Campbell Scientific CR6 CR6 Measurement and Control System - Page 368

Synchronizing Measurements

Page 368 highlights

Section 8. Operation 8.1.9 Synchronizing Measurements Reading List: • Synchronizing Measurements - Overview (p. 71) • Synchronizing Measurements - Details (p. 368) Timing of a measurement is usually controlled relative to the CR6 clock. When sensors in a sensor network are measured by a single CR6, measurement times are synchronized, often within a few milliseconds, depending on sensor number and measurement type. Large numbers of sensors, cable length restrictions, or long distances between measurement sites may require use of multiple CR6s. Techniques outlined below enable network administrators to synchronize CR6 clocks and measurements in a CR6 network. Care should be taken when a clock-change operation is planned. Any time the CR6 clock is changed, the deviation of the new time from the old time may be sufficient to cause a skipped record in data tables. Any command used to synchronize clocks should be executed after any CallTable() instructions and timed so as to execute well clear of data-output intervals. Techniques to synchronize measurements across a network include: 1. LoggerNet (p. 89) - when reliable telecommunications are common to all CR6s in a network, the LoggerNet automated clock check provides a simple time synchronization function. Accuracy is limited by the system clock on the PC running the LoggerNet server. Precision is limited by network transmission latencies. LoggerNet compensates for latencies in many telecommunication systems and can achieve synchronies of

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Section 8.
Operation
8.1.9
Synchronizing Measurements
Reading List:
Synchronizing Measurements — Overview
(p. 71)
Synchronizing Measurements — Details
(p. 368)
Timing of a measurement is usually controlled relative to the CR6 clock.
When
sensors in a sensor network are measured by a single CR6, measurement times are
synchronized, often within a few milliseconds, depending on sensor number and
measurement type.
Large numbers of sensors, cable length restrictions, or long
distances between measurement sites may require use of multiple CR6s.
Techniques outlined below enable network administrators to synchronize CR6
clocks and measurements in a CR6 network.
Care should be taken when a clock-change operation is planned.
Any time the
CR6 clock is changed, the deviation of the new time from the old time may be
sufficient to cause a skipped record in data tables.
Any command used to
synchronize clocks should be executed after any
CallTable()
instructions and
timed so as to execute well clear of data-output intervals.
Techniques to synchronize measurements across a network include:
1.
LoggerNet
(p. 89)
– when reliable telecommunications are common to all CR6s
in a network, the
LoggerNet
automated clock check provides a simple time
synchronization function.
Accuracy is limited by the system clock on the PC
running the
LoggerNet
server.
Precision is limited by network transmission
latencies.
LoggerNet
compensates for latencies in many telecommunication
systems and can achieve synchronies of <100 ms deviation.
Errors of 2 to 3
second may be seen on very busy RF connections or long distance internet
connections.
Note
Common PC clocks are notoriously inaccurate.
Information available at
gives some good pointers on
keeping PC clocks accurate.
2.
Digital trigger — a digital trigger, rather than a clock, can provide the
synchronization signal.
When cabling can be run from CR6 to CR6, each CR6
can catch the rising edge of a digital pulse from the Master CR6 and
synchronize measurements or other functions, using the
WaitDigTrig()
instructions, independent of CR6 clocks or data time stamps.
When programs
are running in pipeline mode, measurements can be synchronized to within a
few microseconds (see
WaitDigTrig Scans
(p. 158)
).
3.
PakBus commands — the CR6 is a PakBus device, so it is capable of being a
node in a PakBus network.
Node clocks in a PakBus network are
synchronized using the
SendGetVariable()
,
ClockReport()
, or
PakBusClock()
commands.
The CR6 clock has a resolution of 1 ms , which
is the resolution used by PakBus clock-sync functions.
In networks without
routers, repeaters, or retries, the communication time will cause an additional
error (typically a few 10s of milliseconds).
PakBus clock commands set the
time at the end of a scan to minimize the chance of skipping a record to a data
table.
This is not the same clock check process used by
LoggerNet
as it does
not use average round trip calculations to try to account for network
connection latency.
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