Discharge Diagnostics

User Guide
COMMANDbatch V1.05 & Later
2/22/10

Command Alkon Inc.

5168 Blazer Parkway
Dublin, Ohio 43017
1.800.624.1872
Fax: 614.793.0608
Part Number: 25354
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 Contents

Contents ........................................................................................ 3

Introduction .................................................................................. 4
Purpose ................................................................................................ 4
Audience ............................................................................................... 4
Revision Summary ................................................................................. 4

Discharge Diagnostics .................................................................... 6

Launching the Discharge Diagnostics Form ................................................ 7
Components of Discharge Diagnostics Form ............................................... 8
Zooming and Panning on Discharge Diagnostics ........................................ 10
Right Click Tools on Discharge Diagnostics ............................................... 11
Recording Discharge Diagnostics Data ..................................................... 12
Loading Previously Recorded Data .......................................................... 16

Index ........................................................................................... 18

2/22/10 3
 Introduction

Topics in This Section

Purpose
Audience
Revision Summary

Purpose
This manual explains how to use the Discharge Diagnostics graph to view
scale flow rates and IO states, raw counts of a metered feed device, and
changes in moisture while a bin is feeding.

Audience
This guide is intended to be used by Command Alkon installation and service
personnel, as well as plant personnel authorized to configure and use
COMMANDbatch.

Revision Summary

Date Version Revision

Aug. 1, 2005 V1.04 Document created.
Aug. 24, 2005 V1.04 Added screen example of right click menu from
Batch Graphics.
Sep. 14, 2005 V1.04 • Described components of Discharge Diagnostics
form (buttons, legend, and right-click tools).
• Reorganized sections in the document.
Sep. 20, 2005 V1.04 • Explained that three files are created (.DAT, .DIO,
and .IOL) when Discharge Diagnostics is run.
• Explained that you can also right click on
metered feed or extra device objects on Batch
Graphics to launch Discharge Diagnostics.
Sep. 23, 2005 V1.04 In the “Launching the Form” section removed the
verbiage about a load needing started before you
could launch the Discharge Diagnostics form.
Nov. 23, 2005 V1.04 Minor revisions per review by Service.
Dec. 4, 2005 V1.04 In the “Launching the Form” section, added info
about launching via Form > Run.
Jun. 29, 2006 V1.05 Updated this document to include diagnostics for
metered feed raw counts and bin moisture changes.

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 Jul. 10, 2006 V1.05 Revised the Overview section.
Mar. 8, 2007 V1.06 Improved Notes, Tips, Cautions, and Warinings with
better icons and formatting.
Oct. 14, 2008 V1.05 Changed the version number on the title page to
“V1.05 & Later” to reflect that no more content
changes have been made since V1.05.
Aug. 17,2009 V1.7.8.0 Added a cross-reference to the Flow Control Damp-
ening manual.
Feb. 22, 2010 V1.7.10.0 Revised screen examples to show the scale name in
the title bar of the Discharge Diagnostics form.

2/22/10 5
 Discharge Diagnostics

Using the Discharge Diagnostics form, authorized users can monitor scale flow
rates, moisture settings, and mixer relative power setpoints (for Auto-
Consistence). Data displayed on the graph depends on the device from which
the form was launched (scale, bin, or metered feed).
Information displayed on the graph can be saved for later retrieval. When you
save the data, three files are created: .DAT for flow rate; .DIO for IO point
plots; and .IOL for IO points. In addition, you can save an image of the graph
to a file (.bmp, .jpg, .png, etc.).

Topics in This Section

Launching the Discharge Diagnostics Form
Components of Discharge Diagnostics Form
Zooming and Panning on Discharge Diagnostics
Right Click Tools on Discharge Diagnostics
Recording Discharge Diagnostics Data
Loading Previously Recorded Data

See Also:
Flow_Control.pdf

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 Launching the Discharge Diagnostics Form
1. Launch the Discharge Diagnostics form one of the following ways:
• by right clicking on the device object (scale, bin, or metered feed) on
Batch Graphics and selecting “Discharge Diagnostics”.
• by right clicking the scale name on the Scales form and selecting
“Discharge Diagnostics”.
• by selecting Form > Run from the toolbar at the top of the
COMMANDbatch screen, selecting “DischargeDiagnostics” from the Select
Form window, and clicking OK.

Note: If launched via Form > Run, the Discharge Diagnostics form shows no data
or scale name until you load previously recorded data. To load the appropri-
ate data file. See Loading Previously Recorded Data.

For Scales:
The graph shows weigh up and discharge rates along with Gate Open, Gate
Closed, Vibrator and Hold IO events. Both manual and automatic feeds are
graphed.

For Bins:
The graph shows moisture readings if a probe is available.

For Metered Feeds:

The graph shows raw counts and may also be used to chart relative mixer
power with the auto-consistence feature.

2/22/10 7
 Components of Discharge Diagnostics Form
Components of the Discharge Diagnostics form are indicated on the screen
example below and described in more detail after that.
Discharge Diagnostics Form

Legend
Legend at Top of Form

Because the IO states are plotted, the legend at the top of the form provides
a description of the icons used for these states.

• When an IO is on, the icon is filled in with color:

• When an IO is off, the icon is outlined with color:

• The same icons and colors are used for scales, bins, and mixers.
• If IO points are added to a device, corresponding icons are automatically
added to the legend at the top of the form.

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 X- and Y- Axis
IO states are plotted on a 2-dimensional graph with the appropriate reading
plotted along the vertical (Y) axis and elapsed time along the horizontal (X)
axis. For scales, flow rate is plotted along the Y axis; for bins, moisture
percentage is plotted; and for Auto-Consistence, mixer relative power is
plotted.
The intersection of the X and Y values is the data point.

Buttons
Buttons at Bottom of Form

Button Description
Click this button to start recording data if
recording was previously stopped. When
you click the button, it becomes grayed out.
Start Recording Data
When you launch Discharge Diagnostics, it
automatically starts recording data and the
button is grayed out.
Click this button to stop recording data.
Stop Recording Data When you click the button, it becomes
grayed out.
Click this button to save recorded data to a
file that you name. By default, the file is
Log Data
saved under “My Documents” on the C:
drive, but you can select another location.
Click this button to select and load previ-
ously recorded scale flow data that was
saved to a file. By default, the Select a Data
Load Data
File window points to “My Documents” on
the C: drive, but you can select another
location.
Click this button to clear the form so you
can start recording new data on a new time
scale (starting at 0.0). You can only click
Clear Grid
this button when data is not being recorded.
While data is being recorded, the button is
grayed out.

2/22/10 9
 Zooming and Panning on Discharge Diagnostics
You can make an area of the graph larger (to make it easier to see details) by
zooming in on the area.

To zoom in on a region:

1. Place the cursor (becomes a crosshair “+”) at the top left of the
desired region.

2. Hold down on the left mouse button and drag down and to the
right over the region to enclose it in a rectangle.
3. Release the left mouse button when the rectangle encloses the
region.
4. If the region is not correctly zoomed, right click on the graph and
select “Un-Zoom” to go back to the original graph and draw
another rectangle.

Panning allows you to see areas of the graph that don’t fit in the graph area.

To pan in any direction (left, right, up, down):

1. Place the mouse cursor anywhere on the graph. It becomes a

crosshair “ +”.
2. While holding down on the <Shift> key and left mouse button
simultaneously, drag the graph in the appropriate direction until
it reveals the hidden part of the graph you want to view. (Note:
The mouse cursor becomes a hand icon .)
3. Release both the <Shift> key and the left mouse button when you
see the region you want to view.

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 Right Click Tools on Discharge Diagnostics
Copy
Right click anywhere on the diagnostics graph and select “Copy” to copy the
current graph to the clipboard so you can paste it into a document.

Save Image As...

Right click anywhere on the diagnostics graph and select “Save Image As...”
to save the current graph to an image file (.png, .gif, .jpg, .tif, or .bmp). The
file location defaults to “My Documents” on the C: drive, but you can select
another location.

Show Point Values

Right click anywhere on the diagnostics graph and select “Show Point Values”
so that the X and Y values for a data point are displayed in a tool tip when you
hover the mouse cursor over the data point.
Example: (2411.25, 20)
Where:
2411.25 is the elapsed time in 10ths of seconds, meaning this value
actually equals 241.125 seconds; and
20 is the flow rate in scale units per second.

Un-Zoom
If you previously zoomed in on a region of the graph, you can zoom back out
to the graph’s original size by right clicking anywhere on the graph and
selecting “Un-Zoom”.

Un-Pan
If you previously panned in any direction to view a portion of the graph not
visible in the current view, you can go back to the graph’s original view by
right clicking anywhere on the graph and selecting “Un-Pan”.

2/22/10 11
 Recording Discharge Diagnostics Data
The follow example shows how to record scale flow rate data. The process
would be similar for recording bin moisture or mixer relative power, except
you would launch Discharge Diagnostics from the bin device or metered feed
device, respectively.

1. Launch the Discharge Diagnostics form one of the following ways:

• Right click on a bin, silo, scale, metered feed, or extra device object on
Batch Graphics and select “Discharge Diagnostics”.
• Right click on the Scale field on the Scales form and select “Discharge
Diagnostics”.

Note: The Discharge Diagnostics form will not display data unless a batch is
in progress.

Discharge Diagnostics - no data

Once a load is started, the form looks something like the following screen
example, which shows the scale’s flow rates and IO states during
weighup and discharge.

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 Discharge Diagnostics - live data

— The area above the zero horizontal line pertains to weighup. The
area below the line pertains to discharge.

— The positive flow rate belongs to the device feeding into the Cem
Scale.

— The negative flow rate belongs to the Cem scale while it is

discharging.
2. When enough data has been plotted on the graph to analyze, click
the “Log Data” button at the bottom of the Discharge Diagnostics
form. A window similar to the following is displayed.
Save data to file window

2/22/10 13
 — By default data will be saved to the “My Documents” folder on the C:
drive, but you can type in another drive letter and file path. By
default, flow rate data is saved to a .dat file (example:
CemScale.dat).
3. Click the “Save” button.

— This saves flow rate data to the file as confirmed by a “File Saved!”
message. Two other files are also created: one with the .DIO
extension for IO point plots; and another with the .IOL for IO points.

Note: If the amount of data exceeds 10,000 data points, a message informs
you that only the first 10,000 data points will be saved.

4. To save a copy of the current graph as an image, right click

anywhere on the graph and select “Save Image As...”. A window
similar to the following one is displayed.
Save Image As window

• In the “File name” box, enter a file name.

• In the “Save as type” box, select a file type (.bmp, .jpg, .png, etc.).
• To save the file in a location besides the default (“My Documents” on the
C: drive), navigate to the new location.

Tip!

Click the button at the top of the Save As window then double
click on “My Computer” to see a list of available drives.

• Click Save.
5. If you want to resume recording scale data, click the “Start
Recording Data” button.

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 6. If you want to stop recording scale data, click the “Stop
Recording Data” button.
7. If you are finished recording and want to close the form, click the
‘X’ in the top right corner.

2/22/10 15
 Loading Previously Recorded Data
1. Launch the Discharge Diagnostics form one of the following ways:
• by right clicking on the device object on Batch Graphics and selecting
“Discharge Diagnostics”.
• by right clicking the scale name on the Scales form and selecting
“Discharge Diagnostics”.
• by selecting Form > Run from the toolbar at the top of the
COMMANDbatch screen, selecting “DischargeDiagnostics” from the Select
Form window, and clicking OK.

Note: If launched via Form > Run, the Discharge Diagnostics form shows no
data or scale name until you load previously recorded data.

Discharge Diagnostics - no data

2. Click the “Load Data” button at the bottom of the form.

A window like the following appears so you can select the file to load.

16 2/22/10
 Select a Data File window

3. Select the data file (the default file type is .dat) and click Open.
The data is plotted on the Discharge Diagnostics graph.

2/22/10 17
 Index

D
Discharge Diagnostics
Form Components 8
Launching the Form 7
Right Click Tools 11
To Load Previously Recorded Data 16
To Record Discharge Diagnostics Data 12
Zooming and Panning 10
I
Introduction
Audience 4
Purpose 4
Revision Summary 4

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