This guide describes the use and all features of the Coach 6.3 Lite program.

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2 This guide describes the use and all features of the Coach 6.3 Lite program. Amsterdam, March 2010, version 3.0 CMA Foundation P.O. Box 94224, 1090 GE Amsterdam, The Netherlands Telephone: Fax: Internet: CMA Text: Ewa Kędzierska, Vincent Dorenbos, Marijn van Eupen 2

3 Table of content GENERAL INTRODUCTION INTRODUCTION INSTALLATION OF COACH 6 LITE CONTENT OF THIS MANUAL... 6 I. USER INTERFACE STARTING COACH COACH STRUCTURE COACH APPLICATION WINDOWS AND PANES MANAGING RESULTS II. DIAGRAMS AND TABLES DIAGRAMS AND TABLES IN COACH SPECIFIC DIAGRAM OPTIONS SPECIFIC TABLE OPTIONS III. MEASUREMENT INTRODUCTION THE PANEL WINDOW COMMUNICATION BETWEEN COMPUTER AND INTERFACE SENSORS THE MEASUREMENT SETTINGS MEASURING REPLAY A MEASUREMENT IV. CONTROL INTRODUCTION ACTUATORS THE PROGRAM WINDOW CREATING PROGRAMS EDITING A PROGRAM EXECUTING A PROGRAM V. DATA PROCESSING AND ANALYSIS INTRODUCTION SELECT/REMOVE DATA DERIVATIVE SLOPE AREA FUNCTION FIT HISTOGRAM VI. COACH LANGUAGE INTRODUCTION INTO COACH LANGUAGE NAMES AND NUMBERS EXPRESSIONS STATEMENTS STANDARD FUNCTIONS AND PROCEDURES OF COACH LANGUAGE ERROR MESSAGES IN COACH LANGUAGE

4 VII. UTILITY PROGRAMS FIRMWARE UPDATE ULAB VIEW APPENDIX I. INTERFACE PANELS APPENDIX II. COACH SHORTCUTS

5 General Introduction 1. Introduction Coach 6 Lite offers the tools for measurement and control with CMA interfaces CoachLab, CoachLab II/II+, ULAB, Lab, Sense and the Crossroads model. MEASUREMENT CONTROL The Measurement Activities of Coach enable you to collect data from sensors (e.g. temperature sensor, ph sensor) connected to an interface. The Control Activities of Coach enable you to use and create programs to control actuators (e.g. a lamp or motor) connected to an interface. The collected data can be further processed with the help of simple data processing and analusis tools. In order to measure and control with Coach the interface must have been installed. The installation program configures Coach 6 Lite software to the hardware. The setting of the program must match those made with the hardware. It is possible to change these settings also inside Coach, see I. Coach User Interface, 1.3. Hardware setting. User Manuals of interfaces give all technical details about the interfaces and their installations. 2. Installation of Coach 6 Lite 2.1. System requirements Coach 6 Lite can be installed on a PC with at least the following requirements: A processor which can be compared with Pentium 4, 2.4 GHz, 90 MB of free disk space, 1512 MB RAM (1GB recommended), Screen resolution 800 x 600, 16 bit (recommended 1024 x 768) Windows operating system: Win 98/ Win 2000/ Win XP/Win Vista (32 bits) Installation To install Coach 6.3 Lite use the provided Coach 6 Lite CD or the installation file available at the CMA web site. Follow the installation instructions from the Installation Guide Coach 6 Lite. Coach 6 Lite will install CMA Coach 6 Lite group with the following icons: CMA Coach 6 Lite this icon starts Coach 6 Lite. Utilities ULAB View this icon starts the program which displays an image of ULAB s screen on the computer s screen. Firmware Update this icon starts the program to update internal software (firmware) of CMA interfaces. During the Coach 6 Lite installation also the CMA Device Checker can be installed 1 (in C:\Program Files\CMA\Coach6\Common folder). When this program is installed then it 1 During Coach 6.3 Lite installation the option Enable automatic detection of CMA interfaces has to be checked. 5

6 constantly checks if one of the CMA interfaces is connected to the USB port of the computer. The Coach 6 icon is shown in the taskbar while this program is running. After a CMA interface is detected Coach 6 Lite will start and the project for the plugged-in interface will open. Automatic detection of the CMA interfaces can be switched off by right clicking the Coach 6 icon in the taskbar and selecting Stop CMA Coach Activities Coach 6 Lite is delivered with basic Measurement and Control Activities for CMA interfaces (placed in C:\Program Files\CMA\Coach6\Lite\CMA Coach Projects). These Activities can not be overwritten by users. Users can store their materials (as Result files) in any folder where the user has rights to save. CMA offers many additional free Coach Activities which can be used with Coach 6 Lite in classroom. The Coach Activities and supporting materials can be found at CMA web site under Resources. 3. Content of this manual This manual describes the use and all the features and functions of the Coach 6 Lite. General information - gives some general information on the Coach 6 Lite installation and this manual I. User Interface - describes the structure of Coach 6 Lite II. III. IV. Diagrams and Tables - describes the options of diagram and table panes, which can be used in Coach Activities Measurement - describes the features and functions of Measurement Activities Control - describes the features and functions of Control Activities V. Data Processing - describes data processing and analysis options available in Coach Lite VI. VII. Coach Language - provides detailed information about Coach Language which can be used in Control Activities. Coach Utility programs - describes Coach Utility programs: RCX Control, ULAB Update and ULAB View. Appendix I. - gives technical information about interface panels supported in Coach 6 Lite Appendix II. - lists Coach Shortcuts The TIPS label indicates tips which help you use the software more effectively or to maneuver you around problems or limitations. Note: provides information that is generally useful. 6

7 I. User Interface 1. Starting Coach To start via automatic interface recognition 2 Plug your CMA interface into the USB port, after the interface is detected Coach 6 Lite will start and the project for the plugged-in interface will open. To start via the Windows Start menu Click on the Windows Start button, move to Programs, then to CMA Coach 6 Lite and next click on Coach 6 Lite icon. To start via double-clicking an Activity/Result file Double-click a Coach Activity file (*.cma), a Coach Result file (*.cmr) or a Windows shortcut to such file. To exit Coach 6 Lite Click the Exit Coach button in the upper left corner of the Main toolbar or click the Close button in the upper right corner of the Coach program window Main toolbar After opening Coach 6 Lite (via Windows start menu) the main toolbar is shown with the following buttons: Button Action Exit Coach Open Install Hardware Drivers Help 1.2. The Open dialog The Open dialog lists the Windows folders, Coach project folders and Coach files in the selected location. It allows to browse through the folders and open Coach files of the following types: Coach Activities - *.cma files 2 Works only for interfaces with the USB connection. 7

8 Coach Results - *.cmr files The largest part of this dialog is a standard Windows dialog. The Favorites button on the right side of the toolbar and the bottom part of the dialog are Coach 6 Lite enhancements. Figure 1. The Coach Open dialog. With the field Files of type one can select which kind of files will be listed in the dialog box. The setting of this option is remembered throughout the current Coach session. The summary of the current Coach project is displayed under Summary. When Show preview is selected the project title picture of the current project is shown. The Favorites button The Favorites button opens the menu on the right and gives access to your favorite Coach locations. You can add your own folders to this list. In the top of the menu are always links to the CMA Coach projects location and, for network installations, the school projects location. This list is stored for all users of the computer. To add a folder to the favorite locations list Open the File Open dialog. Browse to the location which should be added to the list of favorite locations. Click the Favorites button. Select the Add current option. The current folder will be added to the user list part of the menu. Figure 2. The menu of the Favorites button. To remove a folder from the favorite locations list Open the File Open dialog. 8

9 Click the Favorites button. Select the Remove Locations option. A dialog opens which lists all the user favorite entries. Select the entry which should be removed and press OK. Note: Multiple locations can be selected by using mouse clicks in combination with <Ctrl> or <Shift> Hardware settings The Install Hardware Drivers button allows installing/removing device drivers or changing the device settings (e.g. a port number that an interface is connected to). By default all drivers are installed. To open the Hardware Drivers dialog Click the Install Hardware Drivers button. Figure 3. Hardware Drivers dialog. To modify the settings of a previously installed driver Under Installed, click a driver to view or modify its settings. The settings are displayed under Settings. Click OK to confirm, or Cancel to leave the Hardware Drivers dialog without making any changes. - In Windows look for Control Panel > System > Device Manager > Ports to see which ports are available. - See the installation instructions of the specific hardware interface for further information. To add or remove a driver Under the header Available, select the driver(s) you want to install. Click Add if you want to install the driver(s). Click Remove if you want to uninstall the driver(s). Click OK to confirm, or Cancel to leave the Hardware Drivers dialog without making any changes. Note: Multiple drivers can be selected by using mouse clicks in combination with <Ctrl> or <Shift> Help You can start the Student help by clicking the button. 9

10 Specific help can be found by selecting Help from the appearing Tool menu (by right clicking a part of the screen or via the Tool menu button). 2. Coach structure Activities (*.cma files) are Coach documents created by CMA. Coach 6 Lite users cannot overwrite Activities. Instead they can save the results of their work in Results (*.cmr files). CMA Activities are stored in Coach project folders and user results can be stored in ordinary Windows folders. Coach project folders can be recognized easily, as the icon of a Coach project folder has a red C in the yellow folder Opening an Activity To open an Activity Press the Open button. Browse in the dialog to the desired project and Activity (or Result) and click Open Coach Activity screen The Coach Activity screen consists of: 1. Title bar - contains the name of the current folder and Activity/Result. 2. Menu (sometimes) - contains menus for working in Coach. 3. Activity toolbar - contains different buttons at different times, the list of all buttons is given in the next section. 4. Coach panes contain various kinds of information available via the yellow Information buttons. Descriptions of all panes are given in 3. Coach panes and Windows. 5. Application windows - contain Interface Panel or Program. 6. Status bar displays the Coach 6 Lite version. Figure 4. Coach Activity screen. 10

11 2.3. Activity toolbar The Activity toolbar does not always show all its buttons. It depends on the kind of Activity and the user mode. Button Action Exit Activity, return to Main level Open Save as Print the whole Coach screen Show/Hide Panel window Show/Hide Program window Open Settings Start measurement or program execution Stop any run Start a manual measurement Stop a manual measurement Replay the current run Display a value in a pane; Edit value items Display a diagram in a pane; Edit diagram items Display a table in a pane; Edit table items Display an animation in a pane; Display a text in a pane; Display an image in a pane; Edit image items Display a video in a pane; Edit video items Display a webpage in a browser pane; Edit web items Display student texts in a window; Edit notes items Help 11

12 3. Coach application windows and panes 3.1. Coach application windows Depending on a Coach Activity type, Measurement or Control, Coach displays one or two blue application windows: the Panel window to connect sensor and actuator icons (Measurement), the Program window for programs to control devices and systems (Measurement, Control), These application windows are described in details respectively in the Measurement and Control sections of this book. The application windows can be toggled on/off with the application buttons on the Main toolbar. By default the application windows are undocked but they can be docked in the Coach panes. To dock/undock an application window Press the <Shift>-key. While keeping this key pressed start to drag an application window. The window changes its shape into the transparent rectangle. When the mouse cursor in the transparent rectangle is located over the desired pane release the mouse button. To undock the application window select its Tool menu option Undocked. Note: Undocked application windows do not have the Tool button. Right click an undocked application window to open its Tool menu Coach panes Meters, Values, Diagrams, Tables, Texts, Pictures, Videos, Web Pages and Student texts can be displayed in Coach panes. Panes are always a part of Coach screen and can not be undocked. The user can create more or less panes if needed by dragging borders from the borders of the Coach screen. The pane size can be changed by dragging the pane borders. If dragged towards the borders of the Coach screen, the pane disappears. Each pane can be maximized to fill the whole screen by using its Maximize button. Each pane has its own Tool menu available via the Tool menu button or via right clicking the pane. 12

13 Figure 5. Coach panes with different information. Coach panes with data information (in order of yellow buttons): Meters display the actual values of a selected connection (e.g. a sensor value, a model variable value, a formula value etc.) on an analog meter. Values display the actual values of a selected connection (e.g. a sensor value, a model variable value, a formula value etc.) in large digits. Diagrams are graphical representations of data of selected connections (e.g. a sensor value, a model variable value, a formula value etc.). Closely related to tables Tables display data in tabular columns. Closely related to diagrams. Animations are visualizations with animated objects which positions and sizes are controlled by model variables, program variables or sensors values. Meters Measured values, variables values or values resulting from calculated formulas can be presented on analog scaled meters. A standard Meter is created automatically by Coach based on sensor or variable properties. 3 Any change of a standard meter makes it a user-defined meter (the suffix (Standard) is removed from the meter s name). All visible elements of the Meter, its display, measured quantity and its unit, can be manually relocated in the Meter pane by clicking an element and dragging it to another location in the pane. Note: Help lines will appear to assist you to place the elements neatly with respect to each other. Figure 6. A standard Meter of CMA Voltage sensor 0210i. 3 For Program variables the selection of variables for standard meters must be done by the users via the Tool menu option Variables. 13

14 The Meter pane offers a simple editor to create new or to modify existing (Standard) meters. The Edit a Meter dialog can be opened: via the yellow Meter button (see & 3.5. Add, remove or edit Coach panes) or via the Tool menu option Edit or by double-clicking in the Meter pane. Name: both new and standard meters get their name automatically. This name can be edited. Connection: a meter is coupled to a data range via a connection. A detailed description of connections is given in section II. Diagrams and Tables, 1.6. Data-range connection types. Display type: the following types are available: Vertical bar, Horizontal bar, Quarter circle (90 ), Half circle (180 ), Full circle (360 ). Figure 7. The Edit a Meter dialog. Quantity: the quantity name measured by a meter, by default shown on the meter. Unit: the unit of the measured quantity, by default shown on the meter. Display: always selected to be shown on the meter. Scale: when on then the scale is shown on the meter. For each of these options the fonts and colors can be set. When the yellow lock is closed (default) then the same fonts and colors are used for all. Min., Max.: allow to define the range of the meter s scale. For standard meters these values are read from the sensor or variable properties. The options Empty, Full and Pointer define the meter s colors. Each meter has a colored background (default white) and on which a picture can be placed. When a picture is used then the meter and its elements, like scale or quantity name are placed on a top of it. The transparency of the background picture can be set by using the transparency slider. Note: Meters can be created only by Authors or Senior Student users. - Use the Reset Layout button to reset the user-defined layout of the meter (i.e. the positions of its elements) to a standard meter. - Use the button Reset All to reset the user-defined meter into a standard meter. 14

15 Values Measured values, variables values or values resulting from calculated formulas can be presented in large digits called Values. Values are similar to Meters; the main difference is that Meters display values on analog displays and Values on digital displays. A standard Value is created automatically by Coach based on sensor or variable properties. 4 Introducing any changes to standard values make them user-defined values (the suffix (Standard) is removed from the value s name). All visible elements of the value: its digital display, measured quantity and unit, can be manually relocated in the Value pane by clicking an element and dragging it to another location in the pane. Note: Help lines will appear to assist you to place the elements neatly with respect to each other. The Value pane offers a simple editor to create new or to modify existing (standard) meters. The Edit a Value dialog can be opened: via the yellow Value button (see & 3.5. Add, remove or edit Coach panes) or via the Tool menu option Edit or by double-clicking in the Value pane Most options of the Edit a Value dialog are similar to the Edit a Meter dialog. For digital values, the number of Digits and Decimals used in the displayed values can be defined. Note: The number of digits includes the number of decimals. This is to make sure that enough space is reserved. Diagrams Diagrams are described in detail in II. Diagrams and Tables. Tables Tables are described in detail in II. Diagrams and Tables. Figure 8. A standard Value for CMA Voltage sensor 0210i. 4 For Program variables the selection of variables for standard values is done via Tool menu and option Variables. 15

16 Animations Coach 6.3 Lite is enriched with another way of representing the data animations. Coach animations consist of animated graphics objects, like ellipses, rectangles, vectors and pictures, which can be linked to program variables or sensor values to control their positions or sizes. Users can not edit or create animations, they can only play it. Use the Fit to Stage button to fit an animation into a given pane or zoom an animation by right-clicking the Animation pane and selecting the zooming percentage. To reset the Animation right the Animation pane and select Reset Animation. Coach panes with multimedia information (in order of yellow buttons): Texts with activity explanations and instructions created by Authors. Student users can not edit these texts. Images (BMP, PNG, GIF or JPG) e.g. to illustrate phenomena, experiments or equipment. Videos (AVI, MOV, MPG, WMV) e.g. to illustrate phenomena, experiments or equipment. Web pages e.g. with extra resources for students. Student text for student reports, answers to questions, etc. Student texts Student Text pane has its own toolbar which appears after clicking in the pane. The toolbar consists of the following buttons: to zoom in and out text; to change the font style and text size; to change the font color;,, to apply respectively bold, italic and underline font style;, to make text subscript or superscript; to format text (align left, center, align right, justify); to make a bullet list; to make a numbered list;, to indent text respectively to the left and to the right; to insert a symbol; to insert an image; to insert a link to other Coach text/student text, to Internet file or to a local file. 16

17 Web pages The Web Page pane offers a simple browser with its own buttons located in the pane toolbar: to return to the last viewed page; to view one of the last nine pages visited in this session; to return to the home page; to stop loading the current Web page; to refresh a Web page Using Coach panes It depends on the user mode whether it is allowed to make changes to what is displayed in a pane, and if and which yellow content buttons are present in the Activity toolbar. To move a content from a pane on the screen to another pane on the screen Drag the blue title bar of the pane from which you want to move the information. The cursor changes its shape into the transparent rectangle. Place the mouse cursor over the desired pane to which you want to move the information and release the mouse button. Note: Also Application windows can be relocated in this way. To place a content via a yellow button Click the arrow next to the desired button to see all available items. Or Click the desired yellow button. A list opens with all available items of that type. Select an item from the list. Click OK, (or click Close to cancel). The shape of the mouse cursor changes to indicate the information type you have chosen. Click in a pane to display the item, or click <Esc> to cancel. Figure 9. Selecting a diagram via the arrow next the yellow Diagram button. To place a content via an empty pane Right click in an empty pane, or press the Tool menu button. Select the desired content type from the Tool menu. A list opens with all available items. Select an item from the list. Click OK to display the item, or click Close or <Esc> to cancel. - When a press on a yellow button does not lead to opening a list, the only item of that type is already displayed, or the list is empty. - Lists of Diagram, Table, Meter or Value items are divided into User-defined items and Standard items (created automatically by Coach). - A diagram, table, meter or value can be placed in different panes at the same time. In this case, the settings for each window are remembered individually. - When your Activity has multiple texts or student texts you can easily browse through them via the text Tool-menu (options Previous Text or Next Text) or via the shortcut keys 17

18 <Ctrl>+<PgUp> (Previous Text) and <Ctrl>+<PgDn> (Next Text). It is also possible to link to other Coach texts. - When placing a video, video play buttons appear. - In some user modes it is possible to empty a pane by 'closing' it. By doing so, the information is not lost, only currently not displayed on the screen. Via the procedures referred to above it can be redisplayed Print or copy pane content Pane content can be printed and copied to the clipboard e.g. for use in other applications. To print Right click the pane to be printed or click its Tool menu button and select Print Window. - When printing a video, the current frame is printed. - You can also print the whole Coach screen by using the Print button or <Ctrl>+<P>. To copy an information item to the clipboard Right click the pane to be copied or click its Tool menu button and select Clipboard Copy. Paste the item in another Windows program (Word processor, text editor, drawing program, spreadsheet, etc.), by using Paste there. Texts, tables, can also be copied to the clipboard using text edit options or keys (Cut (<Ctrl>+<X>), Copy (<Ctrl>+<C>) and Paste (<Ctrl>+<V>)). - When copying a diagram to the clipboard its zoom information, scan information and comments are copied along. A diagram is always exported as a picture. - When copying a table to the clipboard the selected part of the table will be copied including 2 header rows with the quantity and unit of the data ranges. When no selection is made, only the visible part of the table is copied. - When copying a table with the Copy option (<Ctrl>+<C>), the header rows are not included Add, remove or edit Coach panes Advanced users can modify the information items. Extra buttons allowing creating, editing or removing items are available in the Select dialogs which can be opened via clicking the yellow button with the desired information type. Meter/Value New to create a new meter/value and add it to the diagram list. Edit to open the Edit a Meter/Edit a Value dialog of the selected meter/value. Delete to delete the selected meter/value. Diagram New diagram to create a new diagram and add it to the diagram list. Background graph to create a diagram with a background graph and add it to the diagram list. 18

19 Edit to open the Edit a Diagram dialog of the selected diagram. Delete to delete the selected diagram. Table New table to create a new table and add it to the table list. Import to create a new table with imported data and add it to the table list. Edit to open the Edit a Table dialog for the selected table. Delete to delete the selected table. Text Under this button texts from Authors are available. It is not possible for Student users (even Senior students) to make any changes to this list. Student users should use Student Texts. Figure 10. Select a diagram dialog. Picture Add to add a new picture to the list. Edit title to edit the title of the selected picture. Delete to delete the selected picture. Video Add Video add a new video to the list. Add Images to create a new video from a sequence of pictures and add it to the list. Browse the disk to find your picture sequence. Select the images from the list (by using the <Ctrl> or the <Shift>). Coach places the picture files in alphabetical order. Recommended is to rename the pictures of the sequence to a name including a number, like ball01, ball02, ball03, ball04, etc. Enter the number of frames per second the pictures were taken (each image represents a frame) or the time interval between the picture. Figure 11. Selecting pictures to create a video file. Select a video compressor (codec). In the Title field write a title for the resulting video. Click Open. Coach automatically creates a video clip in the AVI format. Edit title to edit the item title. Delete to delete the selected video. 19

20 Web page Add to add a Web page to the list. Select internet link or local file. Enter the title. Enter a URL link (i.e. a Web page address) or a link to a local files. Add current to add the URL (i.e. a Web page address) of the current Web page opened in the Web Page pane. Edit to edit a Web page address and title. Delete to delete the selected Web page. Student text Under this button Student text with title Notes is available. Warning: Deleting list items is irreversible. The only way to recover is to reopen the Activity or Result (without saving!) and start again. - A shorter way to add information items is by using the Add new option which is available via the list after a click on the arrow next to a yellow button. - List of items are ordered alphabetically, but numbers take precedence. If the items in a list should have a pre-defined order, start the titles with a number (e.g. 1,,9, or 01 99, etc.). - Apart from references to URLs, the Web-page list can contain references to all registered file types i.e. the file types which have an association to a program (e.g. a reference to MYFILE.DOC will open MYFILE.DOC in MS-Word) Exchanging Coach Information with other Windows applications Export from Coach Direct export of information displayed in Coach panes, is possible via the clipboard. In advanced user modes, data can also be exported to files via a table. Pasting text in Coach Text from other applications (MS Word, ASCII files, Web pages) can be paste into Coach texts (only for authors) or Coach student texts. Copy the desired data to the clipboard. Right click the Student Text pane and select Paste, or press <Ctrl>+<V>. Pasting data in Coach Use the procedure below to paste data from other applications (MS Excel, ASCII files, Web pages) into Coach, from a Table column to another column of the same table (i.e. within the same Activity) and from a table to another table (within the same Activity). Copy the desired data to the clipboard. Create a new table. Right click the Table pane and select Text edit > Paste, or press <Ctrl>+<V>. In the table the required number of columns of type manual input is automatically created and the data appear in the table. Via the table settings you can edit the table (e.g. the quantity, unit and number of decimals). It is not possible to paste a diagram directly into Coach. - Data in files with different formats can be imported in Coach via the table Tool menu option Import data. 20

21 - Use the table Tool menu option Display as a Diagram to create a diagram from the data. 4. Managing Results A Coach Result is the result of student s work in an Activity. It consists of all elements of the Activity (like texts, pictures, videos, etc.) together with student changes and resulting data like notes, measurement data, calibrations, models, control programs. Working with Results is similar to working with Activities. To open a Result Press the Open button or the <F3>-key. Make sure the Files of type field shows Coach 6 Results. Browse to the desired Result. Click Open. The File Open dialog for opening Results is the same as for opening Activities. To save a Result Press the Save as button or the <F2>-key. Enter the name of the Result. Click Save. In advanced user modes it is also possible to open or save a Result via the File menu. The procedure is basically the same as described above. To delete a Result Click the Open button. Browse in the dialog to the desired Result. Delete the file. To save Student text as a (Rich) Text File Student texts can be saved to a separate file in RTF or TXT format. Right click the Student Text pane and select Save to File. Select a file type. Enter a file name and click Save. 21

22 II. Diagrams and Tables 1. Diagrams and tables in Coach 1.1. Introduction Diagrams and tables are used to display measurement data. They are synchronized and share a number of settings (among which their name): irrespective where these settings are changed, they are reflected both in the diagram and the table. Figure 13. A standard diagram and table created via a Temperature sensor icon. Figure 12. Data collected during an experiment of discharging a capacitor. A standard diagram/table is created automatically by Coach via a sensor/actuator on the panel, it is a diagram with the clock (time) along the horizontal axis (data range C1) and the quantity of the sensor/actuator along the first vertical axis (data range C2). For event-based measurements, the row index replaces time along the horizontal axis. The standard table is the table corresponding to the standard diagram. Any change of a standard diagram/table makes it a user-defined diagram/table (the suffix (Standard) is removed from the diagram/table s name). Figure 14. A standard diagram and table created via a Temperature sensor icon. 22

23 The lists of user-defined diagrams/tables and standard diagrams/tables are displayed in the Select a Diagram/Select a table dialogs which are available after clicking the yellow button Diagram/Table. Figure 15. Lists of User-defined and Standard diagrams Scanning data In a diagram the option Scan is used to read coordinates of points on graphs or of other points in the diagram. A crosshairs in the diagram marks the scanned point. The co-ordinates of the point are displayed in a box in the upper right corner of the Diagram pane. In case the corresponding table is displayed, the row with the nearest x co-ordinate is selected in the table. In a table, values can be read directly by using the scroll bar. To scan points in a diagram Click the diagram Tool menu button and Figure 16. Scanning data in the graph. select Scan. Click a point of the graph and read its co-ordinates in the co-ordinate box. Move through the data points with the mouse or with the right and left arrow keys. Stop scanning by pressing <Esc> or by selecting Stop Scanning from the Tool menu. When there are several graphs in the diagram, the crosshairs always sticks to the first data range assigned to a vertical axis. The co-ordinates of all graphs are displayed, however. - The box with co-ordinates can be moved to another position by dragging. - By clicking on a point outside the graph, scan chooses the point of the graph which has the same x co-ordinate. When using <Alt>+<click>, the point of the graph is chosen which is closest (measured with a straight line) to the clicked point. - Scanning is limited to the visible part of the diagram. Zoom out when co-ordinates of a graph(s) in another part of the diagram need to be read. 23

24 - Use the <Ctrl>-key together with Scan to read the co-ordinates of any point in the diagram. Use this option e.g. to read co-ordinates from sketched graphs, or to extrapolate an intersection with a diagram axis. - When the diagram is printed or copied to the clipboard, the scan information is included. - If you want to store co-ordinates, you have to write them down, or type them in a Student text pane. It is not possible in Coach to store the scanned co-ordinates automatically Erasing complete data runs To erase all data in a diagram/table select the option Erase all Values from the diagram Tool menu. All data from the linked diagram and table are erased. To erase data from previous runs in a diagram select Delete Background Graphs > Previous Runs. - By clicking <Shift> + (or <Shift>+<F9>) you erase all data on the screen and start a new run How to keep old runs active? The default behavior of Coach is that when a measurement run is followed by another run, the data of the previous run is overwritten, and its graph becomes gray (it is only displayed on the screen). In this way maximal 4 previous data runs are displayed in the diagram. The option Copy Column allows keeping previous runs active. To copy column After a measurement run, right click the diagram or table. Select Copy Column. A submenu appears with all quantities in the diagram/table. Select the quantity which has to be copied. The column containing the data is copied into the first empty column of the table with data-range type manual input. During the next run, this data is repainted in the diagram. When the table is full (8 columns), the option disappears from the Tool menu Diagram/Table settings The diagram/table settings can be found in the Create/Edit dialog. To create a new (empty) diagram/table Click the yellow Diagram/Table button and click New or click the arrow next to the Diagram/Table button and select Add New. The Create/Edit dialog opens for an empty diagram/table. Fill the diagram/table settings. To edit a diagram/table Click the diagram/table Tool menu button and select Create/Edit Diagram/Table. Or: Click the yellow Diagram/Table button or right-click an empty window and select Display Diagram/Table. Select a diagram/table from the list. The Create/Edit dialog of the selected diagram/table opens. Edit the diagram/table settings. The diagram/table settings can also be opened directly via the shortcut <Ctrl>+ <Tool button> (not in all user modes). 24

25 To add a graph to an existing diagram or a column to an existing table In the Create/Edit dialog of the diagram/table select a data range C1.. C8 which connection is Empty. In an existing diagram/table often C3 is the first empty data range. From the connection drop-down selection list, select a connection for the data range, i.e. a variable or a formula. Enter or modify the settings for this data range (options are available depending on whether you add the data to a diagram or a table), e.g. the quantity, unit, minimum, maximum, number of decimals and the diagram style, or enter the formula. Click OK to confirm (the new data range appears automatically in the diagram/table), or Cancel to leave the Create/Edit dialog without changes. The Create/Edit dialogs The options described in this section are not available in all user modes. The Create/Edit dialogs for diagrams and tables have two sections; the upper section Diagram or Table which contains the name and a few general settings, and a lower section Column which contains the settings for each data range. There are only a few small differences between these dialogs: - In the Create/Edit-Diagram dialog, horizontal and vertical axes can be assigned to data ranges; for each data range along a vertical axis, the way it is displayed can be specified and there are options to make the grid visible and to keep the scale of horizontal axis and first vertical axis the same. - For a table there are options to show row numbers and column letters and no axes nor styles can be assigned to data ranges. Note: In some user modes it is not possible to change pre-defined data ranges. Figure 17. Create/Edit a Diagram dialog (left) and Create/Edit a Table dialog (right). Name A standard diagram/table automatically gets its name. This name can be edited. For a new diagram/table you have to type the name yourself. The name of a linked diagram and table stay the same, so when editing the diagram's name, the table's name changes along, and vice versa. 25

26 Show grid (diagrams only) When marked the grid is displayed in the diagram. Identical axes ratio (diagrams only) When marked, the units along the horizontal and vertical axis in the diagram use the same number of screen pixels. For example with Identical axis ratio marked, a circle will be displayed as a real circular shape on the screen (rather than an ellipse). Show row index and Show column letters (tables only) When marked, the row index (the row number of the data point in the table) respectively the column letters (C1, C2, etc.) are displayed in the table. By default, Row index = on and Column letters = off. Font (tables only) By clicking this button the Fonts dialog opens allowing the fonts used in the table. Data range Each diagram/table has eight data sets called data ranges (the columns of a table) labeled C1.. C8. Click one of the data ranges to select it. The settings of the selected data range are displayed in the lower part of the dialog. Connection Via the connection a data set is coupled to a data range, e.g. data from the clock or a connected sensor or actuator, manually entered data, or a formula. To couple data to a data range, first select it (it is highlighted) then make a selection from the connection drop-down selection list. Axis (diagrams only) Horizontal First Vertical Second Vertical Invisible The selected data range will be displayed along the x-axis. In a standard diagram/table, C1 (the clock, i.e. time) is assigned to this axis. Only one data range can be assigned to the horizontal axis of a diagram: by selecting another data range for the horizontal axis, the previous one will be automatically set to Invisible. The selected data range will be displayed along the first y-axis (left side). The selected data range will be displayed along the second y-axis (right side). The scale of this axis is completely independent of the first vertical axis and will also be re-scaled automatically independent of the first vertical axis. When a result of a processing action is added to a diagram, it is assigned to the next empty column and to the second vertical axis. The selected data range will not be displayed. This option is useful for example when the data are only used as source for a formula, but do not have to be displayed in the diagram/table itself. Invisible (tables only) Similar as for a diagram axis the selected data range will not be displayed. Quantity The quantity of the data in the active data range. The quantity name should be unique in the diagram or table. The quantity name is also used as a variable name in formulas. 26

27 Unit The unit of the data in the active data range. Decimals A local diagram/table setting for the active data range. This number of decimals is displayed along the axes of the diagram, for the values of the data range in the table and in the co-ordinate box when scanning the diagram. Min. (diagrams only) The minimum value along the specified axis in the diagram for the active data range. For a standard sensor/actuator diagram, the minimum value is read from the Sensor properties or Actuator properties. Max. (diagrams only) The maximum value along the specified axis in the diagram for the active data range. For a standard sensor/actuator diagram, the minimum value is read from the Sensor properties or Actuator properties. Note: The duration of a measurement is only determined by the measurement settings, not by the maximum of the time axis in the diagram settings. Color (diagrams only) The color applies to the markers and line style used for this graph. The color is also used for the name of the corresponding quantity and unit along diagram axes. Select a color from the drop-down list. Marker (diagrams only) A marker is used to mark the individual data points. Select a marker (none, cross, small dot, big dot) from the drop-down list. If Marker = Small dot and Connection type=line, the small dot is not visible (the dots are overlapped by the line). The same may apply to other markers when the line width is set to a thicker line. Type (diagrams only) The type specifies if and how individual data points are connected. Select a type (none, line, histogram) from the drop-down list. When Connection type = Line, all data point are connected by straight lines. When Connection type = Histogram, all data points are connected to the horizontal axis by a vertical bar. Line width (diagrams only) Select a line width (5 grades of thickness) from the drop-down list. The setting of line width does not display when Connection type = None Data-range connection types The connection type can be found in the Create/Edit-dialog of a diagram or table. It specifies the type of data assigned to a data range (corresponding to a diagram axis or a table column). The following connection types can be chosen: 27

28 Empty A data range without connection (the default setting). When the connection of a data range is reset to empty, data is erased from the diagram/table. Clock data, data from panel inputs and outputs and variables data will still be available for selection in other data ranges. However, calculated data (from formulas) and manual-input data are lost when their connection is reset to empty in the diagram/table where they were defined. Manual input Select this connection type for manual measurements. Then Coach prompts to type the quantity values for all data ranges with a manual-input connection each time the Manual Measurement button is pressed. The manual-input connection type should also be chosen to allow data to be directly typed in the cells of a column. Further, data ranges with imported data automatically are set to manual input. Manual-input data ranges are not erased during next runs, but are redisplayed instead (with the same data). This feature can be used to keep data of previous runs active (see 1.4. How to keep old runs active?). Formula This connection type is used to assign a formula to a data range. In a formula, data assigned to other data ranges of the same diagram/table can be used as variables. Data ranges with formulas are automatically recalculated. So during a new run, the newly calculated values will appear in real-time. Row Index The row index is the row number of the data point in a table. Figure 18. The list of connection types for a data range in Measurement Activity. Equidistant data This connection type is used to automatically generate a number of equidistant points in the given range. Clock The clock is the connection type which represents time data. It is usually connected to data range C1 along the horizontal axis in a standard diagram or to data range C1 of a standard table. Time interval The time interval gives the difference in clock values of two successive data points. This works in backwards form: the time interval value is assigned to the last point of the two so its first point remains undefined. Panel inputs and outputs These connections depend on the inputs and outputs of the used Panel. All available inputs and outputs are listed either with the connected sensors/actuators or as (Nothing connected). For example Analog In 1: Light sensor represents the data measured through the light sensor connected to input 1 of the interface. 28

29 Variables (from a control program) These variables appear in the list automatically as soon as they are defined in the graphical or equations model. For the text model and the control program only variables defined in the List of Variables table are displayed. To define and add a new variable as a data-range connection use the Add variable option described below. Figure 19. The list of connection types for a data range in Control Activity. Add variable (for a control program only) This option allows defining variables for display under data-range connections for Values, Meters, Diagrams and Tables. Selecting this item invokes the Add variable dialog in which a variable used in a program or in a text model can be selected. Then its unit, minimum value, maximum value and the number of decimals can be defined in the List of Variables table Create a formula A formula can be used to do calculations on data in diagrams or tables. You can start the Wizard to assist you to create the formula or type a formula yourself. To create a formula Right click the Diagram/Table pane and select Create/Edit. Select an empty data range C1.. C8. Set the connection to Formula. Click the Formula Wizard button or type the formula in the Formula field (for experienced users). Enter a suitable name for the Quantity and specify the Unit. - Existing formulas can also be selected as a data range connection in other diagrams/tables. - Formulas are automatically evaluated. So in a next run, the values of the formula appear automatically in the diagram/table. - In a formula, you can only select the quantities which are assigned to the data ranges of the same diagram or table. If you need to include a quantity in the formula, which is not yet available in the list, first assign this quantity to a data range. - If only the result of the formula should be shown in the diagram, set the other data ranges to invisible. Formula Wizard Create the formula by selecting quantities from the list. Select Number when you need to enter a number in your formula. Select OK to close the Formula Wizard. Notes: - Some of the mathematical formulas are placed automatically in the diagram/table settings as a result of a processing operation (derivative or smoothing) in a diagram. They also can be entered manually. - Coach does not allow nesting these formulas. Figure 20. The Formula Wizard. 29

30 2. Specific diagram options 2.1. Introduction A diagram is used to graphically display data. Data can origin from sensors, video measurement, from model, from manual entry, from calculations etc. A diagram can contain several graphs. Usually the graphs are distinguished by means of a color. Most options described below can be reached via the diagram Tool menu. Several options appear only when there are data points available Diagram style The diagram style determines how the graphs in a diagram will be displayed. Each graph has a unique style. To open the Diagram Style dialog select the Tool menu option Diagram Style. You can change the settings for the grid, colors, markers and connection types. Show grid Figure 22. The Diagram Style dialog. The grid setting applies to the diagram as a whole. Mark/Unmark Show grid to switch the grid on/off. The settings in the Column section apply to individual graphs. Each graph is linked to a data range (C1.. C8). When there are two or more graphs in the diagram: Click the data range (C1.. C8) for the graph to change its style attributes. Color The color applies to the markers and line style used for this graph. The color is also used for the name of the corresponding quantity and unit along diagram axes. Select a color from the drop-down list. Marker A marker is used to mark the individual data points. Select a marker (none, cross, small dot, big dot) from the drop-down list. If Marker = Small dot and Connection type=line, the small dot is not visible (the dots are overlapped by the line). The same may apply to other markers when the line width is set to a thicker line. Type The type specifies if and how individual data points are connected. Select a type (none, line, histogram) from the drop-down list. When Connection type = Line, all data point are connected by straight lines. 30 Figure 21. A measurement graph in the diagram.

31 When Connection type = Histogram, all data points are connected to the horizontal axis by a vertical bar. Line width Select a line width (5 grades of thickness) from the drop-down list. The setting of line width does not display when Connection type = None. - The style of a background graph can also be edited. As soon as the diagram contains a background graph, the Diagram Style dialog has an extra pane for the style settings of the background graph. - The style of the graphs can also be edited in the Create/Edit Diagram dialog (not possible in all user modes). - If no graphs appear in the diagram, check whether both Marker and Connection type are set to None. With this setting, the particular graph will be invisible. - The defaults Marker = None and Connection type = Line are chosen for reasons of visibility only. The best way to display data from computerized measurement process is to select a Marker and setting Connection type = None, but when a measurement consist of many points, there may be confusion which point follows which. The connection with lines neutralizes this confusion. Examples of diagram styles Marker=None Connection type=line Marker=None Connection type=line (thicker line width) Marker=Cross Connection type=line Marker=Big dot Connection type=line Marker=Big dot Connection type=none Marker=Big dot Connection type=histogram 2.3. Zoom By zooming in an area of the diagram will be enlarged, e.g. for closer inspection. To zoom in/out Move the cursor over the diagram, until shape changes into a magnifying glass. Drag an area to zoom in. The area will be enlarged to fill the whole diagram. Click the Zoom-out button to return to the previous zoom state. Click the Zoom-to-fit button, or select the Zoom to Fit option to re-scale the horizontal and vertical axes to optimally display all graphs. 31

32 - The shortcut <Ctrl>+ only zooms automatically in the vertical direction. - The shortcut <Shift> + immediately restores the diagram to its original state. When the diagram is zoomed in then scroll arrows appear along the diagram axes. By pressing an arrow button, the diagram scrolls in the direction of the arrow. This way you can view other parts of the diagram with the same magnification. Figure 23. A zoomed diagram with scroll arrows Sketch With the Sketch option you can draw a graph in a diagram pane. This option can be used: - to draw prediction of a measurement graph. After the run, the shape of the predicted graph can be compared with the measured graph. - to draw a graph which can be converted to real data and used for example as input data for an auxiliary variable in Modeling. To sketch a graph Figure 24. Drawing a sketch graph. Via the Tool menu select Sketch. Draw a smooth curve by dragging to the right (erase by dragging to the left) or click several points to draw a point-to-point graph. Stop sketching by pressing <Esc> or by selecting the Tool menu option Stop Sketching. To erase a sketch select the Erase Sketch option. - Switching on the grid may help to draw more accurately. - Double-click a point in the sketched graph to erase the part of the graph beyond this point. To convert a sketch to table Via the Tool menu select Convert Sketch to Table. The shape of the cursor changes into a small table. Click in a pane to display the table or click <Esc> to cancel. The number of data points in the created table depends on the way the sketch graph was made: - for the point-to-point curve the number of points is equal to the number of clicked points, - for the smoothed curve the number of points depends on the sketching speed, the slower you sketch the more points you get Annotating the diagram It is possible to place descriptive labels annotations- in a diagram. They can be used to label individual graphs or to point out interesting features. 32

33 Annotations are displayed in the diagram but also appear when the diagram is printed or copied to the clipboard. To add an annotation Select the Tool option Add an Annotation Type in text. If desired click the Font button to change the text font and its color. Select Framed to place the annotation in a frame (default = no frame). Click OK to confirm or Cancel to return to the original diagram. Drag the annotation to the desired position of the diagram (make sure the mouse cursor has the shape of a hand). When desired, repeat this procedure to create more annotations. Figure 25. Annotations in different colors are used to describe the various measurement graphs. To edit/delete an annotation Right click an annotation (make sure the mouse cursor has the shape of a hand). Select Edit or Delete Annotation Background graph A background graph is used to visually compare data on disk with data in an Activity (i.e. in hypothesis testing in Modeling). Contrary to regular graphs, the data of a background graph is not available: the graph is displayed as a picture in the diagram only. It can be shifted horizontally, however. Importing graphs with data must be done via a table. To import a background graph in a diagram A background graph is created from data stored in a Result on disk. Select Import Background Graph or press the yellow Diagram button and click the Background Graph button (in this case a new diagram is created which only contains a background graph). Open a Result file. The Import Background Graph dialog opens. The Import Background Graph dialog The Import Background Graph dialog makes it possible to specify settings for the import process. This dialog has three sections. The Original data section gives information about the chosen Result file: - The file name; - The number of rows; - The number of data ranges (columns); - For the selected data range: the quantity, unit, minimum and maximum of the data in that data range. Use this section to inspect what data is available in the Result file. 33

34 In the Horizontal axis section the data range from the Result which has to correspond to the quantity along the horizontal axis of the diagram can be selected. Select a data range from the drop-down-list under Column. When desired, enter the quantity and unit in the Label field. In the Vertical axis section the data range from the Result which has to correspond to the quantity along the vertical axis of the diagram can be selected. Select a data range from the drop-down-list under Column. When desired, enter the quantity and unit Figure 26. The Import Background Graph dialog. in the Label field. Select whether the data should be displayed along the left First vertical or right Second vertical axis. Specify the background graph style settings (color, marker, type and line width). Click OK. To shift the background graph You can shift the background graph to facilitate comparison with calculated or measured graphs. This feature is used mostly in hypothesis testing in Modeling. Select Shift Background Graph. Drag the graph to the left or the right with the mouse or with the arrow keys for pixel steps. Use <Shift>-<arrow-keys> for larger steps. It is possible to zoom the diagram during the shifting process, by pressing the <Shift> key. Figure 27. Shifting the Background Graph. Select Stop Shifting Background Graph. To delete the background graph select Delete Background Graph > Imported. Note: Background graphs are included in determining the zoom factor after pressing the Zoom-to-fit button. 34

35 3. Specific table options 3.1. Introduction A table is used to display data points numerically in columns. Data can origin from sensors, from calculations, video measurement, from model, from manual entry etc. On starting a measurement a table is filled with values. When doing a new run, the existing data is overwritten by the new data. A table can maximally contain eight columns (data ranges) and 500,000 rows with data. Most options described below can be reached via the table Tool menu. Several options appear only when there are data points available in the Activity. Figure 28. The measurement data in the table Rows The option Rows in the table Tool menu gives a submenu with various options applying to table rows. Not all options described here are available in all user modes. With most of these options it is handy to select the desired rows in the table prior to the rows operation. Sort This option rearranges all rows in a table according to the sorted quantity in ascending or descending order. Sorting is useful when the quantity along the x-axis of a diagram is not a continuously increasing or decreasing series of values. It is also useful in manually-triggered measurements. Select the Tool menu option Rows > Sort (in some user modes only Sort). Figure 29. The Sort Rows dialog. Type the number of the column (1.. 8) which contains the quantity to be sorted. The column in which the cursor was located is pre-selected. Select the sort order: Ascending or Descending. Notes: - The sorting process of a column with a formula can take some time to complete. - Other diagrams/tables which also use the quantity being sorted are rearranged accordingly. Example If Connection type in the diagram style is set to Line, the points in the diagram are connected point-to-point. When the values along the horizontal axis are not in increasing order, this setting will result in a messy diagram. Use the Sort option to remedy this problem. 35

36 As an example take the function y = x². In diagram A, this function has been drawn with its x-coordinates in random order. In diagram B, this function has been drawn after sorting its x co-ordinates in ascending order. Insert This option inserts a number of empty rows at the row in which the cursor is located. Click the row at which to insert empty rows or make a selection of rows at the point to insert empty rows. Select the Tool menu option Rows > Insert. Specify the first and the last row index; for the selection the first and last row indexes are taken automatically. When necessary change the first or last row index. Click OK. The selected rows are shifted down and the specified number of new rows is inserted at the selection (point). Delete This option deletes a number of rows at the row in which the cursor is located. Click the row at which to delete rows or make a selection of rows. Select the Tool menu option Rows > Delete. Specify the first and the last row indexes; for the selection the first and last row indexes are taken automatically. When necessary change the first or last row index. If desired, specify the Step value for the rows to delete. The step value indicates the number of rows which will be skipped during removal (see example below). Mark either Delete rows (the selected rows are deleted), or Keep rows (the not-selected rows are deleted). Click OK. The specified rows are deleted. Examples: - With Step = 1 and Delete rows marked (the default settings), all selected rows will be deleted. - With Step = 1 and Keep rows marked, all not-selected rows will be deleted. - With Step = 2 and Delete rows, all odd rows will be deleted from the selection. With Keep rows the even rows will be deleted. - With Step = 3 and Delete rows the first of each three rows in the selection will be deleted. With Keep rows the second and third of each three rows will be deleted. Etc Edit table cells To edit a value in a single cell Click a cell in the table. Type a value. Press <Enter>, or press <Tab>, or click in another cell to confirm. The old value will be overwritten. Or: Double-click a cell or press <Enter> to display the cell value with all its decimals and change the value. Press <Enter>, or press <Tab>, press one of the arrow keys or click in another cell to confirm. The old value will be overwritten. 36

37 Undo the last change with <Esc> before confirming, and with <Ctrl>+<Z> after confirming. To erase a value in a cell click a cell in the table, or make a selection of cells and press <Del>. The contents of the cell(s) will be emptied Import data With the Import Data option data from external files (Coach files, Text files, and DIF files) can be imported. Data can be imported in a new table, or can be added to an existing table. To import data in a new table Click the yellow Table button. Click Import Table. Select the source from which data will be imported. - For Coach Result data the Open Result dialog appears. Select a Result. - For IP-Coach 4 data first select a *.dt0 file and then proceed with the Import data dialog. - For Text files and DIF files first specify a file structure and then proceed with the Import data dialog. See below for a detailed description of importing the various data sources. Place the table in a pane. To add imported data to an existing table Select the Toole menu option Import data. Select the source from which data will be imported. See below for a description of importing the various data sources. The Define Text File Structure dialog This dialog makes it possible to specify parameters for the import process for text files. It has three sections: Figure 30. The Define Text File Structure dialog. In the File settings section, specify the decimal separator, text qualifier and thousands separator. Use None when the item does not apply. The Row range and meaning section gives the possibility to specify which rows to import (e.g. you can omit the rows which do not contain numbers) and how the first row(s) will be interpreted. It is possible that the original file uses the first one or two rows as a header containing the quantity and unit of the column. Check the options as desired. 37

38 In the Column delimiters section specify the column delimiter, i.e. the symbol which separates the values of the various data ranges in the file. Press OK to confirm your settings. The Import dialog opens. Proceed as described below. The Define DIF File Structure dialog This dialog makes it possible to specify parameters for importing DIF files. The displayed settings are adapted as much as possible from information in the selected file. It has two sections: Figure 31. The Define DIF Structure dialog. In the File settings section, specify the decimal separator and thousands separator. Use None when the item does not apply. In the Row range and meaning section specify how the first row(s) will be interpreted. It is possible that the original file uses the first one or two rows as a header containing e.g. the quantity and unit of the column. Check the options as desired. Press OK to confirm your settings. The Import dialog opens. Proceed as described below. The Import Data dialog This dialog makes it possible to specify parameters of the import process. The dialog has three sections. The Original data section gives information about the original file: - the file name; - the number of rows; - the number of columns; - click the column to display information about: quantity, unit, minimum and maximum. In the Import as section select the table column (C1.. C8) where the column of the original file (specified in the Original data section) should be imported. By default the first empty column is selected. If you do not want to import a column, select None. If necessary edit the suggested quantity, unit and number of decimals. Figure 32. Import Data dialog. Repeat these steps for all columns of the original file. In the Import range section specify the row indices (one setting for all columns) to be imported. 38

39 When necessary change the first and last row index. If desired, specify the Step value for the rows to be imported. The Step value indicates the number of rows which will be skipped during import. Mark either Import selected (the selected rows are imported), or Import inverse (the notselected rows are imported). Click OK. The specified columns are imported with the specified number of rows. Examples: - With Step = 1 and Import selected marked (the default settings), all selected rows will be imported. - With Step = 1 and Import inverse marked, all not-selected rows will be imported. - With Step = 2 and Import selected, all odd rows will be imported. With Import inverse the even rows will be imported. - With Step = 3 and Import selected the first of each three rows in the selection will be imported. With Import inverse the second and third of each three rows will be imported. Etc Export data With the option Export data Coach data can be written in other file formats. This option always exports all values of the table (independent of a selection). To export to Text or DIF format Select the Tool menu option Export data. Select Text or DIF file. Specify parameters of the export process in the Define Text File Structure or Define DIF File Structure. These dialogs are very similar to the dialogs used for importing data. Please notice that for.txt files all kinds of delimiters can be chosen (usually Tabs are used) and for.csv (Comma-Separated Values) files, the comma should be chosen. Save the file. Note: Do not select a comma as separator when the comma is also used as decimal separator. The Result is a file which will not be interpreted correctly by the other program. (If necessary check your decimal separator in the Regional settings in Windows' Control Panel). Often it is much simpler to export data via Copy and Paste. Use these options also when you want to export a selection of the Table: - First make a selection, copy it to the Clipboard and paste it in another program (e.g. Notepad, another Text editor, etc.). Save the file in that Program. - A second way is to delete the non-selected rows from the Table and select Export data as above. 39

40 III. Measurement 1. Introduction The Measurement Activities are used to collect data from sensors e.g. for temperature, light intensity, sound level, ph, etc. and to display, analyze and process the measurements. A sensor, connected to interface, measures a physical quantity and transforms it into an output voltage, which is read by an interface. The interface, connected to computer, converts an analog voltage signal into a digital signal that is transferred and interpreted by the computer. Coach collects measurement data according to the measurement settings after pressing the green Start button. In most of Activities the time-based measurement method is used, measurements are stored at regular time intervals according to the sampling frequency. In the event-based measurement method measurements are taken each time a pulse (event) is received on an interface counter input. In the manually triggered measurement the single measurement is taken every time you press a button. This method allows type-in data from keyboard. During the measurement data can be presented in graphs, tables, meters or displayed as digital values. 2. The Panel window The screen image of the used interface panel is located in the Panel window. Click the Panel Window button to open the Panel window. Click this icon again to close the window. The screen image of the interface panel has inputs for sensors just like the connectors on the real interface. Some of interfaces like CoachLab or CoachLab II/II + can be used in control systems. Panels of these interfaces have also outputs to connect actuators like motors, lamps, and buzzers (see IV. Control). Figure 33. CoachLab II/II + panel with a Temperature sensor and a 12V Motor actuator. 40

41 At the sides of the panel two palettes for icons may be displayed: the sensor palette (left side) and the actuator palette (right side). You can drag and drop sensor icons on inputs and actuator icons on outputs of the panel. For measurement most of the time only sensor icons are available. Sensor icons placed on inputs of the active panel display the actual values measured by the real sensors. Actuator icons placed on outputs of the active panel display states of connected actuators. 3. Communication between computer and interface For existing Measurement Activities an interface panel is already chosen by an Activity Author. The interface is initialized during opening of an Activity/Result. When Coach is not able to communicate with connected interface then the communication error message is displayed. Figure 34. The communication error dialog. This can happen when: - the Activity/Result is developed for another interface than the one currently using; - there is no interface connected to the computer; - there is no communication between interface and computer. The communication error dialog has three or four buttons. Abort - The Activity/Result will not open. Retry Coach tries to activate the interface again. Ignore The Activity/Result opens and the interface will be inactive (i.e. measurement and control are not possible). No values and states are shown on sensor and actuator icons. Select Other (This button is not always available). A list of alternative interface panels for this Activity/Result opens. Select the interface panel which is connected to your computer. Check whether the name of the connected interface corresponds with the name of the panel Coach tries to initialize. - If the name of the connected interface does not correspond to the name of the panel, press the button Select Other (if available). If the button Select Other is missing (i.e. no alternative interface panels have been defined by the Author of the Activity) press Ignore. Change the panel inside an Activity. - If the name of the connected interface corresponds to the name of the panel, there may be a communication problem. Reset the interface and press Retry. If the communication is still not restored check the driver settings of the interface (e.g. is the right COM port or parallel port selected?). The communication between the interface may be lost also during working in an Activity e.g. when the sensor values do not change at all for a longer period of time (normally, the sensor values fluctuate a little bit because of noise, unless the number of decimals is set to low values) or if nothing happens when you press the green Start button. In such situation the interface panel has to be reset. 41

42 To reset the panel Right click the panel and select Reset Hardware. If this does not help, first hard reset the interface (for CoachLab II/II +, disconnect and reconnect the power supply) and the try Reset Hardware again. If this does not help, close and open the Activity again. It is also possible to change an interface panel used in an Activity by selecting an alternative panel or change the panel in the Activity options. To select an alternative panel Right click the panel and select Alternative Panel. If this option is not available, alternative panels have not been set by the Author of this Activity. Select a panel from the menu list. The list of alternative panels is limited to the installed panels. - It may be that the new panel does not support all sensors or actuators, which are predefined in the Activity. Coach Figure 35. Selecting an Alternative panel. will announce this and upon confirmation will remove not supported sensor icons and/or actuator icons from their palette. To change a panel Go to menu option Options > Activity Options. Select another panel from the dropdown list. The connected sensor and actuator icons will be re-connected automatically to their equivalent position on the new panel provided they are supported by the new panel. Figure 36. Select another panel in the Activity options. - Changing the panel may have serious implications for the existing results. It is recommended to save your results prior to changing the panel. - Selecting No panel option is useful only when you want to change the Activity type to Modeling or Data Video. 42

43 4. Sensors 4.1. Sensor icons A sensor icon is a small picture representing a sensor. Information about a sensor is displayed in the yellow tool tip when the mouse cursor is placed over the sensor icon. The tool tip displays the sensor s name, article number, brand and the measurement range e.g. Temperature sensor (016) (CMA) ( C). In an Activity sensor icons can be located on the sensor palette or on panel inputs. If a sensor icon on the panel can not be moved to a different input or to the sensor palette, it may be locked or detected (orange icons). If this is the case, the mouse cursor stays an arrow when moved over the icon. Detected sensor icons are used for sensors automatically recognized by an interface for example by CMA ULAB or CoachLab II +. If the icon can be moved, the mouse cursor turns into a hand. When the user tries to replace a detected sensor icon by dragging a sensor icon from the palette then the question Replace the currently connected sensor? appears. Clicking Yes replaces the detected sensor icon by the normal sensor icon. The operations below cannot be performed in all user modes. Figure 37. Sensor icons on the sensor palette. To place a sensor icon on the panel Drag an icon from the sensor palette to an input of the panel. Make sure your real sensor is connected to the same input of the interface as its icon is on the panel. When the sensor icon jumps away, that sensor cannot be connected to the particular input of the panel. To replace a sensor icon on the panel Drag an icon from the sensor palette to an input with an icon. Coach will replace the existing sensor icon with the new one. Diagrams, tables, meters and values are automatically adapted. To move a sensor icon the panel Drag the sensor icon on the panel to another input. Diagrams, tables, meters and values are automatically adapted. Note: On CMA CoachLab II/II + and ULAB it is not possible to move a counter icon from one input to another. To place a counter on another input, first place it back on the sensor palette (this happens automatically when you try to move it), then place it on the new input. To remove a sensor icon from the panel Remove a sensor icon by dragging it away from the panel. Then release the mouse. Coach automatically places the icon neatly back in its palette position Voltmeter and counter icons There are two sensor icon types which do not correspond to real sensors: Voltmeter and Counter icons. 43

44 The Voltmeter icons measure any voltage on a panel input. These icons simply display the voltage (un-calibrated signal) of any connected sensor to the input. There are icons with two ranges: 0.. 5V and V. Note: When using CMA Adapter 0519, only voltages between 0 and 5 V can be measured. The Counter icons count the signal from any connected sensor to the input. A counter can be reset to zero with a little '0'-button on its icon. In order to count a signal, the sensor should generate an oscillatory signal or pulses. Usually the pulses are counted incrementally, however with a small option in the measurement settings the number of pulses in each individual interval can also be obtained by means of a Delta formula. The resulting counts per interval can be converted to a frequency by means of the formula 1/n. For some interfaces it is possible to define when a signal will be regarded as a pulse. To specify threshold settings Right click a counter icon on the panel and select Set Threshold. Enter the Threshold value. This is the value the signal has to pass to be counted. Select the direction Up, Down or Both. This is the direction which the signal should pass to be counted as a pulse. The total range of the sensor is displayed. Click OK to confirm. With CoachLab II/II + and ULAB interfaces it is possible to define an analog sensor as a counter. In order to count a signal, the sensor should generate pulses (an oscillating signal). The counter input is monitored at 10 khz (i.e. it is not possible to measure higher frequencies than 10 khz with a counter) Using a sensor as counter, 1-bit digital sensor, frequency or time-interval meter (starting from version 6.3) With the CoachLab II/II +, Lab and ULAB interfaces it is possible to convert a sensor on an analog input of the Panel to function as a counter, a 1-bit digital meter, a frequency meter or a time-interval meter. You can convert a sensor icon on the panel via its Tool menu. Both detected sensors and sensor icons from the library can be converted. Converted sensor icons can be recognized: their interior is colored lilac (its border color still indicates if it is selected from the library (green) or detected (orange)). Moreover, the counter, frequency meter and time-interval meter have a set-to-zero button, while the 1-bit digital sensor displays a state name for each of its two states. Also the tooltip description of the sensor icon has a suffix as counter, as frequency meter etc. The input is internally monitored at 10 khz which puts a limit on the maximum frequency (5 khz) or count rate (5000 counts/s). Such converted sensors can be a. o. very useful as pulse source for Event-based measurements (see & 6.2. Event-based measurement). 44 Figure 38. Set Threshold of a counter. Figure 39. Use as option in the tool menu of a sensor icon on the panel.

45 Use as Counter In order to count a signal, the sensor should generate pulses (an oscillating signal). Each time the threshold value is passed in the indicated direction, the counter value is increased by 1. It is also possible to select direction both. Then 2 pulses will be detected each period: when the signal passes the threshold upwards and when it passes the threshold downwards. To use an analog sensor as a counter Right click a sensor icon on the panel and mark Use as > Counter. Enter the Conversion settings. Enter the Threshold value in calibrated units. This is the value the signal has to pass to be counted. The total range of the sensor is displayed. Select the direction Up, Down or Both. This is the direction which the signal should pass to be counted as a pulse. In the Counter setup section enter the properties for this Figure 40. Defining an analog sensor as a counter. counter: the Maximum number of expected pulses (defines the vertical axis in a diagram), the Quantity, the Unit and the number of Decimals. In this section also the signal of the counter can be calibrated quickly. To shift the zero point of the counter mark the Shift option and specify the shift value. To make this calibration cyclic mark the Periodic option (e.g. when rotation is measured) and specify the period value. Click OK to confirm. Use as Digital sensor (1 bit) A 1-bit digital sensor only assumes two values: 0 and 1. The threshold value distinguishes between these states. If the analog values are above the threshold, the 1-bit digital sensor has the value 1 (state On ), if the values are below the threshold, the 1-bit digital sensor will have the value 0 (state Off ). The names of the states are also displayed, and the names can be edited. This can be useful for measurements with a photogate. The sensor simply displays when an object is between the photogate and when it is not. It is also useful in combination with control programs. To use an analog sensor as a digital sensor (1-bit) Right click a sensor icon on the panel and mark Use as > 1- bit digital sensor. Enter the Conversion settings. Enter the Threshold value in calibrated units. This is the value the signal has to pass to flip into its other state. The total range of the sensor is displayed. In the Sensor definition section, enter the properties for the 1-bit digital sensor: the Quantity and the strings for the state names. Click OK to confirm. Figure 41. Defining an analog sensor as a 1-bit digital sensor. 45

46 Use as Frequency meter In order to measure the frequency of a signal, the sensor should generate pulses (an oscillating signal). As of the limit of 10 khz it is theoretically not possible to measure frequencies higher than 5000 Hz, but in practice this value may be as low as 3000 Hz. To use an analog sensor as a Frequency meter Right click a sensor icon on the panel and mark Use as > Frequency meter. Enter the Conversion settings. Enter the Threshold value in calibrated units. This is the value the signal has to pass to flip into its other state. The total range of the sensor is displayed. In the Sensor definition section, enter the properties for the frequency sensor: the Minimum, Maximum, Quantity and Unit and the number of Decimals. Click OK to confirm. Figure 42. Defining an analog sensor as a frequency meter. Use as Time-interval meter A period meter is used to measure time intervals. All kinds of time intervals can be measured a. o. start-stop measurement, timing how long a light gate is covered, or how long it is open or both and measuring periods in periodic signals. For CoachLab II+ five different time interval types, and three for the other interfaces which support sensor conversion. To use an analog sensor as a Time-interval meter Right click a sensor icon on the panel and mark Use as > Time-interval meter. Enter the Conversion settings. Enter the Threshold value in calibrated units. This is the value the signal has to pass to flip into its other state. The total range of the sensor is displayed. Select the Interval type. There are five different interval types indicated by names and pictures in the drop-down list, but not all types are available for all interfaces. CoachLab II+ supports all five types. If less types are supported, then only these are shown. The types are: - T Up: time intervals between successive up flanks are measured. - T Down: time intervals between successive down flanks are measured. - High: the periods the signal is high are measured. - Low: the periods the signal is low are measured. - High & Low: both the time intervals that the signal is high and low are measured alternately. In the Sensor definition section, enter the properties for the Time-interval meter: the Minimum, Maximum, Quantity, Unit and Number of Decimals. 46 Figure 43. Defining an analog sensor as a Time-interval meter. Figure 44. The five possible time interval types for a time-interval meter. Which types are available depends on the interface.

47 Click OK to confirm. Notes: - The number of allowed converted sensors depends on the hardware. Lab and CoachLab II + support 2 converted sensors, while ULAB supports up to 4. If you want to define another sensor as counter while the maximum number of converted sensors is in use, first reset one to analog sensor (see next point). - To stop using an analog sensor as a converted sensor right click the converted sensor icon and mark the option Use as > Analog The sensor palette The sensor icons can be added to the sensor palette by selecting them from Coach Libraries or by defining new sensors. A sensor icon is available only in one sensor palette position: if you need more icons of the same sensor, these will be stacked in the same position. To add/remove sensor icons to the sensor palette Right click an empty location in the sensor palette and select Select from Library (change between CMA Library or User Library if necessary and possible). Choose a sensor from the list. If desired change the Number of icons. Click OK. The sensor icon is placed on the sensor palette. To increase the number of icons of the same sensor right click a sensor icon on the sensor palette and select Add. Type the number and click OK. To replace a sensor icon by an alternative sensor right click a sensor icon and select Alternative Sensor. A list opens with sensors of the same family. Select the desired alternative sensor. Coach will replace the sensor by the alternative and automatically adapt diagrams and tables. To remove a sensor icon(s) from the sensor palette right click a sensor icon and select Delete One to delete a single icon, or Delete All to delete all icons of this type (also the icons placed on the panel will be removed, including existing data). To define a new sensor icon Right click an empty location on the sensor palette and select Create New. Specify the sensor properties. Sensor icons are defined locally in the Activity or in the CMA Sensor Libraries. To make the new defined sensors available to all users of the Coach system these new sensors should be stored in the User Library Sensor properties Sensor properties consist of all information regarding a sensor and its icon. To open sensor properties Right click a sensor icon and select Edit Properties. Or Right click an empty position in the sensor palette and select Create New. The Sensor Properties dialog displays the following information: Name Gives the full name of the sensor. For self-defined sensors enter a new name in the Name field, which appears after selecting from the drop-down list Self-defined sensor. 47

48 Brand (Advanced) The brand of a sensor like CMA or Self-made. There may be several temperature sensors of different brands. Make sure you select the icon that exactly corresponds to the sensors you use. Note: The list of sensors can be sorted alphabetically on sensor name or on sensor brand. Short name When the sensor is on the sensor palette then the short name of the sensor is displayed on the icon. When a sensor icon is placed on the Figure 45. The Sensor Properties dialog. panel, the (current) signal value is Note that the Signal type section is inactive when this dialog is displayed on the icon, while the invoked via a sensor icon on the panel. sensor's short name marks its (empty) position in the palette. Icon The picture which is used on the sensor icon. The Scaling and display options Min, Max, Quantity, Unit, Decimals defines the sensor icon's scale settings and are used when the sensor's signal is displayed in a diagram. The Calibration section defines the relation between the voltage values produced by a sensor (or the values of a counter) and the values of the physical quantity measured. With this relation, Coach is able to display the measurement data in the right quantity and unit. None: Linear: Shift calibration: The sensor's signal is not calibrated and displayed as voltage signal. The calibration curve is determined by two calibration points (X 0, Y 0 ) and (X 1, Y 1 ) (see & 5.1 Simple linear calibration). If the value of the calibrated sensor is too high or too low, you can shift the calibration line through a third point (often it is a zero point of the measured value). After selecting the Shift the calibration through option Coach defines the coordinates of the additional calibration point (X, Y). The form of the calibration graph stays the same but it is forced through this third point. By default Coach sets the actual sensor voltage value (or the counter value) as the X coordinate and the zero value of the quantity measured as Y coordinate of the third calibration point. If the range of the sensor changes quite a bit, it may be necessary to adapt its minimum and maximum values. The option Shift the calibration can be used e.g. to - quickly reset the equilibrium force of a mass on a spring connected to a force sensor to zero. Then forces with respect to the equilibrium position can be measured. 48

49 - set the reading of a temperature sensor to zero at room temperature. Then temperature differences can be measured. - change the calibration of a position sensor from to (more useful for a pendulum). A fast way to shift the calibration through the zero point is to set the reading of the sensor to zero by right clicking a sensor icon on the panel and selecting Set to Zero. Select Reset Calibration when you want to remove the shifting. To perform linear calibration 1. Right click a sensor icon and select Edit Properties. 2. In the Calibration section select Linear. 3. When the icon of the sensor to be calibrated is connected to the active panel then the digital voltmeter appears on the right side of the dialog. This voltmeter continuously displays the actual sensor voltage or counter value. 4. Enter the coordinates of two calibration points: X 0 is the voltage (or counter value) corresponding to the quantity value Y 0. X 1 is the voltage (or counter value) corresponding to the quantity value Y A linear best fit (straight line) through the calibration points is calculated by the Leastsquares method. The calibration becomes more accurate when the calibration points are farther apart from each other. 6. Click OK to finish calibration process and start using the calibration. 5. The measurement settings In the Measurement Settings dialog you can specify how Coach will measure. To open the Measurement Settings dialog Click the Measurement Settings button. Select the measurement type: Time-based, Event-based or Manual. It depends on the chosen measurement type and on the user mode you are working in which tabs and which options are available. Specify the settings. See detailed description below Time-based measurement In this mode, measurements are taken at regular time intervals (time is the independent variable; the measured quantities are the dependent variables). Most measurements are of this type. Use this measurement type also to do automated counter intervals. To specify settings for a time-based measurement 1. In the tab Method: Enter the Measuring time, type in the duration of the measurement and select the unit from the drop-down list (default 10 s). Enter the frequency of the measurement. Type in the sampling rate and select the unit from the drop-down list (default 50 per s). 49

50 The Number of samples is automatically calculated from the settings of the fields above. It is also possible to enter the desired number of measurements. In this case the measuring time will be adapted. Note: The actual measured number of samples is usually the shown number plus 1, because of the measurement at time t=0. A message Trigger is disabled/enabled shows if triggering is enabled. If a counter is connected to the panel, the More button reveals a pane with the Reset counter to zero each sample interval option. If this option is checked, the counter will be reset each sample time interval (specified by the frequency). This option (default off) is not available for off-line measurements. 2. If you want to trigger the measurement click the Triggering tab and mark the Enable triggering option. The trigger settings options become active. With these settings you can specify a signal condition from which the computer automatically starts a measurement. Select the Trigger channel. This channel will be checked for the trigger conditions. Coach automatically selects the lowest channel to which a sensor icon is connected. Enter the Trigger level. When the signal passes this level the measurement is triggered. The sensor range is displayed behind the field. Select the Direction in which the signal should pass the trigger level to trigger the measurement. Choices are Up (passing the level from smaller values to larger values); Down (passing the level from larger values to smaller values) or Both (both directions will trigger the measurement). The trigger conditions are indicated by a solid up or down arrow displayed on the diagram axis of the trigger channel. In case the direction is both, a double-pointed arrow arrow at the indicated level. Specify Pre-trigger time. This is the time interval for which data is shown prior to the trigger moment. The range is displayed behind the field. 3. If you want to repeat your measurement click the Advanced tab and mark the Repeat option. This tab is not available for off-line measurements. Figure 46. The Method tab of time-based measurement. Figure 47. The Triggering tab of time-based measurement. will be displayed at the trigger level with the middle of the Figure 48. The Advanced tab of time-based measurement. 50

51 Select Total number of runs and enter how many times the measurement should be repeated or select Continuously if the measurement will be continued until the red Stop button will be used. Select the Delay option if you want to specify a delay time between the repeat cycles. After each measurement run, Coach waits the delay time before starting a new measurement run. With this setting it is possible to measure 10 minutes each hour (delay = 50 minutes). Notes: - The maximum number of points in Coach 6 is 500, When a repeat is used, the resulting dataset is not entirely equidistant in time as it is computer dependent how long it takes to process the resending of the measurement settings to the interface. Examples of time-based measurements - Measure 100 values during 10 seconds (i.e. a sample frequency of 10 Hz) from a temperature sensor. - Measure 1 hour with a sample frequency of 100 Hz. - Measure 0.2 seconds with a sample frequency of 40,000Hz. Examples when to use trigger settings - The phenomenon you wish to measure lasts very short. - You wish to measure someone's reaction time. Then the computer should start measuring unbiased at for instance at a sound or light signal. - Comparing different runs of an experiment and keeping the start conditions the same. E.g. when measuring the motion of a pendulum with different masses: via trigger settings all runs will start at the same point of the pendulums motion thus making comparing the influence of the mass on the pendulum's motion more easy. Or cooling down hot water, without and with isolation. To compare the runs genuinely, they should start at the same temperature. - When you want to start a measurement under specific conditions (e.g. when it becomes dark) and you are not able to be near the computer at that moment. Examples when to use the pre-trigger time - Some signals can not be triggered at their zero level. For instance it is useless to trigger a sound at a sound level of zero, as every sound will trigger the measurement, or a voltmeter at zero as the noise will trigger the measurement. In these cases use a higher trigger level. However, if you are interested in the behavior of the signal from its zero level (which lies in the past of the trigger moment), you can make it visible via the pre-trigger-time option. - The falling magnet experiment also makes use of the pre-trigger time. The generated voltage curve depends on which pole of the magnet falls first through the coil. The pre-trigger time reduces the chance of a half visible graph (so you do not have to remember which pole of the magnet has to fall first). The total measuring time should be about twice the falling time of the magnet through the coil. Examples of time-based measurements using converted sensors - Measure 1 hour the number of counts in 1 minute intervals (counter, duration = 1 hour; measurement frequency = 60 per hour). 51

52 - Measuring frequency. Use a sound sensor converted to frequency meter. Set the measurement frequency (much) lower than the frequencies to be measured. In this way e.g. the Doppler effect can be measured. - Measure frequency of light sources or tuning forks (for this it is not always necessary to really do a measurement; standby mode can be used, to read the frequencies as they usually are constant). But with a time-based measurement it is possible to directly measure e.g. frequency sweeps (Doppler effect), or different tones of a recorder or other musical instrument. - The 1-bit digital conversion can be useful a. o. in time-based measurement with a program Event-based measurement Event-based measurement is a method where measurements are taken each time an event (pulse) is received on a counter input. The pulse is the independent variable, the time and other measured quantities are the dependent variables. Event-based measurements require an interface with a counter input. When a panel without counter possibilities is used, it is impossible to select event-based measurements. To specify settings for an event-based measurement 1. In the tab Method: Enter the Number of samples which will be measured. This number also determines when an event-based measurement stops. Select the Event source - the channel which delivers the pulses. By default the lowest channel is chosen which has a counter connected to it. If no counter is connected then the lowest channel which has an analog sensor connected is chosen. The Threshold option is only active if the event source is an analog channel; the default threshold is 50% of the calibrated Figure 49. The tab Method for event-based measurement. scale. If the source is already an analog sensor as counter or a digital sensor then the threshold and direction will be displayed in these (inactive) fields. The sensor s unit and range is displayed behind this field. If Direction=Both, then up and down flanks are taken alternatively, which, in case of a falling drop through a light gate, would lead to two pulses per drop instead of one. The default values depend on the type of event source. In case of: - an analog sensor: a default threshold is taken at half of the full scale and direction is up. - an analog sensor defined as a counter: the threshold and direction fields will display the values from the use-as-a-counter sub-menu. It is no longer possible to restore the sensor as it is the event-source channel. - a digital sensor, the default threshold is set at the state which approximates 50% of the state values and direction is up. 2. The More button reveals a pane with the following advanced options: 52

53 When t=0 at first event is then t = 0 is assigned to the first pulse. Otherwise, time starts running when the Start button is pressed, regardless of the detection of a pulse. When Stop measurement after is checked then not only the number of events, but also the duration of the measurement serves as a stop condition. Besides, this value is also taken as the length of the time axis. If the option is off, a default time-axis of 10 s is used. The Use every option is designed for the case too many pulses are generated. E.g. if the user selects Measure only every 5 th event, then only out of every five events results in a measurement. 3. If you want to repeat your measurement click the Advanced tab and mark the Repeat option. This tab is not available for off-line measurements. Select Total number of runs and enter how many times the measurement should be repeated or select Continuously if the measurement will be continued until the red Stop button will be used. Figure 50. The Advanced tab of event-based measurement. Select the Delay option if you want to specify a delay time between the repeat cycles. After each measurement run, Coach waits the delay time before starting a new measurement run. Examples of event-based measurements - Titration: the falling droplets generate pulses, the ph is measured (light gate); - Smart pulley: the spokes of the wheel generate pulses, the distance and/or time is measured (light gate); - Measurements of radioactive decay. The decay events generate pulses, the time is measured (GM sensor); - Measure when a rabbit visits its manger. The rabbit (which must walk through a light gate to reach its manger) generates pulses, the time is measured (light gate); - Physiology. Measure the heart rate per minute. The heart beat generates pulses, the time is measured (heart-beat sensor); - Stroboscopic light. Each light flash generates a pulse; the time is measured (light sensor). Examples of event-based measurements using converted sensors - Measuring time intervals of a falling ladder with equidistant holes. Use a light sensor converted to period meter. Adjust the threshold to a suitable value and set the interval type to T up or T down (depending on the threshold settings of the sensor). Set the number of points to the number of holes in the ladder. - Measuring the speed of a cart on a track (or a rebounding cart). Mount a rectangular piece of cardboard on the cart. Use a light sensor converted to period meter to measure the passage time of the cardboard. Select the desired Interval type (e.g. Low). Set the number of points, or stop the measurement by pressing the red stop button. - Time intervals can also be measured by a sensor converted to 1-bit digital in combination with the Time interval connection in a table column. 53

54 - Calculate the heart frequency by directly measuring the time interval between the heartbeats and converting them via a reciprocal formula (1/x) to a frequency Manual measurement Manual measurement includes the following type of measurements: 1) Measurement with sensors the sensor readings are taken when the Manual Start button is pressed. 2) Measurement with keyboard input - the values of one or more quantities are typed when the Manual Start button is pressed. 3) Measurements with sensors and keyboard input (combination of 1 and 2) the sensor readings are taken and the values of one or more quantities are typed when the Manual Start button is pressed. 4) Measurement with a counter - pulses can be counted during a certain time interval after Manual Start button is pressed. To specify settings for a manual measurement 1. In the tab Method: Enter the Number of samples which will be measured. This number also determines when a manual measurement stops. When the First point at start button is checked then the press on the Manual Start button will become the first measured point (default=on). If unchecked, no measurement will be taken upon pressing the green button, but only on pressing the Manual measurement button. 2. The More button reveals a pane with the following advanced options: Figure 51. The tab Method for manual measurement. When a counter is used then the With counters option should be checked. Two more options become available. Manual start and stop - both the start and stop of the counting interval is determined by a press on a button. Start by the green Manual Start button and stop by red Manual Stop button. Manual start, stop after a certain time interval - each time the green Manual Start button is pressed, counting is done during the indicated time interval. Enter the time interval and select the time unit. When t=0 at first event is checked then t = 0 is assigned to the first pulse. Otherwise, time starts running when the green button is pressed, regardless of the detection of a pulse. 3. If you want to use the keyboard input during the measurement and create the diagram of all connected to the panel sensors and quantities which values are typed in during the measurement click the Diagram tab and check the Create a diagram of manual data option. This will define the keyboard inputs and create the diagram of all connected to the panel sensors and quantities which values are typed in during the measurement. In the 54

55 created Manual diagram the index is displayed along the horizontal axis and other quantities along the vertical axis. There is only one unique Manual diagram available in the Activity. Select the number of columns (quantities) for the keyboard input (maximal 4). Specify Quantity, Unit and number of Decimals for each Figure 52. The tab Diagram for manual measurement. column. Upon clicking OK, the cursor changes its shape into the small diagram icon and the Manual diagram can be placed in one of panes. Examples of manually triggered measurements with counters - Investigating the relation between radiation level and distance from the radiation source: measuring the number of counts with a GM-sensor during a fixed time interval for different distances to the radiation source. - Measuring the mean background radiation by measuring several series of counts during a fixed time interval. - Measuring half-life time. 6. Measuring Measurement is executed according to the given measurement settings. To execute on-line measurement (time- and event-based) For on-line measurements, an interface has to be connected to the computer during the measurement and data are stored directly in the computer. Click the green Start button or press <F9> to start the measurement process. In most cases, Coach automatically stores the measurement data from the connected sensors according to the specified measurement settings. If triggering is enabled then the measurement is started automatically when the trigger conditions are met. The measurement is stopped when the specified measurement time has been reached. If you want to interrupt the measurements process, click the red Stop button or press <Esc>. To execute manual measurement Click the green Start button or press <F9> to start the measurement process. The green Manual Start button appears in the Activity toolbar. Press this button or press <F8> to collect a single measurement. When a keyboard input is specified then the value of one or more quantities have to be typed in. When a counter is used, pulses can be counted during a certain time interval after a button press. The measurement is stopped when the specified number of samples was collected. If you want to interrupt the measurements 55 Figure 53. Keyboard input for manual measurement.

56 process, click the red Stop button or press <Esc>. To execute off-line measurement For off-line measurements, a datalogger does not have to be connected to the computer during the measurement. The data are stored in the datalogger and have to be transferred to Coach afterwards. In the Activities for off-line measurements the Activity toolbar shows two extra buttons: the Send Settings button and the Get Data button. Click the Send Settings button to send the experiment settings to the datalogger. Now you can disconnect the datalogger from the computer and perform your measurement. When the measurement is finished reconnect the datalogger to the computer. Click the Get Data button to retrieve the experiment data from the datalogger. - Once a measurement is finished, you can replay it by pressing the Replay button. - The combination <Shift> + (<Shift>+<F9>) erases the current measurement run and starts a new one. - The combination <Shift> + erases the current measurement data and loads new data from the datalogger. 7. Replay a measurement After the measurement is completed, it is possible to replay it. The replay can be done in realtime (default), but it is also possible to speed it up or down. The Replay button becomes active after the measurement is finished. The replay of the measurement can be synchronized with a video located in a Video pane. To replay a measurement Click the Replay button available in the Activity toolbar. Set the replay speed (default real-time) or specify the time interval in which the measurement should be replayed. Click the Start button. To replay a measurement synchronized with video Click the yellow Video button and select the desired video. Place the video in one of the panes. Right click the Video pane and mark the Synchronized Replay option. To synchronize the measurement with the selected video clip click the Adjust Synchronization option and specify the time interval between the beginning of the video and the moment of the first measurement sample is collected. Mark the after video starts option if your video starts the given time interval after the measurement is started or mark the before the video starts option if the video starts the given time interval before the measurement. 56 Figure 54. The Start replay dialog. Figure 55. The Adjust synchronization dialog.

57 When the after the video starts option is marked the green marker appears in the frame controller and can be used for adjusting manually the moment of collecting the first measurement sample. Replay the measurement as described above. During the replay the video starts at the position of the blue Begin marker. Note: When the Synchronized Replay option is marked then during scanning in the diagram/table (via the Scan option) Coach shows the corresponding video frames of the Registered video. 57

58 IV. Control 1. Introduction The control environment of Coach is used to use and create programs to control systems, like, for example, an automated temperature control (thermostat) or a robot-arm. The kernel of a control system is a control model with sensors (e.g. a temperature sensor) and actuators (e.g. a motor, fan, or heating element) which are connected to the inputs respectively outputs of the interface. Through the interface, Coach gets information from connected sensors (the temperature) and controls the connected actuators by switching suitable outputs on or off. Actuators can be controlled manually (this is often the first stage in developing an automated control system), or automatically via a control program. A program is a sequence of instructions in Coach Language. With a program: - Coach can perform control tasks automatically (such a program is often called a control program). A control program is often based on sensor values: e.g. if the temperature is too high, switch on the fan; if the temperature is too low, switch off the fan and switch on the heating element, etc. - Coach can control measurements or manipulate measurement data: e.g. convert voltage signals from a sound sensor to decibels (something which cannot be done via a calibration), or create beeps at random to which the user must react as quickly as possible by pressing a button. A program can be developed in various ways (also depending on the user mode): with programming buttons; by selecting commands from the command list. This can be a pre-defined command list (made specifically for a certain control model), called a Micro-world, or via the full Coach Language command list with all possible commands for the used interface. In more advanced user modes, the command list can be extended with own commands made by the user. by freely typing commands from Coach Language in the Editor area. 2. Actuators The Panel window is described in details in the section III. Measurement Actuator icons An actuator icon is a small picture representing a sensor. Information about an actuator icon is displayed in the yellow tool tip when the mouse cursor is placed over the actuator icon. The tool tip displays the actuator s name, brand and the number of bits the actuator uses (i.e. a measure for the number of different states the actuator can have). Example: Lamp (12V) (062) (CMA) (1). In an Activity actuator icons can be located on the actuator palette or on panel outputs. If an actuator icon on the panel can not be moved to a different output or to the sensor palette, it may be locked. If this is the case, the mouse cursor stays an arrow when moved over the icon. If the Figure 56. Actuator icons on the actuator palette. 58

59 icon can be moved, the mouse cursor turns into a hand. The operations below cannot be performed in all user modes. To place an actuator icon on the panel Drag the icon from the actuator palette to an output of the panel. When the actuator icon jumps away, the actuator cannot be connected to the particular output. Make sure your real actuator is connected to the same input of the interface as its icon is on the panel. To replace an actuator icon on the panel Drag an icon from the actuator palette to an output with an icon. Coach will replace the existing actuator icon with the new one. Diagrams, tables and values are automatically adapted. To move an actuator icon on the panel Drag the actuator icon to another output. Diagrams, tables and values are automatically adapted. To remove an actuator icon from the panel Remove an actuator icon by dragging it from the panel. Coach automatically places the icon neatly back in its palette position Manual control of actuators With manual control you can turn outputs with connected actuator icons on and off via the panel on the screen. While designing a program, this mode offers a convenient way to check the effects of certain connections and actions. To manually control an actuator Click the LED next to any output to toggle between on or off. If you drag the mouse away from the LED while switching the output on, the output remains on until you click it again. The LED indicates the state of the output: e.g. on or off. Note: In case of a 2-bit actuator (with 4 states) on an interface which supports 2-bit actuators (e.g. CoachLab II/II + ), the LEDs indicate up to four states of the output by means of different colors (e.g. off, green, orange, red). For the CoachLab II/II + interface it is also possible to set the output power of the connected actuator (e.g. to adjust the speed of a motor or the brightness of a bulb). To control an actuator power Click arrows at the right side of the actuator icon to increase or decrease the power. The height of the red bar indicates the level of the output The actuator palette The actuator icons can be added to the actuator palette by selecting them from Coach Libraries or by defining new actuators. An actuator icon is available only in one actuator palette position: if you need more icons of the same sensor, these will be stacked in the same position. To add/remove sensor icons to the sensor palette Right click an empty location in the actuator palette and select Select from Library (change between CMA Library or User Library if necessary and possible). 59

60 Choose an actuator from the list. If desired change the Number of icons. Click OK. The actuator icon is placed on the actuator palette. To increase the number of icons of the same actuator right click an actuator icon on the actuator palette and select Add. Type the number and click OK. To replace an actuator icon by an alternative actuator right click an actuator icon and select Alternative Actuators. A list opens with actuators of the same family. Select the desired alternative actuator. Coach will replace the actuator by the alternative and automatically adapt diagrams and tables. To remove an actuator icon(s) from the actuator palette right click an actuator icon and select Delete One to delete a single icon, or Delete All to delete all icons of this type (also the icons placed on the panel will be removed, including existing data). To define a new sensor icon Right click an empty location on the sensor palette and select Create New. Specify the sensor properties Actuator properties The Actuator Properties dialog displays all information regarding an actuator icon in Coach. This dialog does not always show all its sections (depending on the user mode). To open the Actuator properties dialog Right click an actuator icon and select Edit Properties, or Right click an empty position in the actuator palette and select Create New. Name Gives the full name of the sensor. For self-defined sensors enter a new name in the Name field, which appears after selecting from the drop-down list Selfdefined sensor. Brand The brand of an actuator like CMA, Generic or Self-made. The list of actuators can be sorted alphabetically on actuator Name or on actuator Brand. Short Name When the actuator is on the Figure 57. The Actuator Properties dialog. actuator palette then the short name of the actuator is displayed on the icon. When an actuator icon is placed on the panel, the specified text is displayed on the icon, while the actuator's short name marks its (empty) position in the palette. 60

61 Icon The picture which is used on the actuator icon. Note: The outputs of CoachLab II/II + do not have any power when no actuator icon is connected. The Display section defines the actuator icon's display. By using the Edit button the display text of each actuator state can be edited. - Select the state. - Press the Edit button to enter the text for the state. Example for a motor (2 bit): State = 0, Text = Off State = 1, Text = Left State = 2, Text = Right State = 3, Text = Off (not used) 3. The Program window The Program window is the place for creating programs. Click the Program Window button to open the Program window. Click this icon again to close the window. The Program window can consists up to three areas: - the Programming Buttons area, where programming buttons are located, - the Program Editor area, where the lines of the program appear, - the Command List area, with the list of programming commands. In most cases only one or two areas of the Program window are available, depending on the choices of the Author of the Activity. Programming Buttons Program Editor area Command List Figure 58. The Program window. 61

62 4. Creating programs 4.1. Creating programs via buttons Programming buttons are buttons with pre-defined actions. The button s action is explained in a yellow tool tip which appears when pointing the mouse cursor over the button. Often also the picture on the button gives an idea about its action. With the programming buttons a model connected to an interface can be manually controlled. By clicking the buttons, certain actions are performed (e.g. a motor turns the given number of steps to the right) and Coach writes a program in the background. This program can be visible in the Program Editor area but it does not have to. By executing the program, via pressing the Start button, Coach repeats the recorded actions. Figure 59. The programming buttons. To create a program via the programming buttons Use the programming buttons in the Program window to control the control model: - Some buttons require only a simple mouse click, like Stop. - Other buttons, like Turn-left, must be pressed for a while, because the computer needs to measure also how long the button was pressed. When you are ready, click the green Start button and the computer will repeat your recorded actions. If you are not satisfied with the result, you can erase it (even when the program itself is not visible) by right clicking the Program window and selecting Erase Program from the menu Creating programs via commands The command list contains a series of programming commands. It can contain only a few pre-defined commands (micro-world) tuned to a particular control model or a complete list with Coach Language commands. Programming via commands helps to write correct programs. To create a program via the commands In the Program window click a command from the command list at the right side. If a new list appears the command is not yet finished: - Select an additional command (e.g. an output). - Repeat this step until the command is finished. - Click -BACK-, or press <Esc> in the command list if you want to return to the previous step (without making a selection). Figure 60. The limited command list. - Some lists may be used to enter several items (e.g. several outputs). These lists have a command Ready. Click Ready when you are finished selecting from this list. If an number entry box appears the command needs a value: - Type the value (e.g. a number of seconds) and press <Enter>. - If you want to return to the previous step, first press <Esc>, and then click -BACK-, or press <Esc> once more. The command is placed in the program. Coach indents the commands automatically according to general program conventions. If the indentation is lost due to program editing, 62

63 click a program line, and press <Tab> or <Shift>+<Tab> to restore the right indentation yourself Advanced programming Experienced users can program freely by choosing commands from the complete command list of Coach Language or by typing commands directly in the Program Editor (Senior students only). In the last case, Coach does not guide you any longer in writing commands correctly (according to the syntax of Coach-Language), until the program is executed. Then Coach will show an error message and place the cursor at the point where the error is Creating own commands Users can create their own commands and add them to the command list. These commands are created from the commands available in the command list (including other own commands) and are indicated with a blue color. To create an own command Figure 61. The Coach 1. To create your own command and insert it at a specific position in the Language commands. command list: Right click the command in the command list after which your own command should appear and select Insert (after). In the Add new Main-menu Item dialog, select New Command. Type the name of the new command To create your own command and insert it at the end of the command list: Right click the Program window and select Own Commands In the Own Commands window click the New Command button. Enter a name of the new command 1 and click OK. The own-command editor opens. It has a grey background to indicate that you are creating/editing an own command. The commands appear in red. Create your own command by selecting commands from the list. When you are ready, right click in the program area. Select Back to Main Program to return to the Program window. The created own command appears in blue. Figure 62. The Own-Command editor. To edit an own command Right click the own command in the command list and select Edit Own Command. Or: Right click the Program window and select Own Commands. Select a command from the list and click Edit. 5 It is not allowed to use spaces and reserved words of Coach Language 63

64 Modify the commands. Use the same procedure as editing a program. When you are ready, right click the program area and select Back to Main Program. To delete an own command Right click the own command in the command list and select Delete Own Command. Or: Right click the Program window and select Own Commands. Select a command from the list and click Delete. Note: It is not possible to delete an own command while it is used in the main program. First clear the lines in where the own command appears (by selecting the line and pressing <Del>) or erase the main program. To rename an own command Right click the own command in the command list and select Rename Own Command. Type the new name and press OK. Or: Right click the Program window and select Own Commands. Select a command from the list and click Rename. To print an own command Right click the Program window and select Own Commands Select the command and click Edit. Again right click the Program window and select Print Own Command. To insert an own command in the command list An own command can appear more than once in the command list. 1) In case of an existing command: Right click the command list and select Insert (after). Check Command Exists Already and select an own command from the drop-down list. 2) In case of a new own command: Right click the command list and select Insert (after). Check New Command and enter the name. Create your own command by selecting commands from the list, like described above. When you are ready, right click in the editor of the Program window and select Back to Main Program. 5. Editing a program In Junior user modes, editing a program can be done only by whole lines at once. In Senior student mode, it is also possible to type commands directly in the Program editor. To insert an empty line Click the line above which you need an empty line and press <Ins>. An empty line will be inserted. You can select a new command. To replace a line Click the line and press <Enter>. The command on the line is removed. 64

65 Select a new command. To delete a selection Make a selection (in some user modes whole lines only) and press <Del>. To move a selection of program lines Make a selection (in some user modes whole lines only). Right click the selection and select Text Edit > Cut (or press <Ctrl>+<X>). Right click the line above which you want to paste the cut lines and select Text Edit > Paste (or press <Ctrl>+<V>). To copy a selection of program lines Make a selection (in some user modes whole lines only). Right click the selection and select Text Edit > Copy (or press <Ctrl>+<C>). Right click the line above which you want to paste the copied lines and select Text Edit > Paste (or press <Ctrl>+<V>). To copy the whole program to the clipboard Right click the program and select Clipboard Copy. Use the Paste command in another Windows application (e.g. a word processor) to paste the text of the program. To erase the whole program Right click the program and select Erase Main Program. Notes: - Press <Tab> or <Shift>+<Tab> to restore the right indentation of the program commands. - With <Ctrl>+<Z> (or Text Edit > Undo) you can undo (and redo) the last change. - With <Ctrl>+<A> you select the whole Program. To import a program from another Coach Activity/Result Right click in the editor area of the Program window and select Import program. Or: Click File > Import Program and select an Activity or Result and click OK. Note: The current program and its Command list are overwritten by the new one. So save your work before importing a program in this way, or your work will be lost. To print a program Right click the editor area of the Program window. Select Print Main Program. 6. Executing a program When a program exists, you can execute it. That means that the computer carries out all instructions in the program. This can be done slow in the Monitor mode or fast. 65

66 To execute a program in the Monitor mode Mark the Monitor option in the Tool menu of the Program window (default this option is on). Click the green Start button to start program execution. The Monitor window opens. In this window the execution of programs can be followed line-by-line. Adjust the execution speed with the slider (this can be done also during execution). With the 1-button in the Monitor bar you Figure 63. Executing a program in the Monitor mode. can execute a single line of the program window to carefully monitor what the commands of the program are doing. Click the green Start button in the Monitor bar to start line-by-line program execution. Click the red Stop button in the Activity toolbar or keep <Esc> pressed to interrupt program execution. To execute a program fast Turn the option Monitor off. Click the green Start button to start program execution. The program is executed in the background and the Program window is not visible. This is a lot faster than execution in the Monitor. Click the red Stop button or keep <Esc> pressed to interrupt program execution. 66

67 V. Data Processing and Analysis 1. Introduction The data collected in measurements can be further processed with the help of data processing tools. These tools are closely connected to the Diagram and Table panes. The Process/Analyze options work all in a similar way. After selecting an option an extensive dialog that includes the diagram is shown. Below the diagram the parameters can be specified. The Column option appears in all dialogs. This option is used to switch between vertical quantities (graphs) if the diagram contains several quantities. The selected graph is shown; invisible data ranges can not be selected. The Tool menus of the dialogs consist of three options: - Print to pint the dialog - Copy to Clipboard <Ctrl>+<C> - to copy the dialog to the clipboard - Help to get help on a Topic. Figure 64. The Process/ Analyze options. 2. Select/Remove data With the option Select/Remove Data either a range of data or single points can be selected for removal (or retention) from the diagram. The selected points/rows will be removed from all diagrams/tables in the Activity. In the Select/Remove Data dialog, the selected graph is blue and zoomed-to-fit. The other visible graphs in the diagram (if any) are gray. The boundary lines of the selected range and the selected points are dark red. The following specific options are available: Selection method For selecting either Range (default) or Point-by-point method. Data Fields When Selection method is set to Range, the fields display the begin point and the end point of the selected interval along the X-axis. You can also type values for the boundary points. When the original diagram was zoomed in, the values are pre-selected corresponding to the boundaries of the zoomed diagram. When Selection method is set to Point-by-point, the fields display the co-ordinates of the horizontal quantity and vertical quantity of the selected point. Figure 65. The Select/Remove Data dialog. 67

68 Keep selected All non-selected points will be removed. Remove selected All selected points will be removed. To select/remove data Select Process/Analyze > Select/Remove Data. Under Column select the graph for which you want to make a selection. Select the selection method. For the Range method: select the range by dragging the boundary lines, or type the boundary values in the Begin and End fields. For the Point-by-point method: select points on the graph by clicking. Use the cursor keys to walk from point to point. Click a selected point to deselect it. Select between Keep selected or Delete selected. Click OK to confirm or Cancel to close the Select/Remove Data dialog without changes. - Via the option Undo (<Ctrl>+<Z>) in the corresponding table it is possible to undo this action. The Undo buffer only stores one action! - Single points can also be removed via the Rows option via the table Tool menu. Note: The rows will be removed from all diagrams and tables in the Activity. 3. Derivative Derivatives are a measure of the rate of change of a quantity. They are used much in science to calculate among others the speed of processes. Use the option Derivative to produce the graph of the first derivative or the second derivative of the original quantity. There are two methods available to determine the graphs of the first and second derivatives numerically: 1. Difference method - using a difference of successive values from C2 divided by the difference of the corresponding values in C1 (differential quotient). Especially when data sets are used with few points (up to 20), e.g. from a manually- triggered measurement or a Data-Video measurement, a boundary effect may become noticeable. 2. Smooth method - first a smoothing spline for the raw data is computed, followed by exact differentiation of the spline function. This method gives in most cases the best results, but is not set as default for two reasons: (i) it needs at least 7 data points and (ii) in case the automatically chosen smoothing factor is not useful enough, a user has to fine-tune the smoothing manually. In the Derivative dialog, the selected graph is blue and zoomed-to-fit. The other visible graphs in the Diagram (if any) are grey. The graph of the derivative is dark red. The following specific options are available in this dialog: Order To select the derivative order. Method To select the method of calculating the graph of the derivative. 68

69 Quantity & Unit These fields suggest the quantity and unit names of the derivative graph. In case the derived quantity or unit has another more usual name, you can enter these. However, quantity names that are already used in the diagram are not allowed. Start Press Start to calculate the graph of the derivative with the specified settings. The graph of the derivative appears in the diagram in dark red with its scale along the second horizontal axis. Add graph The graph of the derivative will be added as a formula (in the first Figure 66. The Derivative dialog; the original ph(time) graph and its derivative. empty data range) to the graphs in the diagram. Both the original graph and its derivative are displayed. New diagram A new diagram will be created with the original data in data ranges C1 and C2 (C2 automatically made invisible), together with the graph of the derivative in C3 (as a formula). After pressing OK, the cursor changes shape (diagram) and the diagram can be placed by clicking in a pane. Or place it later. To calculate a derivative graph Select Process/Analyze > Derivative. Under Column select the graph of which you want to calculate the derivative. Select a derivative order. Select a method of calculating the graph of the derivative. When desired, edit the Quantity and Unit. Click Start to calculate the Derivative graph. Select either Add graph or New diagram. Click OK to confirm or Cancel to close the Derivative dialog without changes. - The derivative is added to the diagram as a formula, which will be evaluated in real time! So on a next measurement run the original data will be measured and its derivative will be calculated and displayed in real time. This is useful for measuring position-time, velocitytime (first derivative) and acceleration-time (second derivative) graphs while actually only the position is measured. - A small (sudden) variation in the original graph can cause a wide variation in the derivative. The minimum and/or maximum scale value of the y-axis may change drastically. Therefore the graph of the derivative is placed along the second horizontal axis and both the original as the derivative are displayed optimally because of the independent scales. 69

70 - A graph of a derivative can also be manually added to a diagram/table with the formula Derivative(Column) or DerivativeSmooth(Column,Factor). A difference quotient, which is an approximation of the derivative, can be added manually as Deltafil(Column)/Delta(time). - A graph of a second derivative can also be manually added to a diagram/table with the formula DerivativeSecond(Column) or DerivativeSecondSmooth(Column,Factor). 4. Slope Use the Slope option to manually determine the slope of the tangent at any point of a displayed graph. In the Slope dialog, the selected graph is blue and zoomed-to-fit. The other visible graphs in the diagram (if any) are grey. The cross hairs for point selection and the tangent line are dark red. At the bottom of the dialog, help about the next action is displayed. The following specific options are available in this dialog: Data fields These fields display the co-ordinates of the selected point. Slope The actual value of the slope of the tangent drawn in the diagram. This field only appears after a point has been selected. Figure 67. Determining a slope. To determine a slope Select Process/Analyze > Slope to open the Slope dialog. Under Column select the graph in which you want to determine a slope. The diagram in the dialog is in scan mode. The co-ordinates of the scanned point, indicated by the dark red cross-hairs, are displayed in the fields below the graph. Click the point in which you want to determine the slope. A line appears in the diagram. Press <Ctrl> and drag the mouse horizontally to rotate the line until it is positioned correctly along the graph. The only way to determine the slope is by vision; Coach does not indicate what slope is correct. Read the value of the slope in the Slope field. Click Close to return to the regular Coach screen. You can copy the value of the slope by selecting the slope value and using <Ctrl>+<C>. Or by right clicking it you can copy the resulting diagram with the tangent line to the clipboard. - To have a calculated value for the slopes in all points of the graph, add the derivative graph to the diagram and scan this graph. - If you want to determine the slope in another point of the graph, repeat the above procedure. 70

71 5. Area Use the Area option to determine an area between a displayed graph, the horizontal axis and two boundary lines. In the Area dialog, the selected graph is blue and zoomed-to-fit. The other visible graphs in the diagram (if any) are grey. The selected area is dark red. At the bottom line of the dialog, help about the next action is displayed. The following specific options are available in this dialog: Begin & End These fields display the x-coordinates of the boundary lines. It is possible to type values here. When the original diagram was zoomed in, the values are pre-selected corresponding to the boundaries of the zoomed diagram. Figure 68. Determining area under the graph. Area The actual value of the area enclosed between the boundary lines, the function and the x-axis in the diagram. An area below the x-axis has a negative value. To determine an area Select Process/Analyze > Area. Under Column select the graph from which you want to determine an area. The diagram shows two boundary lines between which the area is calculated. Drag the boundary lines to the required position, or type the x-values for the boundary lines in the Begin and End fields. Read the area displayed in the Area field. Click Close to return to the regular Coach screen. You can copy the value of the slope by selecting the slope value and using <Ctrl>+<C>. - To obtain a calculated value for the areas in all points of the graph, add the Integral graph (with the right constant of integration) to the diagram and scan this graph. - If you want to determine another area below the graph, repeat the above procedure. 6. Function fit Function fit is a procedure to approximate the data on the screen with a standard mathematical function. a four function types (see the list). The coefficients of the fit function are determined using a leastsquares method. Fitting can be done manually or automatically. Figure 69. The list of functions available for Function fit. 71

72 In the Function Fit dialog, the selected graph is blue and zoomed-to-fit. The other visible graphs in the diagram (if any) are gray. The fit function is dark red. At the bottom of the dialog box an explanation is given about what action is possible. The following options are available in this window: Function Type Select the standard function to which the data should be fitted. This choice requires some knowledge about the phenomenon, which yielded the data. Coefficients These fields indicate the value of the coefficients (a, b, c and d) used in the fit function. Depending on the function type there are one to three coefficients. Fix By checking a box next to a coefficient the coefficient will be locked and will be not changed during calculations. Estimate Figure 70. The Function Fit dialog. This button gives automatic suggestion for initial parameter values of the fit function. In some cases it already gives the optimal fit, e.g., in case of linear regression. Refine fit Use this button to improve the suggested fit (via the Levenberg-Marquardt method) and find the best fit based on the current initial parameter values. Add graph The fit function will be added as a formula in the first empty data range to the graph(s) in the Diagram. Replace graph The fit function (as a formula) will replace the original data in the diagram (in the same data range). Fit quality This number indicates the standard deviation of the fitted function from the original data; the lower the deviation, the better the quality. To determine a function fit Select Process/Analyze > Function Fit. Under Column select the graph that you want to fit. Select the Function type that will be used. There are two methods for the function fit which complement each other, manually and automatic. Both methods are described below. 72

73 You can interrupt the automatic fit process with <Esc>. Keep it pressed until the fit process stops. This may take a short while. Select Add graph or Replace graph. When you choose to replace the graph, the original data will be lost unless you saved the result prior to the fit procedure. Click OK to confirm, or Cancel to close the Function-Fit dialog without changes. Note: When starting function fit from a zoomed diagram, Coach will only use the visible part of the data for its fit. Manual function fit The manual function fit allows finding the coefficients of a fit function by translating and stretching it. This can be started any time during the fit process. It is used for example when the graph consists of a repeating pattern of exponential functions (you can try to fit the exponential fit function to one of the exponential parts of the graph), or to help an automatic fit get initialized. To obtain a reasonable result with manual function fit, it is often necessary to go a few times through a cycle of steps. On the fit function, one point is marked with a pin, which can be moved along the fit function by dragging it. The pin can be opened or closed (by clicking on it). When the pin is opened, the fit function can be shifted; when the pin is closed the fit function can be shaped. Select a point on the original graph by shifting the opened pin along the fit-function. If you can not find a suitable point continue with the next step. Shift the fit function itself by dragging with the mouse somewhere on the line (mouse cursor is a hand). Click the pin to 'close' it, i.e. to fix the fit curve at the pinpoint. Shape the fit-function by dragging a point of the curve towards the pin or away from the pin. Dragging past the pin reverses some parameter values of the fit-function. Repeat the above steps until a satisfying result is obtained. Check if the coefficients have real values. If this is not the case, type other values. When desired, press the Refine button to finalize the fit process. Select Add graph or Replace graph. Click OK to confirm, or Cancel to close the Function Fit dialog without changes. Note: Using the fit-function type f(x)=a*x, the pin stays fixed in the origin. In fact, this function can only be rotated. Automatic function fit Click the Estimate button. Coach automatically finds the best initial parameter values of the fit function. In some cases this is already the optimal fit. Click the Refine button. Coach automatically improves the suggested fit and to find the best function fit. The Refine button can be used after using the Estimate button or during the manual fit process. 7. Histogram The histogram option is used to create the histogram bar diagram. The range of the variable (column) is divided into equal size bins for which the frequency of occurrence is calculated. The height of the diagram bar is equal to the frequency of occurrence within the bin. In the Histogram dialog, the red bar diagram is displayed. The following specific options are available in this window: 73

74 Lower & Upper boundaries To specify the boundary values. The initially displayed boundaries are computed from the data. It is possible to type values here. Number of bins To define number of bins (default 5). Start Press Start to create the histogram with the specified settings. New diagram A new diagram will be created with the original data in data ranges C1 and C2 (C2 automatically made 'Invisible'), together with the histogram graph in C3 (as a Figure 71. The Histogram dialog. formula). After pressing OK, the cursor changes shape (diagram) and the diagram can be placed by clicking in a window. Or place it later. To determine an histogram Select Process/Analyze > Histogram. Under Column select the column for which you want to create the histogram. Specify the Lower and Upper boundary values. Type the number of bins (default 5). Click Start to show the histogram graph. The result can be evaluated in the diagram. If you are not satisfied with the result, change parameter settings and press Start again. Click OK to create a new diagram, or Cancel to close the Histogram dialog without changes. - The histogram is added to the diagram as a formula which will be evaluated in real time! So on a next measurement run, the original data will be measured and its histogram function will be calculated and displayed in real time! - The histogram can also be manually added to a diagram/table with the formula Histogram(C;numberOfBins;lowerBoundary;upperBoundary) 74

75 VI. Coach Language 1. Introduction into Coach Language Coach Language is an easy programming language which is used in: formulas, to do calculations on data in tables; programs to control devices or processes. A formula consists of a variable (C1.. C8, or the corresponding quantity names) to which a single expression is assigned. A program consists of one or more statements which are composed of words, numbers and symbols. he statements must meet certain criteria to be understood by Coach. The Coach Language interpreter checks whether expressions and statements are correct. If not, an error message appears on the screen. The formula or model must always be corrected before it can be executed. Unlike more complex programming languages, it is not possible to define Arrays and Character variables ( Chars ) in Coach Language, to enter values by means of the keyboard, or handle files while running a Program. On the other hand, using Expressions, and Standard Procedures and Functions offered by Coach Language you have direct control over the 'in', 'out' and 'counter' ports of the interfaces. 2. Names and numbers When writing a formula or model you must use names to indicate constants or variables. You have a lot of freedom in giving suitable names. 2.1 Names When composing names you are allowed to use characters from the following sets: { A B C.. Z } capital letters; { a b c.. z } lower case letters; } numbers; { _ & ~! { } [ ] } symbols; The Coach interpreter is case sensitive and distinguishes between capital letters and lower case letters. For example PopulationGROWTH and populationgrowth are recognized as different words. When composing names certain characters and words are reserved to Coach and may not be used (see 2.3). For these words Coach is not case sensitive. Note: This is a new feature in Coach 6. A side effect is that if a user has mixed uppercase and lowercase in different ways in Coach 5 formulas/models, these may not work any longer upon opening them in Coach 6. First correct the spelling regarding case, then the formula/ model will work again correctly Numbers When composing numbers you can use characters from the set: { e E } The maximum number of significant figures is eleven. The smallest accepted positive number is 1.0e-36, the largest positive number 1.0e+36. An error message appears when these limits are exceeded. You may use the letter e or E to denote powers of 10, (scientific notation) e.g. : 75

76 0.5e-3 = 0.5E-3 = = ^3. Notes: - Decimal figures are created depending on the regional settings of the decimal separator of Windows. - A number may not begin with a decimal separator Reserved words and characters Reserved characters Some characters have a special meaning. You are not allowed to use them in names of constants, variables, procedures or functions. These characters are listed in the table below. ASCII codes: Symbols for arithmetic operators: ( ) - + / ^ = < > Spaces and the symbols: '., % " : ; $ It is not allowed to choose a number as the first character of a name. By placing a name between square brackets the above restrictions do not apply. The first character of the name will be "[" and the last character "]", e.g. [2πr] is allowed as a variable name. Reserved words Some words have a special meaning. You are not allowed to use them as names of constants, variables, procedures or functions. These words are listed below. Abs And ArcCos ArcSin ArcTan Becomes Bit ClearData Column Cos Count Counter Delta Do Domain Derivative DerivativeSmooth DerivativeSecond DerivativeSecondSmooth Else EndDo EndFunction EndIf EndRedo EndProcedure Entier Exp Fac Filter Function If Interval Level Ln Log Max Min Not On Off Once Pi Print Procedure Pulse Rand Redo Repeat RepeatedPulse Reset ResetAbsolute ResetCounters Round RunningTime SaveData Set SetLevel SetAbsolute Sign Sin Sound Sqr Sqrt Stop Stopwatch Tan Then Until Wait Latched Unlatched While The reserved words On, Off and Pi are the names of constants. The values of these constants are 255, 0 and respectively. You cannot alter the value of these constants. 76

77 3. Expressions An expression is any combination of variables, operators, constants and functions which generates a single value. There are two groups of expressions. 3.1 Simple expressions A simple expression is: a single number such as 6.13 or 105 a single constant (Pi, On, Off) a variable (x, time) a call to a mathematical function or to a standard Coach Language function. The result of a function is always a value. Variables A variable name can be considered as a label for a numerical value. Assigning the value of an arithmetical expression to a variable name means that the value is stored in a memory position of the computer under the label, e.g. "Total := 5 + 6" means that the value "11" is stored under the label "Total". The prescriptions of names and numbers hold for the name giving of variables. Logical variables The result of a logical expression is also a value and stored in memory. The label is called a logical variable (or Boolean variable). If the result of a logical expression is On (True/High), the memory position is filled with the value 255. If the result is Off (False/Low), it is filled with the value 0. The preference of the names On and Off in Coach Language has to do with the control facilities available in the full version of the Coach 6 Program. Notes: - In formulas, quantity names or column names (C1 to C8) are used as a variable. - Variables in a model are usually global, meaning that they are available in functions and procedures as well as in the rest of the program Expressions with Operators An expression with operators consists of values and operators. An operator acts on one or more values. An operator is a prescription by which values are converted into other values. There are three different types of operators: Arithmetical operators, Logical operators and Relational operators. In expressions with more than one operator, the priority of each operator determines the order of execution. For example: in the expression 3 (V+1), the operator " " works on the values "3" and "(V+1)". Expressions with operators can be used to define conditions in statements. An expression can be used as a condition when the result is one of the Boolean values True or False (Logical 1 respectively Logical 0). For True, Coach Language uses the term On. (On corresponds to the value 255). For False, Coach Language uses the term Off. (Off corresponds to the value 0). Examples of conditional expressions: Temperature > 15 Brightness <> (l+1)/l 77

78 (Brightness > 20) AND (Color <> Red) Coach Language: Arithmetic operators Operator Description Priority - ^ / + - Reverse sign Raise to the power Multiply Divide Add Subtract When operators in an expression have equal priority, the expression is evaluated from left to right. The priority of an operation in a expression can always be overruled by using parentheses. Coach Language: Logical operators Logical operators (or Boolean operators) act on logical values, for example on the result of relational operators. In Coach Language, there are three Logical operators: Operator Description Priority NOT AND OR Negation of Logical value Logical AND Logical OR Truth tables for the Logical operators NOT S1 NOT S1 On Off Off On AND S1 S2 S1 AND S2 On On Off Off On Off On Off On Off Off Off OR S1 S2 S1 OR S2 On On Off Off On Off On Off On On On Off Note: S1 and S2 in this table stand for statements like for instance A>B or Number<1. Coach Language: Relational operators Relational operators always act on two values. These values are compared with each other. The result is a Boolean (one of the logical constants On (True) or Off (False). All relational operators 78

79 have equal priority. Complex relational expressions can be composed using Logical operators. In such cases the relational expressions must always be placed between parentheses. Operator Equation Priority = <> < > <= >= equals not equal less than greater than less or equal greater or equal When operators in an expression have equal priority, the expression is evaluated from left to right. The priority of an operation in an expression can always be overruled by using parentheses. Examples of expressions with operators: (x>1) AND (x<2) For example if x=1.3 then the condition has the value True (On). If x=4 then the condition has the value False (Off). NOT (Temperature >100) The condition has the value True (On) if the temperature is smaller or equal to 100, and False (Off) in all other cases. (y<-1) OR (y>1) The condition has the value True (On) if e.g. y = 2, and False (Off) if e.g. y = 0.2. (z>1) AND (z<2) OR (z>5) AND (z<6) The condition has the value True (On) if z has a value between 1 and 2 or between 5 and 6, and False (Off) in all other cases Syntax of expressions Use of Spaces and <Enter> In a logical expression spaces must be placed to separate the logical operator from the value(s). In arithmetic or relational expressions the use of spaces is optional. It is not necessary to write an expression on just one line. It may for clarity be desirable to spread an expression with more than one function over a few lines. Expressions have to be separated from each other by spaces or by <Enter>. In the first case two or more expressions can be placed on one line. When using <Enter> to separate expressions each expression is placed on a new line. Use of brackets Brackets in an expression are required if you wish to alter the priority of an operation. Brackets may be used to increase the clarity of expressions. 79

80 Expressions with operators If an operator acts on a single value, then the value must be placed behind the operator. If an operator acts on two values, then the operator must be placed between the values. Operators with priority one are performed first, then operators with priority two, etc. Example: Interpretation of expressions in Coach Language Expressions with Arithmetic operators A B^C A^-B C A^-B-C A/B-C A+B C A-B -C a3 x^3 + a2 x^2 + a1 x + a0 Expressions with Logical operators NOT Dry+1 On OR NOT(Available) Dry AND Wind OR Sun Sun OR Dry AND Wind Expressions with Relational operators X<Z/(Z-1) X>=1+Y X 2<=Y+5 (A<=B) AND NOT(C>B) Interpretation A (B^C) (A^(-B)) C (A^(-B))-C (A/B)-C A+(B C) A-(B (-C)) (a3 x^3)+(a2 x^2)+(a1 x)+a0 Interpretation (NOT(Dry))+1 On OR (NOT(Available)) (Dry AND Wind) OR Sun Sun OR (Dry AND Wind) Interpretation X<(Z/(Z-1)) X>=(1+Y) (X 2)<=(Y+5) (A<=B) AND (NOT(C>B)) When comparing a logical variable with a numerical variable, keep in mind the On and Off correspond with the numerical values 255 and 0. However, a Boolean variable automatically gets the logical value On if its numerical value is not equal to 0. You may prefer to work with the names True and False instead of the names On and Off. This is only allowed if you define the following assignments: True := On False := Off 80

81 4. Statements A statement can be executed independently. Here, we distinguish between simple and structured statements Simple statements Assignment With an assignment the value of a variable is replaced by the result of an expression. The symbol for the assignment operator is := (colon equals). In Coach Language you can also use the symbol = or the word becomes. It is not necessary to separate the operator with spaces: variable := expression Examples: X := Y + Z Wet becomes (rain) AND (NOT(umbrella)) Procedure calls Procedures are used to organize a program. A procedure consists of one or more statements and carries a name. The result of a procedure is the execution of the defined statements. The statements are executed at the position where the call to the procedure name is placed in the Program. In Coach there are several types of procedures possible: Standard Coach Language procedures. Pre-defined procedures by the Author of the Activity (Micro-world). Own commands - procedures created by the Student users Structural statements A structural statement is a statement which has a prescribed structure. There are two types of these statements: Conditional statement Loop statements Conditional statements This statement conditionally executes a group of statements, depending on the value of an conditional expression. The conditional expression must generate a Boolean value: True (On) or False (Off). If.. Then If the condition is True (On), then statements between Then and EndIf are executed. Syntax: If Conditional expression Then Statements EndIf If.. Then.. Else If the condition is True (On), then the statements between Then and Else are executed. If the condition is False (Off), then the statements between Else and EndIf are executed. Syntax: If Conditional expression Then Statements Else Statements EndIf 81

82 Once.. Do.. EndDo If the condition is True (On), then the statements between Do and EndDo are executed. Syntax: Once Conditional expression Do Statements EndDo Examples of conditional statements in Coach Language If x>0 Then If (a<2) AND (b>5) Then y:= sqrt(x) a:=a + 1 EndIf b:=b 5 Else a:=a 1 b:=b+3 EndIf Once x>0 Do v:= -0.9*v EndDo Loop statements In a loop statement, a number of statements are executed a certain number of times. Repeat.. Until Repeat.. Until repeats the statements between Repeat and Until as long the condition is False (Off).The statements will at least be executed once. Syntax: Repeat Statements Until Conditional expression Examples Repeat Set(1) Reset(1) Until RunningTime > 125 Repeat If x>1 Then Set(2) Else Reset(2) EndIf Until x>2 Redo.. EndRedo Redo.. EndRedo repeats the statements between Redo and EndRedo a fixed number of times (determined by the parameter Number ). The statements will be executed at least once. Syntax Redo Number Statements EndRedo Examples Redo 10 Wait(0,5) Set(1) Wait(0,5) Reset(1) EndRedo Redo 1000 If x>1 Then Set(2) Else Reset(2) EndIf EndRedo 82

83 While... Do... EndDo While.. Do.. EndDo repeats the statements between Do and EndDo as long as a condition behind While is True (On). If the condition is False (Off) at the start, no execution will follow. Syntax: While Conditional expression Do Statements EndDo Examples While t>1 Do Set(1) Reset(1) EndDo While r<> 3 Do If x>1 Then Set(2) Else Reset(2) EndIf EndDo 5. Standard functions and procedures of Coach Language 5.1. Standard mathematical functions The maximal value of x is 10^35 (if applicable) Sqr(x) Sqrt(x) Ln(x) Log(x) Exp(x) Sin(x) Cos(x) Tan(x) Arcsin(x) Arccos(x) Arctan(x) Entier(x) Abs(x) Rand Sign(x) Fac(x) Round(x) UnitStep (x,b) Pulse(x;b;l;h) Square of x Square root of x Natural logarithm (base e) Briggs logarithm (base 10) e-power of x (e x ) Sine of x Cosine of x Tangent of x Inverse sine function (radians) Inverse cosine function (radians) Inverse tangent function (radians) Rounds a number down The absolute value of x Generates a random number in the interval [0,1] Generates -1 for x < 0; +1 for x > 0; 0 for x = 0 Generates (round(x))! (factorial) Rounds off a number Generates 0 for x < b and 1 for x b Generates a pulse of variable x which starts at a begin value b, has duration l and height h. x in [-max, 81) x 6 x 1 x 1 x in [-1;1] x in [-1;1] x in [0;+33.5) 6 In radians or in degrees, this depends on settings done in Activity Options. 83

84 RepeatedPulse(x;b;l;i;h) Generates pulses of variable x with repeated interval i. The first pulse starts at a begin value b, has a duration l and a height h Special mathematical functions Special mathematical functions use more than one cell to calculate a new value. These functions are used in the advanced formula editor for calculations in diagrams and tables. Min(x 1 ;x 2 ;..x i ) Max(x 1 ;x 2 ;.. x i ) Domain(b;e) Delta(C) Sum(C) Derivative(C) DerivativeSmooth(C,n) DerivativeSecond(C) DerivativeSecondSmooth(C;n) Integral(C;r) Spline(C;n) Bezier(C) Histogram(C;n,l,u) Deltafil(C) Selects the smallest of i parameters Selects the largest of i parameters Fills all cells of the column with equally distributed values over the interval [b,e] (b: begin value, e: end value) according to the formula: cell(index) = b + [(e - b) * (index - 1)]/(n 1), where n is the number of rows. Difference between two successive values in the source column C. Cell(n) is filled with the value of the expression Cell(n+1) Cell(n). The last cell in the target column remains undefined. Cell(n) contains the sum of all values in source column C which have an index smaller or equal to n. Numerical differentiation of the values in column C. Smooth derivative, first a spline with the smoothing factor n is computed, then numerical differentiation of the spline function Numerical second order differentiation of the values in column C. Smooth second derivative, first a spline with the smoothing factor n is computed, then the second numerical differentiation of the spline function Numerical integration of values in column C, r is the constant of Integration (initial value) Spline approximation based on the values in the column for the X-axis and column C. The factor n stands for smoothing factor. Bezier approximation based on the values in the column for the X-axis and column C. It returns a column with in the i-th cell the number of values in column C that are larger or equal then l+(i-1)*(u l)/n and are smaller than l+i*(u-l)/n n number of bins, l lower boundary, u upper boundary. Combination of Delta(C) and Filter(C;n). Only useful if sample points have an equidistant distribution in time. For n the fixed value of 10 is used. 84

85 Filter(C;n) Filtering of values in source column C with interval n. Each cell is replaced by the average value of the cell itself, its n predecessors and n successors (i.e. the average over 2n+1 points) Standard functions Bit The function Bit(n) returns On (True) if the digital input (n) is "High", and Off (False) if it is "Low. The numerical values On and Off correspond with 255 respectively 0. Examples: In an assignment: In a conditional statement: or shorter: State = Bit(1) If Bit(2) = On Then If Bit(2) Then Counter and ResetCounters The standard function Counter(n) returns the number of pulses that has been detected on Counter input (n). All counters are reset to 0 with the standard procedure ResetCounters. Counters cannot be set individually to 0, so ResetCounters has no parameters. Examples: In an assignment: In a conditional statement: State = Counter(1) If Counter(2) < 100 Then Interval The standard function Interval returns the time (in seconds), which has lapsed after the execution of the standard procedure Stopwatch(On), and returns 0 after the execution of Stopwatch(Off). Example: Stopwatch(On) Repeat Until Interval > 10 Level The standard function Level(n) returns the value of the sensor which has been connected to analog input (n). If the sensor is calibrated, the value will be expressed in the calibrated unit. Examples: In an assignment: In a conditional statement: Brightness = Level(1) If Level(2) < 0,5 Then Latched The standard function Latched(n) returns On (True), if the digital input (n) has been "High" after the last call of Latched(n), otherwise it returns Off (False). The numerical values of On and 85

86 Off correspond with 255 respectively 0. Latched is the complement of the standard function Unlatched Examples: In an assignment: In a conditional statement: or shorter: State = Latched(1) If Latched(2) = On Then If Latched(2) Then RunningTime Unlatched The standard function Unlatched(n) returns On (True) if the digital input (n) has been "Low" after the last call of Unlatched(n), otherwise it returns Off (False). The numerical values of On and Off correspond with 255 respectively 0. Unlatched is the complement of the standard function Latched. Examples: In an assignment: In a conditional statement: or shorter: State = Unlatched(1) If Unlatched(2) = On Then If Unlatched(2) Then RunningTime The standard function RunningTime returns the time (in seconds) which has lapsed since the start of the program. Examples: Repeat Until RunningTime > 100 While RunningTime < 100 Do EndDo 5.4. Standard procedures Count The standard procedure Count(n;p) counts pulses via the counter input n. The program waits until the number of pulses (p) is reached. The maximal value of (p) is By pressing any key (except <Esc>), the program is forced to continue with the next statement even though the specified number of pulses has not yet been reached (this prevents the program from halting). <Esc> is reserved to interrupt program execution. The use of the standard procedure Count is analogous to the use of the standard procedure Wait. Count counts pulses, Wait counts time SaveData. ClearData The procedure ClearData erases all data (in all diagrams and tables) in the current Coach Activity. ClearData is the complement of the standard procedure SaveData. 86

87 Set The standard procedure Set(i, j,..) sets the digital outputs i, j,.. to 'High'. The list of parameters can be as long as the number of outputs of the interface. Set is the complement of the standard procedure Reset. Examples: For an interface with four digital outputs is Set(1;2;3;4) allowed. If no parameters are mentioned, Set sets all digital outputs to High. So, with four outputs the command Set does the same as Set (1;2;3;4). SetLevel This procedure only works with CoachLab II/II + and the LEGO DACTA interfaces. The standard procedure SetLevel(i,p) sets the power level of the digital output i to p. When used with CoachLab II/II +, i should be a number between 1 and 4, where 1 corresponds to output A, 2 to output B etc, and p should be a number between 1 and 16, where 1 corresponds to the lowest power and 16 to the highest power level. When used with the LEGO DACTA Interface B, i should be a number between 1 and 8, where 1 corresponds to output A, 2 to output B,, 8 to output H, and p should be a number between 1 and 8, where 1 corresponds to the lowest power and 8 to the highest power level. When used with the LEGO DACTA RCX, i should be a number between 1 and 3 where 1 corresponds to output A, 2 to output B and 3 to output C, and p should be a number between 1 and 8, where 1 corresponds to the lowest power and 8 to the highest power level. The highest power obtained with the SetLevel command is limited automatically by the setting of the power slider range. Higher values for p than the maximum value specified above do not lead to an error message, they also invoke the maximum allowed power for the actuator. Reset The standard procedure Reset(i, j,..) sets the digital outputs i, j,.. to 'Low' and leaves the state of the other outputs as they are. The list of parameters can be as long as the number of outputs of the interface. Reset is the complement of the Standard Procedure Set. Examples: For an interface with for example four digital outputs Reset(1;2;3;4) is allowed. If no parameters are mentioned, Reset sets all digital outputs to Low. So, with four outputs the command Reset does the same as Reset(1;2;3;4). SetAbsolute The standard procedure SetAbsolute(i, j,..) sets the digital outputs i, j,.. to 'High' and all others to Low. The list of parameters can be as long as the number of outputs of the interface. SetAbsolute is the complement of the Standard Procedure ResetAbsolute. Examples: For an interface with for example four digital outputssetabsolute(1;2;3;4) is allowed. If no parameters are mentioned, SetAbsolute sets all digital outputs to High. So, with four outputs the command SetAbsolute does the same as SetAbsolute(1;2;3;4). 87

88 ResetAbsolute The standard procedure ResetAbsolute(i, j,..) sets the digital outputs i, j,.. to 'Low' and all others to High. The list of parameters can be as long as the number of outputs of the interface. ResetAbsolute is the complement of the standard procedure SetAbsolute Examples: For an interface with for example four digital outputs ResetAbsolute(1;2;3;4) is allowed. If no parameters are mentioned, ResetAbsolute sets all digital outputs to Low. So, with four outputs the command ResetAbsolute does the same as ResetAbsolute(1;2;3;4). Sound The standard procedure Sound(f;t) produces a sound with a frequency of f Hertz during t seconds. The standard procedure Stop halts the execution of the program at the position of this procedure. Stop Standard procedure Stop halts the execution of the program at the position of this procedure. Stopwatch The standard procedure StopWatch(B) starts a time measurement (in seconds) if the Boolean variable B has the value On (True). The elapsed time after start of the time measurement, is recorded by the Standard Function Interval. Interval returns the value 0 immediately after the execution of StopWatch(On). The function Interval remains 0 after the execution of Stopwatch(Off). Example: Stopwatch(On) Repeat Until Interval > 10 SaveData The standard procedure SaveData stores the values of variables which are present in diagrams or tables. On each pass, the values of the variables will be written once. If SaveData is not used or erroneously used, empty or wrong diagrams and tables will result. SaveData is the complement of the standard procedure ClearData. Example: Measure during half an hour and only store the values if the temperature is higher than 20 C: Correct solution: As long as the temperature is below 20 ºC, no values are written to the diagram. (SaveData is located inside the If statement which tests the temperature). Repeat If Temperature > 20 Then Wait(1) SaveData EndIf Until RunningTime>

89 Incorrect solution: values are also written in the diagram when the temperature is below 20 ºC. (SaveData is located outside the If statement which tests the temperature). Repeat If Temperature > 20 Then Wait(1) Endif SaveData Until RunningTime>1800 Use SaveData exclusively if the type of Activity in the Activity options is set to Control with a Program. In other Activity types, data from program variables are saved automatically. Wait The standard procedure Wait(t) pauses program execution for t seconds. <Esc> interrupts Program execution. By pressing any key (except <Esc>), the program is forced to continue with the next statement even though the specified time has not yet been lapsed. <Esc> is reserved to interrupt program execution. The use of the standard procedure Wait is analogous to the use of the standard procedure Count. Wait pauses a time interval, while Count pauses until a specified number of pulses has been detected. 6. Error messages in Coach Language Two kinds of errors may occur: Syntax errors which are detected during the compilation of the model preceding the execution or preceding the selection of variables along the graph axes. Execution errors which are only detected while programs are executed Error messages during interpretation If during interpretation an error is detected an error message pops up. The cursor flashes behind the position in the text where the error has been detected. The error may be corrected immediately. Error message Character not expected Number not correct This name is already in use Type conflict "... expected "... NOT expected Cause A character is placed where it is not expected to be. The compiler fails to read a number. Appears when two variables, functions or procedures have identical names. Occurs when a value has been assigned to the name of a procedure, or when the function result has been assigned outside the function definition. The compiler expects a name or a symbol. The compiler does not expect the symbol entered. Often the cause is not immediately clear. 89

90 Too many variables Function result not assigned The available memory for names of variables has been used. Solution: choose shorter names. The function definition has not been closed with the assignment: function_name := function_result Examples of syntax errors and corresponding error messages Text model a : 1 a 1 a := / 1 a := 1e=12 If a>0 Then a:=1e12 Repeat a:=1e12 Redo a := 1e12 Redo a 1e12 Function a(x;y) EndFunction Function a(x;y) z=x y EndFunction Function a(x;y) a=x y EndFunction Procedure a(e) w = sqrt(e) EndProcedure Function a(x;y) a=x y EndFunction a = 12 Procedure a(x;y) z = x+y EndProcedure s = a(1;2) a(1;2;3) a(1) Procedure b b = 12 EndProcedure Error message Character not expected "Assignment" expected "/" not expected Number is not correct "EndIf expected "Until expected "Assignment not expected "Number not expected "EndFunction not expected Function result not assigned This name is already in use Type conflict Type conflict ")" expected ";" expected "=" not expected 90

91 6.2. Error messages while executing a program When a Program has been developed, there is no guarantee that errors will not occur during the execution. If such an error occurs, the program is halted and a message appears on the screen. Possible execution errors and corresponding causes: Error message Division by zero Number out of range or Value not in the domain Cause A variable in the denominator of a fraction has become 0. A number becomes too large or too small. The argument of a standard function receives a value which is not allowed. Example: A program, which returns error messages when executed. Program a := 100 w := 100 Redo 100 a := a - 1 y := 12/a y := ln(a) w := w w EndRedo Error messages Division by 0 (in the last loop (when a=0)) Value not in the domain (in the last loop (when a=0)) Number out of range (in the 6th loop) 91

92 VII. Utility Programs 1. Firmware Update Firmware Update is a program to update the internal operating system software (firmware) of CMA interfaces. For working with Coach 6.3 a new firmware is needed for ULAB, CoachLab II +, Lab and Sense. Coach recognizes automatically when a connected interface need to be updated and offers direct update. For the ULAB interface next to updating the internal operating system software is possible to update its internal Sensor Library Updating firmware To update firmware when working with Coach When Coach 6.3 recognizes that a connected interface need to be updated then the following message is displayed. Click Yes to start the Firmware Update program for the connected interface. Next steps are similar to updating with the Firmware Update and described below. To update firmware with Update Firmware program Start the Firmware Update program via Start > All Programs > CMA Coach 6 > Utilities > Firmware Update. Select the interface for updating by pressing the button with the desired interface. Notice that the CoachLab II + and ULAB interfaces should be powered during this process. For CoachLab II +, Lab and Sense Press Update to start the update process. From the list of available firmware files select the latest firmware (file name#- *.hx2) 7. Click OK. Pressing Yes starts the update process. At 7 name the short interface name, # - the firmware version number; * - the firmware language 92

93 the end of this process the connected interface will reset itself. When the firmware is updated successfully then the message appears: The firmware has been update to version #. Click OK to accept. Note: In rare cases the reset of Lab/ Sense will not work properly, the interface LED remains on and there is no communication between the computer and the interface. In that case you have to restart computer to continue working with Lab/ Sense. For ULAB Under Communication port select the port to which the datalogger is connected (USB or COM port). Press the Firmware Update button. From the list of available firmware files select the downloaded firmware file ULAB#-*.hx2 8. The following message appears Updating the firmware clears all data in ULAB s memory. Update the ULAB firmware using ULAB. hx2? Pressing Yes starts the update process. At the end of this process ULAB will reset itself. When the firmware is updated successfully then the message appears: The firmware update process has been completed successfully. ULAB is updated to firmware version #. Click to close the window. The newest version of the firmware files can be downloaded from the CMA website: under Support > Hardware > Interfaces Updating ULAB Sensor Library By default internal ULAB Sensor Library consists of approximately 40 of the most used CMA sensors. This local library can be modified; sensors can be deleted or replaced by new sensors with the ULAB Update program. To update ULAB Sensor Library Connect the power supply to ULAB and plug into the outlet. Connect ULAB to the computer and turn it on. Start the Firmware Update program via Start > All Programs > CMA Coach 6 > Utilities > Firmware Update. Click the ULAB button. Under Communication port select the port to which the datalogger is connected (USB or COM port). Press the Library Update button. The Library Update dialog opens. 8 # - the firmware version number; * - the firmware language 93

94 Figure 72. ULAB Library Update. Select CMA Library or User Library under Sensors available in Coach Library. The CMA Library consists of pre-defined CMA sensors, the User Library consists of sensors defined by users in Coach. The sensors from the selected library are listed in the upper pane. The lower pane displays the sensors currently stored in the local ULAB library. Modify the ULAB library. - To remove a sensor from in the ULAB library, select a sensor in the lower pane and click the Delete button. The sensor is removed from the list. - To add a sensor to the ULAB library, select a sensor in the upper pane and click the Add button. The sensor is added to the list in the lower pane. The ULAB name is created from the short sensor name and sensor ID. This name will be displayed in the ULAB. To change this name press the Rename button or click the sensor ULAB name. Type in a new name. The name can have maximal 12 characters. Press the Update button to update the ULAB library. By pressing the Restore Default Library button the current ULAB library is restored to its default Factory library. 94

95 2. ULAB View ULAB View is a program which sends the image of the ULAB screen to the computer screen. In this way all students can easily follow teacher demonstrations. To use ULAB view Connect ULAB to the computer and turn it on. Start ULAB view program via Start Menu > CMA Coach 6 > Utilities > ULAB View or by clicking ULABView.exe file in the Coach 6 folder. The program automatically displays the current ULAB screen. Such a screen display can be captured and saved as a bitmap file (*.bmp) by pressing the <F2> key or by left clicking. A Save as dialog appears to store the BMP. This feature is very useful for creating teaching materials. Close the program by clicking the Close button in the upper right corner of the ULABView window. 95

96 Appendix I. Interface panels The following interface panels are supported in Coach: Panel picture CMA CoachLab and CoachLab with sensor detection CMA CoachLab II/II+ CMA Crossroads Panel specifications Both panels are used for measurement and control with the CMA CoachLab interface. Panel specifications - 2 Analog inputs (1, 2) - 2 Special Analog inputs for CoachLab Microphone (3,4) - 4 Digital Outputs (1,2,3,4) - Maximally measurement points (limited by Coach software) - Maximum sample frequency 200 Hz (supports only USB cable). The CoachLab with sensor detection panel recognizes the standard CoachLab sensors: Temperature (0511), Light (0513) and Microphone (056). As soon as one of these sensors is connected to the real interface the corresponding sensor icon automatically appears on the same input of the screen panel. This panel is used for measurement and control with the CMA CoachLab II and CoachLab II + interfaces. Panel specifications - 4 Analog inputs (1, 2, 3, 4) - 2 Digital/Sonic inputs (5, 6) - 4 Analog outputs (A, B, C, D). - Maximally 2 Analog input can be used as a Counter input. - Maximally for measurement points for CoachLab II (for one channel). and for CoachLab II + with firmware lower than For CoachLab II + with firmware 1.1 and higher cyclic filling of memory buffer is implemented: i.e. there is no longer a hardware limit on the number of measurement points for measurement frequencies up to 10,000Hz. - Maximum sample frequency 40 khz for CoachLab II and 100 khz for CoachLab II + (when using one channel). CoachLab II + recognizes CMA intelligent sensors. As soon as such sensor is connected to the real interface the corresponding sensor icon automatically appears on the same input of the screen panel. This panel is used for control with CMA Crossroads model (only via USB cable). 96

97 CMA Lab CMA Lab + Motion This panel is used for measurement with the CMA Lab interface. Panel specifications - 2 Analog inputs (1, 2) - Maximally 1 Analog input can be used as a Counter input. - Unrestricted number of measurement points for sampling interval s otherwise maximally measurement points (one channel). - Maximum sample frequency 40 khz. Lab recognizes CMA intelligent sensors. As soon as such sensor is connected to the real interface the corresponding sensor icon automatically appears on the same input of the screen panel. This panel is used for combined measurements with CMA Lab and Motion. - Maximum sample frequency for Lab: see specifcations of Lab - Maximum sample frequency for Motion: always 15 Hz (does not depend on Lab settings) CMA Motion This panel is used for measurements with CMA Motion. Motion is directly connected to the USB port of the computer. Panel specifications - Maximally measurement points (limited by Coach software) - Maximum sample frequency: 50 Hz, CMA Sense This panel is used for measurement with the CMA Sense. Panel specifications - 4 sensor inputs for Sense built-in sensor Sound, Temperature and Light sensors and for external Temperature sensor - 2 Actuator output for built-in LED and Buzzer - Maximally 1 Analog input can be used as a Counter input. - Unrestricted number of measurement points for sampling interval s otherwise maximally measurement points (one channel). - Maximum sample frequency 40 khz. CMA ULAB This panel is used for measurements with the CMA ULAB datalogger. Panel specifications - 4 Analog inputs (1, 2, 3, 4) - 2 Digital/Sonic (5, 6) - Maximally 1 Analog input can be used as a Counter input. - Maximally measurement points (1 channel) (hardware-limited). - Maximum sample frequency (when using one channel). ULAB recognizes CMA intelligent sensors. As soon as such sensor is connected to the real interface the corresponding sensor icon automatically appears on the same input of the screen panel. 97