T-Link Wireless Sensors; Serial Port Configurations; Rf Integrity; Wireless Battery Level - RaceAmerica 3850B Timer AC4 Owner's Manual

SERIAL PORT CONFIGURATIONS

The RS232 Serial Port can be configured for
T-Link Wireless Track Sensors or to interface to
a PC running race management software.
The Serial Port is enabled for two way
communications (in for T-Link data, out for PCs
and displays. The Printer port is also a serial port
and can be reconfigured for a display..
NOTE: When connecting to the Serial Port,
the PC or display must be configured at 9600 baud,
8 data bits, no parity, 1 stop bit, no handshake
(9600/8/N/1).

RF INTEGRITY

When operating the Timer AC4 with
T-Link wireless sensors, the Radio Frequency
Signal integrity can be monitored. Pressing [*6]
on the keypad will cause connected T-Link units
to monitor the RF signal integrity indicated by [--
rF--] [A---X] [b---X]. 'X' represents 0 for 0%, 1
for 10%, 2 for 20%, etc and a dash for 100%. 'A'
sensor (Start), 'B' sensor (Finish) and 'Z' unit can
be seen on the display. Any reading above 30%
should be adequate for timer operation. This is an
indication of the consistency of the RF integrity.
If this number jumps around, there is a high level
of interference in the area. If the number remains
high, the RF signal strength is very good. If the
number remains low, the RF integrity is somewhat
weak and data reporting may be slowed by retries
but will not alter the accuracy. The position of
the T-Links and their antennas can be moved to
optimize the RF Integrity level.

WIRELESS BATTERY LEVEL

When operating the Timer AC4 with T-Link
Wireless sensors, The battery level of each
wireless link unit can be monitored from the
console. Press and release the [*9] key to monitor
the Battery Level of the T-Links on the track
indicated by [-bAtt-] [A---X] [b---X] [Z---X].
'X' represents 0 for 0%, 1 for 10%, 2 for 20%, etc
and a dash for 100%. 'A' sensor (Start), 'B' sensor
(Finish) and 'Z' unit can be seen on the display.
Any reading above 50% should be adequate for
hours of operation.

TIMER OPERATION

Once set up, operation of the Timer AC4 is
very straight forward. Select from below which
setup matches your requirements:
Single Beam - Laptimer configuration
Manual operation
This manual stop-watch type operation works
with sensors OFF as selected in SENSORS [*2].
T-Link 'Z' can be connected but not turned on.
Press START [3] each time a vehicle crosses
the Start/Finish line, any running timer will stop
countiing and a new one will start counting. After
each finish/start, a lap number is assigned to each
start on the console (press/hold [0] to view lap
number; press/hold [8] to view the 'Best' lap).
Each finish freezes the running timer and
sends the time to the serial ports (PCs and
displays).
If a car goes off course and cannot finish;
press 'Did not Finish' DNF [9] when the car
should finish and their time will be set to the time
configured in [out Et] (*44####).
If a car reaches the maximum time allowed,
its timer will automatically stop at that number.
This time is configured in [End Et] (*44###).
Use 'All Stop' [*7] to stop all currently
counting timers when something happens
requiring a rerun of all cars on the track.
Single Beam - Laptimer configuration
Hard-Wired
Run Single Beam hard-wired with Sensors
[on] as configured in SENSORS [*2] and the cable
in the START connector. Each time the beam is
interrupted, a timer will stop countiing and a new
one will start counting. After each finish/start, the
beam is locked out for two to nine seconds (see *4
CONFIG) to allow the car to pass through and the
dust to clear. A lap number is assigned to each start
on the console (press/hold [0] to view lap number;
press/hold [8] to view the 'Best' lap).
RaceAmerica Model 3850 Timer AC4
15