for the
Airmar® Sensor Support CD
CD version 3.005
Table of Contents
Updating the Firmware in the Sensor
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This readme file contains important information regarding the contents of the Airmar® Sensor Support CD.
Be sure to read the AirmarSupportDocuments.pdf file, also on this CD, for the part numbers of the downloadable documents available. These downloadable documents may be used to learn about special features in the versions of Airmar® Sensor(s) firmware and WeatherCaster™ software.
Tthe most recent version of Airmar sensor firmware and technical manuals may be downloaded from the Airmar website at http://www.airmar.com.
You can download the most recent version of this CD from the Airmar website at http://www.airmar.com.
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This Airmar Product Support CD contains the following:
· Documents
· 32-bit/64-bit Drivers for use with the Airmar USB Converters (RS232 and RS422), version 2.10.00
· 32-bit/64-bit Drivers for use with Airmar WeatherStation™ Combiner and Airmar NMEA 2000® Gateway, version 2.08.28
· WeatherCaster™ application, version 3.005
· Adobe® Reader® application, version 7.0.5
· This file (Readme.htm)
If you do not already have a copy of Adobe Reader installed on your computer, you may wish to install the free Adobe Reader application provided on the CD. This will allow you to read the Owner's Guides, Technical Manuals and WeatherCaster™ Software Guide also provided on the CD.
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· Pentium III or higher
· At least 256 MB RAM
· 1024x768 display (other resolutions not supported)
· CD-ROM drive
· Mouse or trackball
· At least 100MB free space on the hard drive
· USB port (for use with the Airmar Combiner, Converter, or NMEA 2000® Gateway)
· Windows® XP Home or Professional edition
The Airmar WeatherCaster™ application and drivers have been developed and tested using only 32-Bit Windows XP. Other versions of Windows are unsupported.
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You must have Administrator privileges on your computer in order to install or use the Airmar WeatherStation™ drivers and WeatherCaster™ software..
To install the WeatherStation™ drivers, WeatherCaster™ application software, and/or documentation from the CD to your hard drive, simply insert the CD into your computer's CD-ROM drive. In most cases the CD Browser program will launch automatically.
If the CD Browser program does not launch automatically, go to My Computer, and double-click on the icon for your CD-ROM drive (usually D:). The CD Browser program is in the root folder of the CD, and is called launch.exe. Double-click on launch.exe to start the CD Browser.
If you receive the following error message when attempting to install the USB drivers for the Airmar Combiner or Converter:
“The current language is not supported by the Device Driver Installation Wizard. Contact the vendor that provided you this package”, refer to Known Issues, below.
IMPORTANT:
You may install the software, hardware, and drivers in any order. However, if you are using an Airmar WeatherStation™ Combiner, an Airmar USB Converter or an Airmar NMEA 2000® Gateway, it is important to connect all hardware and power up the WeatherStation™ unit before running the application software the first time. This will allow the WeatherCaster™ application to detect the proper COM port and, if applicable, baud rate for your WeatherStation™ hardware.
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To Uninstall the WeatherCaster™ Application:
1. From the Windows Control Panel, launch Add or Remove Programs.
2. From the list of currently installed programs, select AIRMAR WeatherCaster.
3. Click Remove, then follow the instructions to remove the software from your computer.
To Uninstall the drivers for the Airmar USB Converter or Combiner:
1. Disconnect the Converter or Combiner hardware from the USB port on your computer before performing the uninstall procedure.
2. From the Windows Control Panel, launch Add or Remove Programs.
3. From the list of currently installed programs, select Airmar USB-to-Serial Converter Drivers.
4. Click Change/Remove, then follow the instructions to remove the drivers from your computer.
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USB Driver Installation Error Message
Software Not Automatically Detecting COM Port
Trouble Communicating With Sensor
Display Window Truncated on Right and Bottom Edges
Controls Appear Distorted or Controls Missing from Display
Mouse Cursor Behaves Erratically
If you receive the following error message when attempting to install the USB drivers for the Airmar Combiner or Converter:
“The current language is not supported by the Device Driver Installation Wizard. Contact the vendor that provided you this package”,
use the following procedure to install the drivers:
· Insert the Airmar WeatherStation™ CD into the CD-ROM drive.
· Connect the Airmar USB Converter or Combiner to a free USB port on the PC. If using the Combiner, be sure to provide 12VDC power to the unit. The "Welcome to the Found New Hardware Wizard" window will open.
· To the question “Can Windows connect to Windows Update to search for software”, select "No, not this time," and click Next to continue.
· Select “Install from a list or specific location (Advanced)” and click Next to continue.
· Select “Search for the best driver in these locations”, then select “Include this location in the Search” and browse to the driver location on the CD (D:\Drivers\Airmar, if your CD-ROM is drive D:), then click OK.
· Click Next.
· Continue with installation procedure provided in the Owner’s Guide.
If you install more than one instance of the drivers for the Combiner/Converter, the WeatherCaster™ application software may not automatically detect the proper COM port. In this case, you will need to manually select the COM port and baud rate upon launching the WeatherCaster™ application software. If you are using the Airmar WeatherStation™ Combiner, set the baud rate to 38400. If you are using the Airmar USB Converter, or a conventional serial port, set the baud rate to 4800.
If you are having trouble communicating with a sensor and any of the following conditions are met:
· Using Airmar U200 gateway, firmware version prior to 2.176 (i.e. 2.150)
· Using Airmar U200 gateway, firmware version 2.176 or later and last attempt to perform a flash update to the sensor failed
Perform the following steps to restore communications:
· On Communications/Interface tab in Advanced Setup
o Check box next to Legacy/Hardware Filter Mode
o Select APPLY
· Exit Advanced Setup
· Exit WeatherCaster
· Restart WeatherCaster
When using the WeatherCaster™ application software on a computer with a display resolution less than 1024x768, (e.g. 800x600) the window will be truncated on the right side and bottom edges. The EXIT controls will therefore be hidden from view. If this happens, you can exit the WeatherCaster™ application by pressing the key combination <alt>-F4 (i.e. while pressing and holding the Alt key, press and release the F4 key). You will then need to set your monitor resolution to 1024x768 in order to use the application.
If the controls on the WeatherCaster™ application appear distorted, and/or some controls are missing from the display, this can be fixed as follows.
· Exit the WeatherCaster™ application. (If the EXIT control is not visible, press the key combination <alt>-F4 to exit the program.)
· Right-click the Windows desktop, and select Properties. The Display Properties dialog will appear.
· Click the Settings tab.
· Click the Advanced button.
· At the top of the General tab, there will be a DPI Setting control. This control must be set to "Normal size (96 DPI)".
· Click OK.
· If you are prompted to restart the computer, click Yes.
Note that changing the DPI setting will affect the sizes of fonts and other images for other Windows programs besides the Airmar WeatherCaster™.
If you find sometimes after rebooting your computer that the mouse cursor behaves erratically, this may be because a serial mouse driver may be intercepting the messages from the WeatherStation™ sensor and interpreting them as mouse events. To fix this problem:
· First, turn off the power to the WeatherStation™ sensor, or disconnect it from your PC. The cursor should stop behaving erratically.
· Go into the Windows Control Panel, and open the Mouse Properties dialog by double-clicking the Mouse icon.
· Click the Hardware tab. Under the Devices heading at the top of the dialog, you will see a list of mouse drivers. One of these will be for the mouse you ordinarily use with your computer, and should not be changed. But the erratic cursor problem will be caused by a different mouse driver that is associated with the COM port used for the WeatherStation™ combiner/converter. You can click on the name of each driver, and view its Location information on the Device Properties portion of the window, to help you identify which mouse driver is the one causing the problem.
· Once you have identified the mouse driver that is causing the problem, double-click on its name to open the Properties dialog for that mouse driver.
· At the bottom of the window, click on the Device usage control, and select "Do not use this device (disable)".
· Click OK, then OK once again to exit the Mouse Properties dialog.
· Reconnect the WeatherStation™ sensor to your PC, apply power, and confirm that the mouse cursor is no longer affected.
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From time to time Airmar may release a firmware update(s) for the WeatherStation™ Instrument(s) and/or GPS/Compass sensor(s) to add new features or improve performance. You can use the WeatherCaster™ PC application to perform a flash update on your WeatherStation™ Instruments and GPS/Compass sensor to bring them up to the latest firmware version.
You can download the most recent version of firmware from the Airmar website at http://www.airmar.com.
You can determine the version of firmware in your Airmar sensor by clicking on the Advanced Setup button in the upper right corner of the WeatherCaster™ window. The Firmware Versions will appear on the Sensor Hardware tab in the Setup dialog. For the some Airmar sensors there are four version numbers. A1 and A2 refer to the Application firmware in the two microprocessors within the sensor. B1 and B2 refer to the Bootloader firmware version numbers. Some Airmar sensors there are two version numbers. A1 refers to the Application firmware and B1 refers to the Bootloader firmware version. When performing a flash update, you will be loading in new Application firmware; the Bootloader versions will not change.
To update the firmware in your sensor, perform the following steps:
Note: if you have a choice, the flash update will be about twice as fast using the Airmar USB Converter than it would be using the Airmar WeatherStation™ Combiner.
1. Make sure you have installed the most recent version of the WeatherCaster™ software on your PC, along with the drivers for the Airmar WeatherStation™ Combiner or USB Converter.
2. Make sure you have downloaded the desired firmware from the Airmar website (located on the Download Software page) and copied, if required, to the same PC with the WeatherCaster™ software and required USB drivers.
3. If you are performing the flash update using a laptop computer, it is strongly recommended that the PC be powered from its AC adapter instead of relying on the battery in the laptop for the duration of the flash update procedure.
4. Connect the WeatherStation™ sensor to the Combiner or Converter, connect the USB cable between your Combiner/Converter and a free USB port on your computer, and apply 12 volts DC to the Combiner/Converter to power up the WeatherStation™ sensor.
5. Close all other applications running on your PC while performing the flash update procedure.
6. Launch the WeatherCaster™ PC application.
7. Click the Advanced Setup button in the upper right corner of the WeatherCaster™ window.
8. In the Setup dialog, click on the Update Flash tab.
9. Click the Select File button.
10. In the Open dialog, browse to the flash file (previously downloaded from the Airmar website), you wish to use to update the firmware in your sensor. The filename will end in ".ax".
11. When the Setup dialog indicates "READY to PROGRAM", click on the PROGRAM button to perform the flash update.
IMPORTANT:
While the flash update is in process, do not remove power or unplug any cables, or launch any other applications on your PC.
12. When the flash update has completed successfully, the Setup dialog will read "PROGRAMMING COMPLETED".
13. If you are updating the firmware in more than one of the same model sensor, disconnect the sensor from the Combiner or Converter, and then connect the next sensor. DO NOT unplug the USB cable from the PC, or remove power to the Combiner/Converter, or exit the WeatherCaster™ application program. Wait several seconds for the WeatherCaster™ to establish communication with the new sensor, then click the PROGRAM button to perform the flash update on the next sensor.
14. When you are finished updating the flash memory in all sensors, click OK to exit the Setup dialog.
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For technical support, visit our online support at http://www.airmar.com. From the home page, click on FAQ's.
You can also email us at info@airmar.com.
Mailing and shipping address:
Airmar Technology Corporation
35 Meadowbrook Drive
Milford, NH 03055
Telephone: (603) 673-9570
Facsimile: (603) 673-4624
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