Sutron 9210 Series User manual

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9210 & XPERT DATALOGGERS
GPRS Manual
Part No. 8800-1194
Version 3.20
October 28, 2016
Sutron Corporation
22400 Davis Drive
Sterling, Virginia 20164
TEL: [phone]
FAX: [phone]
WEB: http://www.sutron.com/

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Table of Contents
Introduction......................................................................................................................... 5
NEW FEATURES.............................................................................................................. 6
InstallATION...................................................................................................................... 7
Installation....................................................................................................................... 7
Before getting started...................................................................................................... 8
Features............................................................................................................................... 9
Configuration.................................................................................................................... 10
GPRS Properties ........................................................................................................... 10
Enabled ..................................................................................................................... 11
Port............................................................................................................................ 11
ModemAPN.............................................................................................................. 11
ModemUserName and ModemPassword ................................................................. 11
ModemPIN................................................................................................................ 11
Radio Band................................................................................................................ 12
GPRS Power Settings ................................................................................................... 12
PwrOnInterval + PwrOnTime + PwrOnDuration..................................................... 12
PwrOnAction ............................................................................................................ 13
GPRS Relay Settings .................................................................................................... 13
Power Control........................................................................................................... 14
WarmUp.................................................................................................................... 14
GPRS Connection Settings........................................................................................... 14
PrimaryIP and SecondaryIP...................................................................................... 15
MessagePort, CommandPort, and RedirectorPort.................................................... 15
ServerPassword......................................................................................................... 16
CSDShoulderTap...................................................................................................... 16
GPRS Transmission Settings........................................................................................ 16
TxInterval.................................................................................................................. 16
TxTime...................................................................................................................... 17
TxFormat................................................................................................................... 17
Num Values .............................................................................................................. 17
AlarmData................................................................................................................. 18
Content...................................................................................................................... 18
GPRS SMS Settings...................................................................................................... 18
TxMode..................................................................................................................... 19
TxList........................................................................................................................ 19
Alarms....................................................................................................................... 20
Notify........................................................................................................................ 20
NotifyList.................................................................................................................. 21
SetupPassword and DataPassword ........................................................................... 21
SetupUserList and DataUserList............................................................................... 21
SMS command processing........................................................................................ 22
Selecting Data for Transmission with the GPRS block................................................ 23
Alarm Block Properties............................................................................................. 23
GPRS Block Properties............................................................................................. 24

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Tagging Data with EzSetup...................................................................................... 25
Basic Entry –Setup Tab ............................................................................................... 26
Testing GPRS Operations................................................................................................. 28
The GPRS Diagnostics Tab .......................................................................................... 28
Modem status............................................................................................................ 28
Tests… ...................................................................................................................... 30
Next task ................................................................................................................... 30
Next task time........................................................................................................... 30
Time.......................................................................................................................... 30
Last SMS................................................................................................................... 30
More…...................................................................................................................... 31
Signal Quality ........................................................................................................... 31
Update....................................................................................................................... 31
ON............................................................................................................................. 31
OFF........................................................................................................................... 31
Selftimed statisitics… ............................................................................................... 31
Alarm statistics: ........................................................................................................ 31
GPRS Test Dialog......................................................................................................... 31
SMS Test Transmission............................................................................................ 32
Selftimed Test Transmission..................................................................................... 33
Troubleshooting................................................................................................................ 35
Appendix A –Telemetry Formats .................................................................................... 36
Handar Format .............................................................................................................. 36
NFDRS and NIFC Formats........................................................................................... 36
Pseudobinary Formats................................................................................................... 38
Pseudobinary B (Interleaved and Non-Interleaved) ................................................. 38
Pseudobinary-C Format ............................................................................................ 39
Six-Bit Binary Encoded Format................................................................................ 40
Pseudobinary-B/C over SMS Format ....................................................................... 41
SHEF and SHEFFIX Formats................................................................................... 42
SSP Format ............................................................................................................... 43
Text Format............................................................................................................... 43
GPRS Session Protocol............................................................................................. 44
Table of Figures
Figure 1: Turning the LAN off ........................................................................................... 8
Figure 2: The GPRS entry on Setup Tab.......................................................................... 10
Figure 3: GPRS Properties Dialog.................................................................................... 11
Figure 4: GPRS Power Settings Dialog............................................................................ 12
Figure 5: GPRS Relay Settings Dialog............................................................................. 14
Figure 6: GPRS Connection Settings Dialog.................................................................... 15
Figure 7: GPRS Transmission Settings dialog.................................................................. 16
Figure 8: Select Tags dialog ............................................................................................. 18
Figure 9: SMS Settings..................................................................................................... 19
Figure 10: GPRS block in Graphical Setup...................................................................... 23

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Figure 11: Alarm Block Dialog ........................................................................................ 24
Figure 12: GPRS Edit Tag Dialog.................................................................................... 24
Figure 13: EzSetup Configuration .................................................................................... 26
Figure 14: GPRS Tag in EzSetup ..................................................................................... 26
Figure 15: GPRS Custom Formatting Entry..................................................................... 27
Figure 16: GPRS Diagnostics Tab.................................................................................... 28
Figure 17: SMS Test Transmission................................................................................... 32
Figure 18: Selftimed Test Transmission........................................................................... 33
Figure 19: SSP Test Transmission.................................................................................... 34

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INTRODUCTION
Sutron’s Xpert family of DCPs (both the 9210 and the Xpert, hereafter referred to as the
Xpert) have been designed to be easily expandable by adding additional software
libraries, called Sutron Link Libraries (SLLs). One such library is GPRS.sll, which adds
the ability for the Xpert to communicate using a Sutron GPRS modem connected to a
serial port.
The GPRS.SLL permits TCP/IP access to or from the station, supports data messages in
various formats, alarms, and SMS text messaging as well.
This document is the user manual for GPRS.sll. The following topics are discussed:
How to install the library.
How to configure the Xpert for GPRS communications.
Diagnostics

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NEW FEATURES
Initial release

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INSTALLATION
This section describes the installation and configuration of the GPRS.sll library.
Installation
GPRS.sll is required for GPRS operation. To install the library, copy the GPRS.sll file to
the “\Flash Disk” subdirectory of your Xpert using Xterm. For more information on
performing this file transfer, please refer to chapter 6 of the Xpert or 9210 user manual.
Once the files have been transferred, reboot the Xpert. The libraries will load
automatically after the Xpert reboots.
To uninstall the libraries, use Xterm to delete the files from the Flash Disk subdirectory.
This can only be done when the Xpert application is not running (select “Exit App” from
the Status tab).
In order for the libraries to load and operate correctly, the versions of the files must be the
same as the version of the application loaded into the Xpert. This is usually not a concern
because the same versions of the slls and application are typically packaged together.
Should the need arise to verify that the versions are the same; the version of a sll as it
resides on the PC can be determined by looking at the file’s properties (right-click on the
file and select the “Version” tab). The version of the Xpert application is given by the
application itself, at the top of the About dialog, which is accessed from the Status tab.

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Before getting started
Typically the purpose of using the GPRS SLL is to provide internet services to an RTU
and hence the LAN is not available and not used, but during initial testing setup it’s very
convenient to take advantage of it. The problem is that if the internal LAN is turned on
then GPRS messages will be sent using the LAN and not the GPRS device. To avoid this
you should just go to the LAN Settings Setup entry and turn it off.
Figure 1: Turning the LAN off
Configuring the serial ports for GPRS operation may require changes to the registry that
will require a reboot before they take effect. When this situation can be detected, you will
be notified of the need to reboot. However, it cannot always be detected. If you
experience any difficulties establishing a connection when setting up a port for the first
time, try rebooting the Xpert.

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FEATURES
This section discusses what features are supported related to GPRS communications.
Self-timed (scheduled) telemetry of data using TCP/IP messaging and/or SMS
text messages
Alarm telemetry of data using TCP/IP or SMS
Support for standard Xpert network services when used with a VPN or static IP
such as Telnet, Web Server, XTerm.
Scheduled and manually initiated processing of incoming command messages
Diagnostic support, including:
oScheduling details
oNext self-timed message content and size
oRecent incoming messages
oSignal strength
oTotal message and byte counting
oProjected data usage

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CONFIGURATION
This section discusses how to configure the Xpert to operate with the GPRS modem.
There are three different places you’ll go to use and configure the Xpert for GPRS
communications:
GPRS Properties - Setup Tab
GPRS Blocks - Graphical Setup and EzSetup
Basic Entry - Setup Tab
The first, and the one this section discusses in detail, is an entry under the Setup Tab
named “GPRS”. This entry is used to configure how Xpert talks GPRS over a selected
communication port.
Figure 2: The GPRS entry on Setup Tab
GPRS Properties
To access the dialog containing GPRS configuration properties, select the “GPRS” entry
and press “Edit”. The following dialog appears:

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Figure 3: GPRS Properties Dialog
The GPRS Properties dialog contains setting for configuring the GPRS modem hardware.
Here are the options provided by this dialog:
Enabled
This property must be set to YES to enable GPRS processing, including self-timed and
alarm transmissions via GPRS and/or SMS communication, and command processing.
Port
This defines the serial port the GPRS device will be connected to. <None> will disable
GPRS support. To use a serial port for GPRS you will need to make sure it’s not already
in use for something else. The port settings are fixed at 115200,n,8,1. With RTS/CTS
hardware handshaking.
ModemAPN
The APN name is used to connect the modem to the internet. It varies based on the
provider of the cell service. For T-Mobile, a typical value is “telargo.t-mobile.com”
ModemUserName and ModemPassword
These are used to login to the cell service provider. For some providers they can be blank,
but otherwise use the value assigned by the provider or by Sutron.
ModemPIN
The SIM PIN unlock code. This must be specified if the SIM being used is locked. The
GPRS Diagnostics Tab will warn if a SIM PIN is needed and hasn’t been entered.
Entering the wrong PIN can cause the modem to become blocked, so be carefully
especially when swapping SIMs.

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Radio Band
The Sutron GPRS modem supports multiple bands. Typically in the US the “Quad Mode”
can be used, but internationally you may need to select the specific band to prevent
frequency hopping and/or roaming. Normally, when a modem is connected to the Xpert
for the first time, it is factory reset and programmed to work with pre-configured settings.
The “Use Modem Setting” may be used to bypass this initialization and use the settings
that were pre-programmed in to the modem. This allows many of the modem settings to
be customized in the modem. The “Janus T2 Modem” and the “Sutron HSDPA Modem”
enables support for those specific 3G capable modems, but the settings are similar to
the “Use Modem Setting” in that they use the band(s) which have been pre-configured
in to the modem. If the default settings are unable to connect to the Cell provider,
custom settings may be needed, and the manual(s) for the modem should be consulted.
Typically the AT#BND and AT#AUTOBND need to be issued with the desired settings to
configure the appropriate bands, and then the AT&W command must be issued to save
the changes. Depending on the provider, some of the other settings such as
AT#PLMNMODE, AT#ENS, and AT#SELINT) may need to be checked or changed.
GPRS Power Settings
The GPRS power settings are accessed by selecting the “Power” item under GPRS in the
Setup tab and clicking Edit. This dialog contains settings that determine when the GPRS
modem should be powered on, how it should be powered on, and what it should do when
powered on.
Figure 4: GPRS Power Settings Dialog
PwrOnInterval + PwrOnTime + PwrOnDuration
PwrOnTime, PwrOnInterval, and PwrOnDuration are used to specify when the modem is
powered PwrOnInterval specifies how often to power on, PwrOnTime specifies an offset
to the interval, and PwrOnDuration specifies how long to stay powered.
For example, with PwrOnInterval = “01:00:00”, PwrOnTime = “00:30:00”, and
PwrOnDuration = “00:15:00”, the modem will be powered on every hour at half-past the
hour, and will stay powered for 15 minutes.

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Also the GPRS modem generally needs to be reset to maintain health, which why even if
the PwrOnTime, PwrOnInterval, and PwrOnDuration specify essentially a never-ending
By powering on the GPRS modem the user is given the ability to communicate with the
Xpert over a TELNET, TCP/IP, SSP/CL, and SMS session via the master station. As well
as send self-timed, and/ or alarm transmissions (this can be done without the power mode
settings enabled too)
The primary reason to turn off the modem is to reduce power consumption, or limit time
connected to the Cell network.
Please note that if the LAN is powered on at the same time that the GPRS is powered on,
that the LAN will be preferred and may cause a conflict. This is similar to how when you
enable WiFi on a cell phone, communications will whenever possible be routed using the
WiFi interface and not the 3G.
PwrOnAction
If set to “Connect” the modem will use the “PrimaryIP” address and connect to the
master station using the port set for “Command Port” and establish an SSP/CL session
according to the PwrOn schedule. This mode is meant as an option for one way systems.
For example, if the user was using Tempest and didn’t know the IP address of the GPRS
modem but wanted to connect to it, the GPRS modem’s PwrOnAction would need to be
set to “Connect” in order for the modem to connect to Tempest using a SSP/CL session.
If set to “Listen” (the default setting) the modem will connect to any master station that
initiates a connection. This is as long PwrOnInterval, PwrOnTime, and PwrOnDuration
are set to power the GPRS at the time of this operation.
For example, if the user was using Tempest and knew the IP address of the GPRS
modem and wanted to connect to it, the GPRS modem’s PwrOnAction would need to be
set to “Listen” in order for the modem to connect to Tempest using a Telnet, or TCP/IP
session.
Finally if a user connects to the unit remotely with one of the ways mentioned above, and
the self-timed and /or alarm transmission fails to reach the master station the user will get
logged out regardless of what the user timeout value is set to in the user settings.
GPRS Relay Settings
The Relay… button brings up a further dialog which allows power to the modem to be
controlled by a relay connected to a digital I/O point and to control the warm-up time.

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Figure 5: GPRS Relay Settings Dialog
Power Control
Power to Sutron's GPRS modem is supplied and managed using 12V DC (hardware
selectable jumper) via PIN 9 of the RS232 port. In this case select DTR and enter a
WarmUp delay of at least 10 seconds.
When using other modems it may be desirable to control power via a relay. When a
connection is made, DTR is always asserted to the device. For non-Sutron modems which
can enter standby mode when DTR is low this may be sufficient, but power to the device
may be controlled by a digital switch or relay. When Dig I/O is selected, an I/O Module
and Channel may be selected. This output will be turned “on” before a GPRS connection
is attempted. The output is assumed to be open-collector, hence “on” means 0V is output.
If the output instead uses positive logic, the “Invert Output” box may be checked.
WarmUp
WarmUp is the number of seconds to allow the modem to warm up after asserting power
before trying to establish a connection. It applies to both the Dig I/O and DTR settings.
GPRS Connection Settings
The GPRS connection settings are accessed by selecting the “Connect” item under GPRS
in the Setup tab and clicking Edit. This dialog contains settings that determine how the
GPRS modem connects to TCP/IP based internet servers. These connections may be used
for control or data transmission purposes.

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Figure 6: GPRS Connection Settings Dialog
PrimaryIP and SecondaryIP
Static IP’s and VPN access are not always available, which means it will not always be
possible for a server to establish a connection with the Xpert. To deal with this, the Xpert
can be configured to initiate contact with a server and send messages or wait for
commands.
When the GPRS modem initiates a connection to the master station, the Xpert tries using
“PrimaryIP” up to a certain number of times, and then try “SecondaryIP” up to a certain
number of times, with a few seconds pause between each attempt. The Xpert shall repeat
this cycle until a connection succeeds.
MessagePort, CommandPort, and RedirectorPort
The Xpert can connect to a master station for different purposes, and in order for the
master station (and firewalls) to sort out that purpose specific TCP/IP ports are used. If
you do not wish to use a service, you may specify 0 for the port value. The values entered
here should agree with the values used by the master station and any firewalls in
between:
Message Port –used to receive self-timed and alarm transmissions from the Xpert
in various ASCII data formats or SSP.
Command Port –used for SSP/CL command processing, so that the user can
change the setup, and view data in the Xpert directly through something like
Tempest.
Redirector Port –used for third-party SSP/CL communications redirected to
Xpert, so the user can change the setup, and view data. An example would be if
the user could not log onto Tempest directly, he or she can use something like a
HyperTerminal session to communicate to the Tempest to contact the Xpert unit.

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ServerPassword
If not blank the GPRS Modem will use this password when accessing the server. This is
used for authentication purposes.
CSDShoulderTap
When enabled, CSDShoulderTap allows the user to call the modem using the phone
number given to the GPRS SIM card. The modem then will connect to what’s set to
“Command Port” as long the modem can connect to the “PrimaryIP” or “SecondaryIP”.
This gives the user another way of making the GPRS modem connect to a master station
such as Tempest.
The reason we have this settings is because if the user did not have a static ip address of
the GPRS modem but had the phone number of the GPRS, he or she can call the number,
or send a text with the command “STAP”. By calling the number, or sending the text, and
the Xpert is powering the GPRS using PwrOnTime, PwrOnInterval, and PwrOnDuration
the GPRS will create a SSP/CL connection to the master station even if the GPRS’s
PwrOnAction = Listen. If sending a text the user will receive a text message saying
“Created SSP/CL session to PrimaryIP(user set)”
GPRS Transmission Settings
The GPRS transmission settings are accessed by selecting the “Transmit” item under
GPRS in the Setup tab and clicking Edit. This dialog contains settings that determine how
the GPRS modem transmits data to TCP/IP based internet servers.
Figure 7: GPRS Transmission Settings dialog
TxInterval
TxInterval defines how often to transmit self-timed messages. The format of the string is,
“hh:mm:ss”, where “hh” = hours, “mm” = minutes, and “ss” = seconds. For example,
“01:00:00” means “every hour”, while “00:30:00” means every half hourTypical rates are
01:00:00 for hourly transmissions and 04:00:00 for transmissions every 4 hours.

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TxTime
This property defines an offet to TxInterval. It has the same format as TxInterval. A
TxTime of “00:15:00” means, “15 minutes after the hour”. Some examples of
transmission schedules are shown in the table, below:
TxInterval
TxTime
Transmission Schedule
01:00:00
00:00:00
12AM, 1AM, 2AM, …, 12PM, 1PM, 2PM, …
02:00:00
00:00:00
12AM, 2AM, 4AM, …, 12PM, 2PM, 4PM, …
01:00:00
00:30:00
12:30AM, 1:30AM, 2:30AM, …, 12:30PM, 1:30PM, …
04:00:00
00:15:00
12:15AM, 4:15AM, 8:15AM, 12:15PM, 4:15PM, …
TxFormat
This property defines the format of the data sent in self-timed transmissions (as well as
alarm transmissions when AlarmData = “AllSensors”). The following formats are
supported:
PseudoBin-B
6-bit “binary” format, interleaved
PseudoBin-B Non-Int
6-bit “binary” format, non-interleaved
PseudoBin-C
6-bit “binary” format, non-interleaved, with additional meta
data
SHEF
ASCII human readable format using SHEF codes
SHEFFIX
ASCII human readable format using SHEF codes, where data
appears in fixed width format of 7 chars
NIFC
ASCII human readable format based on NIFC requirements
NFRDS
ASCII human readable format based on NFRDS requirements
Handar
ASCII human readable format
SSP
Sutron Standard Protocol, binary format
Text
ASCII human readable text format, with alarm flags
See Appendix A –Telemetry Formats, for detailed definitions of each of the formats.
Num Values
When the selected format is interleaved (e.g., PseudoBin-B), the number of data values to
include for each selected data item must be the same for all selected items, and so is
entered in this dialog (rather than where it is normally entered, in the GPRS telemetry
block properties).
For example: if Num Values is 4, and GPRS blocks tag the two data points, “HG” and
“HF”, then the last 4 values of HG and HF appear in the transmit message.

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AlarmData
AlarmData can be either “SensorsInAlarm” or “AllSensors”. When set to the latter, alarm
transmissions contain the same data as is found in self-timed transmissions, i.e., all data
tagged with an GPRS block in the Graphical Setup (as well any data ponts tagged in
EzSetup). However, when AlarmData is “SensorsInAlarm”, only the data triggering the
alarm is included in the transmission.
Content
When you press the Content button on the GPRS Transmission Settings dialog, the “Set
Tx Content” dialog opens showing a list of all GPRS blocks in the Graphical Setup (as
well as any data points tagged in EzSetup).
Figure 8: Select Tags dialog
When more entries exist than can be shown in the dialog, scroll bars appear, allowing you
to scroll to other entries.
From this dialog, you can change the value of the “TxContent” property for each data
item in the list. You can also press the “…” button to access and change other properties
in the block’s properties dialog.
GPRS SMS Settings
The GPRS SMS settings are accessed by selecting the “SMS” item under GPRS in the
Setup tab and clicking Edit. This dialog contains settings that determine how the GPRS
modem transmits manages sending and receiving SMS text messages.

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Figure 9: SMS Settings
TxMode
TxMode allows the user to receive self-timed transmissions using SMS communication.
An example of this is when wanting to receive self-timed transmissions through your
phone.
When TxMode is set to “Scheduled”, and TxList has a phone number in it the user will
receive text messages with self-timed transmissions every time a self-timed transmission
is supposed to occur based on TxInterval, and TxTime in GPRS Transmission settings. If
the self-timed transmission does not get through to the master station, the SMS self-timed
transmission will be delayed due to the retries, but will still be attempted.
When TxMode is set to “Fallback”, and TxList has a phone number in it the user will
receive text messages with self-timed transmissions every time a self-timed transmission
doesn’t get through to the master station using the GPRS link. While it’s not always
possible there are circumstances where a GSM SMS text message can get through when a
GPRS data transmission cannot.
The format of the SMS self-timed transmission will be based on the TxFormat set in
GPRS settings. Expect if the format is “SSP” due to it being in binary – in that case
“Text” will be used.
CAUTION: SMS transmissions whether scheduled or fallback are limited to 160 bytes
of data. Users will have to limit their data sent per transmission or else the SMS message
may not be able to contain it all.
TxList
Allows to user to choose what phone numbers get the self-timed, and alarm transmissions
based on what TxMode, and/or AlarmEnable is set too. Separate phone numbers with a
comma “,”.

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Alarms
When Alarms is checked and TxList has a phone number in it, the Xpert shall also send
alarm messages via SMS. The SMS message is human readable, and includes the station
name so the user does not need to know the station identified by the phone number. The
time is also included to account for the delays in delivery. The date is not included as the
delays are expected to be short. The alarm transmissions format of what sensor data gets
sent is based on whether the user set AlarmData to “All Sensors”, or “Single Sensor”.
An example of the Text format used for SMS alarm messages:
RTU01 12:22<cr><lf>
STAGE 4.55 G H+R+<cr><lf>
RAIN 2.0 G OK<cr><lf>
The message begins with the station’s name (“RTU01”) and the current time in HH:MM
(12:22) format followed by a list of sensor readings containing the name of the sensor
(“STAGE”), the value (“4.55”), the quality (“G”), and the alarm status (“H+R+”).
In the above example "H+R+" indicates that STAGE is experiencing a high limit and
high rate of change alarm, while the “OK” status for RAIN indicates that it is within
expected limits.
Quality codes:
G: Good quality
B: Bad quality
U: Undefined quality
Alarm codes:
H: High limit exceeded
L: Low limit exceeded
R: High Rate of change
OK: Normal
A “+” after a code indicates that the sensor has just entered that state, while a “-“ after a
code indicates that the sensor has just exited that state.
CAUTION: SMS alarm transmissions are limited to 160 bytes of data. Users will have to
limit their data sent per transmission or else the SMS message may not be able to contain
it all.
Notify
The Xpert shall report the following events via SMS to the list of phone numbers in
NotifyList:
Station Rebooted –Indicates that the Xpert unit has rebooted