Curtis 1313 User manual

Manual
Model 1313
Handheld Programmer
Read Instructions Carefully!
Specications are subject to change without notice.
© 2016 Curtis Instruments, Inc. ® Curtis is a registered trademark of Curtis Instruments, Inc.
© The design and appearance of the products depicted herein are the copyright of Curtis Instruments, Inc. 38798, Rev B 11/16
Curtis Instruments, Inc.
200 Kisco Avenue
Mt. Kisco, NY 10549
www.curtisinstruments.com

ii 1313 Handheld Programmer Manual, Rev. B
CONTENTS
1. OVERVIEW ................................................................................... 1
2. PROGRAMMER OPERATION .................................................... 3
Connections ....................................................................................... 3
Powering Up the Programmer ............................................................ 4
Display Format ................................................................................... 5
Key Functions ..................................................................................... 6
3. MENU ORGANIZATION .............................................................. 8
Menu Structure .................................................................................. 8
Types of Menu Items .......................................................................... 9
The Nine Menus ............................................................................... 10
4. SYSTEM INFO MENU ............................................................... 11
5. PARAMETERS MENU ............................................................... 12
6. MONITOR MENU ...................................................................... 15
7. DIAGNOSTICS MENU ............................................................... 16
8. PROGRAMMING MENU ........................................................... 18
“Save CPF File”................................................................................. 18
“Restore CPF File” ............................................................................ 22
9. FAVORITES MENU .................................................................... 24
10. HHP SETTINGS MENU ............................................................. 27
11. FILE MANAGER ........................................................................ 31
12. PLOT & LOG .............................................................................. 33
13. USING THE KEYBOARD .......................................................... 35
14. TAKING SCREENSHOTS .......................................................... 36
15. WORKING OFFLINE ................................................................. 37
16. UPDATING THE PROGRAMMER’S SOFTWARE .................... 39
appendix a:File Types
appendix b1313 Programmer Specifications

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1313 Handheld Programmer Manual, Rev. B
OVERVIEW
The Curtis 1313 Handheld programmer is used to configure Curtis motor
control systems. With the programmer, you can adjust and save parameter
settings, monitor real-time data, and perform diagnostics and troubleshooting.
1
1 — OVERVIEW
Model 1313
Handheld programmer.
High-resolution color LCD display . . .
Bright 45×60mm screen is easy to read, providing information at a glance. In
addition to menu-specific content, it continuously shows time/date, connection
status, and access level.
Easy navigation . . .
Screen displays and the programmer’s key layout are designed to work together
to provide intuitive navigation.
Convenient parameter adjustment . . .
You can easily adjust a wide range of parameters to customize vehicle performance.
These settings can then be saved as a unique .cpf file and stored. Multiple .cpf
files can be stored and restored as needed.
Real-time monitoring . . .
Values of monitored data variables are displayed in easy-to-read formats.
Diagnostics and troubleshooting . . .
Existing faults as well as all the accumulated faults in the system’s fault history file
are listed in clear language. Suggestions for clearing each fault are also provided.

21313 Handheld Programmer Manual, Rev. B
1 — OVERVIEW
Plot and Log . . .
The plot and log programs allow you to look at variables over time, either in
graphical format or as data files you can upload in a spreadsheet program, such
as Excel.
Softkeys . . .
Three versatile softkeys provide multiple functions, depending on context.
Help function . . .
Help screens give descriptions of adjustable parameters, monitored variables,
and faults.
PC interface . . .
Files can be downloaded from a PC (onto an SD card or into the programmer
directly through its USB connector) for installation into the controller.
Update . . .
The handheld programmer can update its own software.
SD-card support . . .
An SD card provides additional memory capacity. This is where any screenshots
you take will be stored. SD cards can be used to deliver software upgrades, and
can be used in multiple programmers to install identical software.
Batteries . . .
Two AA batteries provide power for use without a connected system; they also
ensure that the programmer’s real-time clock keeps running.
Favorites . . .
The Favorites function allows you to create shortcuts to your frequently-used
adjustable parameters and monitor variables.
WARNING The control system can affect speed, acceleration, deceleration, dynamic stability, and
braking. If the control system is programmed incorrectly or outside the safe limits as determined
by the vehicle manufacturer, it can create a dangerous situation. Only the vehicle manufacturer or
an authorized service agent or dealer should program the control system.
!

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1313 Handheld Programmer Manual, Rev. B
System connector
Use this connector with the supplied cable to connect the programmer to the
motor controller.
USB connector
Use this connector with a USB cable to connect the programmer to a PC.
Batteries
A compartment on the underside of the unit holds two AA batteries. Power is
supplied to the programmer by the controller. The batteries in the programmer
keep its real-time clock running.
SD card
SD cards provide additional memory, and are a con-
venient interface between a PC and the programmer.
Note that the SD card must be inserted into the
programmer face down.
2 — OPERATION
PROGRAMMER OPERATION
This section describes how to use the handheld programmer.
Connections
The programmer has two connectors, one for communicating with the motor
controller and one for interfacing with a PC. It also has a battery compartment
and a memory card slot.
2
?
➡
?
SD memory card slot
connectors
battery compartment
(located on
underside)
USB connector–
–system connector
end view
✓

41313 Handheld Programmer Manual, Rev. B
2 — OPERATION
Powering up the programmer
Connect the handheld programmer into the control system by plugging it into
the controller’s charger/programmer port.
The programmer automatically powers up, and displays this screen while
it loads information from the controller.
Once the programmer has uploaded the information from the controller, it
displays the Main Menu.
If the controller is not turned on when the programmer is connected, you can
power up the programmer by pressing the Power key; the message “No System
detected” will be displayed.

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1313 Handheld Programmer Manual, Rev. B
In this example, pressing the “Select” softkey will open the System Info menu,
which is highlighted.The “Select” softkey opens whichever menu is highlighted.
Pressing the “Offline” softkey allows you to use the programmer when it is not
connected to a controller; see Section 15.
Access level
The handheld programmer is available in four access levels: OEM, Dealer,
Service, and User. Each programmer can access data at its own level and the
levels below it.
OEM
Dealer
Service
User
— icon indicating access level
softkey text line
— (optional) 1313 battery
state-of-charge
time and date
content area
(this example shows
the Main Menu,
which consists of
nine individual
menu icons)
To perform an action suggested in the
softkey text, press the blank softkey
located directly below it.
Display format
The high-resolution clarity of the LCD screen allows a wealth of information
to be displayed at once.
— green circle ( ) indicating connection to system;
red slash ( ) when not connected
➜
2 — OPERATION
additional text line

61313 Handheld Programmer Manual, Rev. B
2 — OPERATION
Key functions
The pushbutton keys on the programmer’s keypad allow you to navigate easily
through the menus.
Softkeys
These three keys are blank, because their function is context-specific. At any
given time, their function is shown directly above them on the LCD screen.
The symbol “»” indicates more options; pressing the softkey under the “»” will
scroll to another set of options.
Arrow keys
With these four keys you can scroll up and down, and right and left, within
the display. In the Main Menu, you can use the arrow keys to highlight one of
the menus; you then open the highlighted menu using the “Select” softkey.
Within menus (other than the Main Menu), the left-arrow key is used
to navigate backwards.
Within menus (other than the Main Menu), the right-arrow key is used
to navigate forwards—that is, to open highlighted submenus or items.
?
?
power
arrow keys
softkeys
favorites main menu
help
+/- keys
?

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1313 Handheld Programmer Manual, Rev. B
2 — OPERATION
+/- keys
These two keys allow you to increase or decrease the value of parameter set-
tings. They also are used as “+ = Yes” and “- = No” buttons. In some cases,
they are used to scroll through several options (as in selecting an access level,
or selecting a language).
Power
It is not necessary to use the Power key to turn on the programmer when you
plug it into an active control system; it will turn on automatically.
To turn off the programmer, press and hold the Power key for a few sec-
onds. You will then be asked whether you want to power off the programmer,
and the softkey text will offer you the choices “Yes” and “No.”
If you have turned off the programmer, or if it has timed out and shut
itself off, pressing the Power key will turn it on again.
Favorites
This key is an alternate way to bring up the Favorites menu. You can access
the Favorites menu by selecting its icon in the Main Menu, or by using the
Favorites key. See the Favorites menu section for more information.
Screenshots
By pressing the Power key and then the Favorites key, you can take a screenshot
of the LCD display; see Section 13.
Main Menu
This key will return you directly to the Main Menu, from wherever you are.
When the Main Menu is displayed, you can also use this key to cycle through
the individual menus. You can use either this key or the arrow keys to navigate
within the Main Menu, whichever you prefer.
Help
This key is used to display context-specific Help texts. It is a toggle key; you
can press it again to close the Help text window. You can also close Help text
windows with the “Exit” softkey or by pressing the left-arrow key.
?
?
?
?
?
?

81313 Handheld Programmer Manual, Rev. B
3
3 — MENU ORGANIZATION
MENU ORGANIZATION
The Main Menu contains nine menus, each identified by a menu-specific icon.
Items are arranged hierarchically within menus.
Some menus may contain just one level of information, but most contain
multiple levels. Items marked with a folder open as new submenus. Items marked
with a grid open into tables. Items marked with a dialogue balloon open into a
set of instructions for performing a procedure, such as calibration. At any point,
you can use the left-arrow key ( ) to navigate back to the previous screen. (It
is possible to limit this left-arrow key function using the “Exit menus with left
arrow” item in the HHP Settings menu; see Section 10.)
Menu structure
Each of the nine root menus displays the menu name in bold type at the top
of the screen, beside the menu icon. As you move within a hierarchical menu,
the text at the top of the screen shows the path you have taken. Note that when
This is the root level of the Parameters menu,
as indicated by the bold text heading. ➞
These lines of text show the
path to the selected item within
the Parameters menu. ➞
Parameters menu
—1 - Speed Mode
—Speed Controllerl
—Acc Feedforward
—Build Rate

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1313 Handheld Programmer Manual, Rev. B
the Speed Mode folder is highlighted, the “×10” and “×100” softkeys are grayed
out (indicating they do not apply)—but when Build Rate is highlighted, these
softkeys are available.
When you exit a menu and then later return, the menu will open either
at the place where you left it or at the root level—depending on the setting
of “Remember Last View” in the HHP Settings menu. So, in this example, if
“Remember Last View” is set to “On,” the next time you select the Parameters
menu it will open at Build Rate (assuming you exited the menu immediately
after looking at this parameter).
Types of menu items
Each item within a menu has a symbol in front of it, to indicate what type of
item it is.
These are read-only items, providing detailed information; this symbol
also appears on pop-up screens.
Folders indicate submenus; pressing the right-arrow key opens the folder.
Often there are submenus nested within submenus. Remember, you
can use the left-arrow key to navigate back out of nested menus.
These items are settings that you can adjust with the “+” and “-” keys.
They may be numerical values, or yes/no choices, or even multiple
choices, with the “+” and “-” keys used to cycle through the options.
These items open up a dialogue to guide you through a procedure, such
as autocalibrating a throttle.
These items open up into tables. You can adjust values within the table’s
cells. Use the arrow keys to select cells, and the “+” and “-” keys to
increase/decrease values. A text line located below the table (just above
the softkey text line) shows the name of the cell and its present value.
These are read-only Monitor values.
This symbol indicates a file the programmer cannot recognize; it is also
used for .hps (programmer settings) files.
These are system faults.
These are .cpf (parameter settings) files.
3 — MENU ORGANIZATION
?
?
?
?
?
?
?

10 1313 Handheld Programmer Manual, Rev. B
3 — MENU ORGANIZATION
The nine menus
As shown on the Main Menu screen, the 1313 programmer organizes its dataset
into nine menus.
System Info
Parameters
Monitor
Diagnostics
Programming
Favorites
HHP Settings
File Manager
Plot & Log
The next nine sections of the manual describe these nine menus.

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1313 Handheld Programmer Manual, Rev. B
4
4 — SYSTEM INFO MENU
SYSTEM INFO MENU
In the Main Menu, highlight the System Info icon and press the “Select” softkey
to go to the System Info menu. You can return to the Main Menu by pressing
the Main Menu key ( ).
The System Info menu opens directly to a detail screen providing infor-
mation about the motor controller to which the programmer is connected:
scrollbar
The sliding bar at the right of the screen indicates there are more items than
those shown. Use the down-arrow key ( ) to scroll down to see the rest of
the list.
One of one
(1/1) detail
screens
the rest
of the items

12 1313 Handheld Programmer Manual, Rev. B
In the Main Menu, highlight the Parameters icon and press the “Select” softkey
to go to the Parameters menu. You can return to the Main Menu at any time
by pressing the Main Menu key ( ).
The Parameters menu is likely to be the menu you use most often. This is
where you can adjust the settings of the control system’s adjustable parameters.
You navigate through this complex menu using the arrow keys, +/- keys, and
softkeys, as described in Section 2.
The parameters shown depend on the controller model and on the access
level of your handheld programmer.
The Help function provides concise information about each parameter.
To access the Help function, press the Help key (
?
). Refer to your controller
manual for additional information about the various parameters.
With some “+\-” parameters, the item can be expanded to show a bar graph
indicating where the setting lies within the available range.
Here is a parameter called Forward Max, as it first appears:
PARAMETERS MENU
5 — PARAMETERS MENU
5

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1313 Handheld Programmer Manual, Rev. B
Note that the “+\-” symbol is repeated on this screen, to remind you of the
type of item this is.
Softkeys available in Parameters menu
5 — PARAMETERS MENU
And here it is expanded, by pressing the right-arrow key ( ):
“Add to” is available for each adjustable parameter. This softkey takes you to a
screen where you choose where to add the parameter: you can add it to your
Favorites collection, or you can place it in the Plot or Log programs.
The “×10” or “×100” softkey, when pressed together with the “+” or “-” key
(), allows you to change values rapidly—in increments of ten or a hundred
times the parameter’s step-size. For example, the Forward Max parameter shown
above has a range of 0.00 to 5.00 volts, in 0.01V increments. With the “×10”
softkey you can change the setting from 4.50 to 4.40 in one jump instead of
ten, or with the “×100” softkey you can change the setting from 4.50 to 3.50
in one jump instead of a hundred jumps. For parameters with narrow ranges
(for example, a parameter that can be set to 1 through 5), the “×” softkeys allow
you to jump to the extreme high or low end of the range in one step.
The “Exit” option appears on expanded items, such as the Forward Max bar-
graph shown above. The “×10” and “×100” softkeys are still available when
you are looking at the expanded item. The “Exit” option also appears when a
Help screen is displayed.
The “OK” and “Cancel” options appear on the screens guiding you through
procedures, such as calibrating a throttle, or whenever changing a value will
put the system into idle mode.

14 1313 Handheld Programmer Manual, Rev. B
Be aware that as you change parameter settings, the new values replace the earlier
values. If you make adjustments that you don’t like, and wish you could return
to the earlier values, you cannot do this—unless you have written down those
earlier settings (which is unlikely) or unless you have saved them.
To save your parameter settings, use the “Save .cpf File” function in the
Programming menu; see Section 8. Your parameter settings will then be saved
in a .cpf file.
You can save as many .cpf files as you desire, and you can create unique
names for them. If you prefer, each .cpf can automatically be given a name
consisting of the date and time when it was created; see the “Text for save as”
item in the HHP menu (Section 10).
For information on creating names, see Section 13: Using the Keyboard.
5 — PARAMETERS MENU

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1313 Handheld Programmer Manual, Rev. B
In the Main Menu, highlight the Monitor icon and press the “Select” softkey
to go to the Monitor menu. You can return to the Main Menu at any time by
pressing the Main Menu key ( ).
The Monitor menu provides real-time data from the control system,
especially useful in testing and troubleshooting.
You can press the Help key ( ?) for a brief description of any moni-
tored value, if you are unclear about what is being measured. Refer to your
controller’s technical manual for additional information about the various
monitored variables.
As in the Parameters menu, you can highlight an item and use the right-
arrow key ( ) to see an expanded item screen, typically a bar graph indicating
where the present value of that item lies within its range.
Softkeys available in Monitor menu
“Add to” is available for each monitored item. This softkey takes you to a screen
where you choose where to add the item: you can add it to your Favorites col-
lection, or you can place it in the Plot or Log programs.
The “Exit” option appears on expanded item screens. This option is also avail-
able when a Help screen is displayed. Alternatively, you can use the left-arrow
key ( ) to exit these screens.
MONITOR MENU
6 — MONITOR MENU
6

16 1313 Handheld Programmer Manual, Rev. B
In the Main Menu, highlight the Diagnostics icon and press the “Select” softkey
to go to the Diagnostics menu. You can return to the Main Menu at any time
by pressing the Main Menu key ( ).
The Diagnostics menu contains two folders: Present Errors and Fault
History.
DIAGNOSTICS MENU
7 — DIAGNOSTICS MENU
7
Note: Sometimes the fault circuits catch a temporary event that is not a true
fault in the system; it is always a good idea to turn the control system off and
back on again to see whether the fault clears by itself.

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1313 Handheld Programmer Manual, Rev. B
Present Errors folder
All existing faults are listed here, in chronological order. An item in this folder
can only be removed be remedying the fault. As long as the fault exists, it will
be included in the Present Errors folder. The “1/3” in the upper right corner of
the screen indicates that Missing Contactor is the first of three present faults.
7 — DIAGNOSTICS MENU
Fault History folder
This folder lists all the faults encountered since the Fault History was last
cleared. You can clear the entire contents of this folder to allow a fresh Fault
History to be started.
Softkey available in Diagnostics menu
“Clear All” is used to empty the Fault History folder. This softkey appears
only when the Fault History folder (or one of the faults within that folder) is
highlighted.

18 1313 Handheld Programmer Manual, Rev. B
PROGRAMMING MENU
In the Main Menu, highlight the Programming icon and press the “Select”
softkey to go to the Programming menu. You can return to the Main Menu at
any time by pressing the Main Menu key ( ).
Through the Programming menu, you can save and restore your parameter
settings files (.cpf files).
The Programming root menu looks like this:
8 — PROGRAMMING MENU
8
There are no softkeys on this screen. To choose whether you want to Save or
Restore a .cpf file, open the folder for the operation you want to perform.
“Save .cpf File”
When you adjust parameter values (using the Parameters menu) each value you
set becomes that parameter’s new value, overwriting its previous set value.
Using the Save .cpf File function in the Programming menu, you can make
a backup of your present parameter settings. If you adjust the parameter values