Author Topic: Need some help with VPTools and another item  (Read 2020 times)

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Offline azchrisf

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Need some help with VPTools and another item
« on: February 16, 2018, 05:15:22 AM »
I know a few of you guys have done Arduino work for the VP2.
I have two issues I am trying to figure out - I will be following another members work to use the SHT35. For my ISS, all I have connected is the Temp/Hum sensor and the Rain gauge, all the rest is on the chimney on a Anemometer transmitter I don't plan to change.

Questions:

1. Is there a guide or something on how to work with VPTools and transmit packets, what the packets should be formatted as, etc.?
2. I have the Rain Gauge code I found on the net, but the problem is it reports in mm. What is the proper conversion for 0.01 inch?

Code I have:

Code: [Select]
// Calculate mm/hr from period between cup tips
  double rainrate = 914400.0 / tipcount;

or better yet, if anyone has some ready to go code they wish to share that would help a bunch to expedite the project, and learn from.

Any help is appreciated.
« Last Edit: February 17, 2018, 01:51:11 PM by azchrisf »
Davis Vantage Pro 2 Plus 6163 w/ 8 Transmitters!
Also doing Soil and Leaf 4x
WU: KAZGLEND106 CWOP: FW1398 (F1398) Purpleair: 98793/LAZGLEND8
My setup:
https://www.wxforum.net/index.php?topic=41867.0

Offline azchrisf

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Re: Need some help with VPTools and another item
« Reply #1 on: February 17, 2018, 12:37:57 PM »
85 views and noone wants to help?
A guy's got to start somewhere...
Davis Vantage Pro 2 Plus 6163 w/ 8 Transmitters!
Also doing Soil and Leaf 4x
WU: KAZGLEND106 CWOP: FW1398 (F1398) Purpleair: 98793/LAZGLEND8
My setup:
https://www.wxforum.net/index.php?topic=41867.0

Online Otis

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Re: Need some help with VPTools and another item
« Reply #2 on: February 17, 2018, 01:49:32 PM »
Sorry no idea how to help you.

CW3699

Offline PaulMy

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Re: Need some help with VPTools and another item
« Reply #3 on: February 17, 2018, 02:33:04 PM »
Quote
85 views and noone wants to help?
I am one of the 85 but unfortunately also unable to help as no idea on VPTools, etc.

Good luck,
Paul

Offline johnd

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Re: Need some help with VPTools and another item
« Reply #4 on: February 17, 2018, 02:50:43 PM »
You need someone who's used VPTools, of which I guess there are just occasional visitors here.

[2] is surely pretty obvious: it just needs a conversion between metric and US units, ie 1 inch = 25.4mm (though without seeing the context of how the variable is used it's difficult to be sure about exactly how it's used and relates to the tip increment, ie 914400 = 25.4*60*60 - I suspect that there's another multiplier/divisor in the calculation somewhere)
Prodata Weather Systems
Prodata's FAQ/support site for Davis stations
Includes many details on 6313 Weatherlink console.
UK Davis Premier Dealer - All Davis stations, accessories and spares
Cambridge UK

Sorry, but I don't usually have time to help with individual issues by email unless you are a Prodata customer. Please post your issue in the relevant forum section here & I will comment there if I have anything useful to add.

Offline azchrisf

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Re: Need some help with VPTools and another item
« Reply #5 on: February 18, 2018, 05:29:52 AM »
johnd,

Thank you very much. Makes complete sense.

I have the RFM69HCW breakout board, it's connected, I can Xmit/Rcv from two of them, but for the life of me
I can't get the ISS RX sketch working. I can compile and upload it. I understand it was developed ona Moteino which has an integrated radio, but that shouldn't mattter, I think.

I'm totally lost - there is no documentation on how to use the library, if certain parameters need config, where to start - anything. In a way, it pisses me off developers put stuff out like this and then don't document how to use it, and also when members post their "work" just to show off by saying "look what I did!!!" like a little kid seeking approval - and then have no interest in helping point others in the right direction when they need it to do the same, either.

I can learn if there is something to document it, code is better, but since there is neither - I give up.
What a waste of money and time.  :-x
Davis Vantage Pro 2 Plus 6163 w/ 8 Transmitters!
Also doing Soil and Leaf 4x
WU: KAZGLEND106 CWOP: FW1398 (F1398) Purpleair: 98793/LAZGLEND8
My setup:
https://www.wxforum.net/index.php?topic=41867.0

Offline johnd

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Re: Need some help with VPTools and another item
« Reply #6 on: February 18, 2018, 06:22:30 AM »
I understand it was developed on a Moteino which has an integrated radio, but that shouldn't mattter, I think.

If you've got that far with planning the project, why not try it on a Moteino - I think they're quite cheap aren't they? If you're still stuck then why not PM Kobuki or someone else who's posted here about using these SDR's?
Prodata Weather Systems
Prodata's FAQ/support site for Davis stations
Includes many details on 6313 Weatherlink console.
UK Davis Premier Dealer - All Davis stations, accessories and spares
Cambridge UK

Sorry, but I don't usually have time to help with individual issues by email unless you are a Prodata customer. Please post your issue in the relevant forum section here & I will comment there if I have anything useful to add.

Offline mcrossley

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Re: Need some help with VPTools and another item
« Reply #7 on: February 18, 2018, 07:38:44 AM »
If you are having problems with the VPTools code, you could try my fork of that library. It is getting a bit out of date now with the latest updates, but I (and a couple of other people) had more success with it than the source library. I thought the source had incorporated any material changes I made to the source though.

Also, have you tried posting an issue on the VPTools github page before venting here? The author will see that and should respond, he may not see a message on this forum.
Mark

Offline azchrisf

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Re: Need some help with VPTools and another item
« Reply #8 on: February 18, 2018, 12:53:59 PM »
mcrossley -

Thank you very much. I don't know what the difference is but I was able to get it to start RXing at least.

However, I am stuck trying to understand the Davis ISS protocol, and what they mean, plus how I would need to use to transmit a temperature, humidity and rain packets...
Davis Vantage Pro 2 Plus 6163 w/ 8 Transmitters!
Also doing Soil and Leaf 4x
WU: KAZGLEND106 CWOP: FW1398 (F1398) Purpleair: 98793/LAZGLEND8
My setup:
https://www.wxforum.net/index.php?topic=41867.0

Offline mcrossley

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Re: Need some help with VPTools and another item
« Reply #9 on: February 18, 2018, 05:04:17 PM »
If you look at the original, there is an RXTX sketch (RelayRxTx in my fork), both show receiving all packet types and re transmitting them, that should get you going. Both forks show the decoding of the Rx packets, reversing that allows you to construct your own Tx packets from whatever source you use.
Mark

Offline kobuki

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Re: Need some help with VPTools and another item
« Reply #10 on: February 19, 2018, 05:10:43 AM »
@azchrisf: sorry, I rarely check these forums nowadays. I'm the author of the VPTools lib. It's best to PM me when something comes up, but I'll be subscribed on this thread so I'll see if someone posts. The ISSRX and the rest of the sketches use the same base lib that has an unfortunate bug not receiving US frequencies properly at the moment (misses every other radio packet). I haven't had time to fix that yet. It has no problems with EU frequencies. Mcrossley's relay sketch seems to work in the meantime for US packets. It's based on mine with a few modifications for parallel RX/TX.

There are a few comments at the beginning of the sketches that instructs how to set things up. Did you apply them? Other than that, Moteino or not shouldn't matter, all you need is a radio attached with the proper frequency that uses the same pins for interrupt as the Moteino. As for decoding, you sohuldn't need to fiddle with it too much since these sketches have a packet decoding part. A few rarely used things like soil/leaf metrics aren't implemented in my sketch, though. A not completely up to date write up on the packet format is on the wiki pages of Dekay's lib on Github.