Hydronix Hydro-Control HC07 User manual

Hydro-Control (HC07)
Operators Guide
To re-order quote part number:
Revision:
Revision date:
HD1048
1.1.0
June 2023

2Hydro-Control (HC07) Operators Guide HD1048 Rev 1.1.0
Copyright
Neither the whole or any part of the information contained in nor the product described in this documentation may
be adapted or reproduced in any material form except with the prior written approval of Hydronix Limited, hereinafter
referred to as Hydronix.
© 2023
Hydronix Limited
Units 11 & 12 Henley Business Park
Pirbright Road
Normandy
Guildford
Surrey GU3 2DX
United Kingdom
All rights reserved.
CUSTOMER RESPONSIBILITY
The customer in applying the product described in this documentation accepts that the product is a programmable
electronic system which is inherently complex, and which may not be completely free of errors. In doing so the
customer therefore undertakes responsibility to ensure that the product is properly installed commissioned
operated and maintained by competent and suitably trained persons and in accordance with any instructions or
safety precautions made available or good engineering practice and to thoroughly verify the use of the product in
the application.
ERRORS IN DOCUMENTATION
The product described in this documentation is subject to continuous development and improvement. All
information of a technical nature and particulars of the product and its use including the information and particulars
contained in this documentation are given by Hydronix in good faith.
Hydronix welcomes comments and suggestions relating to the product and this documentation.
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
Hydronix, Hydro-Probe, Hydro-Mix, Hydro-Skid, Hydro-View, and Hydro-Control are Registered Trademarks of
Hydronix Limited
CUSTOMER FEEDBACK
Hydronix is continually looking to improve not only its products but also the services that we offer to our customers.
If you have any suggestions about how we can do this or if you have any other feedback that would be helpful,
please complete our short form at www.hydronix.com/contact/hydronix_feedback.php.
If your feedback is concerning an Atex certified product or associated service, it would be very helpful for you to
give us your contact details and the model number and serial number of the product if possible. This will enable us
to contact you with any relevant safety advice should this be necessary. It is not obligatory to leave your contact
details and any information will be treated as confidential.

Hydro-Control (HC07) Operators Guide HD1048 Rev 1.1.0 3
Hydronix Offices
UK Head Office
Address: Units 11 & 12 Henley Business Park
Pirbright Road
Normandy
Guildford
Surrey GU3 2DX
United Kingdom
Tel: [phone]
Email: [e-mail]
[e-mail]
Website: www.hydronix.com
North American Office
Covers North and South America, US territories, Spain, and Portugal
Address: 692 West Conway Road
Suite 24, Harbor Springs
MI 47940
USA
Tel: [phone] (Toll Free)
[phone]
Fax: [phone] (Toll Free)
[phone]
European Office
Covers Central Europe, Russia, and South Africa
Tel: [phone]
Fax: [phone]
French Office
Tel: [phone]

4Hydro-Control (HC07) Operators Guide HD1048 Rev 1.1.0

Hydro-Control (HC07) Operators Guide HD1048 Rev 1.1.0 5
Revision history
Revision
No
Software
Version
Date
Description of Change
V1.0.0
V1.1.0.0
May 2023
First Release
V1.1.0
V1.1.0.0
June 2023
Minor footer and document propertied fields
adjustments, error starting mix prompt and CO value
added.

6Hydro-Control (HC07) Operators Guide HD1048 Rev 1.1.0

Hydro-Control (HC07) Operators Guide HD1048 Rev 1.1.0 7
Table of Contents
Chapter 1 Introduction........................................................................................................................... 11
1About this Manual....................................................................................................................... 11
2Introduction to the Hydro-Control ............................................................................................... 12
Chapter 2 Navigation ............................................................................................................................ 13
1Powering on, logging in and Powering off..................................................................................13
2Main Menu.................................................................................................................................. 14
3Overview Screen ........................................................................................................................ 16
4Recipes Screen .......................................................................................................................... 19
5Mix Log Screen .......................................................................................................................... 20
6System Parameters Screen ....................................................................................................... 20
7Sensor Overview Screen ........................................................................................................... 21
8Settings Screen .......................................................................................................................... 21
9Hardware Screen ....................................................................................................................... 22
10 Comms Screen...................................................................................................................... 22
11 User Management Screen .................................................................................................... 22
Chapter 3 Plant Operator Controls ....................................................................................................... 27
Chapter 4 Understanding the Mix Cycle ............................................................................................... 29
1The Simple Mix Cycle................................................................................................................. 29
2Cycle with Pre-Wet Water Phase............................................................................................... 30
Chapter 5 Water Addition Modes .......................................................................................................... 33
1Preset Mode ............................................................................................................................... 33
2CALC Mode................................................................................................................................ 33
3AUTO Mode ............................................................................................................................... 34
4Selecting the Best Mode – AUTO or CALC? ............................................................................. 34
Chapter 6 Creating and Editing Recipes............................................................................................... 35
1Introduction................................................................................................................................. 35
2Creating New Recipe ................................................................................................................. 35
3Editing an Existing Recipe ......................................................................................................... 37
Chapter 7 Using the Mix Log................................................................................................................. 47
1Introduction................................................................................................................................. 47
2Information contained in the Mix Log ......................................................................................... 47
3Viewing the Mix Trace ................................................................................................................ 54
Chapter 8 Running the First Mix ........................................................................................................... 57
1The First Mix recipe parameters considerations ........................................................................ 57
2Set up the Recipe for the First Mix............................................................................................. 58
Chapter 9 Using Moisture Control......................................................................................................... 61
1Moisture Control and Homogeneity............................................................................................ 61
2CALC Mode................................................................................................................................ 62
3AUTO Mode ............................................................................................................................... 69
4Using Admixtures ....................................................................................................................... 72
5Auto-Track.................................................................................................................................. 73
6Temperature Compensation ...................................................................................................... 75
Chapter 10 Alarm Configuration ........................................................................................................... 77
1Alarms ........................................................................................................................................ 77
Chapter 11 Backup, Restore and Upgrade........................................................................................... 81
1Backing up and Restoring .......................................................................................................... 81
2Upgrading software .................................................................................................................... 82
Chapter 12 Remote Support ................................................................................................................. 85
1Establishing a remote connection .............................................................................................. 85
Chapter 13 Optimisation ....................................................................................................................... 87
1Mixer........................................................................................................................................... 87
2Ingredients.................................................................................................................................. 87
3Consistency................................................................................................................................ 88

8Hydro-Control (HC07) Operators Guide HD1048 Rev 1.1.0
4Calibration Based Water Addition .............................................................................................. 88
5Mixing ......................................................................................................................................... 88
Chapter 14 Frequently Asked Questions .............................................................................................. 89
Appendix A Diagnostics ........................................................................................................................ 93
Appendix B Glossary............................................................................................................................. 95
Appendix C Document Cross Reference .............................................................................................. 97
1Document Cross Reference....................................................................................................... 97

Hydro-Control (HC07) Operators Guide HD1048 Rev 1.1.0 9
Table of Figures
Figure 1: The Hydro-Control ................................................................................................................. 12
Figure 2: Hydro-Control implementation example ................................................................................12
Figure 3: Overview Screen - Default User ............................................................................................ 13
Figure 4: Overview screen - user not Logged in ................................................................................... 13
Figure 5: Main Menu Bar....................................................................................................................... 14
Figure 6: The overview screen of the Hydro-Control ............................................................................16
Figure 7: Mix cycle control buttons ....................................................................................................... 17
Figure 8: Connection to moisture sensor lost ....................................................................................... 18
Figure 9: Recipes Screen...................................................................................................................... 19
Figure 10: Selecting a recipe for editing ............................................................................................... 19
Figure 11: The Mix Log screen ............................................................................................................. 20
Figure 12: The Mix Log screen ............................................................................................................. 20
Figure 13: Settings Screen - the System page when logged out.......................................................... 21
Figure 14: Accessing the backup, restore and software upgrade features ..........................................21
Figure 15: Main menu access level comparison................................................................................... 22
Figure 16: Default User Accounts Configuration – no login/logout button present............................... 23
Figure 17: Additional User Accounts..................................................................................................... 23
Figure 18: Login screen ........................................................................................................................ 23
Figure 19: Login screen - user selection............................................................................................... 24
Figure 20: Adding new user account .................................................................................................... 24
Figure 21: User management - editing existing user account .............................................................. 25
Figure 22: The main menu bar when logged out. .................................................................................25
Figure 23: Recipe/Mode Screen – recipe search ................................................................................. 27
Figure 24: Recipe Mode Screen ........................................................................................................... 28
Figure 25: A simple mix cycle moisture trace explained.......................................................................29
Figure 26: The mix cycle with Pre-Wet ................................................................................................. 31
Figure 27: The moisture during CALC Mode ........................................................................................ 33
Figure 28: The moisture during AUTO Mode........................................................................................ 34
Figure 29: Creating a new recipe data input ......................................................................................... 35
Figure 30: Copying an existing to create a new recipe.........................................................................36
Figure 31: Accessing Recipe Editor – Recipe Selected .......................................................................37
Figure 32: Editing a Recipe – Recipe Details ....................................................................................... 38
Figure 33: Editing Recipe - Water Addition........................................................................................... 39
Figure 34: Editing Recipe - Material Addition and Mixing Times ..........................................................40
Figure 35: Editing Recipe - Mix Control ................................................................................................ 41
Figure 36: Editing Recipe - local Auto-Track settings...........................................................................42
Figure 37: Editing Recipe - Calculation Mode Settings ........................................................................44
Figure 38: Editing Recipe - Auto Mode Settings ...................................................................................45
Figure 39: Editing Recipe - Temperature Correction Settings .............................................................. 46

10 Hydro-Control (HC07) Operators Guide HD1048 Rev 1.1.0
Figure 40: Recipes updated confirmation pop-up.................................................................................46
Figure 41: The Mix Log ......................................................................................................................... 47
Figure 42: Mix Trace Screen................................................................................................................. 54
Figure 43: Mix Trace Data page ........................................................................................................... 55
Figure 44: Extending the mix times for calibration ................................................................................ 57
Figure 45: Water Trim function pop-up window .................................................................................... 59
Figure 46: Mix log - sensor values display group ................................................................................. 60
Figure 47: Mix trace showing homogeneity .......................................................................................... 61
Figure 48: How the deviation is calculated ........................................................................................... 61
Figure 49: The moisture during CALC Mode ........................................................................................ 62
Figure 50: Calibrating a recipe .............................................................................................................. 64
Figure 51: Summary of calibration parameters..................................................................................... 65
Figure 52: The CALC Mode Calculation ............................................................................................... 66
Figure 53: The calibration failed error message ................................................................................... 67
Figure 54: Comparison of averaging times ........................................................................................... 67
Figure 55: Comparing Measurement Modes ........................................................................................ 68
Figure 56: The moisture during AUTO Mode........................................................................................ 69
Figure 57: The effect of changing the Proportional Gain ......................................................................70
Figure 58: The effect of changing the Integral Gain ............................................................................. 71
Figure 59: The effect of changing the Derivative Gain .........................................................................71
Figure 60: The 2-step Preset Mode cycle ............................................................................................. 72
Figure 61: The calibration lines from the 2-step preset mode cycle ..................................................... 73
Figure 62: Mix trace showing the Auto-Track function.......................................................................... 74
Figure 63: System Parameters screen – alarm outputs configuration.................................................. 77
Figure 64: Unsuccessful mix start error message................................................................................. 79
Figure 65: Restoring the database........................................................................................................ 82
Figure 66: Upgrading the Software ....................................................................................................... 83
Figure 67: Connecting to Hydro-Control Remotely ............................................................................... 85
Figure 68: Logging in remotely ............................................................................................................. 86

Hydro-Control (HC07) Operators Guide HD1048 Rev 1.1.0 11
Chapter 1 Introduction
1 About this Manual
1.1 Purpose and Scope
This manual has been designed to act as a reference guide for an operator, describing the
basic recipe design and setup, and goes on to more advanced techniques, such as fine-tuning
the moisture control modes. For safety information, installation guidance and system
parameters description refer to HD1074.
This operators guide is designed to accompany the following documentation:
1. HD1100 – Hydro-Control (HC07) Safety Information
2. HD1074 – Hydro-Control (HC07) Installation Guide
Both above documents are available to download from the www.Hydronix.com website.
This manual complements the Installation Guide, which details the installation, all the system
parameters and the initial setup of the Hydro-Control.
1.2 Responsibilities
Read this operators guide before attempting to use the device. The device must only be used
in accordance with manufacturer specified intended use.
1.3 Content
The manual is divided into chapters which cover setting up recipes and using the Hydro-Control
to make concrete.
Hydro-Control
navigation
Designing the mix
cycle
Setting up a recipe
Running the first
mix
Using moisture
control to
automatically add
water
Chapter 2 describes how to navigate around the Hydro-Control and
introduces the system
.
Chapter 4 introduces the mix cycle and Chapter 5 explains the
difference between the water addition modes.
Chapter 6 describes how to create a recipe and how to edit the
parameters to get the desired result.
Chapter 8 shows how to run the first mix and tune the basic preset
water addition mode.
Chapter 9 explains how to calibrate the system and start using
moisture control for
the automatic addition of water into the mixer.

Chapter 1 Introduction
12 Hydro-Control (HC07) Operators Guide HD1048 Rev 1.1.0
2 Introduction to the Hydro-Control
Figure 1: The Hydro-Control
The Hydro-Control (HC07) is a touch-screen computer based on a Linux operating system. It has
been designed to work with the Hydronix range of sensors. The unit monitors the moisture level in
a process (usually in a mixer) and sends signals to adjust the water flow into the process using
water valves.
The moisture level during the process cycle is displayed on the Overview Screen, and there are
intuitive and easy-to-use graphical tools for setting up the recipes in the system.
Communication with external systems can be implemented using either the built-in RS232 serial
port, ethernet (port 23) or the optional Expansion Board. The Expansion Board also provides two
analogue inputs and two analogue outputs.
Coarse Water (switches on the coarse valve), Fine Water (switches on the fine valve), Admin, Pre-Wet Done, Mix Complete, Alarm, Water Tank Fill
Digital Outputs:
Digital Inputs:
Start/Resume, Cement In, Pause/Reset, Water Meter Pulse Input, Water Tank Full, Optional 8 inputs for recipe selection
Batch Controller
Hydro-Control
Digital Inputs
Digital Outputs
RS232 / Ethernet Recipe Selection (or by digital I/O)
RS485 Hydro-Mix
or
Hydro-Probe Orbiter
sensor
Counts Litres/Gallons
Fine
On/Off
Coarse
On/Off
Water Meter
Figure 2: Hydro-Control implementation example

Hydro-Control (HC07) Operators Guide HD1048 Rev 1.1.0 13
Chapter 2 Navigation
1 Powering on, logging in and Powering off
Powering On
The Hydro-Control is switched on by pressing the power button in the top left-hand corner of the
unit. The unit will briefly display system boot-up information. A white screen with Hydronix logo will
appear, followed by an automatic login message, a black screen, and another white screen with
Hydronix logo.
Logging In
Logging in is not required if the device contains only the default user account. The screen will
display the Overview Screen with access to the entire menu in the top blue bar (see Figure 3). The
Hydro-Control is ready to use.
Figure 3: Overview Screen - Default User
If an additional user account is stored in the device beyond the default username, the device will
display the Overview Screen with a limited menu, see Figure 4. A user login is required to gain
access to the full menu.
For more information about logging in and user accounts management, refer to section 11.
Figure 4: Overview screen - user not Logged in

Chapter 2 Navigation
14 Hydro-Control (HC07) Operators Guide HD1048 Rev 1.1.0
Powering Off
To switch the unit off, hold the power button in the top left-hand corner until the confirmation box
pops up and press OK.
2 Main Menu
The main menu pages are accessible by pressing the icons on the blue bar at the top of the screen.
This allows access to the different areas of the Hydro-Control.
1 2 3
Figure 5: Main Menu Bar
1. Quick access language change button
2. Menu page name
3. Main menu access buttons
When no additional user account (beyond the default admin account) is created in the
Hydro-Control, the Log-Out button (Padlock symbol) is not displayed on the main menu bar (see
Figure 16 in section 11 User Management).
2.1 Menu Buttons
Overview
Displays the main Overview Screen to control the mix cycle and view details about the batch
and recipe currently in use (see section 3 Overview Screen).
Recipes
Displays the user-defined recipes stored in the system and allows the user to create, edit, and
delete recipes (see section 4 Recipes Screen).
Mix Log
Displays a list and details of previously run batches. Recipe calibration based on a previous
batch can be performed using the submenu of this section (see section 5 Mix Log Screen).

Navigation Chapter 2
Hydro-Control (HC07) Operators Guide HD1048 Rev 1.1.0 15
System Parameters
Enables configuration of the system parameters, including water meter and valve setup, AUTO
Mode and Auto-Track parameters, and alarm configuration (see section 6 System Parameters
Screen).
Sensor Overview
Displays the sensor configuration screen allowing changes to the filtering and analogue output
settings (see section 7 Sensor Overview Screen).
Settings
Enables configuration of system time and date, units of measurement, IP address and settings,
and screen brightness. Software upgrade and database backup can be performed using the
submenu of this section (see section 8 Settings Screen).
Hardware
Enables configuration of hardware and process-related inputs and outputs, selection of RS232
communication mode and performing I/O tests (see section 9 Hardware Screen).
Comms
Displays diagnostic information regarding the RS232 communication (see section 10 Comms
Screen).
User Management
Enables creating, modifying, and deleting user accounts. This section manages user restriction
levels (see section 11 User Management Screen).

Chapter 2 Navigation
16 Hydro-Control (HC07) Operators Guide HD1048 Rev 1.1.0
Log Out
Enables the operator to log-out from the current user account once finished using the
Hydro-Control (see section 11 User Management Screen).
3 Overview Screen
This is the main screen displaying an overview of the mix cycle and details about the batch and
recipe currently in use. Accessing this part of the menu is described in section 2.1 Menu Buttons.
1
2
3 4 5 6 78 9 10 11 12 13 14 15
20
16
17
18
19
21
22
23
24
2526272829
30
Figure 6: The overview screen of the Hydro-Control
1. Pre-Wet Done and Admix outputs status indicators – turn red when outputs are activated.
2. Fine and Coarse Valve status indicators – turn red when valves are energised.
3. Water added during the current phase.
4. Total water added to the batch.
5. Flow rate.
6. Temperature of the current mix.
7. The control mode in operation for the given recipe (Preset, AUTO or CALC).
8. Current batch number. The Batch number increments with each batch made for each
Recipe.
9. Control output level indicator (AUTO mode only), see Chapter 9 section 3.4.
10. Current recipe phase.

Navigation Chapter 2
Hydro-Control (HC07) Operators Guide HD1048 Rev 1.1.0 17
11. Current Recipe Number and Name and enables access to the Operators Mode recipe
screen.
12. Current Recipe moisture target.
13. Current moisture value. When in air ‘EMPTY’ is indicated.
14. Process status.
15. Date and time.
16. AUTO Loop Tune enables adjustment of the AUTO Mode Parameters (see Chapter 9
section 3.3).
17. Switches the units shown on the main display between moisture value and sensor unscaled
values.
18. Update Target is enabled when the current mix is in the Mix Complete phase. This allows
the moisture target of the current Recipe to be updated to the final moisture value of the
current batch.
19. Indicator bar showing the current moisture level.
20. Total mix time of the current batch.
21. Main control buttons for controlling the mix cycle. Start, Pause, Resume, Abort, Trim and
Accept Alarm. (See Figure 7)
22. Wet Mix Time indicator.
23. Pre-Wet Mix Time indicator.
24. Main water addition indicator.
25. Pre-Wet Water addition indicator.
26. Dry Mix time indicator.
27. Initial Mix time indicator.
28. Water trim amount.
29. Dry material weight of the current batch.
30. Graph showing the last 100 seconds of moisture or unscaled value.
Figure 7: Mix cycle control buttons
Main control buttons
Description
Accept Alarm
User acknowledgement, removes the current alarm message
from the display.
Start
Starts the Hydro-Control cycle.
Pause
Pauses the Hydro-Control cycle.
Resume
Resumes the Hydro-Control cycle.

Chapter 2 Navigation
18 Hydro-Control (HC07) Operators Guide HD1048 Rev 1.1.0
Main control buttons
Description
Abort
Aborts the Hydro-Control cycle.
Trim
Enables inputting the manual trim amount (see Chapter 8,
section 2.3).
NOTE: If a certain amount of trim is always required, personnel
with supervisor access should be notified to re-calibrate the mix.
The procedure for this is described in Chapter 8, section 2.8.
An error message ‘Sensor Fault’ across the top of the screen shows when the Hydro-Control is
searching for the sensor or connection to the sensor is lost.
Figure 8: Connection to moisture sensor lost
Press the ‘Accept Alarm’ button to acknowledge and remove the ‘Sensor Fault’ message from the
screen.
If no sensor is connected this alarm can be disabled. See Chapter 10 Section 1.1.

Navigation Chapter 2
Hydro-Control (HC07) Operators Guide HD1048 Rev 1.1.0 19
4 Recipes Screen
This is an overview list of recipes saved in the Hydro-Control. Accessing this part of the menu is
described in section 2.1 Menu Buttons. Recipes can be created, selected for editing, or deleted
from this screen.
Figure 9: Recipes Screen
The ‘Unscaled’ button will change into the ‘Moisture’ button when pressed. This switches the
display of the values between ‘Moisture’ readings and the sensor’s ‘Unscaled’ readings.
Editing a recipe is accessed by selecting the desired recipe and pressing the ‘Edit’ button.
To select a recipe, press its name on the list. Additional buttons will appear (see Figure 10).
The ‘Create Recipe’ button enables creating a new recipe in Hydro-Control’s database.
Figure 10: Selecting a recipe for editing
The ‘Set Next Recipe’ button marks the selected recipe as the next recipe to be run by
Hydro-Control. After pressing the ‘Set Next Recipe’ button, a green round tick box will appear
beside the selected recipe name field.
The ‘Delete’ button enables deleting the selected recipe from Hydro-Control’s database.
The ‘Close’ button returns the screen to the main Overview screen.
For detailed information about creating new or editing an existing recipe, refer to
Chapter 6 Creating and Editing Recipes.

Chapter 2 Navigation
20 Hydro-Control (HC07) Operators Guide HD1048 Rev 1.1.0
5 Mix Log Screen
This is an overview list of the batches produced. Accessing this part of the menu is described in
section 2.1 Menu Buttons.
Figure 11: The Mix Log screen
The ‘Unscaled’ button switches the display of the values shown in the mix log between % Moisture
readings and sensor Unscaled readings.
Swiping left and right navigates across the different components displayed in the list, such as mix
averages, times, alarms, and other mix log components. The filter options can be used to refine
the logs displayed by date, recipe, or alarm type.
Selecting a mix log is done by pressing anywhere on its line. After choosing a recipe, the
‘Mix Trace’ button will appear.
Figure 12: The Mix Log screen
The ‘Close’ button switches the screen to the main Overview screen. For detailed information about
using the mix log, see Chapter 7 Using the Mix Log.
6 System Parameters Screen
Note: Some parameters will have been set up by the installer. The alarm configuration is detailed
in Chapter 10 Alarm Configuration. The remaining parameters of this section are detailed in the
Installation Guide (HD1074).