Vaisala Observation Display User Manual
USER'S GUIDE
Vaisala Observation Display
for AWS330
M211326EN-A
PUBLISHED BY
Vaisala Oyj Phone (int.): +358 9 8949 1
P.O. Box 26 Fax: +358 9 8949 2227
FI-00421 Helsinki
Finland
Visit our Internet pages at www.vaisala.com.
© Vaisala 2011
No part of this manual may be reproduced in any form or by any means, electronic or
mechanical (including photocopying), nor may its contents be communicated to a third
party without prior written permission of the copyright holder.
The contents are subject to change without prior notice.
Please observe that this manual does not create any legally binding obligations for
Vaisala towards the customer or end user. All legally binding commitments and
agreements are included exclusively in the applicable supply contract or Conditions of
Sale.
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Table of Contents
CHAPTER 1
GENERAL INFORMATION............................................................................3
About This Manual...................................................................3
Contents of This Manual.......................................................3
Version Information............................................................... 4
Related Manuals...................................................................4
Documentation Conventions.................................................4
Recycling ..................................................................................5
Trademarks............................................................................... 5
License Agreement..................................................................5
Warranty....................................................................................5
CHAPTER 2
PRODUCT OVERVIEW.................................................................................. 7
Introduction ..............................................................................7
Software Components............................................................. 7
System Requirements and Restrictions................................8
CHAPTER 3
INSTALLATION..............................................................................................9
Recommended Operating System Settings .......................... 9
Windows User Accounts.......................................................9
Operating System Updates...................................................9
System Time ....................................................................... 10
Power Options.....................................................................10
Firewall and Virus Checking................................................10
Network Options..................................................................10
Keyboard.............................................................................11
Installation Procedure............................................................11
Preparing for Installation.....................................................11
Software Setup....................................................................11
Verification...........................................................................12
After Installation..................................................................... 12
Receiving Data from AWS ..................................................12
Miscellaneous.........................................................................14
Uninstallation.......................................................................14
Command Prompt Setup Procedure...................................14
CHAPTER 4
BASIC FEATURES ...................................................................................... 15
User Roles...............................................................................15
General................................................................................15
Logging in as Observer.......................................................15
Data Collection .......................................................................16
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Observation Time Series
.......................................................16
Main User Interface ................................................................17
Text Boxes, Text Labels, and Groups ..................................18
Text Box Settings ................................................................18
Alarms .................................................................................19
Text Label Settings..............................................................20
Graphs.....................................................................................20
Wind Display Element............................................................22
Status Bar................................................................................23
View Menu Commands ..........................................................24
Settings................................................................................24
Terminal...............................................................................24
History Reports....................................................................25
Data Archive........................................................................26
Event Log ............................................................................26
CHAPTER 5
ADMINISTRATOR'S GUIDE........................................................................27
Administrator Role .................................................................27
Logging in as Administrator.................................................27
Changing Administrator Password......................................27
Automatic Functionality.........................................................28
Background Service ............................................................28
User Interface......................................................................28
Directory Structure.................................................................29
Installation Directory............................................................29
Observations Directory........................................................29
Setup Files...............................................................................30
Layout Designer .....................................................................31
Editing Existing Layout........................................................32
Adding and Deleting Display Elements...............................33
Element Positions................................................................33
Fonts....................................................................................33
Configuration Settings...........................................................34
General Settings – Station ..................................................34
General Settings – Variables...............................................35
Application Settings – Communications..............................36
Application Settings – Data Logging ...................................38
Application Settings – Data Transfer...................................39
Application Settings – Miscellaneous..................................40
CHAPTER 6
TROUBLESHOOTING..................................................................................43
Troubleshooting Procedure ..................................................43
Problem Situations.................................................................44
Technical Support ..................................................................44
APPENDIX A
AWS330 CONFIGURATION ........................................................................45
Report Format.........................................................................45
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Chapter 1 ________________________________________________________ General Information
CHAPTER 1
GENERAL INFORMATION
This chapter provides general notes for the manual and the Vaisala
Observation Display software.
About This Manual
Contents of This Manual
This manual consists of the following chapters:
- Chapter 1 provides general notes for the Vaisala Observation Display
software.
- Chapter 2 gives an overview of the application.
- Chapter 3 gives instructions on setting up the application and the PC.
- Chapter 4 contains information for configuring the application.
- Chapter 5 includes instructions fo r real-time display, terminal window
and event log.
- Chapter 6 contains basic troubleshooting advice.
- Appendix contains instructions on how to use the software with
Vaisala Automatic Weather Station AWS330.
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Version Information
Table 1 Manual Revisions
Manual Code Description
M211326EN-A First version of this manual.
Related Manuals
Table 2 Related Manuals
Manual Code Manual Name
M211296EN Vaisala Automatic Weather Station AWS330
User's Guide
Documentation Conventions
WARNING
CAUTION
NOTE
Throughout the manual, important safety considerations are highlighted
as follows:
Warning alerts you to a serious hazard. If you do not read and follow
instructions very carefully at this point, there is a risk of injury or even
death.
Caution warns you of a potential hazard. If you do not read and follow
instructions carefully at this point, the product could be damaged or
important data could be lost.
Note highlights important information on using the product.
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Chapter 1 ________________________________________________________ General Information
Recycling
Recycle all applicable material.
Dispose of batteries and the unit according to statutory regulations. Do
not dispose of with regular household refuse.
Trademarks
Windows is a registered trademark of Microsoft Corporation in the
United States and/or other countries.
License Agreement
All rights to any software are held by Vaisala or third parties. The
customer is allowed to use the software only to the extent that is provided
by the applicable supply contract or Software License Agreement.
Warranty
For certain products Vaisala normally gives a limited one-year warranty.
Please observe that any such warranty may not be valid in case of
damage due to normal wear and tear, exceptional operating conditions,
negligent handling or installation, or unauthorized modifications. Please
see the applicable supply contract or Conditions of Sale for details of the
warranty for each product.
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Chapter 2 __________________________________________________________ Product Overview
CHAPTER 2
PRODUCT OVERVIEW
This chapter gives an overview of the application.
Introduction
Vaisala Observation Display is a PC software application intended for
displaying and storing meteorological and environmental measurement
data. The software can be used as a weather station data display.
Software Components
The software consists of two components:
- Observation Display background service, which starts automatically
whenever the host PC is started.
- User interface application, which can be opened from the Windows
Start menu or desktop icon.
The background service is transparent to the user. It handles all automatic
tasks: communications to the AWS, passing data to the user interface
process, validating and logging incoming data, and so on.
The user interface provides possibilities to monitor and configure data
processing. Having a separate background service process guarantees that
the user does not accidentally terminate data collection process by
closing the user interface.
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System Requirements and Restrictions
Vaisala Observation Display can be used with any of the following
Windows® operating systems: XP, 2003 Server, 2008 Server, Vista, and
Windows 7.
The PC should have at least 512 MB of free memory, a 2.0 GHz
processor, and a CD drive. The PC should have at least 512 MB of free
memory, a 2.0 GHz processor, and 10 MB of free hard disk space. Hard
disk space requirement depends on the amount of data to be stored in the
system.
Vaisala Observation Display is designed to support data collection from
one weather station only.
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Chapter 3 _______________________________________________________________ Installation
CHAPTER 3
INSTALLATION
This chapter helps you to install and configure the software and provides
a checklist for suggested operating system settings.
Recommended Operating System Settings
To guarantee the best operation, check the following settings from the
Control Panel before installing software. Please note that these settings
apply to the Window XP operating system. In other operating systems,
the instructions may be different.
Windows User Accounts
The application must be installed on a user account that has
administrative rights on the computer.
Administrative rights are only required during initial setup. After that, the
application can be operated by users who only have the default Windows
user level rights.
User Account Control (Windows Vista, Windows 7 only) should be set
to the "Never Notify" setting. Change the setting from User Accounts Change User Account Control Settings.
Operating System Updates
The software has been tested with the latest operating system versions at
the time of the shipping. However, future operating system updates might
conflict with the installed software version.
It is advisable to update the PC with the latest service packs before
running the setup procedure. If the computer is dedicated for data
collection only, it may be advisable to turn off automatic operating
system updates.
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System Time
It is recommended that you adjust the PC and the weather station clocks
to the same time zone. Usually, universal coordinated time (UTC) time is
used instead of local time in all meteorological reports. In this case, the
PC is set to UTC time zone, too.
If you wish to use local time in the PC and UTC time in the weather
station, please see section Graphs on page 20 for separate instructions on
how to adjust real-time graphs on the display.
Adjusting PC time zone:
1. From Control Panel, select Date and Time.
2. From the Time Zone tab, verify that the computer clock is set to
UTC time and that the daylight savings option is not selected.
Power Options
Power Options are under Control Panel. Check that the PC never turns
off hard disks, never enters standby state, and never goes to hibernation.
Firewall and Virus Checking
Anti-virus programs may interfere with the application. If this happens,
you should adjust the anti-virus programs so that the installation
directory is not checked.
If data is received via TCP/IP connection, the PC firewall should be
configured to allow communications to and from the weather station.
Network Options
Unless otherwise specified, use the default settings:
1. Select Network Connections.
2. Select Internet Protocol.
3. Click Properties.
4. In the dialog that opens, make sure that "Obtain IP address
automatically" has been selected. If your network administrator has
provided the PC with a specific IP address, subnet mask, and
default gateway, make sure that they are configured correctly.
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Chapter 3 _______________________________________________________________ Installation
See also Chapter 5, Administrator's Guide, on page 27 regarding the
configuration and testing of communications with automatic weather
station.
Keyboard
If the computer keyboard contains special characters that do not appear
on the screen, select local keyboard from Control Panel - Regional and
Language Options - Languages - Details.
Installation Procedure
Preparing for Installation
Before you install the software, ensure that the AWS installation has
been completed. You should be able to connect to and receive data
messages from the AWS with terminal software (for example,
HyperTerminal).
Microsoft .Net Framework v. 3.5 should be installed on the computer.
Usually, this module comes with the operating system. If the module is
missing for some reason, installation of Vaisala Observation Display
fails. You can verify that the .Net Framework has been installed from the
Add/Remove Programs dialog in the Control Panel. In case that the
module is missing, the latest version can be set up from the installation
CD.
Check that the operating system uses the settings described in section
Recommended Operating System Settings on page 9.
Software Setup
Insert then Observation Display installation CD into the PC. Using
Windows Explorer, navigate into the setup directory. Double-click file
SetUp.msi to initiate the setup procedure.
The setup wizard guides you during the installation. Follow the
instructions of the wizard to complete the setup.
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Verification
Select All Programs - Vaisala - Observation Display from the Start
menu. The main application window should open on the screen. You
should also see the startup icon on the desktop.
Vaisala Background Service should be visible in the Control Panel Administrative Tools - Services pane.
After Installation
Receiving Data from AWS
The software is shipped with a default configuration that corresponds to
the generic weather station settings. However, the default configuration
may require setting the station-dependent parameters.
Below is a proposed task list of minimum post-installation configuration
steps.
1. Log in as administrator. From the main menu, select System - Log
In as Administrator. (See Chapter 5, Administrator's Guide, on
page 27.)
2. From the main menu, select View - Settings. A configuration
dialog opens. Select the Application tab and select sub-item
Communications from the left.
3. Depending on your AWS set-up, select either TCP/IP server,
TCP/IP client, or serial line protocol. Make sure that the
communications parameters match with the AWS settings. If the
AWS is sending data using TCP/IP, enable the TCP/IP server
option and enter the local IP address. If AWS is operating as
TCP/IP server, enter its IP address. If serial communications are
used, select serial port and line parameters.
4. Click the Save button to save the settings.
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Chapter 3 _______________________________________________________________ Installation
1012-043
Figure 1 Communications Settings
5. From the left side list, select item "Miscellaneous". In the screen
that opens, select option "Open connection automatically." Click
Save and exit the dialog by clicking the Close button.
6. AWS data values should now appear on the main display. You
should also see the incoming messages on the terminal window;
select View - Terminal from the main menu. If necessary, adjust
the communications parameters.
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