Installation and first launch of P-Sea Windplot II

  1. Obtain the latest version of Windplot II from P-Sea. Note: Do not get WindPlot MAX, WindPlot II 3D or WindView II 3D as those are not what we use.
  2. Install WindPlot II as one would any typical Windows program, accepting all defaults. (Administrator privleges may be required.)
  3. When the first portion of the installation completes, the installer will ask to restart the PC. Do this; when the PC has restarted, drivers for the USB dongle driver will be installed.
    Note: Some errors may appear during the installation of the USB dongle driver. It seems that the dongle works fine in spite of this.
  4. Ensure the USB dongle is plugged-in before starting WindPlot II.

Connecting to the Radar

Before connecting to the Radar Sensor Control Box for normal operation, the IP address on the DAQ PC's PCI Ethernet card must be set to 10.5.142.32, with network mask 255.255.255.0. Also, the Radar Sensor Control Box must be configured with IP 10.5.142.30. This may be done as described in the RSCB IP Setup section.

Steps to connect to and configure the radar:

  1. Turn on the RSCB. The RSCB must be on for about one minute before starting Windplot II.
  2. Start P-Sea Windplot II. Insert instructions about getting through the initial screen. If necessary, open the RadarPC overlay by selecting it from the Options menu.

RSCB IP Setup

If it is not possible to connect to the Radar Sensor Control Box, or if connecting to the RSCB for the first time, it may be necessary to re-set its IP address.

If you are able to connect to the RSCB with its existing IP address, skip to step #7, and stop at step ???.

Steps to reset the IP address on the RSCB:

  1. Disconnect power to the RSCB.
  2. Remove the cover from the Radar Sensor Control Box. Locate the SI-TEX-IF card, and remove it.
  3. Locate the DIP switches on the control board, as shown in this picture.
  4. During normal operation, all the DIP switches should be off. However, to put the RSCB in RESET mode, turn on switch #8.
  5. Replace the SI-TEX-IF card and all internal cabling to their previous positions. Replace the cover of the RSCB. (Do not tighten the screws at this time, as it will be opened again soon.) Ensure the crossover Ethernet cable is snugly connected to the RSCB's Ethernet jack and the DAQ PC's PCI Ethernet card.
  6. Set the IP of the DAQ PC's PCI Ethernet card to 192.168.0.5, subnet mask 255.255.255.0.
  7. Apply power to the RSCB. After one minute, start P-Sea Windplot II. Unless this is the first time
When then RSCB is in RESET mode, the IP is forced to be 192.168.0.xxx, where xxx is 1 plus the binary number created using DIP switches 2-6. For example, if switches 8, 4, and 3 are on, then switches 2-6 would make the binary number 00110 (switch 1 being the rightmost switch), or decimal 6. Thus the IP would be 192.168.0.7. For the purposes of this instruction set, set only switch 8, with all others off.
DIP switch 7 is unused, and DIP switch 1 enables the DHCP client on the RSCB. Use of the RSCB with the DHCP client enabled is not fully understood at this time, so switches 1 and 7 are always set to OFF.