Sensor Installation page

For the ST90 system to use and offer correct navigational information, one or more external sensors must be connected. Typical sensors are those providing navigational information (heading, speed or geographical position). Use the Sensor Installation page to define which external sensors your ST90 system will import information from. You must also specify which datagram formats to use. For each relevant sensor you must insert the offset values that define the its physical location relative to the vessel’s coordinate system.

How to open

This page is located in the Installation dialog box. To open the page, select Installation on the Setup menu.

Prerequisites

The Installation dialog box is not available when your ST90 system is set to Replay mode.

Description

The Sensor Installation page allows your ST90 system to communicate with external sensors and systems. The parameters are organized in groups.

Installed Sensors: The Installed Sensors list contains all the sensors that are currently installed on the ST90 system. Select a sensor in the list to edit its interface properties, or to remove it. Select New in the list to add a new sensor interface to the ST90 system.
Sensor: In the Sensor group you select which type of sensor you want to receive information from. You must specify which communication port to use (LAN (Local Area Network) or serial port). You can type a custom name to identify the sensor import. Select Inspect Port to verify that the communication parameters of the chosen port have been set up correctly.
Datagram: In the list of valid datagram formats, select the format(s) to be accepted by the ST90 system. If necessary, you can also specify a specific Talker ID.
Installation: Most sensors are physically mounted somewhere on your vessel. For accurate measurements, the sensor locations - referenced to the vessel’s coordinate system - must be known to the ST90 system.

Note:

Just making changes and selecting OK at the bottom of the page will not install anything. Select what to install, define the relevant parameters, and then select Add.

A summary of all the sensors that are connected to the ST90 system is provided in the Diagnostics dialog box.

Details

Installed Sensors

The Installed Sensors list contains all the sensors that are currently installed on the ST90 system. Select a sensor in the list to edit its interface properties, or to remove it. Select New in the list to add a new sensor interface to the ST90 system.

Type

The ST90 system can communicate with several different sensor types. Under Type, select which type of sensor you want to receive information from.

Tip:

The Sensors page in the Diagnostics dialog box provides an overview of all the communication lines and sensors in use. All relevant status information is provided. Open the Diagnostics dialog box from the Setup menu.

Port

To import the data from the chosen sensor you need to define an input port. This can be any available Local Area Network (LAN) or serial line on your Processor Unit.

We recommend that you set up the relevant communication parameters before you use the port. To set up the communication parameters, use the I/O Setup page. The I/O Setup page is located in the Installation and Output dialog boxes.

Inspect Port

Select Inspect Port to check the communication parameters for the port. The relevant port setup dialog box opens.

The communication parameters defined for NMEA 0183 are:

Baud rate: 4800 bit/s
Data bits: 8
Parity: Even
Stop bits: 1

Some instruments may provide other parameters and/or options. You must always check the relevant technical documentation supplied by the manufacturer.

Note:

You are not permitted to make any changes. To change the communication parameters, use the I/O Setup page. The I/O Setup page is located in the Installation and Output dialog boxes.

Monitor

This option is only available if you decided to edit the parameters of a previously installed sensor. Select Monitor to open the Port Monitor dialog box. The Port Monitor dialog box allows you to study the communication stream on the chosen serial line or local area network (LAN) port.

Custom Name

For easier recognition of the sensor interface, you can type a custom name. This name is shown in other dialog boxes in the user interface. If you do not have a computer keyboard connected to your ST90 system, select the Keyboard button to open an on-screen keyboard.

Datagram

The list presents the available datagram formats for the chosen sensor type. Select the datagrams you want to import.

When you select sensor type ITI-FS, only one datagram can be selected; ITI-FS Datagrams. This is a group of datagrams that allows the ST90 system to import information from trawl systems.
When you select sensor type PI50, only one datagram can be selected; PI50 Datagrams. This is a group of datagrams that allows the ST90 system to import information from catch monitoring systems.
Select sensor type External Objects to import position data from buoys and other devices transmitting their geographical position. The external objects are shown as hexagonal markers in the echo presentation.

Talker ID

If you want to specify a dedicated Talker ID for the datagram format, it can be defined here.

Every NMEA datagram starts with a dollar ($) character. The "talker identifier" (ID) with two characters follows immediately after the dollar character. The Talker ID is followed by three characters that define the type of datagram. The Talker ID identifies the system that sends the datagram. You can leave this box empty. This means that blank characters are inserted into the datagram. You may also specify two characters that identifies the ST90 system as the "sender". In most cases, you will only need to define a Talker ID if your receiving system needs it for a specific purpose.

Example:

$ESDBT,x.x,f,y.y,M,z.z,F*hh<CR><LF>

In this NMEA depth datagram, the Talker ID is "ES", which means "echo sounder".

Tip:

If you do not have a computer keyboard connected to your ST90 system, select the Keyboard button to open an on-screen keyboard.

Offsets

The physical location of each sensor must be defined with reference to the vessel’s coordinate system.

The position of certain sensors must be defined as an offset to the Ship Origin in the coordinate system to maximize performance. These offset values are all required to allow the ST90 system to give you as accurate information as possible. The degree of accuracy offered by the ST90 system is directly related to the accuracy of the information you enter on the Installation Parameters pages.

X Offset: Select the offset value on the X axis (fore-and-aft direction) from the Ship Origin. Adjust with a positive value for X if the sensor is located ahead of the ship origin.
Y Offset: Select the offset value on the Y axis (athwartship) from the Ship Origin. Adjust with a positive value for Y if the sensor is located on the starboard side of the ship origin.
Z Offset: Select the offset value on the Z axis (vertical) from the Ship Origin. Adjust with a positive value for Z if the sensor is located under the ship origin.

Rotation

For some sensors - typically motion sensors and transducers – the physical location of the sensor is not sufficient to extract accurate data. These sensors are installed with physical angles. These angles are often referred to as "installation angles" or "offset angles". The sensor can be rotated around the three axis of the vessel coordinate system.

Rotation Around X(Roll)
Rotation Around Y(Pitch)
Rotation Around Z(Yaw)

In the user interface you will only need to specify the installation angles when the parameters are shown.

Rotation Around X: Specify an angle (in degrees) to compensate for any deviation from the X axis (fore-and-aft direction) in the vessel coordinate system.
Rotation Around Y: Specify an angle (in degrees) to compensate for any deviation from the Y axis (athwartship direction) in the vessel coordinate system.
Rotation Around Z: Specify an angle (in degrees) to compensate for any deviation from the Z axis (vertical direction) in the vessel coordinate system.

Add

When you have set the parameters for a new sensor interface, select Add to save it. Once a sensor has been added to the ST90 system configuration, it appears in the Installed Sensors list.

Remove

The Installed Sensors list contains all the sensors that are currently installed on the ST90 system. If you want to delete a sensor, select it in the list, and then select Remove at the bottom of the Sensor Installation page.

Note:

You cannot undo this operation.

Edit

The Installed Sensors list contains all the sensors that are currently installed on the ST90 system. If you want to edit the parameters of a previously installed sensor, select it in the list, and then select Edit at the bottom of the Sensor Installation page.