Sensor Errors

[wxman13]

How does weather cat determine sensor errors? I've been running weather cat for 6 months with no issues, now I'm getting Sensor errors, I've checked the live data view and it shows 1701 sensor errors for wind speed, but I'm not noticing anything out of the norm. The Gauges screen shows 3402 sensor errors,but no other errors are showing up for any of the other sensors except wind speed in live data view?
Thanks,
Robert
Davis VP2+
WC ver. 1.21 build 27

[KeithC]

Sounds like maybe your anemometer itself.

Open your VP2 controls box (the white box) and check to make sure the wind sensor cable is firmly inserted. Then check for spider webs around the spinning windspeed cups. If those two things don't eliminate your error messages, call Davis. They might sent you a device with which you can locate your problem. Then they'll know what to replace.

As for any WeatherCat technical issues, someone else will have to advise you. But since the wind sensor alone is causing errors, I'm not sure software is the issue.

[wxman13]

I haven't had any out of the norm wind speed readings, its functioning normal? Just wondering how WeatherCat determines sensor errors?

[Blicj11]

Just wondering how WeatherCat determines sensor errors?

From the WeatherCat Manual, pages 36-37:

Communications Counts And Quality
At the bottom of the Gauges window are counts for ?Good Data?, ?Comms Error?, ?Sensor Error? and ?Quality?.
Every time WeatherCat requests data from the weather station it checks it for validity ? if it is all valid then the Good Data count is incremented. If the station fails to respond (a time out) or responds with data that fails a simple error check then the ?Comms Error? count is incremented. If there is an error in the data - primarily a sensor value that is out of bounds with regards to the manufacturers specification, then for each error the ?Sensor Error? count is incremented. The Quality figure is simply the ratio between the Good Data and combined errors and can be used as a quick check that communications to the station are satisfactory. See also the Status window available from WeatherCat?s ?Tools? menu.

If you are receiving a lot of ?Comms Errors? then the problem lies with the connection between the computer and the weather station ? check your USB dongle and/or driver along with any USB cables; in particular do not use USB extension cables between the weather station and your computer and make sure the station is connected to the computer, not any hubs or keyboards.

If there are a lot of sensor errors then the problem lies between the weather station and its sensors ? if wireless try repositioning the station, if wired, check the connections. In all cases it?s worth checking any batteries. (Note, for Davis Vantage owners, WeatherCat can warn you when batteries and or power supplies are out of specification ? see ?Hardware Options? from the ?Tools? menu, described on page 57.)

The Live Data View tool (see page 67), available from WeatherCat?s ?Tools? menu gives more information about the status of each channel available from your hardware and breaks down the comms errors into timeouts (your station did not respond to WeatherCat) and corruption (when WeatherCat checked the data from your station, an error was found).

[wxman13]

Thanks for the info from the manual, I have read that before, I could understand the wind speed sensor error, if the readings were really high, but I'm not getting any out of range, extreme readings from my wind sensor, and the battery checks out fine. Also don't understand the Sensor error count under my gauges showing 3402, but the only sensor that shows errors in live data view is the wind speed and it shows exactly half that number 1701 ?? Maybe Stu might have some insight on this?
Robert

[elagache]

Dear Robert, Keith, Blick, and WeatherCat Davis owners,

How does weather cat determine sensor errors? I've been running weather cat for 6 months with no issues, now I'm getting Sensor errors, I've checked the live data view and it shows 1701 sensor errors for wind speed, but I'm not noticing anything out of the norm.

Bummer dude, sounds like you've got a anemometer that is having "issuez" . . . .

I'm afraid its time to give the Davis tech support a call and see what they recommend.

That's the third Davis anemometer to have problems among WeatherCat users this winter.  That is certainly odd.  There are some tough conditions in some parts of the world.  Still, there is nothing so extreme that you would expect problems with Davis equipment.  It is not like hurricane force winds or something.

Bummer dude!

Cheers, Edouard

[WCDev]

The other sensor errors are most likely coming from a channel that is dependent on the windspeed, for example, wind chill - these aren't individually visible. It's highly unlikely you'll get any bad data recorded by WeatherCat as sensor errors are detected at the station driver level  and thus do not get through.

[jf-i2r]

hi

I had sensor errors with my anemometer after 8 years of use ( same in the console), I changed it with the new model and since everything is ok

cheers
jean frédéric

[wxman13]

Thanks guys, I have 2 separate consoles, and they haven't recorded any wild readings from the wind speed sensor, looks like the errors would show up on the extra consoles? My entire anemometer unit was replaced with the new style just last year.
Robert

[KeithC]

Two points. Firstly, a failing anemometer does not necessarily mean wild windspeed readings, nor does a newer anemometer exclude the possibility of a malfunctioning anemometer. And secondly, I'm not claiming to know for sure that the issue is in fact a malfunctioning anemometer. I'm just saying that excluding the anemometer itself as the culprit is a conclusion based on incorrect assumptions.

[WCDev]

Hi Robert,
Keith's correct - if the console knows the anemometer signal is missing (or in error), it passes a special value through to notify us the data is not available - again this is a sensor error. If the anemometer signal is missing for too long you'll get dashes on the console but in your case it looks like it's spurious.

[wxman13]

Okay, I'll do some more investigation with the anemometer, does the weather cat log show when theses errors occurred?
Thanks,
Robert
 

[WCDev]

Individual sensor errors are not logged, but at sample time, any primary channel that is missing/invalid is logged (WeatherCat will wait for a short period of time then try again). If the errors are persistent enough to be noticed at sampling time, it'll be logged.

Switch on 'Copy Log Entries To Console Log' in the Advanced pane of WeatherCat's preferences, then you can peruse the log sometime later via the Console application (Applications->Utilities->Console.app) - just enter 'WeatherCat' into its search box to display all the WeatherCat entries.

[wxman13]

Thanks Stu, that should help in trying to figure out the errors.
Robert