ELTRA Thermostep TGA Manual Download Page 1

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Manual

Thermostep TGA

Translation

Summary of Contents for Thermostep TGA

Page 1: ... Eltra GmbH 42781 Haan Retsch Allee 1 5 Germany 03 02 2016 Version 0000 Manual Thermostep TGA Translation ...

Page 2: ...2 Copyright Copyright by Eltra GmbH Retsch Allee 1 5 D 42781 Haan Germany ...

Page 3: ... interface 18 6 1 Login window 19 6 2 Main window 21 6 2 1 Application window 22 6 2 2 Balance window 25 6 2 3 Browser window 26 6 2 4 Configuration window 28 6 2 5 Controller window 30 6 2 6 Crucibles window 31 6 2 7 Flow window 33 6 2 8 Graph window 33 6 2 9 Heater window 35 6 2 10 Motor window 36 6 2 11 Results window 38 6 2 12 Status window 38 6 3 Edit ID window 39 6 4 PID window 40 7 How to u...

Page 4: ...4 7 16 Phases 67 7 17 Results 68 7 18 Translation 68 7 19 User rights 70 8 Index 74 ...

Page 5: ...Installation 5 ...

Page 6: ...weighing Please consider the pre installation guide 2 Place the computer and the monitor within reach of TGA 3 Connect the TGA and the computer with the provided cables The cables on the right side of TGA are connected to the balance and controller board The balance should be connected to a serial interface COM1 to COM 20 The USB cable from the controller should be connected to an USB port at the ...

Page 7: ...nto the power socket at the rear side of the TGA consider the in out flow direction see below 6 Please pay attention that the main switch is positioned to zero plug in the main plug to your power supply pay attention to the required voltage and current according to the device label pre installation guide 7 Switch TGA to position 1 and start the TGA software After correct login please follow the Ho...

Page 8: ...ntally If there is a strong displacement the balance has to be adjusted see below Fig 4 Placement of the balance pedestal inside furnace 9 Place the provided crucible carousel smaller holes on the device as well the lid carousel when ordered 10 Insert all the crucibles and lids to check their proper position to each other Start in the motor window the home position procedure to be sure that nothin...

Page 9: ...ease follow the procedure below Pos 1 3 0010 ELTR A 0010 operating_i nstr ucti ons Ther mostep 05 Install ati on 0515 M odul H ome positi on setti ngs 14 mod_1453795323213_9 docx 97116 1 Home position settings 1 Start the TGA software 2 Enable the break pause button 3 Open the furnace 4 Status of the sensors in controller window ...

Page 10: ...Installation 10 5 Enable the calibration tic in the motor window 6 Introduce 800 in the calibration row press Read and press Write to get the value enabled ...

Page 11: ...arousel should move to position 20 the detecting screw head should pass the sensor as shown below and stop in this position 9 Check if the position of the crucible is perfect matching with the balance holder by pressing carousel down ...

Page 12: ...ect 11 When the carousel doesn t stop at the home position screw head please follow this point in Troubleshooting 12 TGA is now ready for starting an analysis For information to start an analysis please read Step by step 13 If there are some problems at the installation of the TGA please read Troubleshooting Pos 2 0010 ELTR A Seitenumbruch 6 mod_1368796429449_0 docx 41468 1 Increase Decrease ...

Page 13: ...step Thermostep 8 mod_1391782083182_9 docx 58902 1 After finishing the initialization the device is open and an analysis can be started by choosing an application Application window and follow the displayed hints in the Flow window Beside the parameters set in the application some default adjustments can be changed in the Configuration window NOTE The default values work always Pos 4 0010 ELTR A S...

Page 14: ...ial state Pos 5 4 0025 Ü berschriften ELTR A 1 1 Ü berschriften 11 C over will not be opened automaticall y after i niti alizati on test 8 mod_1391782788269_9 docx 58951 3 1 3 1 3 Cover will not be opened automatically after initialization test Pos 5 5 0010 ELTR A 0010 operating_i nstr ucti ons Ther mostep 15 Tr oubl eshooting 1510 M odul C over will not be opened automaticall y after i nitializat...

Page 15: ...usel can t find the right crucible position Pos 5 11 0010 ELTR A 0010 operati ng_i nstructions Ther mostep 15 Troubleshooting 1525 Modul cannot find the right cruci ble positi on 14 mod_1453800127176_9 docx 97152 1 Open the lower side panel at the left side of the device After disconnecting ground cable remove the panel When the crucible position sensor doesn t react by every tooth of the pinion c...

Page 16: ...Troubleshooting 16 CAUTION Never unplug the sensors when the device is switched on turn always the main switch to position 0 zero Pos 6 0010 ELTR A Seitenumbruch 6 mod_1368796429449_0 docx 41468 1 ...

Page 17: ...8 1 1 5 Minimum system requirements Pos 9 2 0010 ELTR A 0005 softwar e_hel p C ommon Mi ni mum system r equirements 14 mod_1453878050572_9 docx 97877 1 Operation system Windows XP SP3 Windows 7 Free HDD space 15 Mb CPU Intel Celeron 1 GHz or better RAM 256 Mb or more Additional disk space is required to store analysis data Additional software requirements Before or after installing the software fo...

Page 18: ...Blinking red text is a sign of an error Check boxes Their value can be toggled checked or unchecked Mouse over will display a short help Edit controls They are used to enter a value Sometimes contains a drop down list to display a list of values to choose one from Or they may only allow choosing without possibility to type it Red colored text indicates an error to example when entering a number bl...

Page 19: ...en starting software Its purpose is to determine User rights It is also used to preconfigure software and to manage accounts Fig 5 Login window Login Account name Password Account password EN Current keyboard layout indicator Caps Lock Caps Lock status displayed when ON Language Choose interface language Login Continue to working Manage Manage accounts and Com ports Pressing on either of the butto...

Page 20: ... account Edit Edit selected account change password Delete Delete selected account List of accounts contains following information about account name level name of user who created account and date when account was modified last to example password changed Fig 7 New account Name Unique account name Password Password twice Level Account level Ok Confirm account creation Cancel Cancel How to assign ...

Page 21: ...buttons Main window is fixed and located in one of the Windows Desktop corners Main form Configuration setting allows choosing in which corner and Caption text setting let specify additional identification text appearing in the caption when needed Child windows Set of toggle buttons to open close child windows See following chapters for more info about each window Application window Balance window...

Page 22: ...Command buttons Additional commands Fig 10 Command buttons 1 Lock unlock windows 2 Make all windows on top 3 Display help 4 Exit software Pos 9 3 7 1 0025 Ü berschriften ELTR A 1 1 1 Ü berschriften 111 Wi ndow Applicati on 7 mod_1383661254332_9 docx 51743 3 1 6 2 1 Application window Pos 9 3 7 2 0010 ELTR A 0005 software_hel p Tg a User interface C hild wi ndows Window Application 7 mod_1383661214...

Page 23: ...once Operator rights are required to make changes create edit and delete to applications Lower level user can only inspect existing applications Inspecting is editing without possibility to save changes General General settings tab is displayed after clicking New or Edit button Fig 12 General settings Tabs 1 Selection tabs general settings stages and results Button 2 Import browse dialog Button 3 ...

Page 24: ...ge settings Stage selector is used to select add edit and delete Application stage Fig 14 Selector 1 Drop down list used to select existing item 2 Create new item 3 Delete selected item 4 Edit selected item 5 Confirm item creation edit 6 Discard changes New item will be added to the end of list 1 2 3 2 1 4 5 6 ...

Page 25: ... quick overview of existing variables or to insert variable into cursor position in the Formula field Pos 9 3 7 3 0025 Ü berschriften ELTR A 1 1 1 Ü berschriften 111 Wi ndow Balance 6 mod_1378805964722_9 docx 48464 3 1 6 2 2 Balance window Pos 9 3 7 4 0010 ELTR A 0005 software_hel p Tg a User interface C hild wi ndows Window Bal ance 7 mod_1383899672533_9 docx 51946 1 This window allows seeing int...

Page 26: ...e logging Enable logging when checked Auto scroll Automatically scroll down log window when checked Clear Clear log Save Save log into a log file Pos 9 3 7 5 0025 Ü berschriften ELTR A 1 1 1 Ü berschriften 111 Wi ndow Br owser 7 mod_1383905769106_9 docx 52001 3 1 6 2 3 Browser window Pos 9 3 7 6 0010 ELTR A 0005 software_hel p Tg a User interface C hild wi ndows Window Br owser 7 mod_1383902796222...

Page 27: ... displayed in the list status date of analysis operator name operator level application total number of crucibles and duration of analysis When option Show is marked then selected result will be displayed in Results window and Crucibles window It is possible to see graphs of this result s crucibles perform export assign another application etc ...

Page 28: ... User interface C hild wi ndows Window C onfigurati on 7 mod_1383907811059_9 docx 52012 1 This window displays and allows changing Configuration settings Fig 19 Configuration window Settings 1 List of settings and their values Description 2 Description pane Save Save changes Certain settings are not shown to the user without Administrator rights Description pane will display helpful info for the s...

Page 29: ...the software is not planned to be shortly after Right clicking on a setting or within setting window will display a popup menu Fig 20 Settings popup menu Reset Reset currently selected setting into default value Expand Expand all categories Collapse Collapse all categories Categories Show categories when checked hide otherwise Description Show description pane when checked hide otherwise Only show...

Page 30: ...ve Communications Fig 21 Controller window Version Protocol version Counter Incremental counter Signals 1 Digital inputs and outputs Open Open furnace Close Close furnace Pulse Send cushioning pulse Log 2 Communications log Administrator only Digital outputs can be directly set by clicking Clicking set output will unset it Opening and closing furnace is a timed operation Therefore automatic softwa...

Page 31: ...7 mod_1384240184716_9 docx 52248 3 1 6 2 6 Crucibles window Pos 9 3 7 12 0010 ELTRA 0005 software_hel p Tga User i nterface Chil d wi ndows Wi ndow Cruci bles 7 mod_1384182698576_9 docx 52232 1 This window will display information about Crucibles inside the furnace But main purpose of this window is to introduce crucibles during weighing Phase Fig 23 Crucibles window Generate ID Automatically gene...

Page 32: ...ise Crucibles statuses Big Selected crucible White No crucible Light blue Empty crucible with known or unknown weight Light green Crucible with sample Dark blue Reference crucible with unknown weight Dark green Reference crucible with known weight Red Junked crucible Stable crucible Crucible is marked as stable during stage with stability end condition Fig 24 Ignore unstable crucible Ignore button...

Page 33: ... Buttons will appears whenever a user input is required or allowed at certain moments during automatic program flow It s important to pause the flow before attempting manual control of the instrument otherwise manual and automatic control may conflict with each other To example opening furnace manually in Controller window while flow is at step trying to close it Pos 9 3 7 15 0025 Überschriften EL...

Page 34: ...point of the graph for detailed info about this point Fig 27 Point info Temperature graph Graph is shown if option Temperature is checked Option Heater will toggle between displaying smooth graph of furnace temperature checked and temperature points gathered together with crucible unchecked First derivative graph Graph is shown if option Derivative is checked Stage lines Lines are displayed if opt...

Page 35: ...Wi ndow Heater 7 mod_1384266841726_9 docx 52347 1 This window displays information about the Heater Fig 28 Heater window Temperature 1 Current average temperature Info 2 Additional info Graph 3 Temperature Graph Setpoint Override setpoint Speed Override speed of heating Manual Enable manual mode Power Set heater power directly in manual mode only Clear Clear graph Save Save graph as a log file Adm...

Page 36: ...Mode Heating regulating P PID P value I PID I value D PID D value Mouse over some of values will display additional info voltages instant non averaged value slope current PID parameters etc Pos 9 3 7 19 0025 Überschriften ELTRA 1 1 1 Überschriften 111 Window M otor 7 mod_1385383815365_9 docx 52799 3 1 6 2 10 Motor window Pos 9 3 7 20 0010 ELTRA 0005 software_hel p Tga User i nterface Chil d wi ndo...

Page 37: ...on 1 20 Go Rotate to selected crucible position Stop Stop motor and reset current crucible position Home Reset and rotate to the first crucible position Calibrate Perform motor home position calibration Fig 31 Motor calibrate Factor 1 Calibration factor Read Read and display calibration factor from EEPROM Write Write entered calibration factor into EEPROM 1 1 ...

Page 38: ...m Export Double clicking or pressing Enter while crucible list is focused will display Edit ID window for the selected crucible similar to pressing ID button Selected one or many crucibles graphs will be displayed in the Graph window Clicking on a group will select all crucibles in that group Hold Control when clicking to add the whole group to selection Pos 9 3 7 23 0025 Überschriften ELTRA 1 1 1...

Page 39: ...1 1 Ü berschriften 11 Wi ndow Edit ID 7 mod_1385458526506_9 docx 52924 2 1 6 3 Edit ID window Pos 9 3 9 0010 ELTR A 0005 softwar e_hel p Tg a User interface Window Edit ID 7 mod_1385455217713_9 docx 52913 1 This window is used to edit Crucible ID in the Results window Fig 34 Edit ID window Position Crucible position not editable ID Crucible ID Group Group 0 9 Sequential Enable sequential numbering...

Page 40: ... changes and close window Add Add range to the list Delete Delete selected PID range from the list Import Import PID list Export Export PID list Factors are used for PID regulation when setpoint temperature falls between Tmin and Tmax range values If ranges are overlapping then they are first sorted by the range average and then the first one that matches for a given setpoint will be used Pressing...

Page 41: ...settings stages and results General General settings define import export and weighing parameters Name Application name Description Application description Minimum weight Minimum sample weight in mg Maximum weight Maximum sample weight in mg Set 0 to disable Import Import definition file Export Export definition file Application Name is a file name It cannot contain some of special characters If f...

Page 42: ...ge type Stop by maximum time This stage is finished when specified Time counted after reaching setpoint is expired Stage result is the last weight before stage ends Fig 36 Stop by maximum time Stop by time This stage is finished when specified Time counted after reaching setpoint is expired and additionally one more weight for all crucibles is taken The software will interpolate sample weight at s...

Page 43: ...esult is the last weight before stage ends Fig 38 Stop by deviation Marked crucibles can be seen in Crucibles window during analysis Phase Stop by stability This stage is similar to stop by deviation but instead of deviation all crucibles have to pass Stability check Stability specified as an absolute difference between 2 consecutive stable sample weights Balance purge and liquids Before reaching ...

Page 44: ...ttings to example minimum sample weight While it is easy to do often it is better to create a new specialized application and either call it specifically or provide in the description a reason of application creation To create a new application 1 Login as Operator Debugger 2 Press New button in Application window It is also possible to take existing application as a base For this select base appli...

Page 45: ...ndow Popup menu with the list of available application will appears 2 Select needed application name from the list Currently selected for analysis application is marked When mouse is over menu item with application name corresponding description will appears shortly Add stage New stage will be added after existing stages To add stage 1 Create or edit application 2 Switch to tab Stages 3 Click butt...

Page 46: ...lick button to edit result in result selector 5 Carry out necessary changes 6 Click confirm button in result selector Delete result An existing result can be deleted To delete existing result 1 Create or edit application 2 Switch to tab Results 3 Select result in result selector 4 Click button to delete result in result selector 5 Confirm Technical info Applications are saved in Settings app files...

Page 47: ...dd crucibles are visible Flow window is waiting for user action waiting for a button to be pressed Alternatively as Administrator it is possible to perform calibration at some other moment pause the flow manually open furnace etc 2 Remove lid and crucibles carousels 3 Replace massive ceramic balance pedestal with light weighted plastic one Depending on the instrument this step may be skipped or ev...

Page 48: ...lectronics Cooling fan output is protected It can only be set if Furnace closed input is set Open furnace output is protected It can only be reset if Cooling fan output is reset Disconnect Upon disconnection detection if there are no communications from PC for 5 seconds following will occurs in the device Heater power off Oxygen and nitrogen off Motor stop and reset Counter reset to 0 Pos 9 4 8 00...

Page 49: ...ow to use 49 Identify the corresponding ports when USB is connected TGA PCB V 3 x it will be shown under the COM ports Start TGA software Introduce the corresponding password Click to Manage button 3 1 2 ...

Page 50: ...ntinue 4 If connection is established the lights will blink green in the Status window When it s still not connected the light is red blinking and the procedure have to be repeated by selecting the next identified COM port until the right ports are assigned 3 4 ...

Page 51: ...in the Windows Notepad Shutdown If set then after current analysis at the beginning of weighing phase software will switch PC off Appearance Appearance settings Caption text Define additional text for the Main window This is intended for the use on a PC controlling several devices simultaneously It can only be done by several running software installed into different folders Each software main win...

Page 52: ...has set closed lids then there will be a prompt to confirm furnace opening closing during analysis to add remove lids directly on top of crucibles Stability A Set to change balance stability By default it is set to 0 which means do not change balance stability If value is set to 1 to 4 then a special command to change balance stability will be sent each time when balance is tare Higher number mean...

Page 53: ...52270 2 1 7 6 Crucibles Pos 9 4 13 0010 ELTR A 0005 software_hel p Tga How to use Cruci bles 7 mod_1384254225116_9 docx 52259 1 Crucibles on the carousel are shown in the Crucibles window When observing crucibles in the Results window it is possible to recognize crucible status and determine its type and condition by the group Browser window displays the worst status Crucible statuses Unknown cruc...

Page 54: ...ked then new crucible will be added into a middle of biggest sequence of empty spaces To fill carousel 1 Ensure it s a weighing Phase Flow window should wait for user action 2 Press Fill button and select how many crucibles to add After adding blank crucibles 1 Press Weighing button in the Flow window to start weighing of blank crucibles 2 Put crucibles on the corresponding position inside the fur...

Page 55: ...onsists of lines where any line can be either empty a comment begins from semicolon or contain a definition Definitions Definitions are case insensitive unless specified otherwise and their format is PARAMETER VALUE Definition with default value can be omitted in case if default value is what is needed DESTINATION FILE Configures LIMS export to work with the file Mandatory definition and should be...

Page 56: ...fault value FORMAT 0 Examples See folder LIMS for examples The basic example of exporting CSV file containing first and 20 th crucible id and first result DESTINATION FILE PATH c temp export 0 yyyyMMHHmm csv VAR ID 1 FORMAT 0 0 0000 VAR RESULT 1 1 VAR ID 2 FORMAT 0 0 0000 VAR RESULT 1 2 Pos 9 4 16 0025 Überschriften ELTRA 1 1 Überschriften 11 For mul as 7 mod_1378823542894_9 docx 48575 2 1 7 8 For...

Page 57: ... not yet available to example when formula needs last stage sample weight while first stage is running then it is not displayed in the Results window In reports however this value is represented as a NaN not a number Variables A complete list of analysis variables is given here Synonym is an old variable name which is kept for compatibility reasons but is not advised to use in the new formulas Ind...

Page 58: ...2 1 7 9 Graph Pos 9 4 19 0010 ELTR A 0005 software_hel p Tga How to use Graph 7 mod_1385391027694_9 docx 52832 1 Graph is a special control used to display information in a form of plots points and lines Mouse over graph area to make following graph elements visible ort names ort units hint and mouse position coordinates in graph units Graph control appears in the Graph window and Heater window Au...

Page 59: ...irst time When running software for the first time a special warning is given during initialization Phase because PID Configuration setting initially is blank To setup PID 1 Login as Administrator 2 In the Configuration window click edit button for PID setting Edit PID window will appears 3 Click Import button and select proper PID set for the instrument 4 Confirm with Ok button Fig 39 Old and def...

Page 60: ...ge can have following factors Tmin Tmax Range temperatures P Pmax Pmin P proportional factor and its limits I Imin Imax I integral factor and its limits D Dmin Dmin D differential factor and its limits TT Threshold temperature S Slope speed of heating There is a guaranteed overshoot to reduce it following solution is used initially regulator is trying to reach setpoint minus threshold temperature ...

Page 61: ...gh Coil temperature is not decreasing Cooling but coil temperature is not decreasing fast enough Furnace temperature is not increasing Heating but furnace temperature is not increasing fast enough Furnace temperature is not decreasing Cooling but furnace temperature is not decreasing fast enough Coil temperature is lower than furnace temperature Coil temperature furnace temperature When message ap...

Page 62: ...ults window double click on that crucible to edit id 4 Enter ID mark Sequential option confirm by pressing Ok button 5 When adding blank crucibles further their ID will be initially the last auto incremented value Generate ID By default newly added crucible has blank ID When Generate ID option is marked then added crucibles will have auto generated ID To use this feature 1 Define wished ID format ...

Page 63: ...e import and definition info which data is available and how to read it This file can be created from a scratch or preferably existing LIMS import definition txt file can be copied under a new name and modified Import definition file consists of lines where any line can be either empty a comment begins from semicolon or contain a definition Definitions Definitions are case insensitive unless speci...

Page 64: ...ample ID CRUCIBLE Crucible weight SAMPLE Sample weight LID Lid weight ATTRIBUTEx User defined text x 1 9 used to pass to the Export Examples See folder LIMS for examples The basic example for importing CSV file containing first crucible id crucible weight and sample weight is here SOURCE FILE VAR ID 1 VAR CRUCIBLE 1 VAR SAMPLE 1 Pos 9 4 26 0025 Überschriften ELTRA 1 1 Überschriften 11 Install 8 mo...

Page 65: ...l p Tga How to use Layout 7 mod_1383657840875_9 docx 51710 1 The arrangement of child windows their positions sizes and visibilities is called Layout It is possible to create several layouts and then easily switch between them when needed It is possible to lock windows by using special button in Main window When windows are locked their locations and sizes cannot be changed Only switching layouts ...

Page 66: ...ntil specified crucible position is reached This however doesn t necessary means that there will be an actual rotation To rotate motor 1 Login as Administrator 2 Mark Pause in the Flow window 3 Mark Move option in the Motor window 4 Select crucible position and click Go button 5 Wait until motor finish rotation Motor rotation can only occur if Furnace closed input is set Motor stuck block is a spe...

Page 67: ...indow Ordered list of phases Initialization During this phase software will check the device to ensure that it is capable to perform analysis There are also additional checks related to the software configuration Cooling Furnace will be cooled down and stabilized if necessary Weighing Phase to gather all data needed to carry out analysis selecting application crucibles lids and sample weighing Ana...

Page 68: ...anually delete or copy needed result Pos 9 4 36 0025 Überschriften ELTRA 1 1 Überschriften 11 Tr ansl ati on 7 mod_1378824751886_9 docx 48678 2 1 7 18 Translation Pos 9 4 37 0010 ELTR A 0005 software_hel p C ommon Tr ansl ati on 7 mod_1379499854390_9 docx 48898 1 Software localization system allows the user to supplement text file with all the text that appears in the software translated into any ...

Page 69: ...e Thermocouple Msg Config CoupleTypeHelp Thermocouple type The part after equal sign is the text to be translated The left part id should not be changed it can be used to identify the place in the software where this text is used Lines starting with hash symbol are comments Empty lines or lines without equal sign are ignored 6 Start software and check translation 7 If translation has to be updated...

Page 70: ...or High level of access Operator Restricted no manual control safe settings Laborer Most restricted cannot manage cannot modify applications Guest Special same as Laborer Additionally to accounts there are special account options enabling certain features Those can only be set when logged as administrator Account options Guests Allow guest accounts Empty passwords Allow empty passwords Operator ma...

Page 71: ...ct account in the list and click Edit button 3 Enter new password twice and confirm by clicking Ok button It is possible to change password when logged as operator when Operator manage is enabled It is only possible to change password of accounts with the same or lower level than currently logged user Delete account It is possible to delete old and unused accounts To delete account password 1 Logi...

Page 72: ...How to use 72 instead change passwords or create another administrator account account with administrator rights Pos 10 0010 ELTR A Seitenumbruch 6 mod_1368796429449_0 docx 41468 1 ...

Page 73: ...How to use 73 Ende der Liste für Textmar ke Inhalt ...

Page 74: ...r 59 Home position settings 9 How to assign com ports 20 How to use 41 I ID 61 Generate 62 Sequential numbering 39 62 Import 63 Installation 6 L Layout 65 Localization 68 Login as 70 M Method 41 Minimum system requirements 17 Motor 66 Motor stuck block 66 P Pause 33 Phases 67 R Results 68 S Software help 17 Step by step 13 T Translation 68 Troubleshooting 14 U User interface 18 User rights 70 W Wi...

Page 75: ...Copyright Copyright by Eltra GmbH Retsch Allee 1 5 D 42781 Haan Germany ...

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