The Model 603/1003 Pressure Chamber Instruments contain the following circuits and features.
1) Pressure measuring transducer
2) Real Time Clock
3) LCD Display
4) Keypad entry
5) Automatic NULL (zero) calibration
6) Serial Interface (RS-232, 1200 Baud)
7) Battery Power Pack (6 x "D" Cells)
8) Low Battery Warning
9) Memory to Store 600+ Pressure Readings with sample name, date, and time.
The pressure transducer in this instrument is subject to damage and will fail when subjected to saturated humidity situations or if free water reaches the transducer diaphram. Consequently, extreme care must be taken to insure that no condensation or free water reaches the transducer. The instrument is designed to be used between 0º-70º Celsius.
After the instrument is powered up, pressing the "A" key will sequence through a series of six selections:
1. "Enter" to turn off power manually.
2. "Enter" to clear memory.
3. "Enter" to set time and date.
4. "Enter" to show free RAM
5. "Enter" to change display units.
6. PMS Inst Co 1003 label including manufacture date code.
Time & Date Display
Pressing any numeric key (0-9) will call up the time and date
display. The time and date display can be cleared by pressing either
the "Enter" key or the "Escape" key. Any of the normal operating
functions can be activated without clearing the time and date display.
Warning : Unit will not automatically power off if time and date or other
functions are being displayed. Conserve batteries by turning off
the instrument during periods of non use.
Setting the Time & Date
Press the Menu ("A") key several times until the following is displayed:
"Enter" to
Set Time/Date
Press the "Enter" key to enter the time and date setting routine. The display will now prompt you to enter the time. The time is entered as a six digit number in the following format.
HHMMSS
Where HH is the hour in 24 hour time, MM is the minute, and SS is the second. Following entry of the time press the "Enter" key and you will be prompt-ed to enter the date.
If the escape key is entered at the "Enter Date" prompt the time will be updated and the date will remain unchanged.
The date is entered in the following format:
MMDDYY
Where MM is the month, DD is the day of the month, and YY is the
last two digits of the year. After entering this information press
"Enter" key to complete time and date entry.
Be sure the clock is set before using the unit. All samples stored are tagged with the current time and date registered by the internal clock.
Apply pressure to chamber until water returns to cut surface as explained on the blue operating instructions. At this point the display will read the pressure in units that have been selected. The "Enter" key functions as a toggle from current pressure to stored pressure. At anytime during the pressure increase the "Enter" key will freeze current pressure for storage and that pressure will be displayed as "Store Pressure". Alternatively on seeing the water reach the cut surface, pressing "Store" leads directly to a request for "Sample Name". A sample name must be entered at this time.
The "Escape" key can be used to terminate the store function when it is only desired to monitor the pressure. As long as the "Escape" key is pressed before completing sample name entry, no data will be stored.
Sample names can consist of numeric digits plus the separators "-" and "/". These characters can be entered by using the "Menu" and "Store" key respec-tively. Following entry of the sample name press the "Enter" key. This com-pletes storage of sample pressure, sample name, date, and time.
If an incorrect entry is made while entering the sample name, use the "B" key to backspace the display as required. The "B" key can also be used to review previously stored readings. Simply press the "B" key to review. Press "EN-TER" when done reviewing.
CAUTION: Do not make pressure chamber measurements
with the serial cable connected to the instrument. This will drain
the battery very quickly.
The host computer is the computer receiving the data stored in memory.
Included with your instrument is a 3.5" disk containing PROCOMM communication software. These are provided for your trial usage. Should you decide to continue to use PROCOMM, please refer to the PROCOMM.DOC and LICENSE.DOC files on these disks. These files contain important documentation and licensing information.
Connect the special cable supplied with unit to the connector on the top panel of the Model 1003 (DB-25 Connector). The other end of the cable should be attached to the serial port connector of the host computer.
Prepare the host computer to accept data using the PROCOMM program supplied or another suitable data transfer program. Initial settings should be 1200 baud, no parity, 8 and 1 bits. To make these setting in PROCOMM press "ALT P" and press "8" for (1200,N,8,1). Choose appropriate communication port and then save changes by pressing "24". Open the log file by pressing the "ALT & F1" keys. Give the file a name including a suffix that is the same as the spreadsheet program you are using (i.e. .WK1 for Lotus). Press the "Dump" key on the Model 1003 unit to initiate the transfer of data to the host computer. The unit will display message on LCD display as follows:
Dumping Data ...
Following the transfer of data the display will show the following message:
Dumping Over
Next Command
After checking that data was correctly transferred to the host computer, close the file by pressing "Alt F1" and exit Procomm by depressing the "ALT X" keys. Next you will need to import the data into your spreadsheet using the File Import instructions. After you are certain that the data was correctly imported, you may clear the unit memory as detailed below.
Press Menu "A" key until the following message is displayed.
"Enter" to
Clear Memory
Press "Enter" to enter memory clear routine. LCD display will prompt you to confirm that you really want to clear the memory of all saved pressure readings. Display will show:
Confirm Memory
Erasure - - -
Press "Enter" key to confirm that you want to clear memory. If you don't want to clear the memory press the "Escape" key or any other key (this aborts the memory clear operation).
This procedure must be performed after information is dumped to the host computer. If the memory is not cleared, data will remain in the unit and could be dumped to the host computer again.
Manual Power Off
This allows the user to turn off the power without having to wait for the automatic power off.
Press the Menu "A" key until the following message is displayed.
"Enter" to Turn
Off Power
Press "Enter" key to turn off power to unit.
Check Amount of Remaining Memory
Press the Menu "A" key until the following message appears.
"Enter" to Show
Free RAM
Press the "Enter" key to check the amount of memory remaining. Unit will display the number of bytes of free RAM available. This number when divided by 20 will yield the approximate number of samples that can be stored before running out of memory.
Low Battery Warning
When the Model 1003 detects that battery power is low, a message will be displayed in place of the normal "power on" message. This indicates the low battery condition as follows.
Low Battery
Press Any Key...
Once this appears the unit will continue to operate normally for some period of time but the batteries should be replaced.
It is recommended that data be dumped from unit before replacing batteries to minimize the risk of data loss.
Low Memory Warning
If you are storing readings and the memory is nearly full, the unit will display a warning as follows:
Pressure Stored
Low RAM Warning
At this point there should be enough memory remaining for at least ten more pressure readings to be stored. The warning appears any time there is less than 256 bytes of free RAM available.
Changing Batteries
1) Remove the 4 top panel screws.
2) Carefully lift the top panel free from the case - avoid tangling
the battery wires.
3) Set the top panel assembly next to the case.
4) Remove the rubber "O" ring from the battery holder.
5) Replace the 6 batteries with Alkaline type "D" cells.
6) Replace the rubber "O" ring and reassemble the instrument.
Initiate NVRAM
This feature which is the last option when scrolling through all options is for testing the Non-Volotile RAM. This is for test purposes during manufacturing and is never required to be used during use in the field.