Datacolor 800 User manual

Datacolor 800™
Datacolor 500™
Datacolor 850™
Datacolor 550™
User’s Guide

Datacolor 800 Datacolor 500 Datacolor 850 Datacolor 550 User’s Guide
Part No. 015-400233, Rev B, August 1, 2017
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Changes are periodically made to this information and are incorporated into forthcoming versions. Datacolor reserves
the right to make improvements and/or changes in the product(s) and/or program(s) described in this material at any
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Datacolor 800, 850, 500, and 550 Series User’s Guide Contents  i
Contents
Datacolor Spectrophotometers ......................................................................... 3
About the Datacolor 800 Spectrophotometer ...................................................................... 3
Electrical/Environmental Requirements........................................................................4
Safety Features............................................................................................................5
Light Source .......................................................................................................... 5
Power .................................................................................................................... 5
Instrument Handling .............................................................................................. 5
Feature Summary.........................................................................................................6
Accessories ......................................................................................................................... 7
Calibration Tiles............................................................................................................7
Aperture Plates.............................................................................................................7
Transmittance Options ........................................................................................................ 9
Accessing the Transmission Compartment ......................................................................... 9
Transmission Accessories ................................................................................................. 10
Transmission Sample Holders ........................................................................................... 11
Cable Installation .............................................................................................. 13
Overview ........................................................................................................................... 13
Power Cable ...................................................................................................................... 13
Serial Cable Installation ..................................................................................................... 13
USB Cable Installation ....................................................................................................... 15
Cable Installation........................................................................................................15
Driver Installation........................................................................................................16
Viewing/Changing System Port Assignment ..............................................................16
Ethernet Cable Installation ................................................................................................ 17
Controls and Indicators .................................................................................... 18
Controls and Indicators Panel ............................................................................................ 18
Powering Up ...................................................................................................................... 19
Instrument Calibration ...................................................................................... 21
Overview ........................................................................................................................... 21
Installing Calibration Data...........................................................................................21
Reflectance Calibration ..................................................................................................... 23
Reflectance Calibration Procedure.............................................................................23
UV Filter Calibration .......................................................................................................... 24
Transmittance Calibration .................................................................................................. 25
Sample Presentation and Measurement ......................................................... 27
Sample Presentation and Measurement Overview ............................................................ 27
Reflectance Measurements........................................................................................27
Sample Viewing Port..................................................................................................27
Sample Viewing Display.............................................................................................28
Remote Measure Button ..................................................................................... 28
Transmittance Measurements....................................................................................29
Regular Transmittance ........................................................................................ 29
Total, Diffuse, and Haze Transmittance .............................................................. 30
Maintenance ...................................................................................................... 33
About Instrument Maintenance .......................................................................................... 33
Exterior Surface Cleaning...........................................................................................33
Sphere Cleaning.........................................................................................................33
Tile Handling and Cleaning ........................................................................................34
Handling Tiles ..................................................................................................... 34
Cleaning Tiles ..................................................................................................... 34

Datacolor 800, 850, 500, and 550 Series User’s Guide Contents  ii
Tile Storage ......................................................................................................... 34
Cleaning the Black Trap.............................................................................................35
Cleaning the Spectralon® Plaque ..............................................................................35
Handling and Cleaning the Cuvette............................................................................36
Instrument Status ................................................................................................ 37
Exporting Diagnostic Data ................................................................................... 38
Updating Firmware .............................................................................................. 39
Appendix ............................................................................................................ 41
Datacolor 800 Instrument Specifications ........................................................................... 41
Features of the Datacolor 800 and Related Configurations ............................................... 43
Miscellaneous Technical Information .........................................................................45
System Requirements for USB Connection................................................................45
Ethernet Connection Considerations..........................................................................45
RS-232C Connection (Communication Settings) .......................................................45
RS-232C Connector Pin Assignments .......................................................................45
Datacolor Global Support .................................................................................................. 46

Datacolor 800, 850, 500, and 550 Series User’s Guide  3
Datacolor Spectrophotometers
About the Datacolor 800 Spectrophotometer
The Datacolor reference-grade benchtop Datacolor 800 spectrophotometer is the newest
generation of benchtop color measuring instruments, incorporating an improved integrated
circuit technology in the instrument design. The Datacolor 800 is intended for use as a
device for measuring, specifying and evaluating color in both laboratory and production
settings, especially where precise digital color communication is required. Additional
configurations of this instrument, including the Datacolor 850, 550, and 500, are described
in the following section of this manual: Features of the Datacolor 800 and Related
Configurations.
Datacolor 800
Below is a summary of the standard and optional features included with the instruments.
Standard features include the following:
 Pulsed xenon light source
 Multiple aperture sizes to accommodate samples of different sizes
 Automated specular port
 Integrated camera and viewing display for precise sample positioning
 Automated aperture detection
 Automated zoom lens
 Automated, adjustable ultra-violet filters for measuring fluorescent samples

Datacolor 800, 850, 500, and 550 Series User’s Guide  4
Electrical/Environmental Requirements
Input Power
Requirements
Input Voltage: 100-240VAC
Number of Phases: Single
Frequency: 50/60 Hz
Power Rating: 80VA
Operating
Environment
Temperature: 5°C to 40°C
Maximum Relative Humidity: 20%-85% non-condensing
Altitude: Up to 2,000 meters
Do not store above 140F (60C)
Indoor Use
Do not crush, short circuit, mutilate, reverse polarity, disassemble, or
dispose. In fire, might cause burns or release toxic materials.
Interfaces Serial: RS232
USB: 2.0
Ethernet

Datacolor 800, 850, 500, and 550 Series User’s Guide  5
Safety Features
If the equipment is used in a manner not specified by the manufacturer, the protection
provided by the equipment may be impaired.
CAUTION
There are no user-serviceable parts for this equipment.
Light Source
Do not stare directly into the open port located in the front door panel when the
measurement is in progress.
Staring directly into the light source can result in eye discomfort similar to that of
staring at a camera flash.
Ensure that an aperture plate is installed prior to calibrating the instrument or
performing measurements.
Power
CAUTION
Disconnect power before servicing.
The power cord supplied with the unit must be used to connect to an earthed (grounded)
power supply.
Position the product such that the AC power cord that attaches to the rear of the unit is
easily accessible and can be disconnected if required.
Servicing of this instrument is to be performed only by qualified Datacolor personnel. DO
NOT remove bottom cover screws to expose internal components. The following warning is
located on the bottom cover:
HIGH VOLTAGE
DO NOT REMOVE SCREWS
ONLY TO BE OPENED BY
QUALIFIED SERVICE PERSON
Instrument Handling
This instrument is intended for use on a stable benchtop and is not meant to be a portable
instrument. In cases where it must be physically moved, two persons, each using two
hands is recommended.

Datacolor 800, 850, 500, and 550 Series User’s Guide  6
Feature Summary
These instruments employ state-of-the-art features including the spectrometer, integrating
sphere, light source, and optics. Below is a summary of those features:
FEATURE DESCRIPTION PURPOSE/BENEFIT
Integrating sphere Barium coated sphere. Industry standard.
Measurement
Geometry
D/8º geometry, Specular
Component Included (SCI) or
Excluded (SCE).
Provides for more uniform
measurement of samples with
irregular surfaces.
SP2000 Spectral
Analyzer
Proprietary dual-channel
holographic grating. 256-
photodiode linear arrays used
for both the reference and
sample channels.
Dual channel design provides
continuous monitoring of sample
illumination and compensates for
changes. 256-photodiode array
enhances the precision of the
measurement.
Light source Pulsed xenon Filtered to provide D65 illumination
including UV component.
Effective
Bandwidth
10nm Reliable Spectral data for
determining color and color
difference.

Datacolor 800, 850, 500, and 550 Series User’s Guide  7
Accessories
All models come with the following standard accessories:
 Power cable
 RS232 serial cable with connectors
 USB Cable with ferrite
 Black Trap
 White Tile
 Green Tile
 White Tile Calibration data on Mini-CD or USB Memory Stick
Calibration Tiles
A black trap, white tile and green tile are provided with all instruments:
 The black trap and white tile are used each time the instrument is calibrated.
 The green tile is used to perform an optional diagnostic test.
 A CD or USB Memory Stick containing the calibration values for the white tile is
also provided.
Aperture Plates
Multiple aperture plates with openings of different sizes are included as standard
accessories with all models. The identification is engraved on each plate.
The aperture plates listed below are provided with every model (unless identified as
optional):
 Large Area View (LAV)
 Medium Area View (MAV) (Optional)
 Small Area View (SAV)
 Ultra-Small Area View (USAV)
 Extra Ultra Small Area View (XUSAV) (Optional)

Datacolor 800, 850, 500, and 550 Series User’s Guide  8
Below are aperture plate specifications:
Aperture
Identification
Sample Area
Measured
Sample Area
Illuminated
LAV 26mm 30mm
MAV 16mm 20mm
SAV 5mm 9mm
USAV 2.5mm 6.5mm
XUSAV 2.5mm 3.0mm
NOTE
The area illuminated is always 4mm greater than the diameter measured to reduce
translucency errors. The exception to this is the XUSAV plate.
Tips for Aperture Selection
 Always use the largest possible aperture size.
 The Large Area View (LAV) plate is recommended for averaging samples with
irregular surfaces and textured samples.
 Small (SAV) and ultra-small (USAV) plates should only be used for
measurements of samples that do not completely cover the opening of the larger
aperture plates.
 Medium (MAV) with barium coating must be used for transmission
measurements.