Xeos XMR Series User manual

1
XMR User Manual
Waterproof Iridium Data Transceiver
Version 1.1
February 2021

XMR User Manual 1.1 2
Shipped From
Contact Us
Email
[email protected]
Phone
[phone]
Fax
[phone]
Website
www.xeostech.com
Specifics
This manual version is written with respect to XMR 6790. To acquire the latest firmware for your
device, contact [email protected]
Version History
Version No.
Date
Description
1.0
Jan 2021
Base document
1.1
Feb 2021
Added Subconn connector options
Regular checks for the latest manual are suggested. Be sure to check Xeos Technologies’ manuals
page to compare versions and download the latest version.

XMR User Manual 1.1 3
Table of Contents
Shipped From.................................................................................................................................. 2
Contact Us....................................................................................................................................... 2
Specifics........................................................................................................................................... 2
Version History................................................................................................................................ 2
General Description ........................................................................................................................ 5
Theory of Operation........................................................................................................................ 5
Preliminary Setup............................................................................................................................ 6
Setting up your Iridium Account ................................................................................................ 6
Understanding Position Information ......................................................................................... 6
Iridium Doppler position........................................................................................................ 6
Global Positioning System ..................................................................................................... 8
XMR Model Variants ....................................................................................................................... 8
XMR Operation ............................................................................................................................... 9
Powering the XMR...................................................................................................................... 9
LED Indicators............................................................................................................................. 9
Deployment of the XMR ................................................................................................................. 9
Communicating with the XMR...................................................................................................... 10
Communicating via RS-232 ...................................................................................................... 10
Sending Commands Using XeosOnline .................................................................................... 10
Setting up to Send ............................................................................................................... 10
Sending Commands via Email .................................................................................................. 11
Command Format................................................................................................................ 11
Command Structure ............................................................................................................ 11
The Unlock Code.................................................................................................................. 11
Sending the Command ........................................................................................................ 12
Messages from the XMR............................................................................................................... 13
Settings Summary Message ..................................................................................................... 13
Version (Type V) ....................................................................................................................... 13
Position..................................................................................................................................... 13
Compressed Binary Position................................................................................................ 13
ASCII Position (Type P)......................................................................................................... 14

XMR User Manual 1.1 4
Information Message (Type I).................................................................................................. 15
Data Relay ..................................................................................................................................... 16
Serial Relay ............................................................................................................................... 16
Check Iridium Mailbox .................................................................................................................. 19
XMR Timer Intervals...................................................................................................................... 20
Setting timers ........................................................................................................................... 20
Watch Circle.................................................................................................................................. 21
Enabling the Watch Circle ........................................................................................................ 21
Setting the Watch Circle........................................................................................................... 21
Message Enable ............................................................................................................................ 22
Digital Output Pin.......................................................................................................................... 23
Encryption..................................................................................................................................... 24
Setting Up Encryption on XeosOnline...................................................................................... 24
Generating your Key................................................................................................................. 25
Enabling Encryption Use .......................................................................................................... 25
Flash Memory ............................................................................................................................... 26
Dumping the Flash Memory..................................................................................................... 26
Deleting the Flash Memory...................................................................................................... 26
Other Commands.......................................................................................................................... 27
Testing the XMR............................................................................................................................ 28
Deployment of the XMR ............................................................................................................... 29
Troubleshooting............................................................................................................................ 30
Appendix A: Firmware Update Procedure.................................................................................... 31
Requirements........................................................................................................................... 31
Process................................................................................................................................. 31
Appendix B: Specifications............................................................................................................ 34
Appendix C: Pinout Diagram......................................................................................................... 35
Appendix D: Mechanical Drawings ............................................................................................... 34
Appendix E: Cable Drawings ......................................................................................................... 36
Appendix F: GPS Text Long ........................................................................................................... 37
Warranty, Support and Limited Liability....................................................................................... 38

XMR User Manual 1.1 5
General Description
The XMR is a bidirectional data relay device, utilized for peripheral data transfer as well as
location reporting via the Iridium satellite network. XMR’s small size and mountable enclosure
make it easy to install quickly in transmission-friendly locations.
Inside the XMR is a 9603 Iridium satellite Short Burst Data core radio transceiver, a specialized
low-power Xeos digital controller with GPS, Iridium & GPS antennas.
While the XMR is intended for locally connected surface deployments. Xeos Technologies Inc.
(Xeos) manufactures other products for fixed location monitoring and remote tracking and
surveillance.
See www.xeostech.com for details or call (902)-444-7650.
Theory of Operation
The XMR is intended for continuous and/or periodic monitoring of high value assets globally. The
XMR can facilitate instant and accurate location of assets for recovery or monitoring purposes.
The internal GPS determines location which is stored on board the XMR. An Iridium modem
provides two-way communications for retrieval of data and sending commands to the remote
tracker. The deployment is facilitated by the miniature device which has both GPS and Iridium
antennas on board.
Operators can communicate with the XMR via is integrated RS-232 port locally, as well as over
Iridium using XeosOnline and/or email command. Status information can be obtained, including
the health of the GPS system and battery voltage. Timings are configurable and can be modified
as the nature of the tracking or monitoring operation changes.
The internal relay function allows the XMR to be piggy-backed to an external serial device and
used as a communications interface for that device. For instance, you may wish to send
commands to a remote camera or receive data from a temperature sensor.
While any email application can be used to send and receive messages between the user and the
XMR, XeosOnline is the easiest way to manage and monitor multiple XMR devices. XeosOnline
presents the information in a readable format and displays it on street level maps.

XMR User Manual 1.1 6
Preliminary Setup
Setting up your Iridium Account
XMR makes use of the Iridium satellite system’s Short Burst Data (SBD) service for the 9603
transceiver. This service is a global, two-way, real-time, email-based data delivery service that
has a maximum outbound (from XMR) message size of 340 bytes and a maximum inbound (to
XMR) message size of 270 bytes.
XMR end users must set up an approved data delivery account with their preferred service
provider. Xeos is an Iridium VAR and can provide Iridium service if you wish.
Setting up service requires the International Mobile Equipment Identity (IMEI) number. Each
9603 has a unique IMEI number that must be registered with a preferred service provider. Xeos
will make these numbers available when the product is delivered.
Each IMEI number is capable of being associated with up to five (5) unique destinations (emails,
IP addresses, other Iridium IMEIs) which may vary between service providers. When registering
the IMEI, please provide the service provider with the temporary Xeos testing account email
address. You may contact Xeos for this email. Setting up this email address allows for better
technical support during the initial learning period for the product.
Understanding Position Information
There are two types of position information which will be sent via the Iridium Gateway.
Iridium Doppler position
The Iridium Gateway calculates the Iridium transceivers’ position on earth when it receives a
transmission, using Doppler technology. As a result, it is often very inaccurate. This location is
only visible to users getting emails directly from the device, as opposed to emails forwarded by
XeosOnline. An example of a “raw” Iridium message via email is below and will always have the
IMEI of the device in the subject line, regardless of its name on XeosOnline.

XMR User Manual 1.1 7
[email protected]
All messages from Iridium devices come from this address.
MOMSN: 5866
Mobile Originating Message Serial Number; each individual
message has its own incrementing serial number. A mobile
originating message is one that comes from the Iridium device.
MTMSN: 0
Mobile Terminating Message Serial Number; like the MOMSN,
messages to Iridium devices (like commands) also have an
incrementing serial number. Since the message in the example
is from an Iridium device, the MT number is zero.
Time of Session (UTC)
The time the message arrived at the Iridium Gateway
Session Status
Each message will have a code determined by how well the
message was received; codes 00, 01 and 02 are acceptable and
will always have their code name (ex. Transfer OK) next to this
number.
Message Size (bytes)
The size of the actual message sent by the Iridium device,
which is in the attachment in the email.
*Unit Location
The Doppler position of the device as estimated by Iridium’s
network. It is NOT the GPS position measured by the device.
*CEPradius = 2
The numerical value of how accurate the above position is;
with a value of 2, This means that using the Lat/Long that the
body has supplied, Iridium is 80% confident (always 80%) that
the device sending the message is within a circle, 2 kilometers
in radius, with the Lat/Long given as the center of that circle.
The higher the CEPradius value, the larger the circle and
therefore the less accurate that position.
*These items can be enabled/disabled by your Iridium provider if desired.

XMR User Manual 1.1 8
Global Positioning System
Location information generated by the device itself is embedded in the SBD attachment sent via
the Iridium Gateway and can only be seen through the XeosOnline system or situations where
the position information is sent in a plain-text format (XeosOnline message forwarder or using
the $msgenable command). This position information is accurate to within several feet of the
true position.
XMR Model Variants
Chogori
For applications that have less opportunity for deeper submergence, the Chogori variant has a
one inch thread on the bottom of the enclosure for pole mounting.
Subconn
For applications that will experience prolonged and moderate submergence, the Subconn variant
can come in a 4-Pin or 6-Pin configuration. This variant is mounted by way of four #8-32 screws
to a mounting plate.

XMR User Manual 1.1 9
XMR Operation
Powering the XMR
The XMR does not have an internal power source, therefore providing that supply immediately
turns the unit on. While the power source can be set within operating range, it is recommended
that users not use a power source very close to either extreme. Once the power supply dips
below 7V, communication may not be possible with the XMR.
If the power supply is subject to power surges, it may be advisable to use a power supply with an
average voltage of 24 VDC to avoid damaging the internal circuitry of the XMR. Refer to the
voltage ranges for the corresponding appropriate ranges.
LED Indicators
The XMR’s enclosure allows visibility of its on/off status using an LED. It is to be used as an
indicator for when the device is initially powered. This same LED also pulses red in the event of a
self-test failure at start-up.
Behaviours
Flashing 4 Hz on power-up
Device powering up, performing self-test
Flashing 0.5 Hz after power-up
Self-test failure
Deployment of the XMR
The XMR contains GPS and Iridium antennas. Deploying the XMR requires the following:
An XMR with Iridium service activated (using IMEI provided by Xeos)
An external power source from 7 –32 VDC capable of supplying max 1.5A
An external RS-232 serial device to communicate to the XMR
A suitable deployment environment
oThe top of the XMR must have as good a view of the full sky as possible.
Alongside a wall or tall obstruction will cause coverage to suffer.
The antenna surface must not be obstructed by metal or wood. Thick
amounts of other materials may also cause interference.
oXMR should not be deployed near (less than 1 meter) other transmitters.

XMR User Manual 1.1 10
Communicating with the XMR
Communicating via RS-232
Communication with the XMR must be completed using RS-232, but only require Transmit,
Receive and a common Ground (no RTS/CTS).
Pre-programming of the XMR is not required since it is pre-configured for most tracking scenarios
and configurable settings can be changed over the Iridium link. Confirmation of settings can be
done via an XMR diagnostic cable through a terminal emulator using these settings:
Baud Rate
57.6k
Parity
None
Data Bits
8
Stop Bits
1
All commands to the XMR must be prepended with the dollar sign ($).
All commands must be appended with a command line, line feed, or both.
Sending Commands Using XeosOnline
Before using XeosOnline make sure that your account has been set up and your device added to
your organization. Contact [email protected] for more information.
Setting up to Send
Navigate to the Send Command window.
From the Home Tab, choose File > Send Command
Select the units you wish to target with commands and move them
over to the right-hand target list using the -> button.
Type your command(s) into the command box and press Send.
Remember to include the dollar sign ($) ahead of each command
and enter each command on a separate
line.
Outgoing messages will appear in the
Message Log for the commanded device.

XMR User Manual 1.1 11
Sending Commands via Email
To receive commands from the Iridium network, the device in use must have a clear view of the
sky. If the device is unable to communicate with the Iridium network, commands will remain
queued for five days.
Command Format
Creating the File
To create an SBD command, open a new file in a text editor (ex. Notepad) and save it using the
.sbd extension. Make sure the Save as type option is set to All Files to achieve this.
Command Structure
Commands must be structured in the following way:
1. Each command MUST have a dollar sign ($) before each command.
2. The unit’s unlock code in the following format: $unlock XXXXX where XXXXX is the
unit’s five digit unlock code.
3. A list of commands, one command per line.
The Unlock Code
SBD commands without an unlock code will be ignored by devices that require it. The unlock code
is generated by the device itself and can be retrieved from XeosOnline, or the unit can be queried
for its unlock code by sending $unlock to the device as a command. The device will respond by
sharing the 5-digit code with its provisioned destinations.
Navigate to your unit and click on the Message Log Tab. The unlock code can be seen in the most
recent outgoing messages.

XMR User Manual 1.1 12
Once XeosOnline has a device’s unlock code, all outgoing commands will have the code added at
the beginning of the message. The unlock code will only be changed if the firmware is updated,
or if commanded via:
$unlock XXXXX YYYYY
Where XXXXX is the current code, and YYYYY is the new code to be used in the future.
Sending the Command
To send an sbd command, create a new email message with the following fields:
To
[email protected]
Subject
The target device’s IMEI
Body
Empty
Attachments
The .sbd file
A confirmation will be immediately returned from the Iridium Gateway from the address
[email protected] indicating that your message is now in the message queue. It will
be delivered to the device during its next Iridium check.
Commands can be sent from any email address, but responses will be returned only to email
addresses on the unit’s forwarding list.

XMR User Manual 1.1 13
Messages from the XMR
There are several messages sent from the XMR, depending on setup and conditions. Below are
examples of the most common Mobile Originating messages.
Settings Summary Message
On startup, the XMR will send a summary of timers and a short list of GPS and Iridium settings to
confirm to the user the immediate configuration of inactive (Timer Zero) and In-Motion (Timer
Two) timers.
These settings can be seen below in the Settings section.
Version (Type V)
The $ver command will return a summary of both firmware and hardware versions:
Version Readout
04061815
Timestamp in UTC (Month/Day/Hour)
V
Type of message (Version)
Firmware Version
Product; Major, minor, build of firmware
Hardware Revision
Hardware revision, set during assembly
Serial
The unit’s serial number
GPS Version
Firmware version of GPS chip
Iridium Version
Firmware version of Iridium modem
Reset Count
The number of resets since firmware was uploaded
Current
Cause of last power off
Previous
Cause of previous power off, not used in XMR
Position
Typical position messages are sent in compressed binary format (Message Type 10) to save on
data usage and are parsed in XeosOnline. If XeosOnline is not used, GPS Text Short (Message
Type 0) can be used to read position messages as P-Type.
Compressed Binary Position
The default format for positions is compressed to save on Iridium data usage. This binary format
is parsed into a readable format by XeosOnline, placing its full contents in the Message and
Location Logs.
The binary format is stackable and can transmit more than one position per Iridium transmission.
In this situation, all recorded positions will be displayed in the Location Log, while the latest
position will be displayed in the Message Log.

XMR User Manual 1.1 14
Message Log Readout
Timestamp
Date and time in UTC of the latest position reading
BatteryV: 11.91
Loaded voltage of the power supply; minimum battery voltage
observed during the previous Iridium transmission
44.714272
Latitude of fix, decimal degrees
-63.604870
Longitude of fix, decimal degrees
Voltage Unloaded: 12.06
Unloaded voltage of power supply; battery voltage data from
measurement taken just prior to the turning on of the Iridium
modem
Location Log Readout
Timestamp
Date and time in UTC of this specific position reading
44.714400
Latitude of fix, decimal degrees
-63.604902
Longitude of fix, decimal degrees
Alarm: False
Indicates if the device has determined if it is in an alarm state
Bearing
Direction of movement determined by device
Speed (km/h)
Speed measurement in kilometers per hour
Speed (knots)
Speed measurement in knots
Altitude
Not used
SNR
SNR (Signal-to-noise ratio) of GPS Fix, higher is better (>37 is good)
ASCII Position (Type P)
In this format, only the most recent fix is sent at each interval, therefore it is most efficient to
have GPS and Iridium intervals equal.
P-type messages are approximately 39 bytes:
The message type used can be changed using the $msgenable command.
Position Readout
06221600
Timestamp in UTC (Month/Day/Hour)
P
Type of message (Position)
44.71441
Latitude of fix, decimal degrees
-63.60495
Longitude of fix, decimal degrees
49
SNR (Signal-to-noise ratio) of GPS Fix, higher is better
348
Unloaded voltage of device at the time of GPS Fix

XMR User Manual 1.1 15
Information Message (Type I)
In situations where the device fails a GPS session through low SNR or other factor, the follow-up
Iridium session will send a synopsis of the latest statistics from the device. This message will
always be in ASCII format regardless of message format settings and approximately 80 bytes.
This message can be prompted using $sysinf
Information Readout
02210243
Timestamp in UTC (Month/Day/Hour)
I
Type of message (Information)
V=10.59/9.03/9.00
Battery voltages unloaded/after Iridium session/after GPS session
T=0.0
Most recent temperature measurement, not used in XMR
SNR=37
MaxSNR (Signal-to-Noise ratio) of the last GPS attempt
nSats=7
Number of connected satellites during last GPS attempt
GPS:25/1/729
Quantity of good fixes since powerup, fails/Quantity of failed fixes/
Seconds total GPS has been powered on since power-up
Ird:30/29/764
Quantity of Iridium messages/Quantity of Iridium sessions/ Seconds
total on time for Iridium
RSSI=5
Value reported back from the modem. Always a number
between zero and five; five being the strongest signal.

XMR User Manual 1.1 16
Data Relay
The XMR allows for serial relay functionality, sending data to and from a connected serial
peripheral device over the Iridium Satellite Network.
The XMR has a single RS-232 pair with which to communicate with the device for relay of external
data to and from Iridium, or to monitor diagnostics.
On start-up, diagnostics will be disabled on the XMR, but can be enabled by issuing the command
$diag 1, and disabled with $diag 0. The XMR will accept commands and send appropriate
responses in either “diag” state, but not stream more detailed diagnostic data when diagnostics
are off with the exception data incoming over Iridium from the $outport command. The XMR will
always accept commands over Iridium.
Serial Relay
To send data to or from a connected serial device, connect to the serial port on the XMR. By
default, the XMR will use these connection settings:
Baud Rate
57.6k
Parity
None
Data Bits
8
Stop Bits
1
In the event the peripheral device has a different baud rate, the XMR can be changed to match
for communication purposes using:
$baudrate XXXXX Y
XXXXX
Baud Rate
Y
Stop Bits (0 or 1)
The XMR will immediately use the commanded baud rate, but this setting does not survive
resets.

XMR User Manual 1.1 17
Mobile Originated SBD (From Device)
To send a payload of data from the peripheral device via the XMR to the Iridium network, the
peripheral device must send the payload in the following formats displayed:
$sendSBD
payload line 1
payload line 2
payload line 3
$finished
Note: Since the Diagnostic/Data Relay port is inactive while not in use, it is important to send a
carriage return, line feed or both before sending the commands and payload.
All lines are terminated with either a carriage return, line feed, or both.
For example, using a carriage return as the line terminator for the same content as the previous
example (represented with “\R”):
\R $sendSBD\R payload line 1\R payload line 2\R payload line 3\R $finished\R
\R $sendSBD\R The payload of the message can be single-lined as well\R $finished\R
The $sendSBD and $finished commands must be immediately preceded/followed by a line
terminator character where displayed above. The payload can be data of any type and is not
limited to ASCII characters.
Any data that exceeds the 330 byte SBD message limit will be split into several chunks and sent
according to the Iridium device’s SBD interval. Each Iridium transmission can send up to 8 SBD
messages of 330 bytes each.
At default settings, the maximum sized message that can be queued for transmission is 4
kilobytes; this limit can be increased to 24 kilobytes, but this can cause loss of data and other
issues if transmission conditions are not ideal. Contact Xeos Technologies if your requirements
exceed default settings.

XMR User Manual 1.1 18
Mobile-originated messages will be transmitted over the Iridium satellite network from the
Iridium device and arrive as an e-mail attachment. The first line in the e-mail attachment will
have the following format:
devData X,S,Y,ZPAYLOAD
devData a,1,1,1 The payload of the message can be single-lined as well
X
The alphabetic representation of the port the device is connected to
S
The sequence number of the incremented with each new $sendSBD command
Y
The message part number
Z
The total number of parts to the complete message
Following the “devData” line will be all or part of the payload, depending on the size of the
payload.
If the full payload of the device is unable to be sent, or if no part of the message is sent
successfully, the data is queued for the next Iridium session.
Additional Data Relay Settings
Item
Description
Default
Min
Max
msfMM
Max backlog messages
20
1
200
msfMB
Max backlog bytes
4000
100
24000
msfMH
Max backlog age (hours)
24
1
144
msfMS
Data Relay message timeout (seconds)
5
2
120
The above settings can be adjusted by sending the command, followed by X, where X is the new
value for that setting.
$msfMB 6000
Sending any of the above commands without a new value prints off the currently employed
settings for all of the Data Relay settings.
Note: If the $sendSBD command has been issued and new payload data has not been received
after 5 seconds, the Iridium session will commence as if the $finished command was received.
This setting can be adjusted using the $msfMS (message timeout) command.

XMR User Manual 1.1 19
Mobile Terminated SBD (To Device)
To send a payload of data to your connected serial device via the XMR, create a file with the
extension “.sbd” with its contents adhering to the following format:
$unlock 12345
$outPort 1
payload line 1
payload line 2
payload line 3
Again, all lines are terminated with either a carriage return, line feed, or both. The unlock line
will be a 5 digit numerical code, unique to each device. Its purpose is to prevent accidental or
malicious commands from being processed by either the XMR, or your connected device.
When the data to be sent is compiled, normal methods of sending commands to Iridium devices
can be implemented, either through email or a web service such as XeosOnline. Remember that
XeosOnline will remember the unlock code of the device, so long as it has received it in the past
and it has not been changed. As such, it does not need to be added to the command block being
sent.
All lines after the “$outPort 1”line will be delivered to the connected serial device the next time
the Apollo Relay is scheduled to contact the Iridium network. The total message, cannot exceed
270 bytes. Upon reception of the $outPort 1 command, the XMR would output the following
data to the connected serial device, according to the above example:
payload line 1
payload line 2
payload line 3
Check Iridium Mailbox
In cases where no data is to be transmitted out of the XMR, but incoming messages may be
expected, the following command prompts an immediate Iridium “Message Check:”
$imsgchk

XMR User Manual 1.1 20
XMR Timer Intervals
The following are the default parameters for each mode.
Timer
<T0>
T1
T2
T3
T4
T5
T6
T7
Min-Max
SBD
1h
3m
1m
1m
1h
2h
3m
10m
25s-1d
GPS
1h
3m
20s
20s
2h
2h
1m
5m
20s-1d
ACS
2s
2s
2s
2s
2s
2s
2s
2s
1s-1m
Legend
SBD
SBD (Iridium) transmission interval
GPS
GPS acquisition interval
ACS
Acceleration Sample Rate
T0 –T7
Timer number
<T#>
Timer currently in use
#s/m/h/d
Interval in seconds/minutes/hours/days
Min
Minimum allowed interval for this timer
Max
Maximum allowed interval for this timer
Timers
Timer 0
Normal
Used if none of the following modes are triggered
Timer 2
In-Motion
Triggered when the device has detected sufficient motion
Timer 3
LiveTrack
Triggered by command for immediate fast tracking
Timer 4
No GPS Fix
Used when the GPS module continuously fails to acquire a fix
Timer 5
Low Battery
Used when XMR’s power source drops below 7 Volts
Timer 6
Geofence
Triggers when the user’s defined Geofence settings are triggered
Timer 7
Watch Circ.
Triggers when the device exits its set Watch Circle
Note: Timer 1, is not used in the XMR. Timer Parameter named ACP is not used.
Setting timers
$timer SYSTEM TIMER-MODE INTERVAL
Examples:
To set the In-Motion ModeSBD and GPS timer to a 10-minute interval, issue the following two
commands:
$timer SBD 210m
$timer GPS 210m
To set the normal mode SBD timer to a 1-day interval, and the normal mode GPS timer to a 1-
hour interval, issue the following two commands:
$timer SBD 0 1d
$timer GPS 01h
The configuration above will result in the unit acquiring a GPS position every hour, which will
cause all 24 GPS positions to be sent in a single SBD transmission once daily.