12
RaceAmerica Model 3850 Timer AC4
times for start and finish sensors. Lockout times
can be two to nine seconds and represent the time
until a sensor will not see another trip to allow for
rear wheels and blowing dirt to settle. Use the
CONFIG menu to create a timeslip header of up
to 39 characters on four lines. Navigate the menu
using the [4] and [#] keys as shown in Fig. 11 and
described in the next section.
CONFIGURE PRINT HEADER
The AC4 allows a custom four line timeslip
print header of up to 39 characters per line when a
printer is connected. Input is accomplished using
character codes for each desired character position
(see work sheets). Press *444[CONFIG]. Press
#
[ENTER]
to view the setup dialog as follows
[L1
C01] [ XXYY]
indicating Line 1 Character 01;
the XX is prompting for the character code for the
desired character and theYY is the next chracter;
refer to the worksheet for the correct code, press
[#]
to move to character 02
[L1 C02] [XXYYZZ]
where XX is Character 01 and YY is prompting
for character 02 and ZZ is character 03; continue
for up to all 39 characters in the line. Press
[*]
to
move to Line 2
[L2 C01] [ XX00]
and continue
for all four lines. When done with all four lines,
press
[#]
ENTER to exit the configuration menu.
ALIGNMENT MODE
Hard-Wired Sensor Alignment -
To verify hard-wired Track Sensor(s) are
properly aligned with their Beam Emitter(s), make
sure the sensor(s) are ON ([*2]). Enter the hard-
wired Alignment Mode by pressing the
[*5]
key on
the Keypad. The Status Display shows
[SenSor]
[ALiGn] [S0--0F].
The
[S]
indicates the START
emitter/sensor pair, the
[F]
indicates the FINISH
line emitter/sensor pair. If the Beam Emitter and
Track Sensor are operating properly and aligned,
the 0 digit will not change. If the Beam Emitter
and Track Sensor are not properly aligned, the
0 digit for each emitter/sensor pair will count
slowly if slightly out of alignment or continuously
if they are not functioning properly or way out
of alignment. Once the emitter/sensor pair are
aligned properly, the digit will stop counting. If
the alignment is off a little or intermittent, the
digit for that emitter/sensor pair will count when
they float out of alignment. Remember, the Beam
Emitters and Track Sensors operate on a ‘Line-of-
Sight’ concept and may require shims if they are
installed on a street with a crown. Leaves, people,
and other debris will also break the beams and
could give false signals, so keep everyone and
everything clear of the Beam Emitters and Track
Sensors during racing activity.
To optimize the alignment of the emitter/
sensor pairs, it is suggested to rotate the Beam
Emitter slowly left and right until the alignment
for that pair begins to count. This technique will
determine the maximum lateral detection angle.
Rotating the Beam Emitter up and down until the
alignment starts counting determines the maximum
vertical detection angle. Once these extremes are
established, position the Beam Emitter in the
center of the left/right detection angle and up/down
detection angle. Repeat this same process with the
other Beam Emitter and both Track Sensors. This
will maximize the alignment accuracy. Press the
[#]
pound sign key to exit Alignment Mode.
If the sensors are not ON, the display will
show
[no] [ALiGn] [SEnSor] [OFF]
.
T-Link Sensor Alignment -
Proper alignment can be determined by
observing the Left LED on the T-Link connected
to the sensor. When the LED is blinking slowly,
the emitter and sensor are aligned; when the LED
is ON solid, the sensor is not properly aligned. Use
the same alignment technique discussed for hard-
wired sensors to attain correct alignment while
monitoring the LED status. Do this for both the
Start and Finish sensor if running in ‘dual’ sensor
mode. When T-Link sensors are connected, one
column of dots at the right edge of each display
line will double flash periodically.
