Topic: Vantage Vue Console logger pinout

[af4ex]

@DeKay
> WiFi XBees ...
Yes, very nifty, much greater bandwidth and same board footprint. But how does that help us in interfacing with the 19kb Davis boxes? Which the regular XBees seem to handle perfectly.

I was wondering if this would basically work as a serial to wifi adapter, much like the USB to serial converter.  One XBee on the console end and just a computer on the other, communicating through a wireless router.  The XBee seems to take care of bundling the serial bits into TCP/IP packets in its transparent mode.  Page 25 of the product manual says...

When operating in transparent mode, the modules act as a serial line replacement. All
UART data received is queued up for RF transmission. When RF data is received, the
data is sent out through the UART.

Yes, it can provide the same serial 'transparency' as the regular XBee's, but with much greater bandwidth, way above 1Mbps as I recall. But since the Davis boxes communicate at a meager 19kb, this extra bandwidth capability would be wasted. Right?

[johnd]

WiFi XBees!

These just came out. 

Looks like these might be excellent value. But, low cost aside, aren't these effectively just another WiFi device server. Or am I missing something?

[af4ex]

@johnd
> ... aren't these effectively just another WiFi device server. Or am I missing something?

I'm not sure what Digi's market goal is for these devices. They apparently default to transparent UART mode, just like we're using the regular XBee's. But they have other programmable modes too, so perhaps intended for inclusion in WiFi-enabled products as OEM parts. Or perhaps serve as an Internet bridge to link XBee-Pro networks to wider area networks.

[DeKay]

Yes, it can provide the same serial 'transparency' as the regular XBee's, but with much greater bandwidth, way above 1Mbps as I recall. But since the Davis boxes communicate at a meager 19kb, this extra bandwidth capability would be wasted. Right?

It isn't the bandwidth that interests me, it is the flexibility.  I think that if you have one of these and forward a port on the router, that you could then access the console from any computer anywhere anytime without having a computer running 24x7 at home.

I think.

[af4ex]

> ... forward a port on the router, that you could then access the console
> from any computer anywhere anytime without having a computer running
> 24x7 at home.

A virtual serial connection, interesting. But it still has to follow the old serial port rules, connect to only one device at a time etc. And you'd probably need some minimal processor (Atmel maybe) running in the background to set it up and provide control.

Not a whole lot of documentation available on this yet. Here's what I found at the Digi site:
http://ftp1.digi.com/support/temp/XBee%20Wi-Fi%20Beta/

[johnd]

@johnd
> ... aren't these effectively just another WiFi device server. Or am I missing something?

I'm not sure what Digi's market goal is for these devices. They apparently default to transparent UART mode, just like we're using the regular XBee's. But they have other programmable modes too, so perhaps intended for inclusion in WiFi-enabled products as OEM parts. Or perhaps serve as an Internet bridge to link XBee-Pro networks to wider area networks.

Ok, but that's answering a slightly different question. So the XBee-Pro may potentially offer more flexible network configuration, but most people (individual users at least, if not oems) will probably use them as simple serial-to-WiFi network access points. So, in this more limited role and in the context of Vantage consoles, do the XBPs offer anything that other WiFi serial device servers do not (other than being cheaper, which is of course a big plus, although they will typically need to be mounted inside a case or some other hardware for any serious application, which is a small extra cost and hassle)?

[DeKay]

And you'd probably need some minimal processor (Atmel maybe) running in the background to set it up and provide control.

Why would this be?  There is an initial setup of the module needing a PC, of course, but it isn't clear to me why I'd need a processor running continually in the background if I am not interested in anything but current weather conditions.

[af4ex]

> Why would this be?

Just guessing here, but I suppose primarily to handle user interaction with the device, turning it on and off, changing virtual parameters, handling error conditions etc. Unless that's all built into the device and/or defined via XCTU. I don't really know.

We don't need that for the UART because the FDTI chip handles the connection for us, which can only be established for the connection defined by XCTU, and once it's made, no further adjustments are necessary or allowed, e.g. you can't change the baud rate or endpoint users while it's in operation.

But in the webosphere, 'connections' technically don't exist, they mostly appear as 'restful', stateless HTTP transactions, which means the actual serial connections have to managed somewhere, under the hood (in cookies and server/client caching etc).

[corwyyn]

Hey all, just wanted to drop in and let you know there is another homebrew wireless link up and running.  I have been following this thread for a couple of months and finally gathered all of the pieces to assemble my xBee link; actually I had assembled one a couple of weeks ago but the two mini connectors for the console (assembled following af4ex's posts on page two) kept having problems so I bit the bullet and ordered a 2mm pitch 20-pin connector from digi-key.  I don't have any photos of the units right now but I'll try to get some up soon.  Thanks to everyone who contributed time, effort and info on this project - it was a bit frustrating but a whole lot of fun , especially when the data started showing in Cumulus.  Now to get the web page up and running 

[af4ex]

@corwyyn
> ... - it was a bit frustrating but a whole lot of fun , especially when the data
>  started showing in Cumulus.  Now to get the web page up and running  ...

Congrats! Welcome to the Davis Homebrew Serial Interface Club. Let us know when you get the web page up. I'm using Cumulus too, so let us know if you encounter any difficulties.

And don't forget to forward your reports to CWOP, which will provide more outlets for viewing your data as well as making it available for mesoscale forecasting.

Here's my latest CWOP data on findu.com:
http://www.findu.com/cgi-bin/wxpage.cgi?call=AF4EX

[hazyarc]

Hi All, new member to forum here.  I'm just about to bite the bullet and purchase a Vantage Vue from Amazon (they have a sale going on!) and have been reading this thread with great interest.  If I'm interested in a simple, USB connection to my PC and start gathering data in Cumulus, from what I've gathered, I would need

http://search.digikey.com/scripts/DkSearch/dksus.dll?Detail&name=952-1361-5-nd

and

http://www.sparkfun.com/products/9717

Is this correct?  Thanks!

[af4ex]

Hi All, new member to forum here.  I'm just about to bite the bullet and purchase a Vantage Vue from Amazon (they have a sale going on!) and have been reading this thread with great interest.  If I'm interested in a simple, USB connection to my PC and start gathering data in Cumulus, from what I've gathered, I would need

http://search.digikey.com/scripts/DkSearch/dksus.dll?Detail&name=952-1361-5-nd

and

http://www.sparkfun.com/products/9717

Is this correct?  Thanks!

Yes. I believe several forum members have succeeded recently with that arrangement. Seems to be the simplest and most reliable solution to the problem. Please post your results here, successful or otherwise, so that we all can learn from your experience (and help you out if you run into difficulty).

Thanks,
John/af4ex

[hazyarc]

Thank you...will do.  

I think I may need a little clarification on the connection to the console though.  Once I receive the connector from Digikey and the modified cable from Sparkfun...what exactly do I do with it to connect it to the console?  I apologize if this is detailed in a prior post, but it seems that there were several different methods posted in this thread using different equipment, and I want to make sure I don't fry my console!

[af4ex]

@hazyarc
> ... about to bite the bullet and purchase a Vantage Vue from Amazon (they have a sale going on!)
http://www.amazon.com/Davis-Instruments-6250-Vantage-Wireless/dp/B002LLVFK0
Wow, free shipping too (in the US). That's a good deal! :-]

[af4ex]

Thank you...will do.  

I think I may need a little clarification on the connection to the console though.  Once I receive the connector from Digikey and the modified cable from Sparkfun...what exactly do I do with it to connect it to the console?  I apologize if this is detailed in a prior post, but it seems that there were several different methods posted in this thread using different equipment, and I want to make sure I don't fry my console!

Study the console pinouts on page 2 of this post (thanks DeKay!). I didn't use this cable or plug (did it the 'harder way'), but basically you're going to hook up VCC, ground and the Tx/Rx connections from the USB2COM chip to the Davis interface. You will need to be careful soldering to the Digikey plug. Use heat-shrink tubing to insulate the wires from each other, to prevent any nasty short circuits etc.

Any of you who have already succeeded with this particular cable and plug, please chime in with any additional insights from your own experiences!

[gwynethh]

WiFi XBees!

These just came out.  Looks like you can get connectivity between the console and a wireless router for $49.  This is comparable to the price of two serial point-point XBees and much more flexible.  These modules support b/g/n, have their own built in wireless stack, and also have the same LVTTL serial interface as the other XBees.

If, like the current XBee solution, the link is essentially transparent, then wouldn't any current software (such as Weatherlink or Cumulus) that supports a TCP/IP interface "just work"???

I gotta get me one of these...

Did I miss something or do these need to be set up first (baud rate etc) via something like the Development Kit via USB and the X-CTU software? Or is an Ethernet configuration possible? If the Ethernet configuration is acceptable then this module sure seems great and easy for anyone with a WiFI connection/device.

[af4ex]

WiFi XBees!

These just came out.  Looks like you can get connectivity between the console and a wireless router for $49.  This is comparable to the price of two serial point-point XBees and much more flexible.  These modules support b/g/n, have their own built in wireless stack, and also have the same LVTTL serial interface as the other XBees.

If, like the current XBee solution, the link is essentially transparent, then wouldn't any current software (such as Weatherlink or Cumulus) that supports a TCP/IP interface "just work"???

I gotta get me one of these...

Did I miss something or do these need to be set up first (baud rate etc) via something like the Development Kit via USB and the X-CTU software? Or is an Ethernet configuration possible? If the Ethernet configuration is acceptable then this module sure seems great and easy for anyone with a WiFI connection/device.

Not sure. Wasn't much information available on these when they first appeared. All I understood was that it could run in USART mode like the regular XBee's, so didn't see much advantage over the regular XBee's for the Davis serial interface.

Since then another similar device has appeared from Seeed Studio in Hong Kong [$69.90, free shipping!]
http://www.seeedstudio.com/depot/wifi-bee-p-823.html?cPath=139_141
http://seeedstudio.com/wiki/index.php?title=Wifi_Bee

There seems to be more info about this device, and it is open source, so the software is more accessible for user modfications etc.

It appears to allow the Davis serial port to be accessible via Wifi, but support still seems to be in the early stages so you're still on your own for some of the operations. For example, not clear if more than one computer can connect simultaneously etc.

Also still not clear what the advantage would be over just using two $20 Xbee's which also gives you an end-to-end wireless hookup, but only between two designated computers.

[gwynethh]

I may have missed this (Ya I did darn it but seeing Sparkfun has it as a module and better price is new) another less expensive WiFI option may be http://www.sparkfun.com/products/10822
which is a RN-XV module by Roving Networks. It apparently has the same footprint as XBees and is less expensive than the other wireless modules/options. Currently out of stock but at 35$ each I may experiment with one after I get my Vantage Vue2 up and running in a week or two.

[gwynethh]

First of all I would like to thank DeKay for his excellent work.

I made my solution in such a way, that it does WiFy: this little small excellent module

called RN-174 is happy if you connect GND, 3.3V, RX an TX. Setup is a little tricky (you need to make an Adhoc connection to config the SSID and 19200 Baud Rate) but then it works like a charm. The Eval-Kit should resell in the US at around $80 (I am fom Germany, so no clue about your prices ...) and the module itself for something like 30$. So if any of you folks around are good in designing & manufacturing a PCB, go ahead.

snip

Have you tested the range yet? I see Sparkfun has the RN-XV module listed for 35$ so I may try one.

[af4ex]

I may have missed this (Ya I did darn it but seeing Sparkfun has it as a module and better price is new) another less expensive WiFI option may be http://www.sparkfun.com/products/10822
which is a RN-XV module by Roving Networks. It apparently has the same footprint as XBees and is less expensive than the other wireless modules/options. Currently out of stock but at 35$ each I may experiment with one after I get my Vantage Vue2 up and running in a week or two.

Ok, so now we have _three_ wifi "bee" gadgets to play with :-]

I'm too busy now, but I will eventually get one of these to experiment with. I like the open source aspect of Seeed, but also note that it's a brand new product and will likely have some operating glitches. (I've purchased several Seeed products already. Very good in general (for the price), but not without problems. Support is hit and miss. Seeed tries to offer help, but are usually slow to respond)

Ultimately it has to be 'rock solid' 24/7 before I will trust it to post my weather reports. The two XBee v1 units I'm using now have been amazingly reliable. They have been running almost continuously since March 2011 with no XBee serial failures so far that I have detected. My home Wifi and  Internet connection (and a creaky old Vista laptop), on the other hand, are the source of virtually all my reporting outages.

[Andiadm]

Have you tested the range yet? I see Sparkfun has the RN-XV module listed for 35$ so I may try one.

Yes, it works just fine. I have a distance of round 30 meters between the console and the WiFi Router and no dropouts or whatsoever. I am a happy camper with this solution.

BTW, with all of these WiFi gadgets, you can only have 1 active serial session at a time, reason is, that the device is made to listen to one source of commands only. Some have an ability to stream out whatever comes in on the serial port, there you could have more clients. But devices where you have to send a command to receive something, such as the Vantage, its always a 1:1 connection.

[af4ex]

@andiadm
> BTW, with all of these WiFi gadgets, you can only have 1 active serial session at a time, reason is,
> that the device is made to listen to one source of commands only.

Yes, that is true when operating in the so-called 'USART' mode, which is designed to emulate an end-to-end serial connection, as you have described.

The frustrating aspect of all this is that these little XBee gadgets are capable of supporting much more: low-power, self-organizing, ad-hoc networks of sensors:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/ZigBee

So, with appropriate software in place, it should be possible to create a network of weather and other kinds of low-power sensors which can inserted in a 'plug and play' manner for reporting and exchanging their data with other sensors and network monitors.

To conserve power, the data rates are somewhat capped, at around 250kbps I believe. So I view these WiFi/XBee units as somewhat of a hybrid "bridge" to faster tcp/ip networks (for processing video and other high-bandwidth signals etc).

This is all very appealing to me, but I'm still in the learning stage and haven't quite figured out how to get these ideas working with the Davis boxes.

[iamturnip]

Hello all!

I was very happy to find this thread on the ol' interwebs! I bought a Vantage Vue for my father( in Central Ontario Canada) last month, and mine(Vancouver, BC) is currently in the mail. I love to tinker with electronics, and also have my own electronics repair and recycling company so I get ample time to play - but not on my own stuff!

Yes, it's expensive, but I believe nothing is 'overpriced' if the company makes money selling it. I'm all for American ingenuity and enterprise (which must be motivated partly by profits, else we wouldn't have jobs).

This quote really drew me into the conversation. I had a friend debate with me about why I was buying such a pricey unit. I told him if there was a Canadian made unit I would pay double if it meant more jobs stayed here. All too often we go for cheap and in turn wreak our own countries in the process. Bravo af4ex for your comment.

I will be following the instructions in this thread on making my own dongle for the the console. I am a long time Linux(Debian flavour) user and will be looking at using free and open source software to power my needs. Currently I am looking at weeWX -  http://www.weewx.com/ If anyone has any other Linux type suggestions I look forward to hearing from you.

I hope to have some results and photos back to this thread by the end of October. Hopefully work will not take me away from this side project too much!

[DeKay]

Welcome, iaturnip.  Good to see a fellow DIYer, Linux user, and Canuckistanian on this forum.  Just shout if you need any help getting your interface going.

I hadn't tried weeWX yet as it had a ton of dependencies that I'd have to track down to run on by Arch box, and I couldn't be bothered at the time.  I don't know your needs, but you could always try grabbing these perl scripts as well if you really want to get your hands dirty: http://andrew.mcmillan.net.nz/projects/Davis%3A%3AVantagePro

[af4ex]

@iamturnip
> I hope to have some results and photos back to this thread by the end of October.

Glad to hear that you've found some inspiration in these pages. Welcome aboard. Looking forward to seeing your first results with your Vantage Vue!

John/af4ex