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ELF User Manual

1. InstallShield Wizard Tekscan Installation of ELF Mult handle Chck Finish to exit ELF Multr handle setup E Yes want to restar my compiler row C Ho walltestart my computer laber Remove any disks rom their dives and then cick Finish lo complebe setup Carcel i The ELF splash screen will be shown below This indicates the ELF software is successfully loaded on your machine Economical Load amp Force system Data Acquisition System from Tekscan Inc Teksean Inc is an S0 9001 registered company The installation process is now complete When your computer is rebooted the application can then be launched by clicking on the Start button at the bottom left of the screen and selecting Programs gt Tekscan gt ELF You can also launch the program by double clicking the ELF icon on your desktop provided you opted to place an icon on your desktop during the installation procedure ELF Molt 02 05 15 ELF User Manual Rev N 19 Hardware Installation The ELF system hardware includes the Sensor Handle s ELF software and the FlexiForce sensor s If you are using the Multi Handle ELF system refer to the instructions included Connect one ELF handle to each USB port you wish to use during testing The image below displays the USB connection for the ELF system 1 Connect the Handle s USB connector to an available USB port on the PC or laptop Or in a multi handle configuration you may
2. VN Tekscan ELF USER MANUAL Single Handle Multi Handle Wireless and Hi Speed Systems v 4 3x Rev N 1 617 464 4283 1 800 248 3669 Minfo0tekscan com A www tekscan com flexiforce TN Tekscan ELF USER MANUAL Single Handle Multi Handle Wireless and Hi Speed Systems v 4 3x Rev N Tekscan Inc 307 West First Street South Boston MA 02127 1309 USA Support tekscan com Fax 1 617 464 4266 es 1 617 464 4283 1 800 248 3669 Mm info tekscan com A www tekscan com flexiforce TABLE OF CONTENTS Table 6f Contes O iia 3 Welcome 5 ISO iria iaa 5 INTOdUCUON cia actos 6 Ei A a e ae aeaea eae nenna 6 QUICK Std EE A O EE A A A a 7 installation a AMG raid 13 ELF ComponentidentificatioN isvisicscscccccces a tata lr id ds 14 SoftWare Installation ini A o a cc 15 Hardware INSTANAUON nia a A ess 20 USB ELF System SpecifiCatiONS ooccoccconcocnconcccncoononcnononoconnnnnronnnonnonnnonnnnnonnnnnnnanennnnnnnns 21 OY SP PP e e O II A A EA 22 PS II A A 22 Sensor a lonas A ca ee 22 A O E e o ee ene acaceeae ree 22 Sensor SCISCUOM isa di o Oia 23 Main VV IG OW seco oe 24 Aa AAA 21 TE Mam MENU sins ciente O 28 SCC o oo o El o OI A 29 AS e E OC O o II a aa N a 31 Record Me rai abren 34 Standard ELF Recording Parameters coocccccccccccncocnccnconcccncononcnnononnnonnonnnnononnnnnnoninanonos 35 ELF Hi Speed Recording Parameters ccoccocccccncoccocncoccncononcnconononcnnnnnononnnc
3. View Menu View Menu when focus is on a View Menu when focus is on a Movie Real time Window Window ELF by Tekscan Realtimel iss ELF by Tekscan Movie File View Record Tools Windo Tools _ Window Frames A Y Strip Chart Column Number I Status Bar y Toolbar Properties v Status Bar Properties 02 05 15 ELF User Manual Rev N 31 Strip Chart is the default display mode where force value is displayed on the Y Axis and elapsed time is displayed on the X Axis ASWOASAB AS WOABA Column displays each COM port individually with force value displayed on the Y Axis Each column is color coded to indicate the individual COM ports As time elapses the columns indicate changes in force Sees heiress r ir v 100 3 50 2 60 2 40 20 gt 0 ADAFOABAb ASMOABAR Number displays each COM port as numerical values Each numerical value is color coded to indicate the individual COM ports As time elapses the numbers change to indicate changes in force F Real i mel a 02 05 15 ELF User Manual Rev N 32 Toolbar This item is used to display or hide the Movie and Main Toolbars These toolbars can be toggled by clicking this menu item on and off If a Real time Window is active this menu item affects the Main Toolbar If a Movie window is active this menu item affects the Movie Toolbar Status Bar This item is used to display or hide t
4. 14 If you wish to save the calibration file for future use select Tools gt Save Calibration and enter the desired destination and file name in the Save As dialog box Calibration files must be saved with the clb file extension Sensitivity settings are saved with calibration files a Save As a a Local Disk Cs Work Tekscan movies fleaforce Organize Mew folder E De iscan 50 a Mame Li EScan CONFORMat Hand Je mobile590 I movies i Ji Baseball Synch J BPMS d CONFORMat y conformat dual di flexiforce calibration file OL CLB Date modified 8 1 2013 3 54 PM J F Scan RA Tests with Ker 4 Filename calibration file 02 CLB Save as type Calibration Files clb a Hide Folders i QuarkXPr 15 If you wish to recalibrate the sensor during the same testing session you may either select File gt New to get a new Real time Window or select Tools gt Uncalibrate to reset the calibration of the current window A calibration will be saved between sessions unless Uncalibrate is selected ELF User Manual Rev N 54 SENSOR PERFORMANCE CHARACTERISTICS There are a number of characteristics of sensors which can affect your results This section contains a description of each of these conditions and recommendations on how to lessen their effects Repeatability Repeatability is the ability of the sensor to respond in the same way to a repeatedly applied
5. 2000 XP Vista See Hardware Movie Toolbar Playback Controls This bar is located at the top of the Movie Window and consists of the movie playback icons and the Save As icon See Playback Controls Movie Window The Movie Window displays a previously recorded movie It consists of the display area scroll bar the Movie Toolbar with playback controls and the Movie Window Status Bar Multi Point Calibration Multi Point Calibration is a method in which at least two known forces are applied to the sensor and then calculated to convert Digital Output into Engineering Units See Calibration N New File Menu The New command opens a new Real time window in addition to any other Real time or Movie windows that are currently open The new Real time window becomes the active window when it is opened If more than one Real time window is open the force data will be displayed in all windows in unison If the sensor has already been calibrated this calibration will also apply to the new Real time window Next Frame Movie Toolbar Playback Controls Plays the recording forward one frame each time it is clicked Number View Menu The Number option displays each COM port as numerical values Each numerical value is color coded to indicate the individual COM ports As time elapses the numbers change to indicate changes in force 0 Open File Menu The Open command displays the Open dialog box which allows you to open prev
6. Save as type ELF Movie Files if a Hide Folders 02 05 15 ELF User Manual Rev N 11 11 Click on one of the Playback Control icons on the toolbar at the top of the Movie window to play the movie forward or backward move one frame forward or backward move to the first or last frame or stop the movie Frame 76 of 85 Time 9 38 of 10 5 sees ASWOABAb AS WOAGA 12 Select File gt Save ASCII to save the movie data as a text file ASCII files must be saved with the extension csv This data can then be viewed by importing it into a soreadsheet program such as MS Excel or by opening the text file in a word processing program such as MS Word File View Tools Window Fra New Ctrl Open Ctrl O Close Save As Ctrl 5 Recent File Exit 2 Save As m 9 7 de Local Disk C Work Tekscan movies flexiforce Organize v New folder 17 de Iscan_WiFi F Name e Date modified Type de IScan _87 e IScan603 de IScan610 de iscan620 di iscan750 3 Le 1 Scan CONFORMat Hand ii mobileS90 Gi 2x10s 100Hz csv 11 2 2012 11 08 AM Microsoft E 219s 8Hz csv 11 2 2012 1107 AM Microsoft A movies J Baseball Synch FOG Pm Filename SLAGTES ES Save as type Asci Files csv a Hide Folders You have now completed the Quick Start section and should be acquainted with your ELF software The rest of the manual gives you specific instruction
7. This may take a moment Once finished the WELF network indicates Connected shown below right Currently connected to Currently conmected to NAL Tekscan com a Tekscanm com Internet access Intemet access Es Unidentified network ae Wireless Network Connection a No network access WersaTekWiFI 1096 A Wireless Network Connection am TEK WLANIL E wll weer Connected Lx RyanWELF_AP 2al f WELF VersaTekWiFi 1096 i Ek j i Connect to a Network TEK WLANI ail UU Information sent over this network might be visible to oth re 1 tt e ar Connecting to WELF h Some TEK WLAN2 al TER WLAN N TEK quest i f Pri ian ARI 1 Open Network and Sharing Center Open Network and Sharing Center 02 05 15 ELF User Manual Rev N 63 4 Open the WELF 2 software by clicking on the WELF 2 icon shown at right on your desktop or under your Program Files from the Windows Start button located at the lower left of your computer screen es A 5 When the software opens the Sensor Selection window is displayed on your computer screen shown below left Select the sensors you would like to have connected to the current Real Time Window using Ctrl Click to select multiple sensors and click the Connect button shown below right If you wish to connect to all sensors you do not have to first
8. referred to as the Offset Load on the sensor at zero load This operation is useful if the sensor is under some load for the entire duration of the recording or if the sensor must be secured in place by hardware which would cause load to be detected by the sensor The raw data is not affected by the Zeroing Preload function but an extra calculation is performed when converting the raw data to calibrated data If the sensel is reading raw pressure it is set at zero raw before the calibration scale factor is applied Zeroing Preload is recommended only for single point calibration and may increase error when using a multi point calibration WELF The Wireless ELF System 02 05 15 ELF User Manual Rev N 77
9. 1 to 20 possible will increase the force range displayed as Approx Max Range and saturation force of the sensor and vice versa It is essential that the sensor s do not become saturated during testing 02 05 15 ELF User Manual Rev N 47 Conditioning Sensors Exercising or Conditioning a sensor before calibration and testing is essential in achieving accurate results from your ELF system It helps to lessen the effects of drift and hysteresis Conditioning is required for new sensors and for sensors that have not been used for a length of time To condition a sensor place 110 of the test weight on the sensor allow the sensor to stabilize and then remove the weight Repeat this process four or five times The interface between the sensor and the test subject material should be the same during conditioning as during calibration and actual testing IMPORTANT Sensors must be properly conditioned prior to calibration and use 02 05 15 ELF User Manual Rev N 48 CALIBRATION The ELF system sensor acts as a variable resistor in a circuit This circuit produces a digital output value between 0 255 Raw based on the sensor resistance and the system handle s adjustable gain sensitivity Calibration is the method by which this digital output is related to an actual engineering unit such as pounds or Newtons If you are using the Multi Handle ELF system all selected COM ports must be calibrated with at least one point before C
10. 100 240 VAC 50 Hz 60 Hz 0 3 A Output SVDC 2 0 A CD Center Positive a AAA AAA attery EAS 3 AAA alkaline Up to 5 hours battery life 15 to 140 9 to 60 Prolonged use at higher end of temperature range should oO o U DllD OJO D 2 gt gt 3 alo D lt Y TD o e lo sjn U Cc O m 5 lt O 5 3 D 5 ep v Iodo ODO O IQ D VIO els O TI be avoided umidity O to 90 non condensing Pressure psi kPa 1 7 to 14 7 11 6 to 101 3 sea level to 50 000 ft 02 05 15 ELF User Manual Rev N 60 Installing the Batteries To insert the batteries into the WELF Transmitter follow the procedure below 1 Using the small Phillips head 1 screwdriver unscrew the center screw located on the bottom rear of the Transmitter being careful not to strip the screw when loosening Remove the screw from the battery access door located on the bottom of the Transmitter shown below 2 Lift and remove the battery access door using the thumb notch to reveal the batteries inside the Transmitter Replace the three AAA batteries with a new set 4 Place the battery access door back onto the Transmitter Insert and screw the battery access door in place As you tighten the screw be careful not to strip the threads 02 05 15 ELF User Manual Rev N 61 Setting up the Wireless ELF System Software Installation The ELF and WELF 2 Systems follow the same software
11. 5 Click on View gt Properties or click the right mouse button with the cursor over the 6 T 02 05 15 Real time Window to open the Properties dialog box Make any desired changes to the display settings and click OK Properties Realtime1 Mier Stnp Chart Scale Max A 100 a Column Scale Mex a O te Number Urais percentage Pause Te Cancel Help If you would like to change the background color of the window select Tools gt Select Colors The Select Graph Colors dialog box will open and enable you to customize the background color Select Graph Colors Set Trace Col ASWARA Cancel O Trace Color Background Color Defauk All Colors Calibrate the sensor s so that an actual force range can be determined for the sensor s digital output 0 to 255 Refer to the Calibration section for the calibration procedure and guidelines It is also recommended that you perform a Sensitivity Adjustment which is described in the Calibration section Calibration Cabbration Options Best fit linear a Senzor ASWOABAB Piece wise inea Force uril orams Multipoint Calibration Cal Force 100 Add Poirk ELF User Manual Rev N 9 8 Select the desired recording parameters under Record gt Settings The default Recording Type is Infinite user stops at 8Hz but you are given the option to stop the recording after a specific number of frames
12. AM FLF File _ 219588 Hz ff 11 2 2012 11 07 AM FLF File File name Gia tai Save as type ELF Movie Files fIF Hide Folders 02 05 15 ELF User Manual Rev N 30 Save As ASCII saves the current Movie frame as an ASCII file with the extension csv Since these files are in ASCII comma separated value format they can be imported into a spreadsheet program e g MS Excel or they can be opened in a text editor or word processing program e g MS Word in order to review and manipulate the data OO di Local Disk C Work mepe movies flexiforce x ity Search fleaforce Organize New folder A de Iscan Wifi Mome Date modified de Scan B7 Le Gean6o3 de Bean i0 i iscanb20 di scand 0 La Le LScan CONFORMat Hand Je mobile590 Le Baseball Synch E File name Save as type asen Files csw E ad Os 100Hz csv 11 2 2012 11 08 AM Microsoft by 21 9s SHz cev 11 2 2012 1107 AM Microsoft gt Hide Folders The force data is displayed as however many sensors you are measuring 1 16 the first is the elapsed time in seconds and the others are the applied force value in the selected units at that point shown below A data point is recorded each time the sensor data is read so many more data points are recorded when Fast Recording is used refer to the Settings menu item Seconds Sensor Sensor2 Sensor3 O 7 894737 5 263158 5 263158
13. SENSOR LOADING CONSIDERATIONS The following general sensor loading guidelines can be applied to most applications and will help you achieve the most accurate results from your tests It is important that you read the Sensor Performance Characteristics section for further information on how to get the most accurate results from your sensor readings Sensor Loading The entire sensing area of the FlexiForce sensor is treated as a single contact point For this reason the applied load should be distributed evenly across the sensing area to ensure accurate and repeatable force readings Readings may vary slightly if the load distribution changes over the sensing area Note that the sensing area is the silver circle on the top of the sensor only It is also important that the sensor be loaded consistently or in the same way each time If the footprint of the applied load is smaller than the sensing area the load should not be placed near the edges of the sensing area to ensure an even load distribution It is also important to ensure that the sensing area is the entire load path and that the load is not supported by the area outside of the sensing area If the footprint of the applied load is larger than the sensing area it may be necessary to use a puck A puck is a piece of rigid material smaller than the sensing area that is placed on the sensing area to ensure that the entire load path goes through this area The puck must not touch any
14. You may also set recording frequency trigger and threshold as well as frames to record in this dialog box Recording Parameters Recording lyp nfinite user stops at BHz Fl ate E 2001 H C Frame count al EHz Frame count 1 5165824 1000 Full control Durman until stopped Trager and threshold Sensor AS WOABAB Trigger l 00 3 Threshold 00 y 9 Click Record gt Start or the Start Recording icon on the Toolbar The system will begin recording data If you selected Infinite 8 Hz user stops as the recording type you must click Record gt Stop or the Stop Recording icon on the Toolbar to stop recording Otherwise recording will stop when the required number of frames have been acquired An alternate method of Starting and Stopping the recording is found on the Toolbar using the Icons as shown below E ue Start recording Rea Realtime Stop recording A Recording in Progress prompt opens on screen to indicate a recording is taking place shown below Recording Recording in progress 02 05 15 ELF User Manual Rev N 10 Note Before an actual recording is made the sensor should be Calibrated and Conditioned and a Sensitivity Adjustment should be done if necessary as described in later sections Any information recorded before these are successfully completed may be inaccurate The ELF software also allows you to trigger the start of a recording If
15. dialog Note If a Transmitter drops out for a time you will receive the following prompt on screen This is because some Transmitters transmit more data more frames than the one that dropped out However all the data for all Transmitters is still recorded Only the data for the Transmitter s that dropped out will not be recorded for the duration of the drop out This can probably most easily be seen if you convert the data to ASCII data File gt Save ASCII ELF by Tekscan If the sensor is misaligned in the Handle the label indicates the misalignment shown below Remove and reinsert the sensor into the Handle to ensure it is working correctly If the sensor is inserted properly into the Handle and the software still indicates it is misaligned contact Tekscan for assistance 126 0020 misaligned 126 0021 02 05 15 ELF User Manual Rev N 67 Resetting the WELF Transmitter to the Default Ad Hoc Network If you have set up the WELF Transmitter to be used in an Access Point network and wish to return the unit to the default Ad Hoc network settings follow the instructions below 1 Using the small Phillips head 1 screwdriver unscrew the center screw located on the bottom rear of the Transmitter being careful not to strip the screw when loosening Remove the screw from the bottom battery access door see image at right Lift and remove the battery access door using the thumb notch Turn on the
16. editor or word processing program Real time data or movie frames can also be copied to the Windows clipboard and pasted into other applications as a bmp bitmap file F Fast Recording Refers to one of the Recording Parameter options When Fast Recording is selected the Frames to Record may be entered and the Recording Frequency Hz may be selected to the right In Fast Recording applications recordings can be obtained at user defined frequencies between 10 and 200 Hz standard system For the High Speed ELF system frequencies as high as 5 7 kHz can be obtained See Recording Parameters First Frame Movie Toolbar Playback Controls Positions the recording at the beginning First Frame Focus The currently selected Window within your ELF software Only one window can be selected at a time A window is selected by clicking on it and when selected the title bar will turn blue When a window is selected in this manner it is said to have focus Frame Count Refers to one of the Recording Parameter options When selected the number of Frames to Record may be entered at the bottom of the dialog box The recording will stop when this number of frames has been recorded regardless of the duration of the movie See Recording Parameters Frames Displayed A submenu of the Main Menu The Frames Displayed Menu provides various display options for the amount of frames shown within the Movie Window along the X axis In a
17. file before you uncalibrate as there is no way to retrieve your calibration once you use this command and click OK in the message prompt below ELF by Tekscan This well discard calibration data A you have it saved use Tools gt Load Calibration to load it back OK Cancel 02 05 15 ELF User Manual Rev N 40 Load Calibration allows you to use the calibration data from a previously saved file for your current Real time Window When this item is selected an Open dialog box appears and the calibration file can be located and opened Only ELF calibration files extension clb can be loaded The Sensitivity setting that was saved with the calibration file will also be loaded E Open JE r Local Disk C Organize New folder Work Tekscan movies fleaforce Li tscan 700Alphad a Name Le Iscan 760Beta Ji FScan 5823Beta de lican Tetra J Escan Lite 5 83 21719 de Iscan WiFi Bean B Je IScan603 Ji eani de iscanb20 iscan750 D EScan CONFORMat Handheld Installs de mobile5090 E mmi File name calibration file 01 CLB E calibration file 01 CLB No preview available Save Calibration allows you to save your current calibration as a file for future use When this item is selected a Save As dialog box appears and the calibration file can be saved with the specific file name and location of your c
18. for more information on using a puck e Avoid loading the sensor to near saturation when calibrating If the sensor saturates at a lower or higher load than desired adjust the Sensitivity e Distribute the applied load evenly across the sensing area to ensure accurate force readings Readings may vary slightly if the load distribution changes over the sensing area Note Read the Sensor Performance Characteristics section before performing a Calibration Calibration Procedure IMPORTANT Sensors must be properly conditioned prior to calibration and use 1 Select File gt New to open a new Real time window If you wish to use a previously saved calibration file from a Real Time Window shown below select Tools gt Load Calibration enter the calibration file name and path and click OK 02 05 15 ASWOABAG ASWOABAT ELF User Manual Rev N 50 2 If on the other hand you wish to perform a Change Sensitivity Calibration first load each sensor with a known force 7 Sensor Port 3 Click Tools gt Change Sensitivity shown at right If aswroazas z Eji you have the Multi Handle ELF system adjust AET sensitivity for each sensor if necessary by either Default J dragging the slider up and down or entering an integer between 1 and 20 default is 12 The fe Sensitivity should be adjusted whenever necessary to keep the force display in a usable range 4 Click on Tools gt Calibr
19. force As with most measurement devices it is customary to exercise or condition a sensor before calibrating it or using it for measurement This is done to reduce the amount of change in the sensor response due to repeated loading and unloading FlexiForce sensors are generally repeatable within 2 5 once they have been conditioned A sensor is conditioned by loading it to 110 of the test weight four or five times Follow the full procedure in the Conditioning Sensors section Linearity Linearity refers to the sensor s response digital output to the applied load over the range of the sensor This response should ideally be linear and any non linearity of the sensor is the amount that its output deviates from this line A calibration is performed to linearize this output as much as possible FlexiForce sensors are linear within 3 Hysteresis Hysteresis is the difference in the sensor output response during incremental step loading and unloading without going back to zero between measurements at the same forces For static forces and applications in which force is only increased and not decreased the effects of hysteresis are minimal If an application includes load decreases as well as increases there may be error introduced by hysteresis that is not accounted for by calibration For a conditioned sensor with 50 of the full force range applied hysteresis is less than 4 5 of full scale Drift Drift is the change in
20. of the edges of the sensing area or these edges may support some of the load and give an erroneous reading The FlexiForce sensor reads forces that are perpendicular to the sensor plane Applications that impart shear forces could reduce the life of the sensor If the application will place a shear force on the sensor it should be protected by covering it with a more resilient material If it is necessary to mount the sensor to a surface it is recommended that you use tape when possible Adhesives may also be used but make sure that the adhesive will not degrade the substrate polyester material of the sensor before using it in an application Adhesives should not be applied to the sensing area however if it is necessary ensure that the adhesive is spread evenly Otherwise any high spots may appear as load on the sensor Saturation The Saturation force is the point at which device output no longer varies with applied force The saturation force of each sensor is based on the maximum recommended force specified by Tekscan which is printed on system packaging or the actual sensor along with the Sensitivity Sensors are available in three force ranges Low Medium and High which have specified maximum forces of 25 150 and 1000 Ibf respectively The sensor s effective force range up to the specified maximum can be altered by adjusting the system sensitivity refer to the Calibration section Decreasing the sensitivity setting
21. output into Engineering Units Calibrate Tools Menu The Calibrate command opens the ELF Calibration dialog box which enables you to calibrate the sensor and adjust the system sensitivity See Calibration Calibration Calibration is the method by which this digital output of the sensor is related to an actual engineering unit such as pounds or Newtons If you are using the Multi Handle ELF system all selected COM ports must be calibrated with at least one point before Calibration can be completed Cascade Window Menu The Cascade command arranges multiple windows in an overlapped fashion Change Sensitivity Tools Menu The Change Sensitivity command opens the Sensitivity Dialog box You may adjust the sensitivity for each sensor COM port Use the drop down Select Buttons field to select the COM port Then drag the slider up and down until you are satisfied Adjust as many buttons as you like When you are satisfied click OK To return the system to the original sensitivity settings click the Default button See Sensitivity Change Unit Tools Menu The Change Unit command allows you to quickly change the force units displayed in all windows To use this feature however you must have performed a calibration Otherwise all force will be displayed as raw values Close File Menu The Close command causes the currently active Real time or Movie window to close If a movie has been recorded but not saved the softwa
22. requirements Standard length is 10 feet 3 FlexiForce B201 Sensors one in each of the three offered force ranges Low 0 25 Ib Medium 0 150 Ib and High 0 1000 Ib The force range Low L Medium M or High H is indicated by one of the 3 checkboxes near the tab end of the sensor The 12 checkboxes near the sensing area containing one row of letters and one row of numbers are internal manufacturing batch codes and do not indicate anything about the force range or functionality of the sensor Note You may be required to purchase a USB Hub for multi Handle ELF systems Refer to the Installation section for a list of recommended USB Hubs 02 05 15 ELF User Manual Rev N 14 Software Installation Before installing the ELF software close all other applications To install the software place the CD ROM in your CD ROM drive If the autorun exe does not start automatically click on Start at the bottom left of the screen and click on the Run menu item If you put the disk in the D CD ROM Drive type d setup in the command line field of the Run dialog box then click OK The following images outline the installation process First the InstallShield Wizard will prepare your machine for proper setup ELF Multi handle InstallShield Wizard Preparing Setup Please wai while lhe InstallShield Wizard prepares the setup ELF Multi handle Setup is preparing the Install hield Wizard which vall guide
23. select any sensors Simply click the Connect All button See the Sensor Selection section for more information about this dialog WELF Sensor Selection The Wireless Sensor Connection dialog closes and a new Real time window opens where you can monitor the sensor s force data shown below ASWOABDAb AS WOAGAT 02 05 15 ELF User Manual Rev N 64 If the sensor is misaligned in the Handle the label indicates the misalignment shown at right Remove and reinsert the sensor into the Handle to ensure it is working correctly If the sensor is inserted properly into the Handle and the software still indicates it is misaligned contact Tekscan for assistance 126 0020 misaligned 126 0021 Setting up an Access Point network Note The router must be non encrypted and dedicated for use with the WELF 2 system rd Tools Window Help Personal and public networks will not work if they Calbrates are encrypted li Load Calibration Save Calibration 1 Follow steps 1 5 above Setting up an Ad Hoc eee Network pda mi Change Unit 2 Go to Tools gt Configure WiFi Sensor shown at ali Change Sensitivity rig ht Zero Preload tare Configure WiFi Sensor 3 The Wireless Sensor Configuration dialog opens shown below left Enter the name of the router SSID in the Network Name field and select Access point router as the Network Type shown below right The
24. selected is considered the active window Only one window can be active at one time and the title bars of the other windows will be grayed out The Main Window and its components are shown in the figure below NOTE that the figure below shows a Multi Handle ELF system with two handles recording data Title Bar Main Menu Toolbar Real Time Window File View Record Tool Window Help Efe wl 1 Bo Z e ED realtimel OS Legend 100 25 80 2 Default Y Axis 60 2 CE ica This is Percentage ASWDABAR if Sensor were Calibrated 40 2 measurement unit such as 20 Pounds would be displayed Ds Default X Axis in Seconds E ELF Test Moviefif Y fi Movie Window a e EJE E Epe Playback Controls Movie Window AS OABAG Movie Window Scrolbar moves the X Axis Timeline Frame 32 0185 Tire 10 1 of 10 5 secs For Help press FL Not calibrated Z Main Status Bar Movie Window Status Bar 02 05 15 ELF User Manual Rev N 24 Real Time Window displays the load applied to the sensor as it is happening in real time The Properties of this display can be changed in the File pull down menu or by clicking the right mouse button ASWOABAG ASWOASA You can also change the name of the Sensor by double clicking directly on the Sensor identification string shown below Then enter a new name in the Rename Device dialog and press the Enter key on your keyboard AB WOAB
25. sensor output when a constant force is applied over a period of time If the sensor is kept under a constant load the resistance of the sensor will continually decrease and the output will gradually increase It is important to take drift into account when calibrating the sensor so that its effects can be minimized The simplest way to accomplish this is to perform the sensor calibration in a time frame similar to that which will be used in the application In FlexiForce sensors drift is less than 3 per logarithmic time Temperature Sensitivity The operating range for FlexiForce sensors is from 15 F 9 C to 140 F 60 C FlexiForce sensor output may vary up to 0 2 per change in degree F approx 0 36 per change in degree Celsius In general this effect will be more significant if you combine high loads on the sensor with high temperatures For loads of less than 10 lbs the operating temperature can be increased to 165 F 74 C 02 05 15 ELF User Manual Rev N 55 To ensure accuracy calibrate the sensor at the temperature at which it will be used in the application If the sensor is being used at different temperatures perform a calibration at each of these temperatures save the calibration files then load the appropriate calibration file when using the sensor at that temperature FlexiForce sensors should be stored at temperatures in the range of 15 F 9 C to 165 F 74 C sensor Life Durability Sensor li
26. you Through the rest of the sebup process Please wait L Inanod The next screen you will see is the Welcome screen Click Next to continue with the Setup ELF Multi handie InstallShield Wizard Welcome to the InstallShield Wizard for ELF Multhandie The Inelals hielo Wizard wil install ELF Mulli hande on you compuler To continue chek Hex 02 05 15 ELF User Manual Rev N 15 You will be taken to the License Agreement page When you have read the License and agree to the terms click the Next button to continue with your installation ELF Multi handle InstallShield Wizard ELF Multi handle License Agreement Engish PLEASE READ THIS SOFTWARE LICENSE AGREEMENT LICENSE CAREFULLY BEFORE PRESSING THE AGREE BUTTON EY PRESSING AGREE YOU SRE GREEING TO BE BOUND EY THE TERMS OF THIS LICENSE IF YOU DO NOT GAEE TO THE TERMS OF THIS LICENSE PRESS DISAGREE AND IF ICABLE RETURN THE TERSCAN SOFTWARE TO THE PLACE WHERE YOU OBTAINED IT FOR 4 REFUND accept Ihe teme of the cenge agreement do not accept the tems of the license agreement inetalis meld Cancel lt Back Next the installation program will copy the necessary files to your computer The default location is C Tekscan EIlf however you can change this location by clicking the Change button and designating a destination of your choice on your computer s hard drive ELF
27. you enter a value in the Trigger Force field under Record gt Settings recording will not begin until that force is exerted on the sensor Force threshold may be selected for each sensor so that a recording will not begin until the force reaches the threshold See the Calibration section for more details Recording Parameters Recording lyp rdirate uses stops at BHz Frame rate 6 200 Hz H C Frame count at Hz Frame court 1 364904449 1000 Full cored Duration until stopped Tngger and threshold Sensor ASWOABAG Trigger 1 3 Threshold 00 10 Select File gt Save As to save the movie Under File Name enter the desired file name e g test1 flf and select the destination path where you want to save your recording Recordings must be saved as ELF Movie Files with the extension flf Ti Fr a a ELF by Tekscan Moviel e E Save As a lt pa Fie View Tools Window Frames Gwe Ji Local Disk C Work Tekscan movies flexiforce earch fesforce p New Ctrl N Open Ctrl O HEELS E es toida i f Close Ji CONFORMat Mame Date modified Save As Ctrl S de conformat dual seats k sd gt a 2dO0sE100Hz H 11 2 2012 11 08 AM ju meee 2x1 s SHz fif 11 2 2012 11 07 AM Ji F Sean RA Tests with Ker ren Recent File de grip Exit J Hoof di Hoof amp Saddle movies de HR Mat Ji Escan Le Matlab File name
28. AR a TIET In the example below the two sensors were renamed to Sensor 1 and Sensor 2 respectively Note that if you want to go back to using the identification number double click on the Sensor label once again delete the name from the Rename Device dialog and press the Enter key on your Keyboard 02 05 15 ELF User Manual Rev N 25 Note that if there is only a single sensor connected the label is displayed above the graph shown below Realtime ASW OAR AB Menu Bar provides drop down menus used to control the program It is located at the top of the Main Window Note for more information see the Main Menu section Toolbar provides some of the same options as the Menu Bar but with icons replacing drop down menus It is located directly below the Menu Bar at the top of the Main Window Note that not all items in the Menu Bar have a corresponding icon on the Toolbar Start Increase Zero Preload Open Recording Calibration Decimal Tare New Mi Real Time l xl Bn 505 o Window Window Stop Decrease Snapshot Recording Sensitivity Decimal Note If you have the WELF system there will be an additional Connect to Wireless Sensor icon at the far right side of the Toolbar Refer to the Wireless ELF System section for further information Two icons on the Toolbar do not have corresponding pull down menus They are the Increase Decimal and Decrease Decimal buttons When senso
29. Multi handle InstallShield Wizard Choose Destination Location Select folder where selup dl mstal hes ay Install ELF Muk handle lo CAT ekscan elt Change Installs meld 02 05 15 ELF User Manual Rev N 16 At this point your computer has the necessary information to proceed with the installation of your ELF program Click the Install button to begin installing the program on your computer ER Multi handle InstallShield Wizar ard xj Ready to Install the Program The wizerd is ready to begin installation hee jm the s installation a a yie ee e change any of your installation seltings click Back Click Cancel to esit Instali meld A progress bar will indicate the program is being successfully installed 02 05 15 Note If at any time prior to this screen you wish to stop the installation process you can click the Cancel button Er Multi E Inst allShield Wiz aril Selup Salus i q ajf E pE sled e r ra Hert instalis Meld ELF User Manual Rev N 17 The next screen that will appear offers you the options to place a shortcut icon on your desktop and view the README file ELF Multi handle InstallShield Wizard Tekzcan Installation of ELF Multi handle Click Finish to complete the ELF Multi hardle Setup fi Create a shortcut for ELF Mull handle on the Desktop and F View the README file If you elect to view th
30. OAGA 02 05 15 ELF User Manual Rev N 29 Open displays the Open dialog box which allows you to open previously recorded movie files Only ELF movie files with the flf file extension can be opened r _a r es 1 Open q i A Oe Ji Local Disk C Werk Tekscan movies fledforce y Search flexiforce Organize New folder oe a Le L Scan 5823Beta Name meras BdOs L00Hz fif U EScan_Lite 5 93 21719 ada de can WiFi A z joe Carte de IScan603 i Scan 10 No preview available b iscan b20 Je Escan CONFORMat Handheld Installs f Ji mobile590 movies Le Baseball Synch Lo RPMS Le isean750 File mame ELF Test Movie Nf vs K _ A _ EE Close causes the currently active Real time or Movie Window to close If a movie has been recorded but not saved the software gives the option of saving the movie file Save As will save the current movie with the specific file name and location of your choice ELF movie files must have the extension flf Your system may limit filenames to eight characters This menu item can be used to save a movie file under more than one filename MN Search fexaforce Organize New folder Ji CONFORMat i Name Date modified Le conformat dual Le fledforce de F Scan RA Tests with Ker di grip J Hoof Ji Hoof amp Saddle movies J HR Mat de Pscan Le Matlab d0s2100H 11 2 2012 11 08
31. Rev N 43 Frames Displayed Menu 1 000 2 000 5 000 10 000 20 000 Entire Movie Frames Displayed Menu only available when focus is on a Movie Window The Frames Displayed Menu provides various display options for the amount of frames shown within the Movie Window along the X axis In addition you can opt to view the Entire Movie within the window s display area a fool EI ASWOABAb ASWOABA Frame de al ds Ti me 10 1 of 10 5 sets 50 frames within a movie 02 05 15 ELF User Manual Rev N 44 anas ASWOABAb A0 ASWOABAT 20 gt 09 1 8 s 3 5 s 535 T s 8 8 a 10 5 s o Framed5 of 85 Time 105 of 10 5 secs 4 The same movie as above but this time with the Entire Movie option selected Help Menu Help Topics About ELF Help Menu same when focus is on either a Real time or Movie Window Help Topics opens the help file associated with the Multi Channel ELF software About ELF opens the About ELF dialog box which displays the software and hardware device version numbers for your ELF system and gives you information on how to contact Tekscan shown below Economical Load and Force ELF System Version 4 2 0 0 Copyright 1997 2013 Tekacan Inc 307 West Fest St Boston M 04127 Telephone 617 464 4500 F 617 464 4266 E mail suppart tekscan com Http wa tekacan com 02 05 15 ELF User Manual Rev N 45
32. Settings brings up the Recording Parameters dialog box which allows you to change the current recording parameters Under Recording Type there are three possibilities that may be selected Recording Parameters Recording lyp infinite fuses stops at Hz CO Frame count al EH Frame count E Full control Curation s Until Stop Trager and threshold Sensor Port COM3 COM3 la Trigger Force 0 0 Note The Frequency or acquisition rate is measured in Hertz Hz which is the number of times per second the sensor output is read by the software 02 05 15 ELF User Manual Rev N 34 Standard ELF Recording Parameters If you have purchased the standard ELF system the software will record at a lower range of speeds and your choices for Recording Types include Infinite Frame Count and Full Control below Recording Parameters i lr Recording lype Infinite user stops at Bz be O Frame count at BH Frame count C Full control Duration s M Trigger and threshold Sensor Port COM LCOM3 Tage Force Unit Percentage Threshold When Infinite is selected recording will continue until Stop is selected from the Record menu or by clicking its icon on the Toolbar When Frame Count is selected the number of Frames to Record may be entered in the Frame count field on the right side of the dialog The recording will stop when this number of frames has been recorded re
33. Transmitter Using an object such as a pen press and hold the Reset button shown below until all three LED lights simultaneously illuminate on the front of the Transmitter When they do release the Reset button Place the battery access door back onto the Transmitter again Insert and screw the battery access door in place As you tighten the screw be careful not to strip the threads Turn the Transmitter off and then on again The Transmitter is now set to the default Ad Hoc network setting 02 05 15 ELF User Manual Rev N 68 Equipment maintenance e The WELF Transmitter cannot be autoclaved e Do not let any liquid drip onto the electronics inside the WELF Transmitter If this occurs it may stop working and must be allowed to dry for 24 hours You can use an air syringe however to significantly reduce this drying time Do not attempt to dry out the WELF Transmitter using any other method or you may destroy the delicate electronics e To properly clean the WELF Transmitter be sure to wipe it down with a 70 Isopropyl Alcohol solution To do this slightly dampen a cloth with the alcohol solution careful not to soak or saturate the cloth Then wipe the WELF Transmitter after each use Troubleshooting If you are having problems try some of the following solutions If this does not solve your problem contact Tekscan Customer Service e Try turning off your wireless internet connection The WELF 2 system may be experie
34. alibration can be completed To calibrate apply a Known force to the sensor The software then equates this applied force to the digital output that it reads and performs a linear interpolation between zero load and the known calibration load In this way the software determines the actual force range that matches the digital output range of 0 255 Raw To perform a multi point calibration apply at least two known forces to a sensor The software then equates this applied force to the digital output that it reads and performs one of two types of interpolation between zero load and the known calibration loads In this way the software determines the actual force range that matches the digital output range of 0 255 Raw e Best Fit Linear Calibration This calibration creates a best fit curve through two or more known force values After a known load is added as a calibration point Calibration Best fit inear Sensor ASWOABA Force uril grams Piece wise lines Mulbpont Calibration Approx maxronge 595 h Sensini l Cal Force 300 Add Point Remove Point select the Params button for details about the calibration including slope offset and Correlation Coefficient r2 e Piece Wise Linear Calibration This calibration connects each calibration point and interpolates between the values Calibration Cahbraton Options 0 Best fit near Piece wice inea HMulipont Ca
35. ame Rate for the WELF Transmitters Unit Paren Lage 02 05 15 ELF User Manual Rev N 62 Setting up an Ad Hoc Network Note Ad Hoc mode is the default mode for the WELF Transmitters Ensure your computer is capable of wireless transmission Consult your computer s documentation for more information 1 Turn on the WELF Transmitter using the On Off power switch located on the right side of the unit shown at right 2 Click the wireless icon in the lower right Windows taskbar as you would if you were connecting to a wireless network Select the WELF network shown in the images below Currently connected to E ES Currently connected to Tekscan com Tek can com Internet access Internet access Wireless Network Connection i Wireless Network Connection Versa TekWiFi 1096 Versa TekWiFi 1096 pi TEK WLANL i TEK WLANI RyanWELF_AP RyanWELF_AP I WELF 5 WELF TEK WLANZ all M TEK WLAN3 Ai TER WLAN2 Name WELF sn Signal Strength Excellent TEK quest Sal _ Security Type Unsecured E Radio Type Unknown Other Network wall TER WLANS S500 RE Open Network and Sharing Center Other Network will FE Open Network and Sharing Center Desktop 3 Double click the WELF network to expand it and then click on the Connect button shown below left A window indicates your computer is connecting to the Ad Hoc network shown below middle
36. at over one million load cycles using a 50 Ib force See also Sensor Life Durability Settings Record Menu Settings brings up the Recording Parameters dialog box which allows you to change the current recording parameters Under Recording Type there are three possibilities that may be selected See Recording Parameters Start Record Menu The Start command is used to make a recording movie When Start is selected the software begins recording a movie of the current Real time window data using the settings that have been selected see Settings menu item When data is being recorded the Recording In Progress message will appear shown below and the Recording On icon on the Main Tool Bar will become active the red circle will become grayed out and the square Stop button black color will become visible If Triggering is in effect and Record is selected the Waiting for Trigger message will be displayed until the trigger force is reached Movies created by the ELF system are stored as flf files Status Bar Main The Main Status Bar provides the user with feedback about what is happening inside the ELF software It will either say For Help Press F1 or will give a description of whichever Toolbar icon is under the cursor The Main Status Bar is located at the bottom of the Main Window Status Bar Movie Window The Movie Window Status Bar is located at the bottom of the Movie Window and displays t
37. ate This brings up the Calibration dialog box shown below Calibration pm Cabbration Options Best fit inear et Sensor AS WDABAB Frish C Piece wise inex Force uril grams Cancel iT Mulhpomt Calibrator Sencilraby Cal Force 1100 Add Pairk emare Pon 5 Select Best Fit Linear calibration or Piece Wise Linear calibration Calibration x l Calbrahon Options f Best fit inear La Sensor ASWOABAB Frrish Piece wise ineas Force urit gams Se Conca Multipoint Calibration Hep 6 Select the Sensor you wish to calibrate first If you have the Multi Handle ELF system all Sensors must be calibrated before you may select Finish before you can finalize the calibration and exit the dialog box without Canceling 02 05 15 ELF User Manual Rev N 51 Cabbrabon Options Best fit inear Sensor ASWOABAB C Piece wise inea Force unit grams r Multipoint Calibration 7 Select the appropriate Force unit from the drop down box grams kilograms Newtons pounds a Calibration Calibration O plicns Best hit mear C Piece wise linear Mukiooint Calibration Sensi Load the sensor with a known force The key to an accurate calibration is applying a stable load Enter the known load in the Cal Force field If the applied force is not stable an error message will appear which requires you to either accept
38. can be changed in the File pull down menu or by clicking the right mouse button Recording Parameters The recording parameters act as settings for your Movie Before you record a movie you should access the Recording Parameters dialog box by going into Record gt Settings Within this dialog box you can select what type of recording you are going to create Things that can be selected are the amount of frames speed of recording any triggering options that need to occur before the recording starts which sensor will trigger the recording and the type of units Pounds Newtons Kilograms etc Repeatability Repeatability is the ability of the sensor to respond in the same way to a repeatedly applied force As with most measurement devices it is customary to exercise or condition a sensor before calibrating it or using it for measurement This is done to reduce the amount of change in the sensor response due to repeated loading and unloading FlexiForce sensors are generally repeatable within 2 5 once they have been conditioned A sensor is conditioned by loading it to 110 of the test weight four or five times S Saturation The saturation force is the point at which the device output no longer varies with applied force The saturation force of each sensor is based on the maximum recommended force specified by Tekscan which is printed on the system packaging or the actual sensor along with the sensitivity Sensors are available in
39. choose to use a USB hub to connect your Handles Connect the Hub to the USB port of the PC or laptop Then connect each USB handle to the USB ports on the Hub 02 05 15 ELF User Manual Rev N 20 2 Insert the sensor into the Handle To do this ensure that the UP printed on the sensor is correctly oriented on the same side as the blue button on the handle and then press down the blue button Slide the sensor tab into the slot until it reaches its mechanical stop and release the blue button Do not force the sensor if it will not slide into the handle easily If the sensor will not slide in easily check that there is nothing inside the handle blocking the sensor and check that the end of the sensor is not bent or folded If the software has been installed and is running when the sensor is correctly inserted an audible beep will be heard and the Sensor OK icon on the Toolbar will be a green square otherwise it will be grayed out Note Follow Static control procedures when handling the sensor while it is in use USB ELF System Specifications The following table outlines the specifications for the USB ELF system OMMUNICATION DATA ACQUISITION COMMUNICATION PROTOCOL TO HOST COMPUTER USB 2 0 CAN SPEED Up to 960 Hz DIGITAL PRESSURE RESOLUTION BIT ELECTRICAL POWER SOURCE USB Powered OWER CONSUMPTION 25mA MAX at 5V WEIGHT lbs kgs w cable 3 2 Oz 900 AMBIENT OPERATING CONDITIONS 14 to 131 10 to 55 Prolong
40. commands can be found directly in the toolbar however not all commands found under the menu are located on the toolbar the Main Menu changes depending where your focus lies The reason for this difference is because there are some commands that can only be accessed from a Movie Window and others from a Real Time Window For example if you have two windows open one a Real Time Window and the other a Movie Window the Main Menu will contain a different set of submenus and commands 02 05 15 ELF User Manual Rev N 72 Main Window When you initiate the ELF software program the Main Window is displayed on your computer screen The Main Window consists of the Menu Bar Tool Bar and Main Status Bar and may contain one or more Real time or Movie Windows The window that is selected is considered the active window or the window that has focus See Focus Only one window can be active at one time and the title bars of the other windows will be grayed out Menu Bar The Menu Bar provides drop down menus submenus used to control the ELF software program It is located at the top of the Main Window Minimum Requirements The minimum hardware requirements that your computer must meet in order to run the ELF software and operate the hardware successfully The minimum requirements are Pentium 300 MHz with 64 MB RAM and 5 MB of Hard Drive Space In addition a CD Drive One USB port per ELF handle and Windows Operating System one of the following
41. d one frame each time it is clicked 02 05 15 ELF User Manual Rev N 27 e Play Forward Plays the recording forward e Last Frame Positions the recording at the end last frame Movie Window Status Bar is located at the bottom of the Movie Window and displays the Frame count the current frame number vs the total number in the movie Directly above this status bar is a scroll bar which can be used to move to any point frame in the movie 6 0 s 6 0 T Frame 82 of 85 Time 10 1 of 10 5 secs The Main Menu The Main Menu contains important commands you use to perform functions within the software Some menu commands can be found directly in the toolbar however not all commands found under the menu are located on the toolbar For this reason it is important to become acquainted with the commands found under each menu This section provides a thorough description of each command and dialog box found under these menus It is important to note that the Main Menu changes depending where your focus lies The reason for this difference is because there are some commands that can only be accessed from a Movie Window and others from a Real time Window For example if you have two windows open one a Real time Window and the other a Movie Window the Main Menu will contain a different set of submenus and commands The following display shows the difference between the two Main Menus The Main Menu as it appears when focus is
42. ddition you can opt to view the Entire Movie within the window s display area 02 05 15 ELF User Manual Rev N 71 H Handle The handle is a piece of hardware that gathers data from the sensor processes it and sends it to your computer through a USB port See ELF Hardware and COM Port Help Topics Help Menu The Help Topics command opens the help file associated with the Multi Channel ELF software About ELF opens the About ELF dialog box which displays the software and hardware device version numbers for your ELF system and gives you information on how to contact FlexiForce Hi Speed Recording Parameters Refers to the options available under the Recording Parameters dialog box If you have purchased the ELF Hi Speed system the software will record at a higher range of speeds and your Recording Parameters dialog box will look slightly different Your choices for Recording Type include Infinite Frame Count and High Speed See Recording Parameters Hysteresis Hysteresis is the difference in the sensor output response during incremental step loading and unloading without going back to zero between measurements at the same forces For static forces and applications in which force is only increased and not decreased the effects of hysteresis are minimal If an application includes load decreases as well as increases there may be error introduced by hysteresis that is not accounted for by calibration For a conditi
43. dual pressure referred to as the Offset Load on the sensor at zero load This operation is useful if the sensor is under some load for the entire duration of the recording or if the sensor must be secured in place by hardware which would cause load to be detected by the sensor The raw data is not affected by the Zeroing Preload function but an extra calculation is performed when converting the raw data to calibrated data If the sensor is reading raw pressure it is set at zero raw before the calibration scale factor is applied Zeroing Preload is recommended only for single point calibration and may increase error when using a multi point calibration Configure WiFi Sensor Refer to The Wireless ELF System section Window Menu Window Menu same when focus is on either a Real time or Movie Window s Window Help z Clone View Cascade Tile ow 1 Realtime3 Clone View Creates a copy of the currently selected window and opens it as a secondary window on screen This command is useful if you want to see the same sensor readout in multiple windows for example if you want to use the Strip Chart view for the sensors in one window and a Column or Numeric view for the sensors in a second window all three options found under the View menu Cascade arranges multiple windows in an overlapped fashion Tile arranges multiple windows in an overlapped fashion either vertically or horizontally 02 05 15 ELF User Manual
44. e README file it will open in a MS Notepad window where you can read about new and updated information regarding the latest release of the ELF software BM readme txt Notepad fm AAA SS SSS SSS SS SS SSS SSS SS SS SSS SSS SS SSS HSS SSS SS SSS AAA TEKSCAN ELF 3 40 README TXT FILE ff November 2007 a aa ae A A This file contains important information about Elf Version 3 40 It contains a description of all changes that were made to the software in the current version Tip If necessary choose word wrap from the Notepad Edit menu or wrap To window from the wordPad View Options menu to wrap the text within the document window A l USB HANDLE SUPPORT The new USB based wired handles are supported in this version of the software e BUG FIX WELF HANDLE RECOGNITION PROBLEM UPON SOFTWARE RESTARTS The WELF transmitters andor the WELF hub might not be recognized dropped upon multiple software restarts This 1s now fixed 3 WIRELESS HUB amp USE HANDLE WILL INSTALL UNDER VISTA Updated INF Tile for the wireless HUB and the mew ELF USB Handle will allow for the devices to be recognized and installed under vista 02 05 15 ELF User Manual Rev N 18 When the installation is completed you will need to restart your system Click the Finish button and your system will be automatically rebooted You cannot start the ELF software without first restarting ELF Multi handle
45. e extension clb and can contain up to eight characters The Sensitivity setting is also saved by the calibration file 02 05 15 ELF User Manual Rev N 74 Scroll Bar Movie Window The Scroll bar is located directly above the status bar in a Movie Select Sensin Sensiti Window at the bottom of the movie window below the force data It can be used to move to any point frame in the movie Colors Tools Menu The Select Colors command allows you to customize the background color as well as the trace color for each ELF device in your View windows When this item is selected the Select Graph Colors dialog box appears By clicking on either Trace Color or Background Color a Windows color palette becomes available and you can select one of the standard colors or create your own custom color for each of the COM ports sensors The color you choose will be used for all Movie and Real time windows and will be set as the default color To restore the original color select the Default All Colors button g Area The Sensing area is the silver circle located on the top of the sensor vity Also referred to as Adjustable Gain This adjustment sets the data output range from the computer 0 to 100 to the actual force range output from the system handle In this way the usable force range of the sensor can be adjusted up to the rated maximum force Sensitivity settings are saved between sessions and are included with calibrati
46. ed use at high TEMPERATURE F C Temperatures should be avoided UMIDITY O to 90 non condensing 1 7 to 14 7 11 6 to 101 3 sea level to 50 000 PRESSURE psi kPa ft STORAGE AND TRANSPORT CONDITIONS TEMPERATURE F C A1 to 104 5 to 40 Long Term to 90 non condensing 7 to 14 7 11 6 to 101 3 sea level to 50 000 ft 02 05 15 ELF User Manual Rev N 21 OVERVIEW This section outlines the Various Hardware and Software components that ship with your system Sensors The FlexiForce sensor is an ultra thin and flexible printed circuit Sensors are available in three full scale force ranges Low 25 Ibf Medium 150 Ibf and High 1000 Ibf The active sensing area is a 0 375 diameter circle at the end of the sensor The sensors are constructed of two layers of substrate such as a polyester film On each layer a conductive material silver is applied followed by a layer of pressure sensitive ink Adhesive is then used to laminate the two layers of substrate together to form the sensor The active sensing area is defined by the silver circle on top of the pressure sensitive ink Silver extends from the sensing area to the connectors at the other end of the sensor forming the conductive leads The sensor acts as a variable resistor in an electrical circuit When the sensor is unloaded Its resistance is very high greater than 5 Meg ohm when a force is applied to the sensor the resistance decreases This r
47. enance Troubleshooting Glossary 02 05 15 ELF User Manual Rev N 4 WELCOME ISO Tekscan is registered to the following standard s e ISO 9001 2000 e ISO 13485 2003 02 05 15 ELF User Manual Rev N Introduction This manual describes how to use Tekscan s Economical Load amp Force ELF Multi Handle ELF and Hi Speed ELF systems These systems are ideal for designers researchers or anyone who needs to measure forces without disturbing the dynamics of their tests The FlexiForce sensors can be used to measure both static and dynamic forces up to 1000 Ibf and are thin enough to enable non intrusive measurement Each ELF system is comprised of FlexiForce s Microsoft MS Windows based software the associated electronics and FlexiForce sensors The ELF system hardware includes the sensor handle with USB adapter and the sensors One of the major advantages of this system is that it is simple to install and requires very little hardware The ELF sensors use a resistive based technology The application of a force to the active sensing area of the sensor results in a change in the resistance of the sensing element in inverse proportion to the force applied After a simple calibration is performed this force can be displayed on the screen in the measurement units that you choose such as Pounds or Newtons The ELF software is an 8 bit application that is compatible with Microsoft MS Windows 2000 XP Vista The so
48. esistance is read and an 8 bit analog to digital converter changes the output to a digital value in the range of 0 to 255 There are two types of FlexiForce sensors available as outlined in the chart below Specifications A 201 For use with your own electronics Force ranges A201 1 0 1 Ib A201 25 0 25 lbs and A201 100 0 1000 Ibs B 201 ELF Multi Handle ELF or High Force ranges Low 0 25 Ib Medium 0 Speed ELF 150 Ib and High 0 1000 Ib Sensor Handle The sensor s tab is placed into the sensor handle The handle gathers data from the sensor processes it and sends it to your computer through a USB connection Note Our previous systems shipped with Serial handles It is not recommended to use both the Serial ELF and USB ELF handles simultaneously Screen Display This section is a comprehensive look at the ELF screen display Each component of the display as well as each Main Menu option will be described in detail Note Familiarity with MS Windows is assumed so menu items that have the same function in standard Windows applications are not described in this manual 02 05 15 ELF User Manual Rev N 22 Sensor Selection When you initiate the Multi Handle ELF software program the Sensor Selection window is displayed on your computer screen shown below left Select the sensors you would like to have connected to the current Real Time Window using Ctri Click to select multiple sensors and click the Co
49. etwork Connection VersaTekWiFi 1096 TEK WLANL RyanWELF_AP 2 Information sent over this network might be visible to others Connect automatically TEK quest TEK WLAN3 Open Network and Sharing Center 6 Turn on the WELF Transmitter s and open the software The Sensor Selection window is displayed on your computer screen shown below left Select the sensors you would like to have connected to the current Real Time Window using Ctrl Click to select multiple sensors and click the Connect button shown below right If you wish to connect to all sensors you do not have to first select any sensors Simply click the Connect All button See the Sensor Selection section for more information about this dialog 02 05 15 ELF User Manual Rev N 66 The Sensor Selection dialog closes and a new Real time window opens where you can monitor the sensors force data shown below E Realtimel ABWOABAG ASWOABA7T Note If you wish to rename a Transmitter double click on the Serial number for the Transmitter you want to rename shown on the right side of the Real time window above Then enter your name for the channel in the Name dialog that opens Names are saved along with the recording and are even saved across sessions if you close and reopen the software If you wish to revert to the serial number again double click and leave the name field empty in the Name
50. fe depends on the application in which it is used Sensors are reusable unless used in applications in which they are subjected to severe conditions such as against sharp edges or shear forces FlexiForce sensors have been successfully tested at over one million load cycles using a 50 Ib force Rough handling of a sensor will also shorten its useful life For example a sensor that is repeatedly installed in a flanged joint will have a shorter life than a sensor installed in the same joint once and used to monitor loads over a prolonged period After each installation visually inspect your sensors for physical damage It is also important to keep the sensing area of the sensor clean Any deposits on this area will create uneven loading and will cause saturation to occur at lower applied forces 02 05 15 ELF User Manual Rev N 56 THE WIRELESS ELF SYSTEM The Wireless Economical Load Force 2 WELF 2 system is a user friendly cost effective load measurement system This system combines FlexiForce sensors Wireless ELF electronics and Windows compatible software turning your PC or laptop into a force measurement instrument The Wireless ELF 2 system allows you to transmit force readings from your FlexiForce sensors to your PC without a direct cable connection The following section explains the setup and operation of this system Key Features include e Real time data capture e Connector Compatible with all e ASCII output to data analys
51. ftware allows you to view a graphical representation of the force on the sensor in real time record this information as a movie and review and analyze it later There are a number of options for displaying the real time force data it can be displayed as a strip chart column graph or digital readout Recorded movie frames can be saved as ASCII text files which can be imported into a spreadsheet program or opened in a text editor or word processing program Real time data or movie frames can also be copied to the Windows clipboard and pasted into other applications as a bmp bitmap file Getting Assistance Tekscan Inc will provide technical assistance for any difficulties you may experience using your ELF system Write call or fax us with any concerns or questions Our knowledgeable support staff will be happy to help you Comments and suggestions are always welcome Tekscan Inc 307 West First Street South Boston MA 02127 1309 Phone 617 464 4283 Fax 617 464 4266 E mail info tekscan com 02 05 15 ELF User Manual Rev N 6 Copyright 2015 by Tekscan Incorporated All rights reserved No part of this publication may be reproduced transmitted transcribed stored in a retrieval system or translated into any language or computer language in any form or by any means without the prior written permission of Tekscan Inc 307 West First Street South Boston MA 02127 1309 Tekscan Inc makes no representa
52. gardless of the duration of the movie r 4 Recording Parameters piil Tigger and threshold Sensor Port COM COMMS Tigger Force Unit Peroeritage Threshold 02 05 15 ELF User Manual Rev N 35 When Full control is selected the Frames to Record may be entered and the Recording Frequency Hz may be selected in the Frame rate field to the right In Full control applications recordings can be obtained at user defined frequencies between 10 and 200 Hz standard system For the High Speed ELF system frequencies as high as 5 7 kHz can be obtained Recording Parameters Recording lyp E Infirite user stops at BHz m Trigger and threshold Sensor Port COMH CO3 Tigger Force Unit Percentage Threshold Kk _ Camel He The Duration is listed below the Frame Count it will either say Until Stop if Infinite is selected or the approximate duration in seconds the recording will take to complete if Frame Count is specified Recording Parameters s EN r Fieconding lyp Undine user stops at amp Hz Frame rate 10 200 H2 20 O Frame count at BH Frame count 000 A control Duration s Tigger and threshold Sensor Port COM3 COM3 Trigger Force 0 0 Unit Percentage Threshodd EJ Cancel Help 02 05 15 ELF User Manual Rev N 36 The Recording Parameters dialog box also allows you to trigger the start of a recording If you enter a value in the Tri
53. gger Force field and select the appropriate measurement units recording will not begin until that force is exerted on the sensor Enter a zero in this field to disable triggering Only one Trigger Force value may be entered and will apply to all sensors being used for testing Recording Parameters Recording lype Infinite user stops at BHz erate 10 200 1 A O Frame count al BH Frame count 1 0000 Full control Curation 5 Unhl Stop Tnoger and threshold Sensor Port COM3 COM3 Trae Force Unit Percentage Threshold The Threshold may be set for each individual COM port so that each sensor has a different threshold This may be used in combination with the Trigger Force value to begin recording when force is exerted on a specific sensor Note If no calibration has been performed the only available units will be shown as a Percentage If a calibration has been performed you may select from a number of force units r Recording Parameters ph Recordng ype Infinite user stops at Hz O Frame count at BH Frame count C Full contiol Duration sE Until Stop Tigger and threshold Sensor Port COMS COMS Trigger Force oo 02 05 15 ELF User Manual Rev N 37 ELF Hi Speed Recording Parameters If you have purchased the ELF Hi Speed system the software will record at a higher range of speeds up to 5 60 Hz and your Recording Parameters dia
54. he Frame count the current frame number vs the total number in the movie Status Bar View Menu The Status Bar option is used to display or hide the Movie and Main Status Bars These status bars can be toggled by clicking this menu item on and off If a Real time window is active this menu item affects the Main Status Bar If a Movie window is active this menu item affects the Movie Status Bar Stop Movie Toolbar Playback Controls Stops playback Stop Record Menu The Stop command will cause the software to stop recording the active Real time window even if the correct number of movie frames as selected in Settings have not yet been recorded Strip Chart View Menu The Strip Chart option is the default display mode where force value is displayed on the Y Axis and elapsed time is displayed on the X Axis T Temperature Sensitivity See Sensor Temperature Sensitivity Threshold Refers to a value within the Recording Parameters that is set by the user The Threshold may be set for each individual COM port so that each sensor has a different Threshold This may be used in combination with the Trigger Force value to begin recording when force is exerted on a specific sensor See Recording Parameters 02 05 15 ELF User Manual Rev N 76 Tile Window Menu The Tile command arranges multiple windows in an overlapped fashion either vertically or horizontally Toolbar The Toolbar provides some of the same options as t
55. he Menu Bar but with icons replacing drop down menus It is located directly below the Menu Bar at the top of the Main Window Note that not all items in the Menu Bar have a corresponding icon on the Tool Bar Toolbar View Menu The Tool Bar option is used to display or hide the Movie and Main Tool Bars These tool bars can be toggled by clicking this menu item on and off If a Real time window Is active this menu item affects the Main Tool Bar If a Movie window is active this menu item affects the Movie Tool Bar Trigger Force See Triggering Triggering Refers to the Recording Parameters dialog box This dialog box allows you to trigger the start of a recording based on a force value If you enter a value in the Trigger Force field and select the appropriate measurement units recording will not begin until that force is exerted on the sensor Enter a zero in this field to disable triggering Only one Trigger Force value may be entered and will apply to all sensors being used for testing See Recording Parameters U Uncalibrate Tools Menu The Uncalibrate command removes the sensor s calibration data When this item is selected a dialog box will appear giving the option of canceling the Uncalibrate operation Uncalibrate does not affect the Sensitivity setting See Sensitivity W Z Zeroing Preload Tools Menu The Zeroing Preload command modifies the calibrated data to correct for residual pressure
56. he Movie and Main Status Bars These status bars can be toggled by clicking this menu item on and off If a Real time window is active this menu item affects the Main Status Bar If a Movie window is active this menu item affects the Movie Status Bar 5 0 ss 6 0 A Frame 82 of 85 Time 10 1 of 10 5 secs Properties opens the Properties dialog box shown following which allows you to change how the data is displayed on the screen Any changes made here will only affect the currently active Real time or Movie Window The Properties dialog box will also appear whenever you click the right mouse button over a Real time or Movie Window Properties Realtime1 pra Strip Chart Scale Har a 100 A C Column Scale Min a 0 E Number Uris percentage F Pause Cancel Help Under View you can select whether to display the force data as a Strip Chart Column or Number Strip Chart shows the pressure data in the form of a chart with elapsed time in seconds on the X axis and the selected units on the Y axis Column displays the data as a single column with the force values on the Y axis Number displays the force data as a digital readout In the Properties dialog box you may also change the Scale Max Scale Min and Units Under Units the display units Percentage Grams Kilograms Newtons and Pound are selected Scale Min and Scale Max set the range of values that will be displayed Certain default maximum and mi
57. hoice Calibration files must have the extension clb The Sensitivity setting is also saved with the calibration file 02 05 15 Save As OU Organize New folder di a Local Disk Cs Work Tekscan movies fleoforce i Je iscan 50 la Le k Scan CONFORMat Hand Je mobile590 di movies Baseball Synch de BPMS CONFORMat calibration file 01 CLB ld conformat dual di flexiforce J F Scan RA Tests with Ker e Filename calibration file 02 CLB Save as type Calibration Files clb a Hide Folders ELF User Manual Rev N Date modified 8 1 2013 3 34 PM 41 Select Colors allows you to customize the background color as well as the trace color for each ELF device in your View windows When this item is selected the Select Graph Colors dialog box appears By clicking on either Trace Color or Background Color an MS Windows color palette becomes available and you can select one of the standard colors or create your own custom color for each of the COM ports sensors The color you choose will be used for all Movie and Real time Windows and will be set as the default color To restore the original color select the Default All Colors button Set Trace Colo al ASWOARAB Cancel Su tay j Sat 144 Geen 151 Trace Color Background Color Defauk All Colors ColoriSeld Lum 135 Bue 217 OK Add to Custo
58. ing Ctrl Click to select multiple sensors and click the Connect button shown below right If you wish to connect to all sensors you do not have to first select any sensors Simply click the Connect All button See the Sensor Selection section for more information about this dialog Sensor Selection Connect al Cancel 02 05 15 ELF User Manual Rev N 7 J 4 02 05 15 A new Real time window appears The size of this window will vary since MS Windows cascades new windows If the window is too small to view comfortably enlarge it by dragging an edge of the window with the cursor shown below ASWOAGAG ASWOAGAT If the sensor is misaligned in the Handle the label indicates the misalignment shown below Remove and reinsert the sensor into the Handle to ensure it is working correctly If the sensor is inserted properly into the Handle and the software still indicates it is misaligned contact Tekscan for assistance 126 0020 misaligned 126 0021 Apply the test force to the sensing area of the sensors refer to the Sensor Loading Considerations section and ensure that the sensors are conditioned before use The force data will be displayed in the window in the default mode which is as a Strip Chart This shows the data in the form of a chart with elapsed time in seconds on the X axis and the selected units default is percentage on the Y axis AS WOAGAB AS WOAGAT ELF User Manual Rev N 8
59. installation procedure Please refer to the Software Installation section for proper instructions The WELF 2 software splash screen ELF ECONOMICAL Loan amp FORCE SYSTEM Data Acquisition System from Tekscan Inc Tekscan Inc is an 150 9001 registered company Wireless Setup There are two methods to setup the Wireless system The Ad Hoc method is the default setting for new WELF Transmitters and is appropriate if you plan to use one Transmitter at a time The second Access Point method is recommended if you are connecting multiple Transmitters together and uses a wireless router to connect the Recording Parameters Transmitters The following explains Recording lype both of these setups Note that Ielide user slope AHE Frame ate 10 28000 Windows 7 is used for the i i Frame count al 8H Frame count instructions below Other Windows Eeid ERE operating systems may vary slightly Bei Euren e in setup Trigger and threshokd Note also that the Recording Sensor Port 0531001819216 Triage Force Parameters are slightly different for WELF 2 systems than for ELF systems The following shows the Recording Parameters for WELF 2 which is all contained on a single screen To access these parameters E gt go to Record gt Settings while you have a new recording open on screen The following dialog opens where you can select the Recording Type and Fr
60. iod of time If the sensor is kept under a constant load the resistance of the sensor will continually decrease and the output will gradually increase It is important to take Drift into account when calibrating the sensor so that its effects can be minimized The simplest way to accomplish this is to perform the sensor calibration in a time frame similar to that which will be used in the application In FlexiForce sensors drift is less than 3 logarithmic time Duration Refers to a setting within the Recording Parameters dialog box The Duration is listed below the Recording Type it will either say Until Stop if Infinite is selected or the approximate duration in seconds the recording will take to complete if Frame Count is specified See Recording Parameters E ELF Hardware The ELF hardware consists of the sensor handle s ELF software and the FlexiForce sensor s ELF Software The ELF software is an 8 bit application that is compatible with Microsoft MS Windows 2000 XP Vista The software allows you to view a graphical representation of the force on the sensor in real time record this information as a movie and review and analyze it later There are a number of options for displaying the Real time force data it can be displayed as a strip chart column graph or digital readout Recorded movie frames can be saved as ASCII text files which can be imported into a spreadsheet program or opened in a text
61. iously recorded movie files Only ELF movie files with the flf file extension can be opened P Piece Wise Linear Calibration This calibration connects each calibration point and interpolates between the values Play Backward Movie Toolbar Playback Controls Plays the recording in reverse Play Forward Movie Toolbar Playback Controls Plays the recording forward Playback Controls The Playback controls are used for movie playback functions The following functions are available First Frame Play Backward Previous Frame Stop Next Frame Play Forward and Last Frame See Movie Toolbar Playback Controls Port See COM Port Previous Frame Movie Toolbar Playback Controls Plays the recording in reverse one frame each time it is clicked 02 05 15 ELF User Manual Rev N 73 Properties View Menu The Properties command opens the Properties dialog box which allows you to change how the data is displayed on the screen Any changes made to the Properties will only affect the currently active Real time or Movie window The Properties dialog box will also appear whenever you click the right mouse button over a Real Time or Movie Window You can select a display option Strip Chart Column or Number and also change the Scale Max Scale Min and Units R Real Time Window A Real time Window displays the load applied to the sensor as it is happening in Real time The Properties of this display
62. is FlexiForce 2 and 3 pin male sensors software e Movie recording amp saving e Simple and storable calibration e Multi point calibration e Adjustable sensitivity e Capability to tare a load e Multiple Handle capability available e Internal triggering e Displays in strip chart column graph e Sampling rate up to 200 Hz or digital readout e High speed version available up to e Wireless connection setup Ad Hoc 6 000 Hz and Access Point router network e WiFi certified 802 11b radio capability 802 11b g n compatible Component Identification Following are the components that ship with the Wireless ELF 2 system For a list of components that ship with the ELF or Multi Handle ELF system refer to the ELF Component Identification section 1 WELF Transmitter 1 AC Adapter Optional Also Included 3 FlexiForce WB201 Sensors ERA OTC e a int Eleyi E ae Tas 3 AAA Batteries amp 1 Phillips head 1 screwdriver Note You can use a 2 pin sensor with the WELF Transmitter however you must ensure that the two pins are connected to the right side pin connections the two pins closest to the On Off Power Switch 02 05 15 ELF User Manual Rev N 57 Technical Specifications The WELF Transmitter is powered via three AAA alkaline batteries Such as Energizer E92 or the optional AC Adapter can be used if operation of the product is for extended period of time to save on battery life The following provides some guidance
63. libration Approx maxtange 0835 Cal Force 0 22046 Add Poirk 02 05 15 Sensor ASWOABAB hal Force uril pounds hal Seriliviby peer os ELF User Manual Rev N Finish Cancel 49 Calbraton Options Detail NOTE if you have a Multi Handle ELF system all handles must use the same type of calibration Linear and Best Fit cannot be mixed and matched The Sensitivity or Adjustable Gain is also adjusted in the ELF Calibration dialog box This adjustment sets the data output range from the computer 0 to 100 to the actual force range output from the system handle In this way the usable force range of the sensor can be adjusted up to the rated maximum force Sensitivity settings are saved between sessions and are included with calibration files Calibration Guidelines Calibration y gt a Cakbration Options Bes itinea Senzor ASWOABAB ih C Piece wise inea Force urit Cancel Mulbipomt Calibration Help _ Hep Force Faw Sercitiviby fo Cal Force 300 1 ml j Add Poirt The following guidelines should be considered when calibrating a sensor e Apply a calibration load that approximates the load to be applied during system use using dead weights or a testing device such as an MTS or Instron If you intend to use a puck during testing also use it when calibrating the sensor See Sensor Loading Considerations
64. log box will look slightly different Your choices for Recording Type include Infinite Frame Count and High Speed Tools Menu 02 05 15 Recording Type E Inlinte 8 Hz user stops t Frame Count 8 H3 High Speed Frame Count Trigger amp Threshold Sensor Port COMA COMA Unit Percentage Threshold 0 0 Frame count 1 727 17 276E 100000 toca eo Tools Menu when focus is on a Tools Menu when focus is on a Movie Real time Window Window ls Window Help Select Colors Change Unit Load Calibration Save Calibration Change Sensitivity Zero Preload tare Configure WiFi Sensor ELF User Manual Rev N 38 Calibrate Opens the ELF Calibration dialog box which enables you to calibrate the sensor and adjust the system sensitivity Refer to the Calibration section for the complete calibration procedure and a thorough description of the process Calibration Calbirshon Options Best fit inear i Sensor AS WDABAB mish C Piece wise inex Force uril orams a Cancel Mulhpomt Calibrator Help Sencilrity 20 Cal Force 1100 Add Point i In the Calibration dialog box the calibration load is entered under Cal Force by typing in the value and selecting the appropriate units Grams Kilograms Newtons Pounds Clicking the OK button will then begin the calibration process The resulting calibration can be saved as a file by selec
65. m Colors Select Graph Colors e i STE TE Tr EE CELL AE A Bii i i in j EE 111 Color scc a al a m si a Gust NE UCI Big IC LILI EM H i Change Unit This feature allows you to quickly change the force units displayed in all windows To use this feature however you must have performed a calibration Otherwise all force will be displayed as raw values Change Unit pt ai Change Sensitivity This feature opens the Change Sensitivity Dialog box below You may adjust the sensitivity for each sensor COM port Use the drop down Select Buttons field to select the COM port Then drag the slider up and down until you are satisfied Adjust as many buttons as you like When you are satisfied click OK To return the system to the original sensitivity settings click the Default button When you change the Sensitivity a message will open up explaining that your calibration will be discarded if you have Calibrated the sensor If you want to continue click Yes ELF by Tekscam l Dm PTA m Changing sensitorty wall invalidate and discard calibration Do you want to continue 02 05 15 ELF User Manual Rev N 42 You then have the option to change the Sensitivity of the sensor Change Sensitivity E Sensor Port x ASWDABAE Cancel Senariy Default s Zeroing Preload This feature modifies the calibrated data to correct for resi
66. n IP address automaticaly A Use the following IP address The connection uses the following fem MOE Client for Microsoft Networks Y 2005 Packet Scheduler w El File and Printer Sharing for Microsoft Networks w i ermet Protocol Version 6 TCP 1Pw6 CONOS internet Protocol Version 4 TCP IPw4 wj Link Layer Topology Discovery Mapper 10 Driver of ote Link Layer Topology Discovery Responder Obtain ONS server address automatically L 5 Use the following DNS server addresses Install Uninsta Properties i Description Tranemesion Control Protocol internet Protocol The defaut wide gres network prolocel that provides communication acres diverse interconnected networks 02 05 15 ELF User Manual Rev N 69 GLOSSARY A About Elf Help Menu The About Elf command displays a dialog window with information about the software version as well as contact information for Tekscan Adjustable Gain See Sensitivity B Best Fit Linear Calibration This calibration creates a best fit curve through two or more known force values After a known load is added as a calibration point select the Params button from the Calibration dialog for details about the calibration including slope offset and Correlation Coefficient r2 C Cal Force A value that is entered by the user on the Calibration dialog box This value is the calibration load that is placed on the sensor in order to convert the Digital
67. n press the OK button to accept the changes and close the dialog Note If you incorrectly type in the Network name and press OK you will have to reset the WELF Transmitter Refer to the Resetting the WELF Transmitter to the Default Ad Hoc Network section for information on how to do this Wireless Sensor Configuration l Wireless Sensor Configuration Device 033 10080163 254 2493 235 Device 033 1008 169 254 299 235 Firmware verson 1 Firmware version 1 WiFi Settings WiFi Settings Network name Network name RyanWELF_AP Network type F AdHoc Access point router Network type O AdHoc Access point router l Allowed channelg 1 amp 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 Allowed channels 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 canoa _ 4 Exit the software and turn the WELF Transmitter off and then on again Optional Repeat steps for each additional WELF Transmitter you wish to connect 02 05 15 ELF User Manual Rev N 65 5 Connect the PC to the router you specified in the software by clicking on the wireless icon in the lower right taskbar Expand the proper router network you specified earlier and click the Connect button shown below left A window indicates your computer is connecting to the Access Point network shown below right This may take a moment Once finished the network status indicates Connected Currently connected to Tekscan com Internet access Wireless N
68. ncing interference with the wireless internet signal e Low battery life can result in connection problems A blinking battery light indicates if battery strength is low To test if this is causing the connection issue plug the optional AC adapter into the WELF Transmitter if you have obtained one to power the unit via external power or replace the batteries in the Transmitter e You may have your wireless adapter set to Static IP which is not supported To change these settings go to Start gt Control Panel gt Network and Sharing Center and click on the Change adapter settings from the left side menu options Then right click on the Wireless Network Connection icon and select Properties from the context menu Select the Internet Protocol Version 4 TCP IPv4 setting and click the Properties button shown below left In the Internet Protocol Version 4 properties dialog ensure the Obtain an IP address automatically option is selected shown below right Then press the OK button to accept the changes and exit the dialog 2 Wireless Network Connection Properties mea Internet Protocol Version 4 TCP 1Pw4 Properties a Networking Sharing Connect using You can get IP settings assigned automatically if your network supports SP Compact Wreless G USB Network Adapter this capabibty Otherwise you need to ask your network administrator for the aporopriate IP settings General Alternate Configuration Obtain a
69. nimum values will be displayed for the selected units and these values can be changed by clicking on the up and down arrows to the right of the numbers Selecting Pause causes the current Real time window to freeze or to ignore all commands When this is selected the word Pause will be added to the Title Bar of the window Movie windows cannot be paused 02 05 15 ELF User Manual Rev N 33 Record Menu Record Menu only available when focus is on a Real time Window y Tekscan Realtimel ew Tools Window J Start foro Stop Settings Start is used to make a recording movie When this is selected the software begins recording a movie of the current tenes Real time window data using the settings that have been selected see the Settings menu item below When data is Recording in progress being recorded the Recording message will appear shown at right and the Recording On icon on the Main Toolbar will become active the red circle will become grayed out and the square Stop button black color will become visible If Triggering is in effect and Record is selected the Waiting for Trigger message will be displayed until the trigger force is reached Movies created by the ELF system are stored as flf files Stop will cause the software to stop recording the active Real time Window even if the correct number of movie frames as selected in Settings have not yet been recorded
70. nnect button shown below right If you wish to connect to all sensors you do not have to first select any sensors Simply click the Connect All button Sensor Selection You cannot mix between USB and Wireless WiFi sensors If you select a mix of sensors the Connect and Connect All buttons are disabled and a warning alerting you to the issue is presented at the bottom of the dialog shown below Sensor Selection Paca O Found sensors 126 1015 S N EDAS IP 169 254 55 95 Mixing USS and WiFi sencors in one session is not supported Please cormect to one type of sensors only Cancel Note If you only have a single sensor connected or if you are using the Single Handle ELF system you will not see this selection window Note When multiple handles are recognized by the system each time you press the New Real Time Window icon on the Toolbar or select File gt New from the menu this window opens allowing you to select which sensors you want displayed in the current Real Time Window Note You cannot connect the same sensor to multiple Real Time Windows However you can clone the Real Time Window using Window gt Clone View which will display the same sensor readout in two separate windows 02 05 15 ELF User Manual Rev N 23 Main Window The Main Window consists of the Menu Bar Tool Bar and Main Status Bar and may contain one or more Real time or Movie Windows The window that is
71. nnonnnnanonannnnnns 38 TOO MeN errante iaa 39 WV TENG WE MERU arta cols 43 Frames Displayed Menu restan oa 44 A e 45 Sensor Loading Considerations coocccccconcccnconcocncononcnnononnncanonnnnancononnnnnnonanonnonannnnnnannnronninaness 47 Senso FECC eto irte ass 47 e o oO e A AAA 47 Seo O ene eee ene ee ee ee 48 111911010 y ee o AA 49 Calibration Guidelines oocoocconconconconconconconnonnonnonnonncnnonnonnonnnnronnonnnnnnnnonnonnnnnonrnnncnnennenonons 50 Calibration Procedure cccccecceccecceecseceeteececeeceeeeeeceeseeeeeeuecsecsesecseeseceeeseeeeceeeeeeseeseeteeees 50 Sensor Performance CharacteriStiCS oocooccocconconconconnorncononncononnonnonnonnonnnornnnonnonnonnnnnennnnnnos 99 AA e ro E E ER E AA 55 LCI ce E E AP 55 o A 55 Biin AE E nn e oo Eo O A AA 59 Temperature Sensitivity ccccccncdnnsadeedecsnnenccsncesscseacaveacecsanbceassanecandsntsienndisasdtadder e eae aa 55 Sensor bie D UraDIlY ee a 56 The Wireless ELF System issiria a a beac E encata 57 Component IGSNIUMCATION essnee a 57 Technical SpecificatiONS coocoococcconconconconcornonnonncnnonnonncnnonnonnonnonrnnnnnnnnnnnrnnnnnnnennennnnnencnnnns 58 installing The Batteries escri a ta 61 Setting up the Wireless ELF System ocoocccoccocccccconoccnconoconnonocononnonnonononnnnanonnnnanonanennnaninanenes 62 02 05 15 ELF User Manual Rev N 3 Resetting the WELF Transmitter to the Default Ad Hoc Network Equipment maint
72. on a Real time Window File View Record Tools Window Help The Main Menu as it appears when focus is on a Movie Window File View Tools Window Frames Displayed Help 02 05 15 ELF User Manual Rev N 28 File Menu File Menu when focus is on a Real File Menu when focus is on a Movie time Window Window ELF by Tekscan Realtimel lt A ELF by Tekscan Moviel File View Record Tools Window New Ctrl N E File View Tools Window Frar New Ctri N ik Open Ctrl 0 Open Ctri 0 Close Close Recent File Save As Ctrl 5 Save ASCI Recent File Exit New opens a new Real time Window shown below in addition to any other Real time or Movie windows that are currently open The new Real time Window becomes the active window when it is opened If more than one Real time Window is open the force data will be displayed in all windows in unison If the sensor has already been calibrated this calibration will also apply to the new Real time Window Note When multiple handles are recognized by the system using the Multi Handle ELF system each time you press the New Real Time Window icon on the Toolbar or select File gt New from the menu the Sensor Selection window opens first allowing you to select which sensors you want displayed in the current Real Time Window Refer to the Sensor Selection section for more information ASWOABAb ASW
73. on expected performance Notes about the batteries used with the WELF Transmitter e These batteries are primary cells and are not rechargeable e Use only alkaline batteries Do not use any other kind of battery Use of other types of batteries may damage the WELF Transmitter e Once the batteries are discharged replace them with fresh batteries and dispose of the discharged batteries in accordance with applicable laws e lf the WELF Transmitter is not to be used for an extended period of time remove batteries This avoids damage to the Transmitter if batteries leak e Use only Tekscan approved AC adapters cables and sensors Maximum Force Maximum Force WB201 L 0Oto1lb 4 4N O to 1 Ib 4 4 N Oto25lb 111N 111 N WB201 M 0 to 25 Ib epee a N JO to 150 Ib ee N WB201 H l0 to 150 Ib 667 N O0 to 1 000 Ib 4 448 N Sensors The following table provides sensor performance recommendations Number of Handles Scan Rate Hz Distance meters 16 WELF 2 basic system 200 50 8 WELF 2 High Speed system 6 000 20 Note You can use a 2 pin sensor with the WELF Transmitter however you must ensure that the two pins are connected to the right side pin connections the two pins closest to the On Off Power Switch WELF Features e On Off Power Switch Turns the WELF Transmitter on or off The switch is located on the right of the Transmitter refer to Sensor Specifications table below e Sensor Input WB201 can be inser
74. on files Sensitivity can be accessed directly from the Tools Menu or from within the Calibration dialog box Sensor Life Durability Sensor life depends on the application in which it is used Sensors are reusable unless used in applications in which they are subjected to severe conditions such as against sharp edges or shear forces FlexiForce sensors have been successfully tested at over one million load cycles using a 50 Ib force Rough handling of a sensor will also shorten its useful life For example a sensor that is repeatedly installed in a flanged joint will have a shorter life than a sensor installed in the same joint once and used to monitor loads over a prolonged period After each installation visually inspect your sensors for physical damage It is also important to keep the sensing area of the sensor clean Any deposits on this area will create uneven loading and will cause saturation to occur at lower applied forces Sensor Temperature Sensitivity The operating range for FlexiForce sensors is from 15 F 02 05 15 9 C to 140 F 60 C FlexiForce sensor output may vary up to 0 2 per change in degree F approx 0 36 per change in degree C In general this change will be more significant if you combine high loads on the sensor with high temperatures For loads of less than 10 Ibs the operating temperature can be increased to 165 F 74 C To ensure accuracy calibrate the sensor at the temperature at which it
75. oned sensor with 50 of the full force range applied hysteresis is less than 4 5 of full scale I Increase Decrease Decimal Two icons on the Tool Bar do not have corresponding pull down menus They are the Increase Decimal and Decrease Decimal buttons When sensors have been calibrated units of force will be shown Clicking these buttons will either increase or decrease the number of decimal places displayed by the software L Last Frame Movie Toolbar Playback Controls Positions the recording at the end of the movie last frame Linearity Linearity refers to the sensor s response digital output to the applied load over the range of the sensor This response should ideally be linear and any non linearity of the sensor is the amount that its output deviates from this line A calibration is performed to linearize this output as much as possible FlexiForce sensors are linear within 5 Load Calibration Tools Menu The Load Calibration command allows you to use the calibration data from a previously saved file for your current Real time window When this item is selected an Open dialog box appears and the calibration file can be located and opened Only ELF calibration files extension clb can be loaded The Sensitivity setting that was saved with the calibration file will also be loaded M Main Menu The Main Menu contains important commands you use to perform functions within the software Some menu
76. or cancel the current calibration It is recommended that you stabilize the force otherwise your calibration may be inaccurate In the example below we have loaded the sensor with a 1 pound weight at 20 Cal Force 0 3807 FA pr p Add Peril i d Calibration gt MAA Cahbrator Options Best fit linear Details Senzor ASWOABAB Fish Piece wise inea Force unit newtors Cancel Mulbpomnt Calibrator Help l Approx miriange SEZ Sensini i Pa H Cal Force 0 9807 _Add Point 02 05 15 ELF User Manual Rev N 52 10 Repeat the steps with as many known loads as you wish 11 If you wish to discard any points click to highlight them in the Force Raw column Then select Remove Point Mulpont Calibration Approx maxiange 2 05 0 3807 165 0 3807 65 0 3207 43 Cal Force 0 9807 ls T gt Add Poird EN 12 If you have the Multi Handle ELF system continue selecting Sensor and adding as many known loads as you wish until at least one calibration point has been added for each sensor i 13 Once all Calibration points have been added for all Sensors click Finish The Real time window will now display force in units of force rather than raw force Sensor ASWOABA7 Oe ura newborns TT Help Faw E 0 3807 53 Sensitivily Pani Sr J Realtimel ASWOABRAB AS WOABA 53 ELF User Manual Rev N 02 05 15 02 05 15
77. re gives the option of saving the movie file Column View Menu The Column option displays each COM port individually with force value displayed on the Y Axis Each column is color coded to indicate the individual COM ports As time elapses the columns indicate changes in force COM Port The hardware which connects the sensor to your computer Each sensor is designated a COM Port on your PC When you open a new Real Time Window you must select the Ports that are to be displayed in your Real Time Window such as COM 4 COM 5 etc Conditioning Exercising the sensor prior to Calibration and use To ensure the most accurate results it is always recommended to condition the sensor by placing 110 of the test weight on the sensor allowing it to stabilize and then removing the weight This process should then be repeated four or five times Conditioning your sensors helps lessen the effects of Drift and Hysteresis and is required for new sensors or sensors that have not been used for a length of time 02 05 15 ELF User Manual Rev N 70 Copy Edit Menu The Copy command saves the current Real time or Movie frame to the MS Windows clipboard This data is saved in the clipboard as a graphic bitmap image of the current window Once copied to the clipboard this data can be pasted into other Windows applications by selecting Edit gt gt Paste D Drift Drift is the change in sensor output when a constant force is applied over a per
78. rs have been calibrated units of force will be shown Clicking these buttons will either increase or decrease the number of decimal places displayed by the software Main Status Bar will either say For Help Press F1 or will give a description of whichever Toolbar icon is under the cursor The Main Status Bar is located at the bottom of the Main Window 02 05 15 ELF User Manual Rev N 26 Movie Window The Movie Window displays a previously recorded movie It consists of the display area a scroll bar the Movie Toolbar with playback controls and the Movie Window Status Bar E ELF Test Movie fif E 5 a slala gt melo ASWOARAB ADWOABA El Frame 82 of 85 Time 10 1 of 10 5 secs Movie Tool Bar This bar is located at the top of the Movie Window and consists of the movie playback icons and the Save As icon Play Play Save As Backward Stop Forward ELF Test Movie fif y F First Previous Next Last 100 5 Frame Frame Frame Frame e The Save As icon allows you to save the current movie file under a different filename The Playback icons control the movie playback functions They are from left to right in the Movie Toolbar e First Frame Positions the recording at the beginning first frame e Play Backward Plays the recording in reverse e Previous Frame Plays the recording in reverse one frame each time it is clicked e Stop Stops playback e Next Frame Plays the recording forwar
79. s on how to set up and run your system 02 05 15 ELF User Manual Rev N 12 INSTALLATION For the ELF software to function properly your system must have the following minimum requirements Pentium 300 MHz 64 MB RAM 5 MB of Hard Drive Space CD Drive One USB 2 0 port per USB Handle Windows 2000 XP Vista To use the Multi Handle ELF software with multiple USB Handles one USB 2 0 port must be available for each ELF Handle used If you require a USB hub Tekscan recommends the following Belkin USB Plus Hub 7 Ports 49 99 Hi Speed USB 2 0 7 Port Hub http www belkin com Model F5U307 IOGEAR 29 95 MiniHub 4 port USB 2 0 Hub http www iogear com Model GUH264 The following displays the ELF system with USB Handles Note Our previous systems shipped with Serial handles It is not recommended to use both the Serial ELF and USB ELF handles simultaneously Note For the Hi speed Multi Handle ELF software using Windows 2000 XP Vista we would recommend that you use no more than 4 Handles If more than 4 Handles are required please contact us 02 05 15 ELF User Manual Rev N 13 ELF Component Identification The following lists all the components that come with the ELF system Refer to the Wireless ELF Components Identification section for components that ship with the Wireless ELF system 1 ELF USB 1 Software CD Handle single A Handle systems multiple Handle systems vary depending on
80. ted via three pin sensor connection into the WELF Transmitter Sensor input is located at the front of the Transmitter refer to Sensor Specifications table below e LED Lights Three LED lights are located on the top front of the WELF Transmitter refer to Sensor Specifications table below The available lights behave in the following way o Power Light Blinks green to indicate the WELF Transmitter is powered o Wireless Transmitter Light Blinks yellow to indicate the WELF Transmitter is transmitting wirelessly o Battery Light Blinks red to indicate battery life is low Blinking will increase in frequency as battery life is drained 02 05 15 ELF User Manual Rev N 58 Sensor Specifications SVDC CTR SENSOR 2 1MMX5 0MM JACK CONNECTOR BOTTOM 3 75 95 3 1 05 26 7 RESET BATTERY SWITCH ACCESS NOTES DOOR 1 DEVICE WEIGHT IS 3 3 OZ 95 G 2 USE AAA ALKALINE 1 5V BATTERIES ONLY 3 BATTERY OPERATING LIFE IS TBD 4 SENSOR CONN ACCEPTS 2 AND 3 PIN STAKED SENSORS WIFI CHIP 02 05 15 ELF User Manual Rev N 59 U D 2 O Q O N Q D Software J J Sensor Properties hickness ength idth ensing Area ubstrate ooz x Zj lt 2 3 a 2 8 SE N a Z AA Sensor Performance An inearity Error epeatability ysteresis lt 4 5 of Full Scale Conditioned sensor 80 of full force applied rift Specifications WELF Unit Transmitter WLF 2 5 VDC 200 mA MAX
81. three force ranges Low Medium and High which have specified maximum forces of 25 150 and 1000 lof respectively The sensor s effective force range up to the specified maximum can be altered by adjusting the system sensitivity Decreasing the sensitivity setting 1 to 20 possible will increase the force range displayed as Approx Max Range and saturation force of the sensor and vice versa lt is essential that the sensors do not become saturated during testing See Sensitivity and Calibration Save As File Menu The Save As command will save the current movie with the specific file name and location of your choice ELF movie files must have the extension flf This menu item can be used to save a movie file under more than one filename Save as ASCII File Menu The Save As ASCII command saves the current Movie frame as an ASCII file with the extension csv Since these files are in ASCII comma separated value format they can be imported into a spreadsheet program e g MS Excel or they can be opened in a text editor or word processing program e g MS Word in order to review and manipulate the data Save Calibration Tools Menu The Save Calibration command allows you to save your current calibration as a file for future use When this item is selected a Save As dialog box appears and the calibration file can be saved with the specific file name and location of your choice Calibration files must have th
82. ting Save Calibration under the same Tools menu Calibration Calbrahon Options Finish Best tinear Details Sensor ASWOABA __Frish O Piece wise inex Force uril gams ve Cancel Mulbpont Calibration Approx maxtange 595 640 Cal Fomce 300 4 i 7 Remove F rl 02 05 15 ELF User Manual Rev N 39 Sensitivity or Adjustable Gain is also adjusted in the Calibration dialog box The Sensitivity should be adjusted whenever necessary to keep the force display in a usable range Sensitivity settings are saved between sessions and are included with calibration files The sensitivity adjustment is described in detail in the Calibration Procedure Calibration z aaa pea cl Senzor ASWOAGAB Dai Piece wise inea Force urit Cancel Mulbpont Calibration Force Raw Cal Force ETS Uncalibrate This option removes the sensor s calibration data When this item is selected a dialog box will appear giving the option of canceling the Uncalibrate operation Uncalibrate does not affect the Sensitivity setting If you wish to recalibrate the sensor during the same testing session select Tools gt Uncalibrate to reset the calibration of the current window The current calibration will be saved between sessions unless Uncalibrate is selected A dialog prompt will open asking if you are sure you want to uncalibrate It is usually a good idea to save your calibration
83. tion or warranties with respect to this manual Further Tekscan Inc reserves the right to make changes in the specifications of the product described within this manual at any time without notice and without obligation to notify any person of such revision or changes FlexiForce and ELF are registered trademarks of Tekscan Inc Windows 2000 XP Vista MS DOS Word Notepad and Excel are registered trademarks of Microsoft Corporation Quick Start This is a quick look at how to use your ELF system This Quick Start procedure should be followed as a general outline it will give you the basics on how to view sensor force data in a Real time Window record this data play the recording back and analyze the data However you must read the entire manual before designing your application If you are using the Wireless ELF WELF system please refer to The Wireless ELF System section Note This procedure assumes that the ELF software has been successfully installed on your system In addition a familiarity with MS Windows is assumed 1 Make sure the sensors are inserted correctly into the handles Run the program by clicking the Start button at the bottom left of the screen ELF Multi selecting Programs and then clicking the ELF Multi icon shown at right 2 The Sensor Selection window is displayed on your computer screen shown below left Select the sensors you would like to have connected to the current Real Time Window us
84. will be used in the application If the sensor is being used at different temperatures perform a calibration at each of these temperatures save the calibration files then load the appropriate calibration file when using the sensor at that temperature FlexiForce sensors should be stored at temperatures in the range of 15 F 9 C to 165 F 74 C ELF User Manual Rev N 15 Sensors The FlexiForce sensor is an ultra thin 0 005 flexible printed circuit It is 0 55 14 mm wide and 9 0 229 mm in length Sensors are available in three full scale force ranges Low 25 Ibf Medium 150 Ibf and High 1000 Ibf The active sensing area is a 0 375 diameter circle at the end of the sensor The sensors are constructed of two layers of substrate such as a polyester film On each layer a conductive material silver is applied followed by a layer of pressure sensitive ink Adhesive is then used to laminate the two layers of substrate together to form the sensor The active sensing area is defined by the silver circle on top of the pressure sensitive ink Silver extends from the sensing area to the connectors at the other end of the sensor forming the conductive leads The sensor acts as a variable resistor in an electrical circuit When the sensor is unloaded its resistance is very high greater than 5 Meg ohm when a force is applied to the sensor the resistance decreases FlexiForce sensors have been successfully tested

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