MTI Part Number 7001-0013
Revision 1.1 – December 7, 2012
Tachometer Signal Viewer
Software Manual
This document discloses subject matter in which MTI Instruments Inc. has proprietary rights and such subject matter shall not, without
written permission of MTI Instruments Inc. be either
(a) used, released, or disclosed in whole or in part
(b) used in whole or in part for manufacture.
This legend shall be marked on any reproduction hereof in whole or in part.
MTI Instruments, Inc.
325 Washington Avenue Extension, Albany, New York 12205 USA
MTI Part Number 7001-0013
Revision – 1.1
Released December 7, 2012
Tachometer Data Viewer
Software Manual
325 Washington Avenue Extension, Albany, New York 12205 USA
█ Phone: (518) 218-2550 █ FAX: (518) 218-2506
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TABLE OF CONTENTS
Section Page
FOREWORD................................................................................... iii
1 SOFTWARE INSTALLATION.................................................1-1
2 OPERATING INSTRUCTIONS...............................................2-1
2-1 Functional Overview ..............................................................2-1
2-2 Controls Overview..................................................................2-2
2-3 Individual Controls.................................................................2-3
2-3.1 Status and Information Windows ........................................2-3
2-3.2 Controls and Function Buttons .............................................2-5
OPEN FILE Button ....................................................................2-5
CLEAR Button ...........................................................................2-7
ZOOM OUT Button....................................................................2-8
ZOOM Control ...........................................................................2-9
ZOOM OUT Button..................................................................2-11
RESET ZOOM Button ..............................................................2-11
SAVE AS WAV FILE Button ....................................................2-12
PLAY WAV FILE Button..........................................................2-16
SAVE AS TXT FILE Button...................................................... 2-18
EXIT Button.............................................................................2-22
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FOREWORD
This manual provides instructions for the installation and use of the Tachometer Signal Viewer Software
package. This package has been developed to allow the viewing, analysis and conversion of digitized
tachometer signals acquired by various products sold by MTI Instruments. These products include, but
are not limited to PBS-4100+ portable systems, PBS-4100R+ test cell systems and TSC-4800A tachometer
signal conditioning systems. Each of these systems employ digital processor based speed signal
conversion circuits that feature a unique ability to digitize and save the raw speed signal. These files,
saved in a special format, can be viewed and studied using the Tachometer Signal Viewer Software you
have just received. Additionally, the Tachometer Data Viewer software allows the re-formatting of the
tachometer data into WAV files which can be played by audio players for additional analysis and testing.
The Tachometer Data Viewer Software also support the conversion of the files into TXT format for use by
other software programs such as Microsoft’s EXCEL.
The information and instructions contained within this manual are arranged as follows:
1. Section 1 explains how to install the Tachometer Signal Viewer Software on your
windows based computer.
2. Section 2 contains instructions for using the Tachometer Signal Viewer Software.
NOTICE
The Tachometer Signal Viewer Software is compatible with the data structures utilized by the various
products in the PBS-4100 family of engine balancing and vibration monitoring products manufactured by
MTI Instruments Inc. Consequently, references made to the PBS-4100, PBS-4100
+
, PBS-4100R
+
, or PBS-
4100R, and not specifically to the TSC-4800A should not be considered as typographical or technical
errors.
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SECTION 1
SOFTWARE INSTALLATION
1-1 SOFTWARE INSTALLATION PROCEDURE
The Tachometer Signal Viewer Software package can be easily loaded from the provided CD.
As illustrated below, the CD includes not only the Tachometer Signal Viewer software files to be
loaded, but also a PDF copy of this manual and a copy of the ACROBAT reader software for
those without a copy on their computer.
To install the software package, insert the CD into your computer CD drive, using Windows
Explorer open the CD and run the
SETUP.EXE
file.
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As the software begins to load, you will first be greeted with the loading introduction display
illustrated below:
Press the
NEXT
button to continue to the Software License Agreement display.
Press the
YES
button to agree to the License agreement and to continue with the loading
process.
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As the software begins to load, the loading progress display illustrated below will be presented.
At the conclusion of the loading process, the loading complete message will be displayed as
illustrated here.
Click on the
FINISH
button, and then remove the CD from the CD drive and place it in a secure
place.
Installation of the software has been successfully completed.
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Tachometer Signal Viewer Software
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SECTION 2
OPERATING INSTRUCTIONS
2-1 FUNCTIONAL OVERVIEW
The Tachometer Signal Viewer Software package features a series of different functions
designed to allow users to view, analyze and re-format acquired tachometer data from other
systems. These systems, such as the TSC-4800A have the capability to sample speed signals
using a high speed A/D converter and save the raw data in a special format. These files are
saved with the DAT extension, and are typically saved with labels such as:
Tach1-2010042211071500.DAT.
The Tachometer Signal Viewer Software allows users to:
View the Speed Signal – The Tachometer Signal Viewer Software
package presents an oscilloscope-like view of the raw data signal.
View the conditioned Output pulses – The tachometer signal
conditioning card that produced the DAT file also produces a conditioned
output pulse for every cycle of the speed signal, or for every revolution of
the engine, depending upon the nature of the speed signal and the
programming of the conditioner card. The Tachometer Signal Viewer
Software package presents an oscilloscope-like view of the conditioned
output pulses along with the raw data signal.
ZOOM for improved viewing and analysis of the data – The
Tachometer Signal Viewer Software permits zooming into the data for
clearer views of individual cycles of the speed signal. Forward and
reverse zooming is supported.
Convert the Data files to WAV files – The Tachometer Signal Viewer
Software also supports conversion of the DAT file into a WAV file. The
WAV files can then be played on an audio player to provide “simulated
speed signals for testing other system components or new conversion and
detection algorithms.
Play converted WAV files – The Tachometer Signal Viewer Software
also includes a special WAV file player that allows continuous looping of
WAV files. This can be used to provide a non-stop stream of audio data
which is useful for system testing.
Convert the Data files to TEXT files – The Tachometer Signal Viewer
Software also supports conversion of the DAT file into a TEXT file. The
TEXT files can then be analyzed and graphed by using other programs
such as Microsoft EXCEL.
The following sections describe how to use each of the capabilities of the Tachometer Signal
Viewer Software package.
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2-2 Controls Overview – As a part of loading the Tachometer Signal Viewer Software on
your PC computer, an icon was saved to the desktop for easy starting of the program. This icon
appears as illustrated below:
If an Icon was not placed on the desktop, the program can be found at:
C:\PBS\TachViewer\TachViewer.exe
After launching the program, the main display screen will be produced as illustrated below:
Tachometer Signal Viewer Software Main Display
Note that the display consists of a large graph area where the actual speed signal data will be
displayed. This graph area displays the signal using an oscilloscope style display where the
vertical axis is voltage and the horizontal axis is in units of time.
There are control buttons along the right side of the display to allow changes to the data display
and to convert the data into other formats. These buttons and controls are explained in the
following sections.
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2-3 Individual Controls– As can be seen on the illustration below, there are several different
buttons and display areas surrounding the display grid. The following paragraphs will explain
the purposes and uses for each of these items.
2-3.1 – Status and Information Windows – The status and Information windows appear
along the bottom of the display, and show information concerning the currently selected
tachometer signal file. The illustration and text below explains the information displayed in
each of the windows.
Selected Tachometer Channel – This area reports the assigned channel number from which
the raw tachometer waveform data was recovered. All PBS-4100 and TSC-4800A systems have
assigned tachometer channel numbers (generally running from 1 to 4). In the example above,
the data was acquired from Channel 1 (Tach=1).
Conditioner Data Filter Setting – Each tachometer conditioner channel has a low pass filter
that can be set to a variety of different frequencies. This window reports the setting of the filter
at the time the raw signal data was collected. In the above example, the filter was set to 5,000
Hz.
Input Configuration – Each tachometer conditioner channel can have its input configuration
set to either differential or single ended. In the above example, the input channel was set to a
differential configuration.
Measured Speed – This area displays the measured speed at the time the data was acquired.
In the example above the measured speed is reported to be 4,167 RPM.
Speed Signal Graph – The captured tachometer signal is graphed using a green color line.
This time/voltage display provides an accurate illustration of the sampled signal.
Output Pulses – If the tachometer signal conditioner has produced one or more output pulses,
they will be displayed along the bottom of the graph as a second signal using a red colored line.
The timing relationships between the measured speed signal and the output pulses are
maintained.
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Cursor Position Readout – Located in the upper left corner of the graph is a readout of the
current cursor (pointer) position. Two numbers are displayed as illustrated below. One reports
the time axis position of the pointer, and the second number displays the voltage level of the
cursor position.
Time Voltage
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2-3.2 – Control and Function Buttons – Along the right side of the Tachometer Signal
Viewer Display are buttons that activate various functions. As illustrated below, when the
program is first launched, only two of the buttons are activated. The following paragraphs
explain the functions of each button.
OPEN FILE Button – This button is used to initiate a data viewing session. Pressing the
button will produce a file browsing window as illustrated below. Use this browser to designate
the source of the DAT file that contains the raw signal data.
When the desired DAT file has been located, the name can be entered.
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As illustrated below, when selecting the desired DAT file, the specific file can be highlighted.
Pressing the
Open
button, starts the file reading process and the display is refreshed with a
view of the selected data as illustrated below.
Note that 20 milliseconds of the data file will be displayed. This is a default time base which
has been selected to display “a reasonable amount” of the acquired speed signal data. 20
milliseconds corresponds to a 50 Hz signal which is in the range of most speed signals. Using
the control buttons and the zoom controls that are explained in the following sections, more or
fewer data samples can be viewed.
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CLEAR Button – This button is used to “erase” the current display as illustrated below. After
pressing the
CLEAR
button, all data is removed from the internal buffers, and the viewer is
ready to open another data set.
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ZOOM OUT Button – This button is used to change the view of the data on the display. Most
DAT files contain approximately 20 million data samples of the tachometer signal which will
represent many cycles of the tachometer signal. The Tachometer Signal Viewer can display all
of this data or only a portion of the data. Pressing the
ZOOM OUT
button displays all of the
collected data as illustrated below.
This view is limited in its usefulness because too much data has been displayed. Although it
illustrates that many cycles of data were captures, the specific nature of the signal is not clear.
To better view the data, the ZOOM controls need to be used.
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ZOOM CONTROL – The zoom control is not a button function, it is a mouse function that can
provide the viewer with a closer view of individual cycles of the speed data. The zoom control is
accomplished by drawing a box in the data display area. This process is explained in the
following steps:
Start with the multiple cycle view as illustrated above.
Next, use the mouse to click in the graph area just to the left of where you want the zoom
region to begin.
Hold the left mouse button down and drag the pointer (magnifying glass icon ) to the right.
This action will create a rectangular box that outlines the area that will be magnified. Note that
any horizontal motion of the mouse from the starting point will create a rectangular shaped
selection area.
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