CR1000 Manual - Campbell Scientific

Section 7. Installation
Note Table Current Source and Sink Limits (p. 84) has more information on
excitation load capacity.
7.4.5.3 Continuous Unregulated (Nominal 12 Volt)
Voltage on the 12V terminals will change with CR1000 supply voltage.
7.4.5.4 Switched Unregulated (Nominal 12 Volt)
The SW-12 terminal is often used to control low power devices such as sensors
that require 12 Vdc during measurement. Current sourcing must be limited to 900
mA or less at 20°C. See table Current Source and Sink Limits (p. 84). Voltage on a
SW-12 terminal will change with CR1000 supply voltage. Two CRBasic
instructions, SW12() and PortSet(), control a SW-12 terminal. Each instruction
is handled differently by the CR1000. SW12() is a processing task. Use it when
controlling power to SDI-12 and serial sensors that use SDI12Recorder() or
SerialIn() instructions respectively. CRBasic programming using IF THEN
constructs to control SW-12, such as when used for cell phone control, should
also use the SW12() instruction.
PortSet() is a measurement task instruction. Use it when powering analog input
sensors that need to be powered just prior to measurement.
A 12-Vdc switching circuit, designed to be driven by a digital I/O port, is
available from Campbell Scientific and is listed in the appendix Relay Drivers (p.
563).
Note The SW-12 terminal supply is unregulated and can supply up to 900 mA at
20°C. See table Current Source and Sink Limits (p. 84). A resettable polymeric
fuse protects against over-current. Reset is accomplished by removing the load or
turning off SW-12 for several seconds.
7.5 Grounding
Grounding the CR1000 with its peripheral devices and sensors is critical in all
applications. Proper grounding will ensure maximum ESD (electrostatic
discharge) protection and measurement accuracy.
7.5.1 ESD Protection
ESD (electrostatic discharge) can originate from several sources, the most
common, and most destructive, being primary and secondary lightning strikes.
Primary lightning strikes hit the datalogger or sensors directly. Secondary strikes
induce a voltage in power lines or sensor wires.
The primary devices for protection against ESD are gas-discharge tubes (GDT).
All critical inputs and outputs on the CR1000 are protected with GDTs or
transient voltage suppression diodes. GDTs fire at 150 V to allow current to be
diverted to the earth ground lug. To be effective, the earth ground lug must be
properly connected to earth (chassis) ground. As shown in figure Schematic of
Grounds (p. 88), power ground and signal grounds have independent paths to the
ground lug.
Nine-pin serial ports are another path for transients. Communications paths, such
as telephone or short-haul modem lines, should be provided with spark-gap
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