User's Manual

FIELD SERVICE UNIT USER’S MANUAL

1.0

GENERAL

The Field Service Unit (FSU) is a 900MHz, spread spectrum transceiver used to communicate with

Independent Metering Unit (IMU) radios which are mounted on gas, water or electric utility meters.

Service personnel use the FSU to communicate configuration settings to an IMU and to read an IMU’s

status (e.g. meter count, alarms settings and number of transmissions sent). An external computer

controls the FSU via an RS-232 (DB-9) interface and 9Vdc power is supplied from a separate wall

transformer.

The external computer runs the proprietary Network Communication Test Tool (NCTT) software

which controls the FSU. NCTT has a pull-down menu listing the available commands that can be sent

to the FSU. When a command is selected, NCTT displays a window with blank fields prompting the

user to enter the appropriate parameters. Once the parameters are entered, the user selects the Transmit

soft button to command the FSU.

2.0

HARDWARE CONFIGURATION

Configure the FSU as follows:

Connect the “rubber duck” antenna (provided) to the TNC connector in the rear of the FSU.

Plug the power supply into 110VAC and insert the small connector into the DC receptacle in

the rear of the FSU.

The green Power LED should be illuminated. The yellow Transmit and green Receive LEDs

should be flashing.

Connect a DB-9 cable from the FSU to the computer’s serial communications port (RS-232).

Launch NCTT. The Transmit and Receive LEDs should stop flashing.

3.0

NETWORK COMMUNICATIONS TEST TOOL –GETTING STARTED

When NCTT is launched, the Incoming Data window will display a message indicating the FSU is

communicating with NCTT. This indicates that the FSU is properly configured.

To send commands to a particular IMU or to read the status of an IMU the target IMU’s serial number

must be entered into NCTT. This can be done two ways. If the serial number is known, enter it into

the SN filed in the Outgoing Data window. If the serial number is not known beforehand –for

instance, if an IMU’s serial number is not visible- an IMU can be queried for its serial number. NCTT

automatically enters the serial number when an IMU responds to the query.

PAGE 1
FIELD SERVICE UNIT USER’S MANUAL 1.0 GENERAL The Field Service Unit (FSU) is a 900MHz, spread spectrum transceiver used to communicate with Independent Metering Unit (IMU) radios which are mounted on gas, water or electric utility meters. Service personnel use the FSU to communicate configuration settings to an IMU and to read an IMU’s status (e.g. meter count, alarms settings and number of transmissions sent).
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To query an IMU for its serial number: 1. In the Device window, select the appropriate IMU type. 2. In the Message Type pull-down menu, select Query Serial Numbe rs. See figure 1. 3. In the Transmit window, select Wakeup/IMU and the appropriate channel number. 4. In the Transmit window, select Transmit to broadcast a request for a listening IMU’s serial number. It may be necessary to select Transmit a second time in the event an interfering radio signal was present.
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To command an IMU: 1. In the Message Type window select a command from the pull-down menu. See figure 2. 2. Enter the appropriate information in the Outgoing Data window. Notice that the target IMU’s serial number is displayed at the top of the window. If this serial number is not correct, the command will go to the wrong IMU. Re-select the desired IMU. 3. In the Transmit window, select Transmit. 4. In the Incoming Data window, an acknowledgement that the command was executed will be displayed.