Modbus/SDI-12 Translator
User Manual
THIS MANUAL APPLIES TO PART NUMBER 1950-250
FIRMWARE VERSION 5400-352-03 AND SOFTWARE VERSION 5300-052-04
Modbus/SDI-12 Gateway User Manual Page 1 of 12
Last Updated: August 20, 2013
PORT
PIN
DESCRIPTION
BATT
+
Connection for positive terminal from battery (4-30V)
-
Connection for negative terminal from battery
3.3V
+
+3.3V output
-
Ground
COM 1
RX
RS-232 Reception line
TX
RS_232 Transmission line
GND
Ground
A
RS-485 A line
B
RS-485 B line
SDI-12
BUS
DATA
SDI-12 data line
GND
Ground
+14V
+14V SDI-12 power line
Introduction
The Modbus/SDI-12 Gateway is a communication device that allows you to access SDI-12 sensor
information using Modbus over a serial RS232 or RS485 connection. Windows software allows for
configuration and testing of the SDI-12 sensors, as well as configuration of the Modbus settings and
registers for the final field installation.
Setup
Software Installation
Insert the provided USB key into your computer UBS port. Otherwise navigate to the
USB drive, under the Rogue SDI 12 folder double click the setup.exe file and follow the screen
prompts
Wiring
Table 1 (below) describes the existing port on the SDI-12/Modbus Translator device and
the pin out for each port and a short description of the pins
Table 1 – Device Pin out
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Quick Start
If you are experienced with Windows software and industrial communication equipment,
this quick start may be enough information. Otherwise, please see the Configuration section.
1) Ensure that the SDI-12 Gateway is powered, and is connected to a Windows PC COM
Port via the COM1 RS232 (RX, TX, GND) or RS485 (GND, A, B) connections.
2) Install and run the SDI-12 Gateway Configuration software.
3) Select the COM port you will be using from the drop down menu.
4) Select the Baud Rate for the device (default baud rate for out of the box item is 9600)
5) Set the name for the configuration
6) Select the desired Modbus address for the device and future baud rate of the device
7) Select the SDI-12 power line option and poll interval and power up delay if “on when
polling” option was chosen.
8) Press “Add New Command to List” button, chose the selected command from the drop
down menu, set the correct address for the SDI-12 device and finally set the options for
the command. (Note: Poll interval cannot be set if “On when polling option is used for
the SDI-12 Power Control”)
9) To write the configuration to the unit press the “Save Configuration to Unit” button and
wait until done.
10) Press the “Current Mode” button to change to the test mode.
11) Press “Refresh Command Results” to read values from the device; ensure that response
are in the time frame and desired format. If not edit polling options and format options
and retry. Once desired results are correct deploy.
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Configuration
Working with Configurations
The supplied software allows you to manage multiple configurations, and move them
between the software, the computer hard drive, and SDI-12 units. From the File menu, you
have these options:
New – Start a new configuration. Make sure you have saved any work in progress.
Open – Open a previously saved configuration file.
Save – Save the current configuration to a file.
Creating a New Configuration
When you select File – New, you will see the Default Configuration screen:
Figure 1 – Default Configuration Screen
You can modify the Configuration ID field to give your configuration a unique name.
The Modified field is automatically updated when the configuration is saved. The Master
Direction option is not currently supported.
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Modbus Settings
Along the left side of the Configuration tab, you have the following options:
MB Address – This is the Modbus address to which the unit will respond when installed
in the field, after configuration.
Baud Rate – This is the baud rate to be used for the final field installation.
SDI-12 Power Control – This selects when power is applied to the +14V SDI Power
terminal. Use Always Off if the devices have another power source, Always On to
provide power continuously, or On When Polling to power the terminal only when
polling sensors.
Poll Interval – If SDI-12 Power Control is set to On When Polling, this sets the number
of seconds between consecutive attempts to poll all sensors.
Power up Delay – If SDI-12 Power Control is set to On When Polling; this sets the delay
in milliseconds between application of power and the first attempt to poll a sensor.
Sensor Commands
Use the following options to manipulate the list of sensor commands:
Add New Command to List – Click this button to add a command.
Remove Selected Command – Click to remove the currently highlighted command from
the list.
/\ and \/ buttons – Click to move the currently highlighted command up or down in the
list.
When you have added one or more commands to the list, click on a command to
highlight it and then set the options for that command below the list in the Command Detail
panel:
Address – Enter the one character SDI-12 address of the sensor, typically 0-9 or a-z or
A-Z
Command Drop-down Box (default of Measurement) – Select the SDI-12 command to
use.
CRC check-box – Most commands allow optional use of CRC validation. (CRC
validation is requested by default)
Poll Interval – If the SDI-12 Power Control is not set to On When Polling, this sets each
command's desired polling interval in seconds.
First Value – For commands that may return multiple values, enter the sequence of the
first value to be saved.
# Of Values – For commands that may return multiple values, enter the number of values
to be saved. For example, if First Value is 4, and # of values is 2, then the 4th and 5th
values returned from this sensor command will be saved, and any others will be ignored.
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Add Value Ages – This will optionally append a 16-bit field after each returned value,
indicating the number of seconds since the last successful poll of that value. The highest
number of seconds is 65534, and 65535 indicates that there has not been a successful
poll since power-up.
First Input/Holding Register – This is the first of the consecutive Modbus registers that
will contain the results of these commands. All data can be read with Modbus function
3 or 4. Subtract 1 from this register number to get the Modbus protocol address.
Data Format – Most commands allow you to select the desired return format. 1 char per
register and 2 char per register are only available for Identification command.
Word Order – For 32 bit data formats, this sets the word order.
The Auto-sequence Modbus Registers check-box causes all commands except the first to
automatically set the First Input/Holding Register such that all command results are available in
a single contiguous block of registers. If this is not checked, you can set the location of the
results of each command independently.
Copying Configuration to/from Unit
Ensure that the COM Port and Baud Rate fields at the top of the screen are set properly
to communicate with the unit.
Ensure that you have saved the working configuration to a file before you load from a
unit.
Click the Load Configuration from Unit button to read from a connected unit and
populate the screen with its current configuration.
Click the Save Configuration to Unit button to copy the current configuration from the
screen to a connected unit. The old configuration on the unit will be lost.
Testing a Configuration
Ensure that you have copied the current configuration to the connected unit by using the
Save Configuration to Unit button, then click on the Current Mode button to change from
Configuration mode to Testing mode. In this mode, each time you click the Refresh Command
Results button, the connected unit will be polled for the latest results, and they will be displayed
in the command list. Click the Current Mode button again to exit testing mode.
Sensor Utilities
To access these common SDI-12 sensor utilities, click on the Sensor Utilities tab.
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Figure 2 – Sensor Utilities Screen
Query Address – Click on the Query button and the Address will be populated with the sensor
address.
Change Address – Enter the current address and the new address, then click the Change button.
Ack Active – Enter the address and click Query to see if a unit responds.
Sensor Identification – Enter the address and click Query Identification to retrieve the SDI-12
identification fields from the selected sensor.
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Parameter
Value
Input Voltage (Bat+ to Bat-)
4 – 30V
Power Consumption
200mW typical (16mA at 12V input)
SDI-12 Power Output
13.7V typical, 500mA max.
3.3V Power Output:
100 mA max
Ambient Temperature
-40 to 60°C
Pluggable Connectors
12AWG max.
Installation
When you are finished configuring and testing a unit with the Windows software, simply
disconnect the unit from the PC COM Port, and connect it to your Modbus master field
equipment via the COM1, using either the RS232 (RS, TX, GND) or the RS485 (GND, A, B)
connections.
Electrical / Environmental Specifications
Table 2 – Electrical and Environmental Specifications
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Item Name
Register #
Length
Reserved
10000
3000
Configuration Name
13000
40
Last Modified
13040
4
Modbus Direction
13044
1
Modbus Address
13045
1
Modbus Baud Rate
13046
1
SDI Power
13047
1
Poll Interval
13048
1
Power Up Delay
13049
1
Number of Commands
13050
1
Auto sequence Option (internal use)
13051
1
Reserved
13052
8
Firmware Version Number
13060
1
Firmware Revision Number
13061
1
Reserved
13062
37
Configuration Set (internal use, write 1 to implement newly written
configuration)
13099
1
Command 1 Sensor Address
13100
1
Command 1 Sensor Poll Interval
13101
1
Command 1 First Input or Holding Register; actual register
(protocol address) is one less than this number
13102
1
Command 1
13103
1
Command 1 First Value
13104
1
Command 1 # of Values
13105
1
Command 1 CRC Option
13106
1
Command 1 Data Format
13107
1
Command 1 Word Order
13108
1
Appendices
This information is provided for advanced users only, and allows for configuration of units
without using the provided Windows software. Typical users do not need this information.
Appendix A - SDI-12 Configuration Register Map
The following register is valid for firmw3are version 5400-362-03 for the SDI-12/Modbus
Translator hardware. All configuration data is accessed via Modbus functions 3, 6, and 16 (holding
registers). The unit will respond to commands for any Modbus address for this range of registers.
Modbus Registers
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Command 1 Age Option
13109
1
Command 1 Future Expansion
13110
10
Command 2 Sequence
13120
20
Command 3 Sequence
13140
20
...
Command 100 Sequence
15080
20
Item Name
Description
Configuration Name
80 char max, packed into 2 char per register
Last Modified
4 registers as 64bit long integer, Visual C# representation
Modbus Direction
0=Modbus DCS, 1=SDI-12 DCS (not supported yet)
Modbus Address
Modbus Baud Rate
one of 9600, 19200, 57600
SDI Power
1=Always Off, 2=Always On, 3=On when polling
Poll Interval
in seconds, only valid if using SDI Power option 3
Power Up Delay
in milliseconds
Number of Commands
1 to 100
Auto sequence Option (internal
use)
1=commands after the first one have their first register
set automatically
Command x Sensor Address
0-9 or a-z or A-Z
Command x Sensor Poll Interval
in seconds, valid if SDI power option is 1 or 2
Command x First Input or Holding
Register
first Modbus register where data will be available, see
Command Table for data lengths (actual register
(protocol address) is one less than this number)
Command x
see Command Table
Command x First Value
1 to 9
Command x # of Values
1 to 9
Command x CRC Option
1=use CRC, only valid with certain commands
Command x Data Format
0=16 bit integer, 1=32 bit integer, 2=32 bit float, 3=1
character per register, 4=2 characters per register packed
Command x Word Order
0=MSW first, 1=LSW word first, only valid for 32 bit
data formats
Command x Age Option
1=append aging information after data
Command x Future Expansion
N/A
Table A1 – Device Modbus Register
Item Detail
Table A2 – Command Items Detail Description
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Command
#
Command
CRC
Available?
Data Length
0
Measurement
Y
See Note
1
Additional Measurement 1
Y
See Note
2
Additional Measurement 2
Y
See Note
3
Additional Measurement 3
Y
See Note
4
Additional Measurement 4
Y
See Note
5
Additional Measurement 5
Y
See Note
6
Additional Measurement 6
Y
See Note
7
Additional Measurement 7
Y
See Note
8
Additional Measurement 8
Y
See Note
9
Additional Measurement 9
Y
See Note
10
Concurrent Measurement
Y
See Note
11
Additional Concurrent Measurement 1
Y
See Note
12
Additional Concurrent Measurement 2
Y
See Note
13
Additional Concurrent Measurement 3
Y
See Note
14
Additional Concurrent Measurement 4
Y
See Note
15
Additional Concurrent Measurement 5
Y
See Note
16
Additional Concurrent Measurement 6
Y
See Note
17
Additional Concurrent Measurement 7
Y
See Note
18
Additional Concurrent Measurement 8
Y
See Note
19
Additional Concurrent Measurement 9
Y
See Note
20
Continuous Measurement 0
Y
See Note
21
Continuous Measurement 1
Y
See Note
22
Continuous Measurement 2
Y
See Note
23
Continuous Measurement 3
Y
See Note
24
Continuous Measurement 4
Y
See Note
25
Continuous Measurement 5
Y
See Note
26
Continuous Measurement 6
Y
See Note
27
Continuous Measurement 7
Y
See Note
28
Continuous Measurement 8
Y
See Note
29
Continuous Measurement 9
Y
See Note
30
Identification
N
16 registers if packed,
otherwise 32 registers
31
Verification
N
See Note
Command Table
Table A3– List of SDI-12 Command on Configuration Software
Note: Data length is 1 register per value for 16 bit formats, 2 registers per value for 32
bit formats, plus 1 register per value if aging information is used.
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SDI-12 Command
Description
Protocol
Query Address
When only one unit is on
the SDI-12 bus, this can
find its address.
Send to any Modbus address, FCN3, register
16000, 1 register; on success, returned value is
ASCII value of address, i.e., 65 for 'A'
Set Address
When only one unit is on
the SDI-12 bus, this can
modify its address.
Send to any Modbus address, FCN6, register
16000, value is ASCII value of new address;
success indicates address was set
Get Identification
Returns 32 bytes of
configuration information
for an SDI-12 sensor.
Send to Modbus address of SDI-12 address,
i.e., Modbus address 48 for SDI-12 address '0'.
FCN3, register 16001, 32 registers; returns 32
byte identification in 32 registers
Ack Active
Checks to see if an SDI12 address is active.
Send to Modbus address of SDI-12 address,
i.e., Modbus address 48 for SDI-12 address '0'.
FCN3, register 16033, 1 register; returns 1 on
success
SDI-12 Utility Commands
These are for internal use by the SDI-12 Configurator software, and are basically passthrough that allow the software access to some SDI-12 utility type commands. All of these
commands cause a command to be sent to an SDI-12 sensor immediately, and then wait for a
response. There is a potential for delay/failure if the SDI-12 translator is currently waiting on a
measurement, so these are mainly intended to be used for initial setup before completely
configuring a sensor's commands.
Table A4 – Sensor Utilities Commands List
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Last Updated: August 20, 2013
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