CENTRAL CONTROL OPERATOR’S MANUAL Stratus™ LT • Stratus™ II • Nimbus™ II • Cirrus™
Central Control Operator’s Manual © 2005 Rain Bird Corporation, 6991 E. Southpoint Rd. Bldg. #1 • Tucson, AZ 85706, U.S.A.
Table of Contents INTRODUCTION...................................................................................................................... 1 Central Computer Equipment ......................................................................................................................... 1 Field Interface Devices...................................................................................................................................... 2 SYSTEM OVERVIEW .................................
Monitor Log/DMA .......................................................................................................................................... 37 SIMPLE-IRR OPERATIONS.................................................................................................. 37 SIMPLE-IRR OPERATIONS.................................................................................................. 38 RAINWATCH .................................................................................................
Introduction The central computer uses the Cirrus™/Nimbus™ II/Stratus™ II StratusLT Software in the Microsoft Windows environment. The computer communicates directly to the Interface Unit, which controls all other devices in the system. The central equipment includes: Central Computer Equipment Monitor - The screen that displays the software as it is being programmed or as the system operates.
Communication Ports - Connections on the rear of the computer cabinet are attached to external devices such as the Interface Module, Weather Station, Freedom Unit, modem phone lines, printers, etc. There are both Parallel and Serial ports. Printers connect to a parallel port or more commonly these days via USB, while Interface units, Weather Station, Freedom Unit, etc., connect to the Serial ports (referred to as COM ports). When insufficient serial ports are available, USB to Serial Converters are used.
The following is a list of other system equipment used: Satellites - Field units that directly operate the remote control valves or the valve-in-head sprinklers automatically from the central equipment or manually at the satellite itself. Decoders - Electronic Field units (FD-101, FD-201, FD-202, FD-401, or FD-601) that directly operate the remote control valves or the valve-in-head sprinklers.
System Overview Cirrus, Nimbus II, Stratus II and StratusLT software products support operation of either satellitebased or decoder-based systems. The differences between these types of systems are described below. Satellite Systems Direct Communication - Hard Wired system - A typical direct communication, satellite-based system includes a central computer connected to an Interface Module (MIM or TWI unit).
Group 1 Tool Bar Map Office Course Monitor/Manual Operation Current Time Next Program Start Time System Status Tool Bar Group Being Displayed Total GPM Demand Flo-Graph Data System Capacity GPM ET Data/Weather Monitor Logs Dry Run Operation Program Data Water Budget Data System Data Station Data Group 2 Tool Bar Software Module Options Tool Bar Group Being Displayed Help Designer Notes Information Data Cost Estimate Calculator Database Utilities Freedom System Data System Start Up Procedure Page
Group 3 Tool Bar Tool Bar Group Being Displayed Smart Messaging Sensor Reactions Smart Sensors – User-Defined Flo-Manager System Testing Access - Requires password entry PrintOffice - User defined report capabilities In addition to the main toolbars along the top of the computer screen, some quick-access buttons are provided for certain commonly-used features. Simple-IRR™ - Simple-IRR (pronounced simpler) is a feature used to save simple runtimebased irrigation scripts known as DMA Events.
System Indicators Current Time - Next Program Start At the top center of the Front Office screen and on some screens of Map Office, the Flow Bar, current time, and the next program start time is displayed. Current TIME displayed Next Program Start Time is displayed If there are NO Program Starts for today, then the display will read Tomorrow (refer to above). If there are Program Starts for today, the display will show the time of the next Start.
Clicking on the System Capacity button will display the Flow Information screen. Flow conditions for each installed pump station can be monitored. System STATUS Bar System Status Indicator At the top center of the Front Office screen and on some screens of the Map Office, the Flow Bar and the System Status is also displayed. The System Status bar indicates if the program is in communication with the field. An indicating light Bar. gives the status Click on theLED Status of operation in the field, etc.
The Weather Data screen can be displayed by clicking on the ET Bar. This screen shows where the System ET value is obtained. Net ET or Manual ET Default ET Max. ET – Max allowable ET value supplied to irrigation system. ET value can be entered manually or automatically when Default ET – ET value to be used if weather station is connected to a Rain Bird WS PRO unavailable. or WS PRO LT weather station. Max Hourly Rain – Maximum rainfall rate.
Slider used to Adjust Water Resets System – same as exiting and restarting Rain Watch control – Appears once Rain Watch is activated System Mode OFF – Prevent any Automatic Starts. Rain Shutdown. Cancels any running irrigation – Obeys system ramp down ET Reference can be used to track weather without Precipitation Rates Irrigation Programs There are several methods for writing programs. This manual will discuss two of them.
QuickIRR QuickIRR Programs are easy to build and always create programs by area and Schedules by Hole. Because the computer database keeps track of all sprinklers on the course, there is never any need to identify the sprinklers individually when building a QuickIRR Program. To build QuickIRR programs using the MapOffice, click the MapOffice button and select the ProgramBuilder Office from the drop down menu. ProgramBuilder The ProgramBuilder Office will appear and the map will be displayed.
runtime for each station included in the program. If you prefer, you can replace the runtime with a number of minutes to be used by all stations in place of the default runtime. When you finish, click OK to build the program. You will see the program being built right on the map. A blue dot will be placed over the area symbol for every hole included in this program. The program itself and all the schedules it contains will be displayed in the Tree View control on the left side of the screen.
Now, with your new program highlighted in the Tree View, click the Add Schedule button to add a new schedule to this program. This will bring up the Schedule Definition window. You can enter a name for the schedule now or change it later. You need to choose the option of By Area or By Station. We will choose By Area but the procedure is exactly the same if the schedule is written By Station. Click OK. This adds the Schedule to the program on the left. The mouse pointer is now in programming mode.
Station Detail StationDetail is the most comprehensive listing of sprinkler definition information in the system. With StationDetail you can assign all the information required to add a sprinkler to the system including activation address, sprinkler type, default runtimes and more.
for a few days due to some infrequent watering requirement. For example, occasionally it may be useful to turn a sprinkler off for a few days. In this case, set that sprinkler’s ET Adjust to 0% and the sprinkler will not turn on – even if it is included in programs. Version 5 of the central control applications included the ability to set a day timer for station adjustments. Beginning with version 5, you can set the station adjust to 0% for 3 days.
ET Map Program Number Name Auto Options Priorities Water Budget Start Days Start Times Stop Times Map – This column refers to the Map Number for this program. Most systems have one map so this number is always zero. Occasionally, multiple maps are used and programs can be assigned separately to each map yet run simultaneously through one system. Program Number – Program numbers are assigned automatically. These numbers can be changed and the list re-sorted using those numbers if desired.
Schedules Inside each program is one or more schedules. Schedules lists of similar stations to be watered as a group. Typically, programs are written by area (greens, tees, etc.) and Schedules are written by hole number. For example, a Fairways program might contain 18 schedules; one for each hole. To view the schedules in a program, select the program by clicking on the program number. Then click the Schedule detail button in the tool bar.
Schedule Number – The Schedule Number is entered automatically when schedules are built. The number establishes that schedule’s priority relative to other schedules in the program. The schedule number can be edited on screen if desired to move it higher in the list and give the stations within it a higher priority. Schedule Name – This is the name of the schedule. The name should be descriptive of the stations contained within the schedule.
Station Sequence A Station Sequence is the list of stations contained within a Schedule. To see the station sequence of a Schedule, select the schedule by clicking the schedule number then click the View Area/Station Sequence button. This will bring up the Station Sequence view. The station sequence view has a left and right side. The left side has areas selected. The right side has the individual stations and their run times. It is possible to build a station sequence manually though this screen.
System Dry Run The Dry Run feature tests the system Programs, on an accelerated time basis WITHOUT actually operating any stations or sprinklers in the field. A Flo-Graph will be generated and will present a graphical picture of the Flow Demand on the system during the irrigation cycle. The system refers to the Flo-Manager and Station Data Tables, for station/sprinkler flow data and to generate the Flo-Graph. This data has been entered during setup of the system.
The Dry Run screen will now be displayed. Select day for the Dry Run. Default will be TODAY Enter START and STOP time for Dry Run For Start and Stop Times of schedules and/or programs, click in the “Report Schedules?” square on the Screen. Set the Start and Stop times for your Dry Run based on Start times for programs. In this example the Start time is set for 6:00 P.M. and the Stop time for 6:00 P.M. Wednesday or Day Selection is O.K., since these programs are set to operate everyday.
The TOTAL gallons used is also displayed Stations in operation at this Point in time during the Dry Run The graph displays the Flow Demand on the system for the time period requested. The time is being displayed as the Dry Run progresses. Station Operation is also depicted as the Dry Run progresses The Cirrus and Nimbus II systems can actually manage up to six (6) different pumping stations; the Stratus II system can manage up to two (2) different pumping stations.
Monitor Logs This feature provides a number of information screens on present System Activities and/or past System Activities. The areas covered under this feature are as follows: Course Log Posted Log Dry Run Log Course Monitor/DMA ET SpreadsheetSoak Time Precip (in/hr) Default Run Time ET Adjust % Station Adjust % Cycle Time Address ViewFlo-Zone The Monitor/Log feature may be accessed from the tool bar (Group 1) on the Front Office screen.
background in yellow with the letter N indicates that station was programmed to operate, but there is no feedback from the station. It will register 0 (zero) time and is an indication that there may be a problem with the station and/or controller. Stations which are interrupted by a program STOP time will be identified with the letter I in the cell. Posted Log This feature displays, in chart form, the number of minutes each station will operate during the next scheduled program.
Compare this figure with the water required if the system ET value were just 0,254 mm (0.01 inches) less. In that case: For a System ET Value of 5,8 mm (0.23 inches) the water required is 4.000 cubic meters (1,056,890 gallons) The difference between these two conditions is 154 cubic meters (40,768 gallons) Thus we see that just 0,254 mm (0.02 inch) ET value change can result in 154 cubic meters (40,768 gallons) difference. If the ET Value were actually only 5,9 mm (0.
Cycle time The Cycle Time table shows Cycle time values currently assigned to each station in the system. Cycle times work with Soak times and refer to the maximum number of minutes a station may run before pausing to allow water to soak into the root zone. A station with an expected runtime of 13 minutes that has a Cycle Time of 7 minutes will run 7 minutes, pause for it assigned soak time, then come back on and run the remaining 6 minutes for a total of 13.
Click on the Flo-Graph icon. The Flo-Graph screen will now be displayed, as shown here Present time of day Click to get a Graph for all the pumping stations - combined The six possible pumping stations individual graphs will be in the corresponding color Hour of the Day along horizontal axis To display a graph, click on the down arrow at the right side of the Today window. This will display a drop-down menu with a listing of graphs available. Click on the desired Graph.
To get an enlarged graph of just a portion of a graph, click on the ZOOM button, located on the right upper part of the FloGraph screen. ZOOM button on FloGraph screen The FloGraph Zoom screen will be displayed. Enter the Start Time of the desired portion of the graph. Enter the Stop Time for the desired portion of the graph. Click OK. A screen will appear with the specified Zoom In time period from the FloGraph.
By using the sliding scale, Flow Demand may be viewed for any point in the cycle. View Point is 09:35. with a Flow Demand of 558 GPM At the selected view point, the stations in operation at that time will also be displayed During an Irrigation Cycle, the FloGraph may be viewed while being generated. It will also display the Flow Demand at the present moment in time, as well as a list of all stations presently in operation.
PrintOffice Daily data from a night’s irrigation is easily reviewed through the Course Log. To view historical data, the PrintOffice should be used. The PrintOffice can be accessed using toolbar 3 in the FrontOffice. The PrintOffice offers a variety of reporting tools including runtime, flow, and database review. The buttons show to the left are the full collection of reporting functions offered by the PrintOffice.
Log, the numbers are expected to reflect the night’s irrigation, not the irrigation since midnight. The PrintOffice was designed to as a way to report water use to others. Water use rates are typically evaluated on the calendar day (midnight to midnight). For this reason, the PrintOffice reports use the midnight to midnight formulation. Map Office Manual Activation Course Monitor™ This feature provides for the manual operation or the monitoring of any programs or schedules found in the system.
The various holes that can be operated are highlighted in red on the Program Tree. Individual Holes that can operate at one time (as selected by the program) are now shown in RED letters On the Course Map, the individual holes will be indicated by an expanding yellow circle (indicating No Feedback.) As feedback is received, the expanding circles will change to red.
Expanding circles will change to the color blue to indicate that the valve is in the Wait or Soak mode. Operation will resume once the Soak is satisfied. Expanding Blue circles Expanding Red circlesIndividual Hole To manually operate a given Hole Schedule, select the hole from the Program Tree by clicking on the Hole Schedule to highlight it.
Individual Station level To manually operate valves, click on the Hole Schedule of the hole from the Program Tree on the Map Screen Then click on the valve to be manually operated on the Course Map. EXAMPLE: We wish to operate Valve #1 on Greens #7 A drop-down screen will be displayed. Operation TIME will be displayed here.
The valve (Valve #1, on the Greens at Hole #7, of Course #1) will now be in operation. Expanding Red circle indicates valve is in operation Manual Program Starts via Program Detail From the tool bar on the Front Office screen, a Program may be started manually from the Program/Schedule Detail screen. Program icon Click on the Program icon located on the tool bar at the top of the Front Office screen.
The Program Detail screen will be displayed. To start a program, click to highlight it. For a specific schedule, click on the schedule button at the top-left of this screen, then highlight the schedule.
Manual Station starts via Monitor Log/DMA Monitor Log/DMA This feature may be accessed from the tool bar on the Front Office screen. Click the Monitor Log icon on the Tool Bar at the top of the Front Office screen. The Monitor/Log and Course Data Views screen will be displayed. Click on Course Monitor/DMA to select it. The Monitor/DMA screen will now be displayed If cell is Blue it indicates it is in the Soak mode. The Flow Bar on the Front Office screen will register that the station has started.
Simple-IRR Operations Simple IRR control: This button at the bottom of the Front Office allows the user to quickly write simple DMA Events for irrigation. Quick IRR control: This button quickly displays the QuickIRR programming screen and the Program/ Schedule Detail Window.
RainWatch RainWatch™ is an intelligent rainfall reaction system. Using a tipping bucket rain can and a pulse decoder, rainfall is monitored, measured and used as inputs to the RainWatch feature. With RainWatch, system irrigation will adjust to natural rainfall resulting in much more efficient operation. Using a RainWatch rain can, your central control can monitor rainfall and pause active irrigation when a specified threshold is reached.
long time like 12 or 24 hours. The purpose of this setting is to prevent rainfall accumulation over several days to cause rain can reactions. After setting the Rain Watch window, the remaining parameters must be set. These parameters are defined as follows: In/Pulse or mm/Pulse: This should be the depth of water each tip of the rain can represents.
At any time, rain can status can be monitored by clicking the RainWatch Status button found on both the WaterSaver screen and the System Settings window. The RainWatch status window shows the current status of any rain can. The figure above shows that Rain Can 1 has accumulated incremental rain of 0.05 inch, which exceeds the Pause Threshold of 0.04 inch, and the system is now in the Pause Mode. The timer currently has 15 minutes to go.
be set according to the parameter defined for this rain can and all subsequent automatic stats will be suppressed until the Rain Shutdown Timer expires. The Rain Shutdown Timer is cleared when System Mode is reset to Auto. The Rain counters however are preserved to prevent loss of collected rainfall. The entire RainWatch status can be cleared with the Reset button on the RainWatch Monitor screen or the "System Reset" button on the WaterSaver screen.
Appendix A System Settings icon The various System Settings may be accessed for review and/or for changing, by clicking the System Settings icon, located on the tool bar at the top of the Front Office screen. Click on the System Settings icon on the tool bar (Group 1). The System Settings screen for Hardware by default will be displayed.
Make sure that the word Direct appears in the top row of the large grid on the dialog. If you see something other than Direct, click on that cell, open the dropdown, and select Direct. Central Uses Multiple Boxes If you have more than one box defined in your system, you will need to use multiple COM ports on your computer.
International Settings This feature provides for selecting various languages and flow units and is accessed by clicking on the System Settings icon located on the tool bar of the Front Office (2) screen. Click on the International Settings icon at the top of the System settings screen. The Rain Bird Office Setup screen will now be displayed. You may change the Units of Measure and Language through this screen. (Click on the Select Language button to access the drop-down menu.).
user to change the Exposed Greens setting to 125% at some later date so all stations assigned to that item in the table will automatically be adjusted to 125%. In general, the instructions for editing These tables are described below: Click on the System Data Tables icon at the top of the System Settings screen. Click on the drop down arrow to choose the table desired. Make any changes and click OK.
Cycle Time Cycle time is used to help match the precipitation rate of sprinklers to the infiltration rate of the root zone. This setting is in minutes of cycle time and is typically used is response to permanent, physical characteristics of the site. For example, sprinklers located on a steep slope might need a shorter cycle time to prevent runoff from the slope. Cycle times are the maximum time in minutes that the station may run before it must pause and allow the water to percolate into the root zone.
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