Fourier EcoLog XL User manual

User Guide
EcoLog XL™
EcoLab™3.0
Integrating student
computing & science

EcoLog XL
User guide
Third Edition
First Print
Printed in April 2005

Contents
Introduction ................................................................................. 13
Working with EcoLog XL..........................................................................15
General ................................................................................ 15
EcoLog XL system contents.................................................. 15
External connections........................................................... 16
External sensors .............................................................................16
Connecting to a computer ................................................................17
Location of built-in sensors .................................................. 18
Battery ............................................................................. 19
AC/DC Adaptor .................................................................. 19
Automatic standby.............................................................. 20
Internal Clock and Calendar ................................................. 20

EcoLog XL Memory.............................................................. 21
Stand-Alone Operation............................................................ 22
Front Panel Layout .............................................................. 22
Working Modes................................................................... 23
Meter ................................................................................................23
Snapshot ..........................................................................................23
Easy Log ..........................................................................................24
Timing ..............................................................................................25
EcoLog XL buttons .............................................................. 26
Working with the EcoLog XL Menus........................................ 26
Selecting working mode ...................................................................27
Snapshot ..........................................................................................27
Meter ................................................................................................29
Easy Log ..........................................................................................30
Timing ..............................................................................................33
Setting the Light and Temperature units and ranges ................ 35

Working with EcoLab ...............................................................................39
Install the Software ............................................................... 39
System Requirements ......................................................... 39
Windows ..........................................................................................39
Mac OS ............................................................................................40
Installation........................................................................ 42
Windows ..........................................................................................42
Mac OS ............................................................................................46
Overview.............................................................................. 47
EcoLab On-screen Layout .................................................... 47
EcoLab Window Layout........................................................ 49
Working with Projects ......................................................... 50
Getting Started ..................................................................... 51
Set up a Recording Session.................................................. 51
Prepare EcoLog XL..........................................................................51
Enable online Video .........................................................................52

Setup EcoLog XL .............................................................................53
Start Recording ................................................................................53
Data recording options......................................................... 55
Single measurement ........................................................................55
Replace ............................................................................................56
Add...................................................................................................56
Online Video....................................................................... 56
Online video .....................................................................................57
Recording.........................................................................................57
Replaying an experiment..................................................................58
Video and Audio Properties..............................................................59
Selecting video source .....................................................................60
Download Data ................................................................... 61
Save Data.......................................................................... 63
Open a Project.................................................................... 64
Create a New Project........................................................... 65
Change units settings .......................................................... 65
Import data ....................................................................... 66

Print................................................................................. 69
Print a graph ....................................................................................69
Print a table......................................................................................69
View the Data ....................................................................... 71
Display Options.................................................................. 71
Graph Display .................................................................... 73
Single axis mode.............................................................................. 74
The Cursor .......................................................................................74
Zooming ...........................................................................................76
Panning............................................................................................78
Scrolling ...........................................................................................78
Changing the X axis values..............................................................79
Bar graph .........................................................................................79
Change the sensors' color settings ..................................................80
Format the graph .............................................................................81
Add a graph to the project................................................................82
Add title to a graph ...........................................................................83

Add annotations to the graph ...........................................................83
The Table Display ............................................................... 85
Editing data values ...........................................................................86
Adding comments to the table..........................................................86
Adding or removing data from the table ...........................................87
Formatting the table .........................................................................87
The Meters Display.............................................................. 88
Data Map........................................................................... 90
Control the display with the Data Map..............................................90
Understanding Data Map icons ........................................................92
Export Data to Excel............................................................ 93
Export file settings ............................................................................93
Copy the Graph as a Picture ................................................. 94
Program EcoLog XL................................................................. 95
Setup................................................................................ 95
Start Recording .................................................................. 96
Stop Recording ................................................................... 97
Communication Setup.......................................................... 97

The Timing Wizard ................................................................101
Overview .........................................................................101
Working with the Timing Wizard ..........................................102
Measuring methods ...........................................................104
Time ...............................................................................................105
Velocity ..........................................................................................106
Acceleration ...................................................................................108
Time schemes and calculations............................................109
Tips on using flags with the Timing Wizard ............................119
Analyze the data...................................................................121
Reading Data Point Coordinates...........................................121
Reading the Difference between two Coordinate Values...........121
Linear fit ..........................................................................122
Slope...............................................................................123
Area ................................................................................123
Statistics..........................................................................124
Workbook............................................................................125
About Workbook ...............................................................125