MTL WMO-400S User manual

WMO-400S
Radio Modem
User Guide
INM WMO400S

WMO-400S Radio Modem Module
Page 2 Jul 2010
Thank you for your selection of the WMO-400S radio modem.
We trust it will give you many years of valuable service.
ATTENTION!
Incorrect termination of supply wires may
cause internal damage and will void warranty.
To ensure your WMO-400S enjoys a long life,
double check ALL your connections
with the user’s manual
before turning on the power.
Important Regulatory Information
FCC
Part 15 – This device has been tested and found to comply with the limits for a Class
B digital device, pursuant to Part15 of the FCC rules (Code of Federal
Regulations 47CFR Part 15). Operation is subject to the condition that this
device does not cause harmful interference.
Part 90 – This device has been type accepted for operation by the FCC in accordance
with Part90 of the FCC rules (47CFR Part 90). See the label on the unit for
the specific FCC ID and any other certification designations.
Note This device should only be connected to PCs that are covered by either a
FCC DoC or are FCC certified.
Industry Canada
RSS-119 - This device has been type accepted for operation by Industry Canada in
accordance with RSS-119 of the Industry Canada rules. See the label on the
unit for the specific Industry Canada certification number and any other
certification designations.
Notice
Any changes or modifications not expressly approved by MTL
Technologies P/L could void the user’s authority to operate this equipment.
To operate this equipment legally the user must obtain a radio operating
license from the government agency. This is done so the government can
coordinate radio users in order to minimize interference.

User Manual
INM WMO400S_v3 03_2.doc Page 3
How to Use This Manual
To receive the maximum benefit from your WMO-400S product, please read the
Introduction, Installation and Configuration chapters of this manual
thoroughly before putting the WMO-400S to work.
Chapter Four Specifications details the features of the product and lists the
standards to which the product is approved.
Chapter Five Troubleshooting will help if your system has problems and
Chapter Seven specifies the Warranty and Service conditions.
The foldout sheet WMO-400S Installation Guide is an installation drawing
appropriate for most applications.
WARNING
1. To avoid the risk of electrocution, the antenna, antenna cable, and all
terminals of the WMO-400S module should be electrically protected. To
provide maximum surge and lightning protection, the module should be
connected to a suitable earth and the antenna, antenna cable, and the
module should be installed as recommended in the Installation Guide.
2. To avoid accidents during maintenance or adjustment of remotely
controlled equipment, all equipment should be first disconnected from the
WMO-400S module during these adjustments. Equipment should carry
clear markings to indicate remote or automatic operation. eg. "This
equipment is remotely controlled and may start without warning. Isolate
at the switchboard before attempting adjustments."
3. The WMO-400S module is not suitable for use in explosive environments
without additional protection.
4. All antenna installation and servicing should be done by qualified personal
only. When installing or working near the antenna it is important to
ensure that the transmitter is not operating, ensure the transmitter is
disabled.
5. The antenna can have very high RF radiating fields and must be installed
so that under normal operating conditions that a person cannot approach
within 2.3 metres (7.5 feet) of the antenna. See chapter 2 for antenna
installation guidelines.

WMO-400S Radio Modem Module
Page 4 Jul 2010
CONTENTS
WARNING............................................................................................................................... 3
CHAPTER ONEINTRODUCTION .................................................................................. 7
1.1GENERAL................................................................................................................. 7
1.1.1Basic Operation ......................................................................................................... 8
1.1.2Operating Modes ....................................................................................................... 8
1.1.3Repeater Functionality............................................................................................... 9
1.1.4Hot Redundant Standby............................................................................................. 9
1.2UNACKNOWLEDGED MODE ..................................................................................... 9
1.3ACKNOWLEDGED MODE........................................................................................ 10
1.4SECURITY ENCRYPTION......................................................................................... 13
1.5SERIAL AND RADIO DATA...................................................................................... 13
1.5.1PLC-Mode............................................................................................................... 14
1.5.2Character Type ........................................................................................................ 14
1.5.3Serial Data Rate....................................................................................................... 15
1.5.4Radio Data Rate....................................................................................................... 15
1.5.5Radio Message......................................................................................................... 15
1.6ADDRESSING.......................................................................................................... 16
1.6.1Multiple Device Connectivity (MDC)..................................................................... 17
1.7OPTIMUM PATH ROUTING...................................................................................... 17
1.8DUTY CYCLE LIMITING ......................................................................................... 18
1.9WHAT OPERATING MODE TO USE ?....................................................................... 18
1.9.1Unacknowledged or Acknowledged mode?............................................................ 18
1.9.2Error Check ............................................................................................................. 19
CHAPTER TWOINSTALLATION.................................................................... 20
2.1GENERAL............................................................................................................... 20
2.2ANTENNA INSTALLATION ...................................................................................... 20
2.2.13dB/6dB Collinear antenna. .................................................................................... 22
2.2.2Yagi antennas. ......................................................................................................... 23
2.3POWER SUPPLY...................................................................................................... 23
2.4SERIAL CONNECTIONS........................................................................................... 25
2.4.1 RS232 Serial Port ................................................................................................ 25
2.4.2 RS232 Configuration Port................................................................................... 26
2.4.3 RS485 Serial Port ................................................................................................ 26
2.5DISCRETE I/O POINT.............................................................................................. 27
2.5.1 Using the Discrete I/O as an Output.................................................................... 27
2.5.1 Using the Discrete I/O point as an Input............................................................. 27
2.6DUAL REDUNDANT INSTALLATION........................................................................ 28
CHAPTER THREECONFIGURATION........................................................................ 30

User Manual
INM WMO400S_v3 03_2.doc Page 5
3.1BEFORE CONFIGURING .......................................................................................... 30
3.1.1Addressing............................................................................................................... 30
3.1.2Command Mode...................................................................................................... 31
3.2DEFAULT CONFIGURATION.................................................................................... 31
3.3CONFIGURATION PROGRAM................................................................................... 31
3.3.1Reading and Configuring a module......................................................................... 32
3.4REMOTE CONFIGURATION AND DIAGNOSTICS ....................................................... 34
3.5UNACKNOWLEDGED MODE ................................................................................... 35
3.5.1RS-485 Port ............................................................................................................. 35
3.5.2RS-232 Port ............................................................................................................. 36
3.5.3 Unacknowledged mode Repeaters ...................................................................... 37
3.5.4 Multiple Transmissions....................................................................................... 40
3.6RADIO AND SERIAL CONFIGURATION .................................................................... 40
3.6.1Radio Data Rate....................................................................................................... 40
3.6.2Serial Port Settings .................................................................................................. 40
3.6.3Other Settings.......................................................................................................... 41
3.7ACKNOWLEDGED MODE........................................................................................ 42
3.7.1 Auto-Connect Acknowledged mode ................................................................... 42
3.7.2 Single-Connect Acknowledged mode................................................................. 44
3.8DUAL REDUNDANT STANDBY................................................................................ 45
3.9LOW POWER MODE ............................................................................................... 47
3.10OPTIMUM PATH ROUTING...................................................................................... 47
Path Configuration............................................................................................................... 48
Configuring for Modbus Protocol (RTU or ASCII)............................................................ 48
Modbus RTU Protocol......................................................................................................... 48
Modbus ASCII protocol ...................................................................................................... 48
DF1 protocol........................................................................................................................ 48
DNP3................................................................................................................................... 49
3.11ADVANCED SETTINGS -SREGISTERS................................................................... 49
3.12HAYES AT COMMANDS ......................................................................................... 49
3.13AT CONFIGURATION EXAMPLES............................................................................ 50
3.14SWITCH CONFIGURATION ...................................................................................... 52
CHAPTER FOURTROUBLESHOOTING .................................................................... 53
4.1POWER-UP AND NORMAL OPERATION ................................................................... 53
4.2LED INDICATION DIAGNOSTICS CHART................................................................. 54
4.3OPERATING PROBLEMS.......................................................................................... 55
4.4TEST FUNCTIONS ................................................................................................... 56
4.4.1Bit Error Ratio Test (BER)...................................................................................... 56
4.4.2Other Radio Testing - AT&Tx................................................................................ 57
4.4.3On-line diagnostics.................................................................................................. 58
4.5RADIO PATH TESTING............................................................................................ 60

WMO-400S Radio Modem Module
Page 6 Jul 2010
4.6CHANGING THE RADIO PARAMETERS .................................................................... 61
4.7DIAGNOSTIC MESSAGES ........................................................................................ 62
4.8DUAL REDUNDANCY ............................................................................................. 63
4.8.1Firmware versions prior to 3.03 .............................................................................. 66
CHAPTER FIVESPECIFICATIONS ............................................................................. 68
APPENDIX A HAYES COMMANDS............................................................................. 70
APPENDIX B RESPONSE CODES ................................................................................ 79
APPENDIX C S-REGISTERS.......................................................................................... 80

User Manual
INM WMO400S_v3 03_2.doc Page 7
Chapter One INTRODUCTION
1.1 General
The WMO-400S radio modem provides reliable radio modem operation with advanced
communication control and diagnostics functions. Radio modems transmit serial data over a
long distance via radio. The serial data is not changed - the output data is the same as the
input data. Although the WMO-400S is intended to be simple in its application, it also
provides many sophisticated features. This manual should be read carefully to ensure that the
modules are configured and installed to give reliable performance.
Each WMO-400S module will connect to a host device by RS232 or RS485 serial connection.
Examples of host devices are PLC’s, data loggers, intelligent transducers and computers. The
WMO-400S unit can receive data from the host device and transmit this data by radio to
another (or several) WMO-400S module. The other module will recreate the serial data and
output it as either a RS232 or RS485 serial signal. The WMO-400S unit provides two-way
communications - each module can accept serial data and also output serial data.
The WMO-400S module has two data ports (one RS232 and one RS485) and can connect to
two host devices independently. The WMO-400S also has another RS232 port (via a RJ45
connector) which can be used only for configuration or access to diagnostics information - the
RS232 data port can also be used for configuration and diagnostics.
RS232 is an electrical standard format for a full duplex point-to-point serial connection.
RS485 is an electrical standard format for a half-duplex multidrop serial connection. Up
to 32 devices can communicate on a common RS485 serial bus.
Each WMO-400S can simultaneously
connect to signals from both RS232 and
RS485. In addition, RS232 data from
one host device can be transmitted to a
remote WMO-400S unit and output as
RS485 data to another host device.
The unit includes a fixed frequency
radio transceiver with overall frequency
range 360MHz to 512MHz, in seven
radio bands, each 20MHz wide. The
user can configure the radio frequency
within the 20MHz band (refer to
Diagnostics section).
The WMO-400S is available with a high power radio (0.5 – 5W) suitable for licensed narrow-
width channels (12.5, 20 or 25KHz). The unit is also available with a lower power radio (10 –
500mW) suitable for license-free narrow-width channels, in countries where these are
available.
The operating parameters of the WMO-400S are configured from a PC using a Microsoft
Windows configuration package provided free with the module, or from a PC terminal using
Hayes commands.

WMO-400S Radio Modem Module
Page 8 Jul 2010
Ordering Information
WMO - Frequency – Power Channel
Frequency 440 440MHz center frequency, configurable between 430MHz and
450MHz
460 440MHz center frequency, configurable between 450MHz and
470MHz
480 480MHz center frequency, configurable between 470MHz and
490MHz
Power L10 – 500mW H0.5 – 5W
Channel N 12.5 KHz W 20/25 KHz
For example if a project required a 458.925MHz frequency, 5W transmit power with wideband
channel, the part number would be WMO-460S-HW
If a specific frequency and power level is specified on the purchase order, then the radio will be
delivered on that frequency and power level for a fee.
1.1.1 Basic Operation
The operation of the WMO-400S radio modem is relatively simple. As data is received at the
serial port, the data is transmitted on the radio channel. Up to 1020 bytes of data can be
transmitted in one transmission. The radio transmission commences when the first data byte
is received, and ends when there are no more data bytes in the input buffer, or when the
number of bytes transmitted equals the maximum message length (user configurable - default
1020 bytes). If more than 1020 bytes is input, the WMO-400S unit will transmit the first 1020
bytes, then the next 1020 bytes, and so on until all of the data has been transmitted.
Because the radio data rate could be less than the input serial data rate, an input memory
buffer of up to 8Kbytes is provided. The RS232 connection provides CTS control to prevent
the buffer overflowing. There are no data flow control signals for RS485.
1.1.2 Operating Modes
A radio channel cannot provide as secure a data channel as a wired connection. The WMO-
400S uses a radio band with a low level of natural or industrial noise, however there is a
chance of interference from other users on the radio channel. We recommend that the flow of
data over the radio channel is controlled by using error detection and “handshaking” - that is,
returning an acknowledgment transmission if a data packet is received on the radio channel
without error. This function can be performed by either the host devices or the WMO-400S
modules.
The modules may be configured by the user to operate in one of two modes. In
Unacknowledged mode, it is assumed that the host devices control the flow of data - the
WMO-400S does not provide handshaking. In Acknowledged mode, the WMO-400S units
provide handshaking to control the flow of data.
The RS485 port always operates in Unacknowledged mode.

User Manual
INM WMO400S_v3 03_2.doc Page 9
1.1.3 Repeater Functionality
A WMO-400S unit can act as a repeater for other units. A repeater receives a radio message
from one unit and re-transmits it on to another unit.
Up to seven repeater addresses can be configured in a radio link.
If transmitting to the wildcard 0 address in Unacknowledged mode (that is, a broadcast
transmission), then the repeater unit can be configured to also output the data to its own host
device.
1.1.4 Hot Redundant Standby
Two WMO-400S units can be installed together in a Dual Redundant relationship - an active
unit with a hot redundant standby. One unit is configured as a “primary” unit and the other
the “secondary”. The secondary unit acts as a standby for the primary.
Under normal operation, the primary unit is active and the standby is inactive. If the internal
diagnostics in the primary detects a fault or an operating problem, the primary stops normal
operation and the secondary becomes active. The inactive unit is powered and operational,
however communications out of the unit via the radio transmitter and RS485 port is disabled.
Both units have the same configuration apart from primary/secondary selection.
1.2 Unacknowledged Mode
The default configuration of the WMO-400S modem is unacknowledged mode - the modules
are set in this mode at the factory.
In unacknowledged mode,
units do not provide
handshaking functions to
control the flow of data.
Messages are not
acknowledged, and are sent
on a “Best attempt” basis. It
is up to the host equipment
to determine if data is lost
or corrupted.
To improve reliability in this mode, units may be configured to send each message multiple
times (configured in S-Register S29). The receiving unit will detect repeat messages and only
send the data out the serial port once.
Each modem is configured with a separate unit address. In Unacknowledged mode, messages
may be sent:

WMO-400S Radio Modem Module
Page 10 Jul 2010
to a particular modem
by using the remote
unit’s address, or
to all modems in the
system, as a
broadcast message by
using the wildcard
address 0. The
wildcard address is
used to send a
message to a group of
modems.
Data received at the
serial port is transmitted out of the radio port, addressed to the configured destination WMO-
400S module, or to all modules by using address 0. Data received from the radio with the
correct addressing is transmitted out of one of the serial ports (RS232 or RS485).
Prior to transmitting, units will listen to the radio channel to ensure that it is clear - units will
hold off from transmitting until the radio channel is clear.
At the RS232 port, the CTS pin can be configured to go high while there is space in the input
data buffer - otherwise it is always high.
Host devices should provide a suitable protocol to ensure that error checking, handshaking
and implementation of an appropriate re-transmission scheme is provided. This mode of
operation is particularly suited to devices designed to operate over a multidrop network, such
as PLC systems designed for operation over a RS-485 network.
If error checking is not configured at the receiving unit, data will start to be output
immediately after the first byte of data has been received. If error checking is configured, data
will be output approx 1mSec after the end of the message. For example, a message with 20
bytes of data transmitted at 19200 bits/sec will begin to be output approx 23 msec after the
data is input, if there is no error checking, or 31 msec after the data is input if error checking
is configured - this assumes the minimum lead-in time of 20 msec is configured.
1.3 Acknowledged Mode
In Acknowledged mode,
data is transferred between
the RS-232 ports of two
modules (that is, a point to
point link). One of the
modules is configured as a
“master” (or initiator) unit
and the other as a “slave”
(or responder) unit. There
can be many slave units in
the system, however the
master unit will only link to one slave at any one time.