Houston Radar DC310 User manual

DC310
User Manual and Installation Guide
K-Band Doppler Speed Sensor
Built Type: DC310-DFT, DC310-OFD
Rev 6, January 2019
Houston Radar LLC
12818 Century Dr. Stafford, TX 77477
Http://www.Houston-Radar.com
Email: [email protected]
Contact: 1-888-602-3111
DC310 in Weatherproof Enclosure
DC310-DFT
DC310 Open Frame Version
DC310-OFD

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This device complies with part 15 of the FCC Rules. Operation is subject to the following
two conditions: (1) this device may not cause harmful interference, and (2) this device
must accept any interference received, including interference that may cause undesired
operation. The device must be located 20 cm or more from persons. The device must not
be co-located with other transmitters. These warnings must be included in the user
manual of the final configuration where this device is utilized.
Changes or modifications not expressly approved by the party responsible for compliance
could void the user's authority to operate the equipment.
Any modification or use other than specified in this manual will strictly void the
certification to operate the device.
This device carries FCC modular approval and as such is labeled with FCC ID
TIADC310. If this label is not visible when the module is installed inside another device,
then the outside of the device into which the module is installed must also display a label
referring to the enclosed DC310 module. This exterior label can use wording such as the
following: “Contains Transmitter Module FCC ID: TIADC310” or “Contains FCC ID:
TIADC310.” Any similar wording that expresses the same meaning may be used.
Warning: DC310-OFD radar is supplied in an open frame format with exposed antenna
and electronics and thus is a static sensitive device. Please use static precautions when
handling. Warrantydoes not cover damage caused by inadequate ESD procedures and
practices.
Note: Specifications may change without notice.
Note: Not liable for typographical errors or omissions.

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Safety Critical Application Notice:
Warning: The DC310 radar is not a fail-safe device. It should not be used in any
application where failure or non-performance of the device will result in a hazardous
condition. If used in a “wrong way” application to detect vehicles traveling in the wrong
direction on the road, it must not be relied upon to provide 100% performance in all
conditions.

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Table of Contents
INTRODUCTION............................................................................................................. 5
INSTALLATION.............................................................................................................. 6
MOUNTING....................................................................................................................... 6
RECOMMENDED ENCLOSURE FOR THE DC310-OFD: ...................................................... 7
HOOKUP:.......................................................................................................................... 8
Power Input: ............................................................................................................... 8
Serial Connection:...................................................................................................... 8
Average Speed Output: ............................................................................................... 8
Speed Output Event..................................................................................................... 9
Setting variables from an ASCII Terminal program via ASCII commands: .............. 9
WIRE SIGNAL DESCRIPTIONS:........................................................................................ 11
USE................................................................................................................................... 13
Internal Clock:.......................................................................................................... 14
Configuring the Unit:................................................................................................ 14
Configuring the Radar via the provided Houston Radar Configuration Tool GUI: 17
STEP 1: Connect to Radar........................................................................................ 18
STEP 2: Click on Radar Setup to bring up the configuration GUI.......................... 19
STEP 3: Select the radar units.................................................................................. 20
STEP 4: Set the radar cutoff speeds (low and high speed cutoff)............................. 21
STEP 5: Configure the trigger outputs..................................................................... 22
STEP 6: Enable Average Speed Output.................................................................... 23
STEP 7: Enable ASCII Speed Output Event............................................................. 24
STEP 8: Input Voltage and Ambient Temperature................................................... 25
DC310 SPECIFICATIONS............................................................................................ 26
GENERAL ....................................................................................................................... 26
APPROVALS ................................................................................................................... 26
DATA INTERFACES......................................................................................................... 26
MECHANICAL................................................................................................................. 26
PERFORMANCE............................................................................................................... 27
APPENDIX A: TROUBLESHOOTING COMPLICATED INSTALLATIONS..... 28
APPENDIX B: HOOKING UP A BACK-TO-BACK CONFIRMATION RADAR
FOR “WRONG WAY” APPLICATIONS................................................................... 29
APPENDIX C: HOOKING UP TO THE TRIGGER OUTPUTS ON THE RADAR
........................................................................................................................................... 31
APPENDIX D: OPTIONAL BREAKOUT IO BOARD CONNECTIONS:............. 32
OPTIONAL BREAKOUT IO BOARD CONNECTIONS:........................................ 33

Houston Radar DC310 User Manual
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INTRODUCTION
Congratulations on your purchase of the Houston Radar directional Tracking Doppler
Radar DC310. This state of the art 24GHz K-band microwave Doppler radar is
specifically designed for the license free battery operated traffic monitoring, data
collection and “wrong way” vehicle detection market.
Utilizing high performance, ultra-low power DSP (Digital Signal Processing) technology
and microwave components based on a planar patch array antenna with integrated low
power PHEMT oscillator, you will find that this high quality product meets your exacting
standards for performance and reliability.
Some of the highlights of this product include:
World’s smallest and lowest power usage tracking, multi-lane bidirectional radar
with built-in data collection and “wrong way”alertfunctions.
High confidence detection of passing vehicle enables use in some “Wrong
Way” applications with minimal false triggers
Unique 20°x60° beam pattern covers 2+2 lanes simultaneously and collects
individual time stamped vehicle counts and speeds per direction making it a
perfect fit for real-time traffic monitoring and speed study applications
Best-in-class 0.4% speed accuracy
Calculates average speed on the road in real time
Detailed speed reports with 85th percentile speeds based on historic data
Vehicle classification in 3 size classes
Data saved in on-board memory or available in real-time via RS232
FCC pre-approved with CE mark
“Install and Go” hassle free, no configuration required installation
Wide input operating range and low power enables solar operation
1.9Wx2.1Hx0.9D in (4.5x4.8x2.4 cm) weatherproof enclosure option
0.17W average power consumption
Firmware “boot loader” allows for field upgrade of the firmware
100% built-in self-test feature includes self power usage
IO expansion/breakout board available for ease of testing
Fully functional Windows Traffic Statistics Analysis program available to
generate reports and graphs of vehicle counts, averages & 85th percentile
speeds.
“C” protocol source code SDK available to ease interface to microcontroller

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INSTALLATION
Mounting
DC310-OFD is supplied in an “open frame” format. It requires a weatherproof enclosure
before it may be used outdoors. Alternatively it may be mounted as a component in
another product that already has a weatherproof enclosure.
The DC310-OFD should be mounted such that the connector points left or right as shown
in the picture on the front page.
The DC310-DFT is supplied in a weatherproof encapsulated enclosure with a pigtail
connection. This unit may be mounted outside without any further protection from the
environment. The DC310-DFT should be mounted such that the text “Houston Radar” on
the face of the unit is horizontal.
The suggested orientation places the 20° beam angle in the vertical direction and the
60° beam angle in the horizontal direction ensuring wide lane(s) coverage.
Pick a location where the traffic is free flowing and the DC310 has at least 100 feet
(30m) of unobstructed straight road in either direction. Avoid mounting within 100 feet
(30m) of congestion points such as stop signs, sharp turns and traffic signals. Avoid
mounting where trees, branches or other objects are obstructing the view of the traffic.
Mount on the side of a two lane undivided road to measure both directions. Mount within
12 feet (3.6m) from the curb. We recommend pointing the radar so that incoming traffic
is in the closer lane.
Mount in the median of a four lane divided road to measure both directions. Pick a
location where the median is no more than 12 (3.6m) feet wide.
Mounting on the side of a 4 lane divided road will allow the DC310 to capture only the
closest two incoming lanes accurately.
Radar may be mounted typically with 0 to 12 feet from the side of the road or in middle
of median that is no more than 12 feet wide.
Mount DC310 at least 6 feet (1.8m) high but no more than 12 feet (3m) high. Adjust the
tilt to point slightly down so that the radar looks at a spot about 75 to 100 feet (20 to
30m) in front of it.
You may mount as low as 4 feet (1.2m) if the location has low traffic density and you are
on an undivided two lane road.
When installing on the side of the road point DC310 slightly inwards towards the road.
When installing in the median between opposite flowing traffic, do not angle the DC310
towards either side. You should still tilt the DC310 down to point about 100 (30m) feet in
front of the mounting location.

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Recommended Enclosure for the DC310-OFD:
The DC310-OFD radar needs to be enclosed in a weatherproof enclosure for outside use.
The following needs to be observed for optimal performance:
1. The front face of the radar (with the golden pads) is the antenna and is the face
that must point into traffic.
2. Any cover or window in front of the unit MUST be at least ¼” away from the
face.
3. Do NOT spray any conformal (or other) coating, paint or other substance on the
antenna.
4. The optimum material to use as a front window is Lexan (Polycarbonate) plastic.
5. The optimum thickness of the polycarbonate window is half wavelength at
24.125Ghz or about 3.5 to 3.7mm (0.137” to 0.146”) thick.
a. Alternatively a thin window of any plastic material may be used. The
maximum thickness in this case should be no more than 1 mm (40 mils).
b. Standard 0.25” thick Lexan should be avoided as it has particularly high
reflection coefficient due to this specific thickness.
6. Other plastic materials may be used as a front window, but the optimum thickness
will wary with the material’s dielectric constant. Please contact us for details.
Alternatively, you may consider weatherproof version DC310-DFT that is available from
Houston Radar.
Installation on two lane undivided
road. Make incoming direction the
closer lane.
Installation on four lane divided road

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Hookup:
Power Input:
The DC310 radar features wide operating input voltage range of 6.7V-18V. In a typical
application it may be powered from a nominal 12V DC source and will feature best in
class operational power consumption of 14 mA (average).
This ultra-low operational power translates directly into a longer battery life or gives you
an option to power the unit from smaller batteries and smaller solar panels.
Note: The radar employs aggressive power saving measures that include turning off parts
of the circuit that are not being used at any instant. To get a true measure of the power
usage of the circuit use a multi-meter that has an averaging function and does not suffer
from autoranging during measurements. Otherwise you will get readings that fluctuate
from 7 mA to 23 mA.
Your power supply to the radar must be capable of supplying up to 40mA of current for
up to 5 seconds at a time (startup current is higher as the radar is initializing its internal
systems).
Serial Connection:
The DC310 features an RS232 interface that is used to output average speed, access
statistics data and configure the unit as explained later in this document.
The RS232 interface is factory set to “cable detect” mode and will power the interface
chip down to save power if the radar RX line is not connected. Cable detect mode may be
disabled and the interface may be forced ON via a bit in the “MD” variable.
Average Speed Output:
The DC310 can send out the average measured speed via the ASCII interface as a 3 digit
speed with a direction indicator. This option is turned off in the default configuration and
must be enabled if desired. The speed format is:
[?,+,-]nnn[.ddd][\r,\n]
The format can be adjusted to any combination of:
“?”: Optional prefix sent when 000 is selected to be sent when no vehicles are detected
“+”: Prefix sent when nnn speed (other than 000) is sent for incoming vehicles
“-”: Prefix sent when nnn speed (other than 000) is sent for outgoing vehicles
“nnn”: Three digit ASCII speed in the units selected via the UN variable
“.ddd”: Programmable number of digits (0-3) after decimal point
“\r”: Carriage Return character, optional line ending
“\n”: Line Feed character, optional line ending

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At least one or both of the line endings must be selected with ASCII format. No line
ending is not an option. Please see serial port configuration section for details on how to
select desired format.
Speed Output Event
The DC310 can send out individually logged vehicle speeds via the ASCII interface as a
3 digit speed with a direction indicator. This option is turned off in the default
configuration and must be enabled if desired. The speed format is:
[+,-]nnn[.ddd][\r,\n]
“+”: Prefix sent when nnn speed is sent for incoming vehicles
“-”: Prefix sent when nnn speed is sent for outgoing vehicles
“nnn”: Three digit ASCII speed in the units selected via the UN variable
“.ddd”: Programmable number of digits (0-3) after decimal point
“\r”: Carriage Return character, optional line ending
“\n”: Line Feed character, optional line ending
At least one or both of the line endings must be selected with ASCII format. No line
ending is not an option. Please see serial port configuration section for details on how to
select desired format.
Setting variables from an ASCII Terminal program via ASCII commands:
Radar internal variables can be set and queried via a simple ASCII command set over the
serial port. ASCII commands may be issued via an ASCII terminal program like
Hyperterminal or Teraterm Pro. Alternatively, you may issue these commands from an
attached microcontroller.
Configuration variables are written to FLASH memory and are non-volatile. Do not
update settings on a periodic basis, e.g. every second or every minute. Only change
settings when the user needs it. The FLASH memory has a limited number of write
cycles and will wear out with excessive (>10,000) number of writes. On the other
hand, setting the variable to the same value repeatedly is OK because the radar
recognizes that the variable has not changed and does not update it in FLASH.
The ASCII commands are:
get(get a config variable)
set(set a config variable to a supplied value)
reset(resets the radar. Required after changing variables MO, MD and RS).
info(print out some info about the radar. Info is in the format of <tag>=<value>). New
tags may be added in the future. Order of tags may be moved around.
e.g.
To set a variable (variables are documented in the user manual):

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set: <case sensitive var name> <value>[Enter]
e.g.
set:LO 5
alt format:
set:LO=5
sets the low speed cutoff to 5 etc.
Variables are case sensitive. Commands are not.
Success is indicated by an "OK".
Failure is indicated by either:
"ERROR" - Command was recognized but some other error occurred (variable not
present, format not correct, etc.)
<nothing returned> - Command was not recognized. Entire line was silently discarded.
This ensures that spurious things like enters or other ASCII chars do not generate
"ERROR" when you are not expecting them.
To get a variable:
get:<case sensitive var name>[ENTER]
e.g.
get:LO
returns
LO=5 (if value is presently set to 5).
If sending the ASCII command via an attached microcontroller, the “[ENTER]” key
press should be replaced by the carriage return and/or line feed ASCII character.