SOP BCC Winter Mode Control

From PTAGISWiki

	Standard Operating Procedure
Subject:	SOP BCC Winter Mode Control
Author:	Troy Humphrey
Approved by:	S.Livingston 12/22/08

Contents 1 Objective 2 Scope 3 Responsibilities 4 Procedure 4.1 Local Control 4.2 Remote 5 References

Objective

The objective of this SOP is to give the read a step by step process for invoking 'Winter Mode' and turning off 'Winter Mode' based on the operating condition of the BCC site (Bonneville Corner Collector).

Scope

The BCC Channel contains a large antenna which is hollow on the inside. A pair of dehumidifiers control the humidity inside the antenna during normal operation. Normal operation, meaning the channel is watered up and the antenna transceiver is in scan mode. The dehumidifiers control the humidity by circulating the air in the antenna and passing it through a desiccant wheel. The desiccant wheel draws out the moisture in the air. When the humidity goes above the normal control threshold a heater comes on and dries out the desiccant wheel so that it is once again capable of drawing moister from the circulating air. Maintaining a humidity of at least 65% RH but no more than 70% is important to the operation of the transceiver as there is a concern that with lower humidity's the antenna may be susceptible to internal arcing. If the humidity is too high it will also degrade the performance of the transceiver.

When the channel dewaters for the winter there is concern that water trapped under the antenna may freeze. Winter Mode changes the way the dehumidifiers are controlled in an attempt to keep the antenna warm and reduce the chance of damage due to freezing. When Winter Mode is on the dehumidifier controls change in that instead of trying to control humidity they try and control temperature. The heaters dis-regard the humidity and look to the temperature for their control set point. If the temperature is below 70 DEG F the heater of the unit running will be on and if the temperature is above 70 DEG F the heater will be off. When the heater is on the humidity inside the antenna drops into single digits, an environment that is not ideal for reading PITTAGS. Consequently Winter Mode needs to be turned off when the channel is watered up and the transceiver is put into scan.

Responsibilities

PSMFC personnel are responsible for turning Winter Mode on or off based on the operation of the Corner Collector and the BCC transceiver.

Procedure

Local Control

1. The PV700 is located in the mechanical build adjacent to the PITTAG Room. The Winter Mode controls are on a page that is password protected and requires logging in from the Process Overview page. If the screen saver is on touch the screen. If the display below isn't the display you see then navigate to it by pressing the PROCESS OVERVIEW button from whatever screen you may be on.

   
   

   
   PROCESS OVERVIEW SCREEN

   
   

   • From the Process Overview screen press the LOG IN button
   • Type in the user name and press enter.
   • Type in the password and press enter.
   • You should now be logged in and returned to the Process Overview screen.
2. Once you are properly logged in you will touch the MAIN button on the screen to take you to the Main screen.

   
   

   
   MAIN SCREEN

   
   

3. From the Main screen you will then navigate the the Heaters Control screen by pressing the HEATERS button on the MAIN screen.

   
   

   
   HEATERS CONTROL SCREEN

   
   

4. From the Heaters Control screen you can turn Winter Mode on or off. If Winter Mode is off the push button below the heading PUSH TO SELECT MODE will be dark blue and display the text NORMAL MODE. If Winter Mode is on the push button will be bright green with the text WINTER MODE.
5. Once you push the button the mode will change and so will the color of the button and the text inside the button. The above graphics show Winter Mode to be off.

Remote

Winter Mode can be turned on or off remotely. The user will need VPN access and know the IP address of the Web Port.

1. Establish your VPN connection.
2. Open a web browser and type in the ip address of the Web Port.
3. The following log in screen should appear.

   
   

   
   WEB PORT LOGIN SCREEN

   
   

4. Enter the user name: ptagis
5. Enter the password: usual pw associated with ptagis
6. Click Enter and the following page should appear.

   
   

   
   WEB PORT INITIAL SCREEN

   
   

7. From this screen click on VIEW I/O and the following screen should appear.

   
   

   
   WEB PORT I/O SCREEN

   
   

8. From this screen select System from the pull down to right of the text Page: and then click on Update.

   
   

   
   WEB PORT SYSTEM SCREEN

   
   

9. Under the Value column in the row WINTER_MODE_ON there will be a 1 or a 0.
   • If Winter Mode is on there will be a 1
   • If Winter Mode is off there will be a 0
10. To change the state of Winter Mode you will have to select a 1 or a 0 from the pull down in the New Value column from the WINTER_MODE_ON row.(See arrow on above graphic)
11. Once you have selected the value you will need to click Update located to the right of the pull down you just used to select the Winter Mode status.

    
    

    
    WEB PORT SYSTEM SCREEN

    
    

12. Once you have clicked update you will have to click the Update located to the right of Page:System on the upper menu bar to verify the new state of Winter Mode.
13. The new state of Winter Mode should be displayed in the Value column of the WINTER_MODE_ON row.
14. Click on Log off in the upper right hand corner.
15. Close the browser and shut down your VPN connection.
16. You should receive an email from BCC Pit event stating that the Winter Mode was turned off or on.

References

PSMFC Kennewick Field Office (509)735-2773