Model 574 Programmable Counting System (PCS)
214 - GSE Scale Systems
f. The units for weight data is strictly in default
weight units, as defined in the unit's setup
mode, P150. However the units descriptors,
such as "lb" or "kg" are not sent along with the
data.
g. All of the transmitted data consists of ASCII
characters,which is text- printable data, no
graphics.
Most parameters are downloaded the same as they would
be viewed. However the time / date is handled
differently. The data sent for the time / date parameter is
the ASCII representation of the numeric value of the
number of seconds elapsed since midnight on January 1,
1970. This is the simplest form to allow calculations on
time / date to be performed in other spreadsheet and
database programs. Some programs may require some
manipulation of this value in order for the time / date
data to be usable. For instance, Lotus 123 requires the
time / date data as the number of days elapsed since the
year 1900, with the hours, minutes, and seconds
represented as the fractional portion of that value. To
achieve this format, the numeric time value received
from the unit must be divided by 86400 (# of sec / day)
and then add to 25569 (# of days between 1900 and
1970). This value can then be displayed in one of the six
display formats depending on the requirements. Format
1 for instance, would produce the date in the form "02-
Apr-92" while format 6 would display the time in the
"12:05:47 pm" format.
A sample of a database download file is shown below.
Note that this is the same data as was used in the printed
database example previously discussed.
"12-345-67","Transistor",0,0,702059963
"32-20-3929","Capacitor",0,0,702029168
"398-002","Resistor",0,0,702029188
"939-9-321","Diode",0,0,702029210
"24-3456-78","Microprocessor",0,0,702039779
20.12 UPLOAD DATA FORMAT
The same rules given above for the format of a
downloaded file apply to a file being uploaded into the
unit's database. However, the alpha parameters are not
required to be enclosed in double quotes ("").
Before a database can be loaded into a unit’s database,
the setup must be established to match that of the file. If
the uploaded file has more columns than the database
setup in the unit, then the additional columns being
uploaded are ignored. If the uploaded file has less
columns, then the additional columns are cleared out.
20.13 TIME / DATE HANDLING
When parameter 11, the current time / date parameter, is
selected to be a column in a database, then whenever a
row is created or updated, the current time / date is
copied into that row from parameter 11. However when
a recall is performed, the recalled time / date is not
copied to parameter 11 as this would disrupt the current
time / date of the unit. Therefore, when a recall is
performed on a database which includes the time / date
parameter (ID 11) as a column, the recalled time / date is
copied to parameter 50, also known as Rtime for
"Recalled Time". Parameter 50 may then be printed
using the custom transmits or accessed to view the
recalled time/date.
As previouslydiscussed, time / date is handled in a
special manner which is somewhat common in
computers. It is stored as the number of seconds elapsed
since midnight on January 1, 1970. Currently this value
is around 710,000,000. At the rate of 86400 seconds per
day (60 x 60 x 24), (31,536,000 per year) this value
changes quickly. Keeping track of time and date in this
manner simplifies the process of calculating the
difference between two times. It also compacts the
information such that it can be stored in 4 bytes of
memory which helps keep the number of memory bytes
required to store a row as small as possible.
20.14 INFO MODES
The following modes have been added to the
instrument’s extensive array of information modes.
These modes can be useful in determining the current
state of the unit's databases and the memory which is in
use by the database.
The first four information modes supply information
regarding the amount of installed, available, and already
used for by the database option.
P60010 dbRAM 24256 The value shown here, 24256
in this example, indicates how much database memory is
currently installed within the unit.
The value will be 0 if the database memory module is not
installed, 24256 if the 24K module is installed, and if the
120K module is installed, the value is 122,560. In this
case, the top line of the display shows "dbRA1" while the
bottom line shows "22560".
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