It’s been a year since I last released an update to the manual. There has been a lot of updates since last year. I finally finished it and here is the file:
I included detailed descriptions of how the optional analog and digital inputs and addon boards work on the basic adapters. There are also two one-page descriptions to easily print out and refer to. Photos were added and updated. More information about deploying your logger has been added. I’ll make an effort to update my manuals twice a year to reflect changes more frequently.
I have recently received a few comments regarding the SDI-12 USB adapter’s terminals being too small. As a matter of fact, they are not big. They are 2.54mm (0.1″) pitch terminals. On the other hand, they can comfortable accept wires as thick as 18 AWG. I’ve rarely seen sensor cables having wires thicker than 20 AWG. Larger gauges are thinner so 18>20>22>24, AWG-wise. Also, if you have wire leads that are not tinned, you should twist the wire strands and tin the leads before inserting them into terminal blocks.
Still, having wider pitch makes it easier to insert the wire leads, including power and ground for the external power if you need that. So I made an update with 3.5mm (0.1385″) pitch terminals. I really like the size of the board and the mounting hole positions have not been changed since I made these square boards. I would like to keep them unchanged for past customers who may rely on the size to make more loggers. So here is an updated version board view (top) vs. current version (bottom):
The new 3.5mm pitch terminals will hang over the edge of the board a bit but fit the same board, after I moved the external power jumper a bit. To save space, I used a 2-pole terminal for the external power connector instead of 3-pole. The 3.5mm terminals can accept up t o16 AWG wires. I will print this board out during my next board order, which is probably a month from now. If you care to give me your opinion, please use the poll below, leave me a message, or write me a private email to zliudr@gmail.com. I will print this board on paper and make a mock-up to compare side-by-side with the current version. There is no reason both versions can’t coexist.
I also considered 5.07mm (0.2″) pitch terminals but they are just way too big to secure sensors with thinner wires. Let me know if you are interested in having this 3.5mm terminal version and why. If there is enough interest, I’ll make a batch or two.
I have a photo of 2.54mm vs. 3.5mm vs 5.07mm terminals:
2.54mm terminals are narrower than 3.5mm terminals. 5.07mm terminals are both wider and taller than the smaller versions. These are the most common terminal sizes on circuit boards.
Last year’s demo logger data stream was very successful. It demonstrated the stability of my SDI-12 adapters for long-term data logging. It ran between June and October (Minnesota is cold) for 124 days. Except for occasional power outage at my house, the logger was running without a problem using the 1.5.0 logging script. This year I updated the logging script to 1.6.0 and have got a CCTV power bank to use as a backup power supply in case of power outage.
Here is a battery similar to mine that is sold on amazon.com:
The nice thing about this battery is that it gets charged via the 12V power barrel and discharged via the USB connector while it is charged. Most power banks can only be charged or discharged but not both. This one does them simultaneously. It is always charged to full when there is power in the AC. The USB port always has 5V power either from the AC or from its internal battery. Essentially this is a cheap Uninterruptible Power Supply. There is no surge protection except if your power strip has it. It is also very compact. I’ll embed it in an enclosure for a more complete enclosed logger later this month.
I expect to see next to zero down time due to this battery. This is also great for the raspberry pi since every time it loses power it could corrupt the SD card a little.
Here is the first day of data. We had some rain in the afternoon.
