Running the FAE Demo

This section describes how to run the Safari demo GUI on a PC. To do so requires that the user has downloaded the executable file 'safari_desktop.exe' to their machine per these instructions. If you encounter problems please refer to the Troubleshooting section in the Appendix.

1. Initial Setup
2. Connecting to the Demo Kit
3. Run the Demo
4. Understanding the Data

Initial Setup

1. Connect the included USB cable between the microUSB port on the red FTDI board and any available port on your PC.

2. Make sure the microSD card is fully inserted into the Meerkat board.

3. Connect the power cord and power up the Safari demo kit. Check that all 4 of the colored LEDs located near the top right of the Safari board are lit.

4. Wait approximately 15 seconds for the demo kit to fully power up. Check that the larger round LED located on the left side of the NXP Motor Control board is glowing blue-green.

5. On your PC running Windows 10 open up Device Manager. Look under 'Ports' and make a note of which COM port the Meerkat is connected to. If there are multiple devices listed, you can unplug the USB cable and plug it back in to identify the right one.

Run the Demo

1. Launch Safari GUI software by clicking on file 'safari_desktop.exe'. Note: it can take up to a minute for this to open.

Note: Windows' firewall may give you an error message.If this happens, click on 'More Info':

Then click 'Run anyway':

2. In the Serial Connection section of the Setup tab in the GUI, click on 'Refresh' then use the drop-down menu to select the appropriate serial port and click the connect button.

3. Wait approximately 10 seconds for the connection to complete as indicated by the word 'Connected':

4. Navigate to the Safari Data tab in the GUI
5. Click the Start Demo button

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Understanding the Data

1. The 3 plots show vibration of the motor, temperature of the motor, and pressure from the fan in that sequence.

2. The Data Streaming Method will say “Serial” if data is being received via the serial port connection to the demo kit or “None” if no data is currently being received.

   a. Serial

   

   b. None

   

3. Default setting for both plots is to display the sensor outputs after they have been converted from volts. This is done by the Meerkat board using formulas which have been taken from the datasheets and stored in files.

   

   a. The top plot shows the reading from the accelerometer. The Y-axis is acceleration measured in g’s and the X-axis corresponds to the sample number. The annotation to the right of the plot shows the maximum, mean, and minimum values for the data currently displayed by the plot as well as the last value received. The value of any point on the plot can also be seen by hovering over the desired point.

   

   b. The next plot shows the reading from the temperature sensor. The Y-axis is temperature measured in degrees Celsius and the X-axis again corresponds to sample number. The annotation to the right of the plot shows the maximum, mean, and minimum values for the data currently displayed by the plot as well as the last value received. The value of any point on the plot can also be seen by hovering over the desired point.

   

   c. The third plot shows the reading from the pressure sensor. The Y-axis is pressure measured in Pascals and the X-axis corresponds to the sample number. The annotation to the right of the plot shows the maximum, mean, and minimum values for the data currently displayed by the plot as well as the last value received. The value of any point on the plot can also be seen by hovering over the desired point.

   

4. When the Data Format radio button at the bottom Safari Data tab is set to Raw the actual voltages output from the sensors are displayed.

   

   a. The first plot, Channel 0 Voltage, shows the raw voltage from the accelerometer as measured on channel 0 of the AD7124. Y-axis is Voltage and X-axis is sample number. The annotation to the right of the plot shows the maximum, mean, and minimum values for the data currently displayed by the plot as well as the last value received. The value of any point on the plot can also be seen by hovering over the desired point.

   

   b. The second plot, Channel 4 Voltage, shows the raw voltage from the temperature probe as measured on channel 4 of the AD7124. The Y-axis is Voltage and X-axis corresponds to sample number. The annotation to the right of the plot shows the maximum, mean, and minimum values for the data currently displayed by the plot as well as the last value received. The value of any point on the plot can also be seen by hovering over the desired point.

   

   c. The third plot, Channel 6 Voltage, shows the raw voltage from the pressure sensor as measured on channel 6 of the AD7124. The Y-axis is Voltage and the X-axis corresponds to the sample number. The annotation to the right of the plot shows the maximum, mean, and minimum values for the data currently displayed by the plot as well as the last value received. The value of any point on the plot can also be seen by hovering over the desired point.

   

5. When you are finished with the demo just click the Stop Demo button and close out the GUI by clicking the 'X' in the top right corner.

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