... 66
Overview ................................................................................................................... 66
Order Codes ................................................................................................................ 66
BW-AR .................................................................................................................... 66
Connections ................................................................................................................ 67
Power ..................................................................................................................... 67
Power Options ....................................................................................................... 67
Permanently Powered ........................................................................................... 67
Battery Powered .................................................................................................. 67
Getting Started ......................................................................................................... 68
Increase Range ....................................................................................................... 68
Span Obstacles ....................................................................................................... 69
Combined Solutions ................................................................................................. 70
Considerations ....................................................................................................... 71
Configuration ........................................................................................................... 72
Settings ................................................................................................................ 72
Enclosure & Mounting .................................................................................................... 73
Antennas .................................................................................................................... 73
Radio Range ............................................................................................................. 73
Specification ............................................................................................................... 74
Radio Range ............................................................................................................. 74
Power Supply Modules ........................................................................................................ 75
PP1 & SP1 ..................................................................................................................... 75
Overview ................................................................................................................... 75
Order Codes ................................................................................................................ 75
PP1 ........................................................................................................................ 75
SP1 ........................................................................................................................ 75
Getting Started ............................................................................................................ 76
Power Pack 1 Connections ............................................................................................ 76
Installation .............................................................................................................. 76
Connecting Power Pack 1 .......................................................................................... 76
Solar Panel Orientation ............................................................................................ 77
Operation ................................................................................................................ 78
Dimensions & Weight ..................................................................................................... 78
Specifications .............................................................................................................. 79
Appendices ...................................................................................................................... 80
Appendix A - Enclosures .................................................................................................... 80
ACM Type ................................................................................................................... 80
Dimensions .............................................................................................................. 80
Opening the Case....................................................................................................... 80
Mounting Information .................................................................................................. 80
Antenna Position ....................................................................................................... 80
Environmental Protection ............................................................................................ 81
ACMi Type .................................................................................................................. 82
Dimensions .............................................................................................................. 82
Opening the Case....................................................................................................... 82
Mounting Information .................................................................................................. 82
Antenna Position ....................................................................................................... 82
Environmental Protection ............................................................................................ 82
Handheld Type ............................................................................................................ 84
Dimensions .............................................................................................................. 84
Opening the Case....................................................................................................... 84
Mounting Information .................................................................................................. 85
Antenna Position ....................................................................................................... 85
Environmental Protection ............................................................................................ 85
Appendix B – Radio Range .................................................................................................. 86
Overview ................................................................................................................... 86
Range........................................................................................................................ 86
Appendix C - Radio Specification ......................................................................................... 87
Appendix D – Intentionally Empty ......................................................................................... 88
Appendix E – Approval Statements ....................................................................................... 89
CE ............................................................................................................................ 89
IC ............................................................................................................................. 90
4
FCC .......................................................................................................................... 91
Appendix F - OEM / Reseller Marking and Documentation Requirements ......................................... 92
CE ............................................................................................................................ 92
IC ............................................................................................................................. 93
FCC .......................................................................................................................... 94
Appendix G - Worldwide Regional Approvals ......................................................................... 95
Important Note ............................................................................................................ 95
Appendix H - Declaration of Conformity ................................................................................. 96
Appendix I - Warranty ....................................................................................................... 97
5

Introduction / Overview

BW-S325
BW-S475
BW-BSue
BW-HR
BW-RM1
BW-AR
BW-WSS
SP1
PP1
BroadWeigh is a portable modular wireless weighing system offering real-time load monitoring for a wide variety of rigging applications without the need for cabling.
BroadWeigh enables users to know precise loads on any given point thereby ensuring structures and rigging points are balanced and within safe working loads.
A user-friendly wireless Handheld Telemetry Display provides load monitoring of any BroadWeigh Shackle. In addition a PC interface can be used to view and log multiple inputs on a single screen via the use of the Broadweigh Log100 Software and USB Base Station.

Navigating This Manual

When viewing this PDF manual the following tips will help you navigate.
Viewing bookmarks ( or ) to the left of the page, in the PDF viewer, will allow easy navigation to the
relevant chapters of this manual. Alt-left arrow is a useful shortcut back to the last page viewed after a hyperlink is clicked. Hyperlinks are coloured orange and are underlined.

Product Quick Locator

This section allows you to locate your product quickly to navigate to the correct section of the manual.
Shackles
Base Station
Handheld Display
Relay Output
Active Repeater
Wind Speed Sensor
Power Supplies
6

Broadweigh Basic Principles

There are some basic radio settings and concepts that should be understood to effectively configure, deploy, optimise and troubleshoot Broadweigh telemetry systems.

Transmitters & Receivers

Although all of the Broadweigh modules are in fact transceivers and transmit as well as receive, they tend to mainly operate as either a transmitter or receiver so we will choose to describe them as Transmitters and Receivers. The Broadweigh system was designed so that Transmitters are configured to send out messages at a user defined rate. Receivers can then use this data to analyse, display or perform other actions depending on their function. A PC and base station are only required to configure the modules although they may be part of a data collection system. Once configured the Broadweigh modules operate autonomously and only minimal control over the Transmitter modules is usually required, by Receiver modules, such as sleeping or waking.

Transmitters

These are the sensor modules that measure weight or wind speed etc and send messages containing the value and status information at regular intervals for use by Receiver modules or for delivering to a PC via a base station. Because these modules need to be very power efficient to operate on batteries they operate in three distinct modes. See Transmitter Module Modes of Operation later.

Receivers

These modules use messages provided by Transmitters and have functionality such as handheld displays or relay modules. These modules may also offer control over Transmitter modules such as sleeping or waking.

Radio Channel and Group Key

To be able to communicate, two radio modules must share some basic settings. There are ways to learn these and to recover unknown settings and these are discussed later in the pairing section.

Radio Channel

This is the frequency that the radio operates on. Broadweigh radio bandwidth is divided into 15 channels. Modules must be on the same channel to be able to transfer messages.

Group Key

Group keys are a way of isolating groups of modules even if they are operating on the same radio channel. This can improve efficiency and also offer security because no radio module can affect another or see their messages unless they share the same group key. A group key is defined by the user and is up to 15 alphanumeric characters. Group keys were introduced in v3.0 radio firmware in June 2015. New radio modules will work with older radio modules but group keys cannot be used.
7

Configuring Multiple Modules to Use the Same Radio Settings

Please note that when you pair to a remote module the base station adopts the radio channel and group key of the remote module. To set the group key for a set of remote modules you can either:
Pair to each one in turn and set their radio channel and group key
or
Configure the base station by holding the shift key and clicking the Pair button on the Home page. Then configure the base station to the required radio settings. Next use the tool on the radio settings
advanced page to pair to each module in the set to configure their radio settings to match the base
station.

ID and Data Tags

To configure a module its ID is used in communications. This is a unique 6 character identifier, such as FF1234, which is allocated at the factory. This ID is hexadecimal so can consist of numbers 0-9 and letters A-
F. If a module is a Transmitter it sends messages without broadcasting its ID. It identifies messages by using a Data Tag. This tag is a 4 character hexadecimal number and can be configured by the user. When modules leave the factory this data tag is set to the last 4 characters of its ID. When Receiver modules or software want to use messages sent by Transmitter modules they identify the message they want by this Data Tag. The reason Transmitter module messages are identified by a Data Tag rather than the unique ID is that this allows replacement of a Transmitter module without having to reconfigure the many Receiver modules that may be using its messages. It is only necessary to configure the replacement Transmitter module with the same data tag, radio channel and group key and the rest of the system will not notice the difference.

Transmitter Module Modes of Operation

Normal

Normal mode involves taking a reading and sending a message then entering into a very low power state before taking the next reading to maximise battery life. Because it is not possible to communicate with the Transmitter module during this low power state a ‘configuration’ mode is required.

Configuration

Configuration mode forces the modules to pause in sending their messages and to disable their low power state to enable configuration to take place. This is easily achieved by ‘Pairing’ when using the Broadweigh Toolkit software. Once configuration is complete the modules will resume their ‘normal’ mode operation.

Sleep

The last mode is sleep. Modules can be sent to sleep by other modules or they can go to sleep themselves when their messages are no longer being used. See Sleep Delay Settings later. When sleeping, the modules can be awakened on demand by other modules or software via the base station.

Transmitter Module Sleep Delay Settings

Transmitter modules have a Sleep Delay setting (set in seconds) which allows the modules to go into Sleep mode when their data messages are no longer required. This allows much longer battery life to be achieved. Setting Sleep Delay to zero disables this function in the Transmitter modules and they will only go into Sleep mode when told to do so.
8
Most Receiver modules and Broadweigh software send Stay Awake messages when they see messages arrive from Transmitter modules. In the Transmitter modules, if the Sleep Delay time period has elapsed without a Stay Awake message arriving then the module will enter Sleep mode. Usually the Stay Awake messages are sent every 5 seconds so Sleep Delays should be set to at least 10 seconds but can be set to anything up to an hour for situations where the Receiver is likely to be out of range for periods of time but where the Transmitter module is required to stay awake and in normal operational mode during that time. It is usual that Sleep Delays are set somewhere between 30 and 300 seconds when required.

Pairing

Because you need to know the radio settings configured in a module to be able to configure it, and there are no visible clues to what those settings may be, there is a feature used by Broadweigh modules that enable the radio settings (i.e. the radio channel and the group key) to be determined and matched between two Broadweigh modules. Pairing is only required to determine and match radio settings and optionally to put Broadweigh Transmitter modules in configuration mode. Because in some installations the Broadweigh modules can be buried deep inside other equipment there had to be a way of indicating that a module has been selected to pair with without having physical access to that module. Pairing was therefore designed to be activated by removing and re-applying the module’s power. In some cases this is not practical so another possible solution is Soft Pairing.

Pairing From Broadweigh Toolkit

When using the Broadweigh Toolkit and a base station, pairing is used to connect to a module without having
to know anything about it beforehand. To pair, remove power from the required module, click a ‘Pair’ button
in the software and re-apply power to the module. The base station and module negotiate settings and the base station is automatically configured to match the radio settings from the module and places the module into configuration mode. Now the module can be configured and when complete it will return to normal operational mode.

Pairing From a Receiver Module

Some Receiver modules allow pairing to a Transmitter module without requiring the Broadweigh Toolkit. For example, the BW-HR handheld display offers this feature by turning it on while holding a certain key after which the power is applied to the Transmitter module. The radio settings are then negotiated and the Transmitter module is automatically configured to match the handheld radio settings. The handheld learns the ID and data tags required to be able to use messages from the Transmitter module. In this case no configuration mode is required so the Transmitter module simply continues to operate in normal mode but with altered radio settings.

Soft Pairing

Pairing by power cycling is absolute and will work under all circumstances. However, sometimes access to the power supply of a module that you want to pair to can be restricted, a module 20 meters up a tower for example, so the Broadweigh Toolkit offers a way to soft pair.
To achieve this you need to know the radio channel and group key of the remote module and configure the base station to match this. You must also know the unique ID of the module and armed with this you
can soft pair to the module. This works quite well with Receiver modules as they are not operating in low power modes but the software does need to try and change Transmitter modules from their normal operation mode into configuration mode. This may not always work reliably in high traffic or high noise environments because there are a lot of messages that need to be sent between the base station and the remote module which can be upset by the presence of too many other messages on the same radio channel.

Configuring an Attached Base Station

Because a base station is attached to our computer when you are using the Broadweigh Toolkit you do not pair to it the same way as with other Broadweigh modules. To configure the base station using the Toolkit hold the shift key and click the Pair button on the Home page.
9

Asynchronous Operation and Logging

Transmitters send their messages at a fixed user defined interval regardless of whether anything is listening. This message interval is timed from when the Transmitter has been woken or powered on so there is no synchronisation of when the actual measurement is taken between different transmitters. If you are logging information from multiple Transmitters using multiple channel logging software you should be aware of how the software will store and record values. The software stores the message values as they arrive from each Transmitter and when a log is to be recorded it is the last value received by each Transmitter that is used. This means that the values that are recorded could have been measured at any point during the Transmitter message interval.
For example, if there are 10 Transmitters operating at 1000ms message interval then when the values are recorded to the log file you can only be sure that those values had been recorded within 1000ms of each other.
So if there is a requirement that recorded sets of readings are within a certain time of each other, then that time is the maximum message interval that should be set for the Transmitters regardless of the actual log interval of the software (Which should always be greater than the Transmitter message interval).

Bandwidth

Each radio channel (1-15) has a finite ability to carry information. When modules do not need to communicate with each other they can be configured on separate radio channels and do not affect each other. However, when multiple modules are on the same radio channel, even if they use different group keys, they are all contributing to filling the available bandwidth. Each message transmitted takes up around 3 milliseconds so if everything worked perfectly and all modules transmitted at just the right time and with no gaps between then there could only ever be 300 messages per second being transmitted on any one radio channel. In reality there are factors that reduce this capacity. Each module uses a technique to detect whether anyone else is transmitting before it transmits itself and this takes a finite time. There can also be interference from other sources that can delay module transmissions. Because of the transmission rate flexibility of the Broadweigh modules there could be a few modules transmitting messages at fast rates or many modules transmitting messages at slow rates or any combination of these. Practically there is a limit of around 200 messages per second available per radio channel.
It should be noted that as the number of Transmitter modules increases there is more chance of message collisions and so more messages are lost (remember that the Transmitter modules are sending their messages out at regular intervals) thus reducing the average number of messages per second arriving per module. So, for example, 2 modules may transmit at 100 times per second or 100 modules at a rate of 1 per second.

Repeaters and Repeater Subgroups

Repeaters are able to retransmit messages so that the repeated signal is stronger than the original and so can increase the range of systems or can bypass obstacles. The repeater must be configured to operate on the same radio channel and use the same group keys as those modules it is repeating. Because the radio traffic is effectively doubled by a repeater there is a mechanism to reduce unnecessary repetition of messages. Sometimes a repeater will still see messages from modules that do not need to be repeated (Thus filling up available bandwidth) so both repeaters and all other Broadweigh modules have a setting called the repeater subgroup. By default all subgroup settings are set to zero. A repeater will repeat a message from all modules whose subgroup is either zero or matches its own subgroup. If a repeater subgroup is zero it will repeat messages from all modules. This is a simple way to break down modules into smaller groups and control what messages get repeated. Changing the repeater subgroup is not normally necessary unless the bandwidth is very full due to either many Transmitter modules being present or very fast transmissions from modules.
10

Broadweigh Toolkit

To configure the modules you must use the Broadweigh Toolkit software application. This can be downloaded from our web site or may be shipped with your products. The software is suitable for all versions of Windows. Run setup.exe and follow the prompts to install the software.
In the Toolkit all items that can be changed or interacted with by the user are coloured orange. To change a value just click on the relevant orange item. You will then be presented with a new dialog window allowing you to change the value. This may use a slider, text box or list to allow your new value to be entered.
A base station will also be required to configure the Broadweigh modules. You just need to plug this into a USB socket on your PC.

Common Toolkit Pages

These pages in the Broadweigh Toolkit are applicable to all connected modules.

Setup Base Station Communications

Select the appropriate interface type for the connected base station. This will usually be USB. If the base station is connected via a serial port then you will need to know the COM port it is connected to and the baud rate. The Base Station Address is usually 1. This will only ever be different if it has been changed on base stations to support multi base station configurations.
Click the Home button to attempt communications with the base station. If no communications can be established the toolkit will remain on this page. You will need to check that the base station is powered and that it is connected to any converters correctly.
11

Analyser

The analyser page is provided as a tool and will not normally be needed unless you plan to change channels and want to find the best channel to select, or to diagnose poor communications issues.
This page shows the radio signal levels detected across all the channels available to the Broadweigh series of modules. Using this tool may help in detecting noisy areas and allow you to decide on which channels you may want to use.
The above charts show the traffic from a Wi-Fi network that can be seen to be operating over channels 12 to 16 and it would be best (though not essential) to avoid using these channels.
Although 16 channels are shown the Broadweigh modules operate over radio channels 1 to 15.
12

Channel Monitor

Items you can change or interact with:
Radio Channel Tabs
Click a tab to change the radio channel the base station is operating on
Clear List
Clear all detected messages from the list
Wake All
Wake all modules on the current radio channel
Start Logging
Asks for a filename then logs the received data to a CSV file in the following format:
This page shows a summary of data sent by transmitter modules. You can see the Data Tag of transmitted messages along with the total number of messages received, the transmission rate, link quality, data value and any error messages. Base stations built after June 2015 can also list modules that are sleeping. These will show an ID instead of a Data Tag.
To see any data the base station must be on the same radio channel as the transmitters
and must have a matching Group Key
The radio channel of the base station can be changed by clicking the channel tabs along the top of the page.
If you want to change the Group Key of the attached base station you need to configure its radio settings. See
Configure Base Station
13
Data Tag, Elasped ms, Value
View Last Log
Will launch the application associated with CSV files and open the last logged file.
Move Group Channel
If the base station has a group key set then this button will be visible. Once at least one module is present in the list this button will become enabled. Clicking it will ask the user for a new radio channel then all detected transmitters, along with any other modules on the same channel such as handhelds, will all be moved to the selected channel. Once this has been achieved the base station itself will move and the list will start to fill again with messages on the new radio channel.
To enable non transmitter modules to be moved to the
new channel they should be powered up and operational at the time the button is pressed.
14

Home

You now have successful communications with the base station so you can now pair with our remote Broadweigh module or you can select the Spectrum Analyser mode or Data Provider Monitor mode.

Connecting to a remote module

To connect to a remote module you will pair. This is achieved by power cycling the module. Pairing removes the need to know the radio settings of the module you are connecting to and also ensures that it is in a suitable state for configuration.
Pairing Procedure
Remove power from the Broadweigh module. Click the Pair button on the Toolkit. Re-apply power to the Broadweigh module within 10 seconds.
When you connect successfully the Toolkit will change to the Information page. If the pairing fails try again.
Pairing with the toolkit will not change the radio configuration settings of the
connected module. The base station radio settings will be changed to match those of the remote module.
When the toolkit connects to a remote module to enable configuration it will usually
inhibit the normal operational transmission of messages
15

Connecting to the attached base station module

To pair to and configure the connected base station, hold the shift key and click the Pair button.

Manual Connection

If you cannot get to the power supply of the remote module you can attempt to connect manually using Soft
Pairing. Click the ‘Click Here’ link at the bottom of the page and follow the prompts.
16

Information

Items you can change:
Name
You can enter a short description which may help us recognise this module in the future.
Some transmitter modules may have had their calibration protected. This indicates that you cannot calibrate this module.
Group Keys were introduced in 2015 so modules built before this date will not
support this feature. This indicates that the connected module can support them
This indicates that the connected module can support Group Keys and that one has been configured for this module
Applicable to a base station only. This indicates that on the Channel Monitor page modules that are sleeping will also be listed
Extended range radios were introduced to the Broadweigh range in 2015. This indicates that the connected module has an extended range radio fitted.
Once successfully paired to a module this page is displayed showing us information about the connected module.
Features
Each module may support certain features which are indicated on this page. If the feature is greyed out then it is not supported. If it is coloured then it is supported.
17

Battery and Radio Levels

Items you can change:
Low Battery Level
Click this item to set the battery low level.
Advanced Button
Clicking this will give more detailed information on the RSSI and CV levels of the received radio packets.
Here you can see the voltage of the battery and the radio signal levels at the base station and the remote transmitter module. This simple view gives an LQI value which stands for Link Quality Indicator. This value will range from 0 to 100 and anywhere within this band you should still achieve communications. As the level drops towards zero communications may become intermittent but still achievable.
On modules that are battery powered the battery voltage section will be visible. You can set the level at which the transmitter module reports a low battery. (At 2.1V the module will stop working) If the battery voltage is below the Low Battery Level the bar will be coloured orange.
18

Battery and Radio Levels Advanced

LQI value which stands for Link Quality Indicator. This value will range from 0 to 100 and within this band you should still achieve communications. As the level drops towards zero communications may become intermittent but still achievable. The LQI value is derived from the RSSI and CV values.
RSSI is the Radio Signal Strength Indicator and indicates the received dB level which will range from about -30 which is a good signal to -98 which is a weak signal.
CV is the Correlation Value and indicates how well the signal can be decoded. This ranges from 55 which is a poor quality signal and 110 which is an excellent signal.
19

Radio Settings

Items you can change:
Channel
Select a radio channel between 1 and 15. The default is channel 1. You can use the Spectrum Analyser mode to determine a good clean channel to use.
Group Key
Only visible on modules that support Group Keys. Only modules with identical group keys can communicate. This allows isolation of different groups of modules on the same channel or ensures the security of data. Early versions of Broadweigh modules do not support Group Keys and this option will not be visible in the Toolkit.
To use modules that support Group Keys with older modules that do not then the Group Keys must be blank.
The following two options are not visible when changing radio settings for a base station. In that case changes are immediate.
Reset Module Only
Only enabled once a change has been made. When radio settings are changed they do not take effect immediately but require a reset or power cycle. This button forces the connected module to adopt the new settings but keeps the base station on the existing settings. The home page is then shown.
Reset Module and base Station
Only enabled once a change has been made. When radio settings are changed they do not take effect immediately but require a reset or power cycle. This button forces both the connected module and the base station to adopt the new changes and re-establishes a connection.
Here you can change the channel and group key for the connected module.
20

Radio Settings Advanced

Items you can change:
Repeater Subgroup
Select a repeater subgroup for this module. The default is zero which will let all repeaters repeat messages from this module. See Repeaters and repeater
Subgroups
Remote Module Radio Settings Tool
To quickly set a batch of remote modules to match the radio settings of the base station you can use this tool. Usually this is arrived at by pairing with the base station by holding the shift key whilst clicking the Pair button on the
Home page.
To change the remote module radio settings:
Remove remote module power Click the ‘Click Here’ link on the page Apply power to the remote module
The Toolkit will remain unchanged and still paired to whatever module or base station it was paired to but the remote module will have changed its radio settings.
Here you can change the repeater subgroup settings for the connected module. Also a tool is provided to quickly match remote module radio settings to the base station radio settings.
21

Save and Restore

Items you can change:
Save
Click this button to open a file dialog window to allow you to select a filename and location to save the configuration file to. All configuration information including calibration data will be saved to the file. The file extension is tcf.
Restore
Click this button to open a file dialog window to allow you to select a filename and location of a previously saved file to load into the connected module. All configuration information will be overwritten. The file extension is tcf.
Here you can save the module settings to a file on your PC so that they can be later loaded back into the same or different module.
22

Transmitter Modules

BW-S325
Load shackle with SWL of 3.25 tonnes.
BW-S475
Shackle capable of measuring up to 4.75 tonnes.
Broadweigh Transmitters are the modules that connect to a sensor or have an input signal applied and periodically transmit messages containing the value read from the sensor or input. These modules include shackle load cell transmitters and wind speed sensor transmitters.

BW-S325, BW-S475

Overview

The BroadWeigh Shackle is a Crosby safety bow shackle with integrated electronics which features the following:
Available in 4 ¾ tonne or 3 ¼ tonne options Up to 800m line of sight wireless transmission range Fully weatherised (IP65) 5:1 safety factor Low rigging profile of 130mm 2000 hr battery life at transmission 1 per second Sleep function to preserve battery life when not needed Accuracy of ±1% of current load or 25 kg, whichever is the greater value

Order Codes

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Orientation & Identification

The shackle pin and bow are calibrated and load tested together. It is therefore essential for the accuracy of the system that the following information is adhered to:
Each pin and bow must be kept as a pair and not interchanged. The bow is marked with the ID of the pin it is associated with as shown.
The pin must be aligned in the same orientation with the bow as it was when calibrated. The BroadWeigh shackle is designed to only fit together in one orientation, the anti-rotational bracket will only fit around the bow shackle on the side with CE marking. This is the opposite side to the ID marking.
The shackle must be used in conjunction with a bobbin, nut and retaining clip as shown:
The BroadWeigh Shackle is a sensitive measuring device calibrated to ensure accuracy and reliability. Care must be taken during use, transportation and storage to avoid unnecessary mechanical damage.
To ensure accuracy, load must be applied vertically through the pin and the load must be centralised with a bobbin.
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Connections

Connecting Power.
To ensure optimum battery life, only quality alkaline batteries are recommended.
Rechargeable batteries are not suitable.
Remove the four screws. Insert two alkaline 1.5v AA batteries. Refit the lid.
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Configuration

Parameters:
Output Units
Use the drop down box to select between kg, lbs, tonnes, ton, ton (US) & kN.
The Broadweigh Toolkit provides a means of simple configuration and calibration of the shackle along with useful tools to aid integration.
Launch the Broadweigh Toolkit software application and pair to this module to enable the connection to the Toolkit to allow configuration to take place. See Common Toolkit Pages - Home
Units
Use this page to select the Output units of the Paired BroadWeigh Shackle.
If these units are changed ensure the Zero Indication Band is also set correctly.
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Zero Settings
Parameters:
Zero Indication Band
This setting enables you to hide small values of weight so that any displays based on the output from this module will display zero until a certain weight has been reached. You can enter a value here that represents a ± band around zero so that if the value to be transmitted is within this band a zero will be transmitted. Once the weight exceeds this band the full weight will be transmitted. For example: A BroadWeigh Shackle with a 5.0kg Zero Indication Band will only transmit a zero value until 5kg of weight or more is applied when it will then transmit the applied weight value.
If you change the module units you will need to adjust the zero indication band again.
System Zero
If the unloaded shackle is displaying a small weight you can re-zero the output value by applying a system zero.
Remove the load from the shackle before clicking the ‘Zero Now’ button.
Output Value
This shows the weight value that will be transmitted and shows the effect of the system zero and the zero indication band.
Use this page to perform system zero and to hide small values of weight (masking) for the paired BroadWeigh Shackle
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Data Rates and Quality
Parameters:
Transmit Interval
Enter the transmission rate in milliseconds. The default is 1000ms for Broadweigh Shackles. Longer battery life will be achieved with less frequent transmissions.
Sample Time
This is the length of time in milliseconds that the input is sampled before the value is transmitted. This can vary between 5 ms and close to the Transmit Interval. A shorter sample time means that the device is awake for less time so battery life is increased but at the expense of a reading with less noise free resolution. Alter this to see the effect on battery life and noise free resolution.
Low Power Mode
Low power mode is the usual mode of operation and increases battery life. If the transmission interval were increased above 25Hz (40ms transmit interval) then low power mode would need to be turned off.
Continued…
Use this page to select the rate at which data is transmitted from the acquisition module and the quality. By selecting low power mode and entering some other information the toolkit will also give guides on achievable battery life. Note that the battery life calculator assumes a 20°C ambient temperature. To ensure optimum battery life, only quality alkaline batteries are recommended. Rechargeable batteries are not suitable.
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Battery Type
This is not a parameter of the device but information used by the battery life guide. Choose from some pre-set battery parameters or choose custom and select chosen battery capacity. See below. This will also offer to change the Battery Low Level if the level suitable for the chosen battery is not the level currently set.
Usable Capacity
This is not a parameter of the device but information used by the battery life guide. This is the capacity of the battery in amp hours and has a profound effect on battery life calculations. This capacity needs to be calculated from battery manufacturer’s data sheets to take into account that you can only use batteries down to 2.1 volts so in the case of twin AA cells this would be 1.05 volts. Generally the usable capacity will not be as high as that advertised by the battery manufacturer. Temperature and internal resistance of the battery are not taken into account in the guide.
Sensor Resistance
This is fixed at 1000 ohms.
Usage Per 24 Hour Period
In order to calculate battery life, enter the number of hours per 24-hour period that the BroadWeigh Shackle will be connected to a BroadWeigh USB base station or Handheld remote
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Advanced Settings
Parameters:
Sleep Delay
Enter a delay in seconds after which the BroadWeigh Device will return to deep sleep if no Keep Awake message is heard from the handheld or base station. The default is 60 seconds.
If a value of 0 is used the shackle will not enter into low
power state and battery life could be compromised if no other device sends the shackle to sleep.
Data Tag
The data transmitted by the BroadWeigh Shackle is marked with a Data Tag. By default this is set to the last 4 characters of the device ID. The BroadWeigh Shackle Data Tag can be changed to an easily remembered 4 digit code to reflect its position within your system. For example ‘00A1’.
Very Noisy RF Environment Mode
For use in extreme radio environments where there is a lot of radio traffic and simply changing the radio channel does not allow you to avoid conflict with other radio systems.
Activating this feature makes the shackle more ‘aggressive’ in its radio
transmissions and makes it easier to wake up.
It should not normally be necessary to change these settings.
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