MSB780, MSB780X,

MSB780X transfer standard

Digital Barometers
Version 1.25

User’s Guide

October 17, 2017

 MSB780(X) - User’s Guide

c Copyright 2013-2017, by MicroStep-MIS .

All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in retrieval system,
or transmitted by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise
without the prior written permission of MicroStep-MIS .

Trademarks
All trademarks or registered trademarks mentioned belong to their respective owners.

Authors
Editorial team: Adam Krovina, Ján Mikulka, Ján Hudec

Firmware version
This version of user guide describes functionality of firmware version 097.

Hardware version
This version of user guide describes functionality of hardware MSB780 V2 and MSB780X V2.0.

Address
MicroStep-MIS Monitoring and Information Systems,
Čavojského 1,
841 04 Bratislava 4, Slovakia
Tel.: +421 2 602 00 100, Fax: +421 2 602 00 180,
e-mail: [email protected]

MicroStep-MIS develops, manufactures and markets monitoring and information systems. The
key fields of our activities are meteorology, aviation, environmental sciences, seismology, power
engineering, civil defense and tourism.

MicroStep-MIS operates worldwide. Our core customer groups are airports, meteorological
and seismological institutes, environmental authorities, industry, power stations and electricity
distribution companies.

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 MSB780(X) - User’s Guide

Typographical conventions

Throughout this guide, several typographical conventions are used to help reader to follow in-
structions and identify the important information.

The special notes:

Note: Air must be used as a pressure medium during calibration.

The text input or command:

cnf?<cr>

The text output:

Sleep.

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 MSB780(X) - User’s Guide

Contents

1 Introduction 11

2 Hardware 12

2.1 Principle of operation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12

2.2 Terminals . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12

2.3 Power supply . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12

2.4 Power consumption - model with touchscreen display . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12

2.5 Power saving mode . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14

2.6 Serial interface (RS-232) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14

2.7 Connecting MSB780 or MSB780X to PC . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 15

2.8 SDI-12 interface wiring . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 15

2.9 Service connector . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 15

3 MSB780X transfer standard version 16

3.1 Connecting the external probe to the transfer standard . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 18

3.2 Turning the transfer standard on/off . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19

3.3 Recharging the transfer standard battery . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19

3.4 Using the transfer standard with AA batteries . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20

3.5 Connecting the transfer standard to a computer . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20

3.6 Transfer standard connectors description . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 21

3.7 Adjustment of the transfer standard . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 21

3.8 Terminals of the transfer standard . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 22

3.9 Memory card . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 23

4 Maintenance 24

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4.1 Cleaning . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 24

4.2 Error States . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 24

4.3 Recommended recalibration interval . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 24

4.4 Compensation sensor exchange procedure . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 25

4.4.1 Compensation sensor - maintenance . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 25

4.4.2 Compensation sensor FAQ . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 26

5 Calibration and Adjustment 27

5.1 How to read the current correction values . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 27

5.2 Disabling the correction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 27

5.3 Adjusting MSB780X with more than one transducer . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 28

5.4 One pressure point adjustment . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 28

5.5 Two pressure points adjustment . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 28

5.6 More than 2 pressure points adjustment . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 29

5.7 “caset” Adjust the analog output . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 30

6 RS-232 and RS-485 commands 31

6.1 Serial interface command set . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 31

6.2 Basic commands . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 33

6.3 “p” Poll measurement command . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 33

6.4 “d” Poll extended measurement command . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 33

6.5 “cnf?” Print configuration . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 34

6.6 “errors” Print error message . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 37

6.7 “sdi12a” SDI-12 address change . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 37

6.8 “help” Display help . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 38

6.9 “boot” Restart device . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 38

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6.10 “seri” Set communication settings for user RS-232 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 38

6.11 “echo1” Enable echo . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 38

6.12 “echo0” Disable echo . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 39

6.13 "form" Change output message format . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 39

6.14 "form?" Get actual output message format . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 41

6.15 “smode” Change the user port start-up operating mode . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 41

6.16 "smode?" Get actual user port start-up operating mode . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 42

6.17 “intv” Change the outputting interval for RUN mode . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 42

6.18 "intv?" Get actual the outputting interval for RUN mode . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 43

6.19 "avrg" Averaging time . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 43

6.20 "avrg?" Get averaging time . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 43

6.21 “addr” Change the address in POLL mode . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 44

6.22 “addr?” Get actual address in POLL mode . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 44

6.23 “open” Access to command mode in POLL mode . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 44

6.24 “close” Close command mode in POLL mode . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 44

6.25 “send” Read the output message in POLL mode . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 45

6.26 “unit” Change the measurement unit . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 45

6.27 “unit?” Get actual measurement unit . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 46

6.28 “cnfdef” Set default configuration . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 46

6.29 “terminal rs232” Temporarily redirect the service port to RS232 . . . . . . . . . . 46

6.30 “terminal rs485” Temporarily redirect the service port to RS-485 . . . . . . . . . . 47

6.31 “terminal probe” Temporarily redirect the service port to external probe . . . . . . 47

6.32 "dir e:" Print list of files . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 47

6.33 "type <filename>" print file . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 48

6.34 xmodemr - downloading files using XMODEM . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 48

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 MSB780(X) - User’s Guide

6.35 Adjustment commands . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 49

6.36 “cset” Set adjust coefficients . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 49

6.37 “cnf?” Get actual adjust coefficients . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 50

6.38 “dpmax” Set the maximum permissible pressure difference . . . . . . . . . . . . 50

6.39 “dpmax?” Get the maximum permissible pressure difference . . . . . . . . . . . . 50

6.40 “adjdef” Set default adjustment . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 51

6.41 Corrected pressure commands - QFE, QNH, HCP . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 51

6.42 “icaomode” Set mode for calculation of corrected pressures . . . . . . . . . . . . 51

6.43 “icaodigits” Set number of decimal praces of corrected pressures . . . . . . . . . 51

6.44 “hqfe” Set altitude for QFE corrected pressure . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 52

6.45 “hqnh” Set altitude for QNH corrected pressure . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 53

6.46 “tqfe” Set temperature for QFE corrected pressure . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 55

6.47 “tqfea” Set actual temperature for QFE corrected pressure . . . . . . . . . . . . . 55

6.48 “hhcp” Set height difference for HCP level . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 55

6.49 “hqfe?” Get altitude for QFE corrected pressure . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 56

6.50 “hqnh?” Get altitude for QNH corrected pressure . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 56

6.51 “tqfe?” Get default temperature for QFE corrected pressure . . . . . . . . . . . . 56

6.52 “tqfea?” Get actual temperature for QFE corrected pressure . . . . . . . . . . . . 56

6.53 “hhcp?” Get height difference for HCP level . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 56

6.54 "dt" Get date and time . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 57

6.55 "setdt" Set date and time . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 57

6.56 "setpin" Set new PIN code . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 57

7 Display access 58

7.1 Basic screens . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 58

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7.2 Graph screen . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 60

7.3 Main menu . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 60

7.4 Menu structure . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 60

7.5 Recording menu (logging data to SD card, view in graph) . . . . . . . . . . . . . 61

7.6 Measuring menu (measurement settings) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 64

7.7 Interfaces menu (settings of interfaces) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 67

7.8 System menu (Date/Time, diagnostics, serial/version numbers) . . . . . . . . . . 69

7.9 Display menu (shown quantities, graph time-scale, backlight settings) . . . . . . 70

7.10 Alarm . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 71

8 SDI-12 reference 72

8.1 Introduction to SDI-12 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 72

8.2 SDI-12 commands supported by MSB780 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 72

8.3 SDI-12 commands set . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 73

8.4 a! Acknowledge Active Command . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 73

8.5 aI! Send Identification Command . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 74

8.6 ?! Address Query Command . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 74

8.7 aAb! Address Change Command . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 74

8.8 aM! Start Measurement Command . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 74

8.9 aM1! Start Measurement Command, return also HQFE, HQNH . . . . . . . . . . 75

8.10 aD0! Send Data Command . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 75

8.11 aR0! Continuous Measurement (basic units) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 75

8.12 aR1! Continuous Measurement (user units) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 76

8.13 aV! Get Verification . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 76

8.14 aXD1! Send data command from transducer 1 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 76

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 MSB780(X) - User’s Guide

8.15 aXV! Get extended verification . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 77

8.16 Setting parameters via SDI-12 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 78

8.17 Reading parameters via SDI-12 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 78

9 Analog output 78

9.1 “amode” Set analog output range . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 79

9.2 “asel” Analog output quantity and scale . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 80

9.3 “atest” Analog output test . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 81

9.4 “aerr” Analog output error indication . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 81

10 Technical Data 82

10.1 Quantities . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 82

10.2 Performance . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 83

10.3 Analog output accuracy . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 84

10.4 Operating Environmental . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 84

10.5 Inputs and Outputs . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 84

10.6 Power consumption . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 84

10.7 Drawings . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 85

11 Troubleshooting 89

11.1 In case of problems... . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 90

12 Ordering Information 91

13 Firmware update 92

13.1 Hardware required for firmware update . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 92

13.2 Firmware Loader software . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 93

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14 History of changes 98

14.1 V 1.1 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 98

14.2 V 1.2 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 98

14.3 V 1.2.1 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 98

14.4 V 1.2.2 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 98

14.5 V 1.2.3 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 98

14.6 V 1.2.4 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 98

14.7 V 1.3 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 99

14.8 V 1.4 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 99

14.9 V 1.5 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 100

14.10V 1.6 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 100

14.11V 1.7 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 100

14.12V 1.8 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 100

14.13V 1.9 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 100

14.14V 1.10 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 100

14.15V 1.11 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 101

14.16V 1.12 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 101

14.17V 1.13 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 101

14.18V 1.14 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 101

14.19V 1.15 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 101

14.20V 1.16 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 101

14.21V 1.17 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 102

14.22V 1.18 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 102

14.23V 1.19 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 102

14.24V 1.20 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 102

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14.25V 1.21 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 102

14.26V 1.22 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 102

14.27V 1.23 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 103

14.28V 1.24 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 103

14.29V 1.25 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 103

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 MSB780(X) - User’s Guide

1 Introduction

MicroStep-MIS MSB780 Barometer is designed for measuring absolute atmospheric pressure

in meteorological and environmental applications.

MSB780X is extended version of MSB780. It features pressure transducer of the same pre-
mium quality as MSB780, but allows using also two and three pressure transducers in one unit.
MSB780X comes also in a brand new design with touchscreen display option.

MSB780X field standard is a further extension to MSB780X, features built-in battery and a
connector for external relative humidity and temperature probe. It is portable and convenient for
field usage. It features also data recording function.

World class accuracy

MSB780 barometer provides excellent accuracy, long term stability and temperature de-
pendence. It is ideal for the most demanding applications, where exactness and durability
are required.
Reliability
MSB780 is of a durable hardware design. It is contained in heavy-duty metal enclosure
rated IP66. MSB780X version with touchscreen display is rated IP65. MSB780 features
self-tests and error reporting via SDI12 and serial lines.
Low power design
MSB780 is a low power consumption microprocessor controlled sensor ideally suited for
solar and battery powered applications.
Low power consumption helps to save valuable energy on sites without mains supply.

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 MSB780(X) - User’s Guide

2 Hardware

2.1 Principle of operation

Sensor measurement principle is based on an oscillating tube, where frequency of oscillation

is dependent on density of the air inside. The oscillating tube is placed in vacuum. Measured
pressure comes inside the tube. Coil magnetic transducers are used to establish oscillation and
also to pick-up the signal.

The principle of measuring density of a gas counts on gas fractures of air. Using other gas as
pressure media would give incorrect pressure reading.

Note: Air must be used as a pressure medium during calibration.

2.2 Terminals

The terminals for connecting of wires are placed inside the device – unscrew 4 screws and
remove the cover to access the terminals.

The description of MSB780 terminals is in the figure 1. Description of MSB780X terminals is in

the figure 2.

If you have the MSB780X version with display, after opening the lid with display, disconnect the
display flat cable from the display connector on the mainboard. Before closing the lid, reconnect
the flat cable to the connector again, otherwise the display will not operate.

2.3 Power supply

The device is supplied by direct current, typically 12 V, or 24 V. Power supply terminals are
marked PWR+ and GND on the mainboard. For voltage range and typical power supply con-
sumption please see Technical Data on page 84.

2.4 Power consumption - model with touchscreen display

For models with touchscreen display option the overall power consumption may be reduced by
settings "Backlight off" time (Main menu - Display). In order to keep the data on display up to
date, the barometer measures continuously whenever the display is on, therefore consumes
more power. To conserve power at battery powered installations, set the Backlight off time to
the lowest possible value, for example 15 s.

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 MSB780(X) - User’s Guide

Figure 1: MSB780 terminals

Figure 2: MSB780X terminals

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 MSB780(X) - User’s Guide

Table 1: MSB780 RS-232 connector wiring

RS-232 cable wiring

MSB780 or MSB780X terminal male DB9 pin number
RXD 2
TXD 3
GND 5

2.5 Power saving mode

The barometer features power saving mode. It only applies for models without touchscreen
display option as the display measures continuously to keep the data up to date all the time.
The power saving mode is activated, if "smode" is set to "STOP" for both RS232 and RS485
(see cnf? command on page 34) and all the interfaces have been idle. Averaging (see avrg
command on page 43) has to be turned off as well. Falling into the power saving mode reduces
power consumption. Turning the barometer off by power button (if installed) reduces power
consumption to less than 50 µA.

To enable the power saving mode, connect to the service port using service cable, open your
favorite terminal program, set the port to 230400 Baud, 8N1 and issue the following commands:

terminal rs232<cr>
open 0<cr>
SMODE<cr>
STOP<cr>
tclose<cr>
terminal rs485<cr>
open 0<cr>
SMODE<cr>
STOP<cr>
tclose<cr>
avrg<cr>
0<cr>

2.6 Serial interface (RS-232)

Serial interface can be used to connect MSB780 or MSB780X sensor to a datalogger, or to a

PC. To connect to RS232 computer port, a serial cable is needed.

Wiring of a RS-232 to PC cable with DB9 connector can be found in table 1.

Standard serial interface supports asynchronous communication at speed 9600 bps. Default
parameters of RS-232 communication can be found in table 2. These parameters may be
changed using command seri<cr>, please refer to section 6.10 on page 38.

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 MSB780(X) - User’s Guide

Table 2: RS-232 default parameters

RS-232 default parameters

Baud Rate 9600
Data Bits 8
Parity None
Stop bits 1
Flow control none

Table 3: Connecting MSB780 or MSB780X to SDI-12

Connecting MSB780 or MSB780X to SDI-12

GND SDI-12 Ground Line
+ V Supply SDI-12 12 V Line
SDI-12 data line SDI-12 Data Line

2.7 Connecting MSB780 or MSB780X to PC

To connect MSB780 or MSB780X to PC use serial cable (as described above). If the PC does
not feature a RS-232 port, a RS-232 to USB convertor may be used. After the sensor is con-
nected to PC, use a standard terminal program. Set serial line parameters according to section
“Serial Interface”. Each command is terminated by <cr>, or <cr><lf> ASCII characters. To test
the connection and settings, hit Enter. The sensor should reply as follows:

cmd??<cr><lf>

This reply means, that the sensor did not understand the command.

Note: By default, echo is turned off for MSB780 and MSB780X. If required, echo can be turned
on using echo1<cr> command.

2.8 SDI-12 interface wiring

To connect MSB780 or MSB780X to SDI-12 bus only 3 wires are needed, see table 3.

2.9 Service connector

Service connector enables connection to MSB780 at fixed communication parameters, see table
4. For serial service serial port the same commands as for user RS-232 are valid. Service con-
nector includes power supply connections (PWR+, GND), SDI-12 line and service UART (lines
SERVICE_RX, SERVICE_TX). Service UART is not directly compatible with RS-232. Service
UART uses 3.3 V voltage level. Direct connection to RS-232 may lead to damage of the barom-
eter. Special service cable with converter is required. This can be ordered from MicroStep-MIS.

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 MSB780(X) - User’s Guide

Table 4: Service serial port parameters

Service serial port

Baud Rate 230400
Data Bits 8
Parity None
Stop bits 1

In case you have available 3.3 V TTL UART to RS-232 converter available, the service cable
may be built-up using schematic in Figure 3.

Figure 3: Service connector

Note: Service UART lines SERVICE_RX, SERVICE_TX may not be connected directly to RS-
232.

3 MSB780X transfer standard version

The version MSB780X transfer standard with battery comes in a carry case along with equip-
ment, as seen in the figure 4.

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 MSB780(X) - User’s Guide

Figure 4: MSB780X transfer standard

The default accessories within the MSB780X transfer standard are listed in table 5.
Table 5: MSB780X transfer standard - list of default accessories

Number Accessory
1 Transport case
2 Foam interior
3 MSB780X transfer standard with built-in battery
4 RHT175 relative humidity and temperature probe
5 Connecting cable for RHT175 to the transfer standard
6 AC power supply charger
7 Cigarette lighter charger cable
8 AA battery pack
9 RS-232 communication cable
10 Dust plugs
11 User guides

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 MSB780(X) - User’s Guide

3.1 Connecting the external probe to the transfer standard

When the relative humidity and temperature measurements are to be done, the external RHT175
probe must be connected. Please follow the figure 5. Use the dedicated cable with connectors.
Always turn the metal part of the connector when connecting or disconnecting.

Figure 5: Connecting external RH/t probe to the transfer standard

The transfer standard with the external RHT175 probe connected is shown in the picture 6.

Figure 6: Connecting external RH/t probe to the transfer standard

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 MSB780(X) - User’s Guide

3.2 Turning the transfer standard on/off

To turn the transfer standard power on/off, use the power button, see the figure 7. If the transfer
standard won’t turn on, please recharge it’s battery (follow section 3.3).

Figure 7: MSB780X transfer standard version - power button

3.3 Recharging the transfer standard battery

The power adapter for recharging the battery is supplied. To recharge the battery, connect
the adapter as per the figure 8 and plug the adapter to the wall socket. The charging will be
completed within 3 hours. The ambient temperature must be within 0 to 50 ◦ C, otherwise the
charging will not start.

Figure 8: Connection of the charger to the transfer standard

It is also possible to recharge the battery from the cigarette lighter receptacle using a dedicated
cable. See figure 9.

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 MSB780(X) - User’s Guide

Figure 9: Connection of a car cigarette lighter plug to the transfer standard

3.4 Using the transfer standard with AA batteries

If the battery is empty and there is no way to recharge the battery, it is also possible to use four
AA batteries to power the transfer standard. Use the dedicated battery pack. First fill it with
fresh AA batteries, see figure 10.

Figure 10: The battery pack fits four AA batteries

Connect the battery pack to the transfer standard according to the figure 11.

3.5 Connecting the transfer standard to a computer

To connect the transfer standard to a computer RS-232 port, use the dedicated RS-232 cable.
See figure 12.

The default communication settings are in table 2 on page 15. To check the actual settings via
display, see section 7.7 on page 67.

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 MSB780(X) - User’s Guide

Figure 11: Using the transfer standard with an AA battery pack

Figure 12: Connecting the transfer standard to RS-232

The battery must be charged enough to power the transfer standard during the computer con-
nection, unless you have a special cable, that can provide both power and RS-232 connection
at one time (not supplied by default).

3.6 Transfer standard connectors description

The location of inputs/outputs of the transfer standard is described in figure 13 and in table 6.

3.7 Adjustment of the transfer standard

To adjust the transfer standard pressure reading, please follow section 5 on page 27.

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 MSB780(X) - User’s Guide

Figure 13: Description of the transfer standard inputs/outputs

Table 6: Description of the transfer standard inputs/outputs

Item Description
1 Power button
2 Pressure port
3 External probe connector
4 Power in and communication connector
5 Touch screen display
6 Dust caps

To adjust the external probe reading, please refer to the RHT175 User guide, sections RH
adjustment, temperature adjustment.

3.8 Terminals of the transfer standard

The description of MSB780X transfer standard terminals is in the figure 14.

After opening the lid with display, disconnect the display flat cable from the display connector on
the mainboard. Before closing the lid, reconnect the flat cable to the connector again, otherwise
the display will not operate.

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 MSB780(X) - User’s Guide

Figure 14: Terminals of the MSB780X Transfer Standard

3.9 Memory card

Memory card is type micro SDHC and used for saving measurement data. Memory card is
inserted with the electrical contacts into inside the MSB780X transfer standard. See figure 15.

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 MSB780(X) - User’s Guide

Figure 15: Inserting memory card into MSB780x transfer standard

4 Maintenance

4.1 Cleaning

Clean the barometer enclosure with a soft, lint-free cloth moistened with mild detergent.

Check the hoses inside the barometer. If some dirt or insects got inside, it may cause clogging
of the hose and incorrect pressure reading. Replace the hoses, when needed. Order spare
parts from MicroStep-MIS.

4.2 Error States

The barometer features self-diagnosis function. Output of the self-diagnosis procedure can be
printed using command errors<cr> discussed in section 6.6 on page 37.

4.3 Recommended recalibration interval

Calibration must be done always, when there is a reason to believe, that the device is not within
the specified accuracy.

When defining the calibration interval, local long term specifications and other requirements
should be considered. Usually the calibration is performed in regular time intervals - for example
once per year, or bi-annually.

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 MSB780(X) - User’s Guide

4.4 Compensation sensor exchange procedure

4.4.1 Compensation sensor - maintenance

To check the compensation sensor for correct function, follow the procedure below. A relative
humidity measuring instrument is required for this procedure.

• Open the barometer lid. If you have version MSB780X with display, disconnect the display
cable from the connector.
• Disconnect the hoses from the compensation sensor, see figure 16.
• Wait several minutes until the ambient air diffuses into the compensation sensor.
• Check the reading of the humidity sensor through display (Menu->System->Diagnostics
(allQ)->iRH) or using "d" command, as described in section 6.4 on page 33.

If the reading comes close to the ambient relative humidity, the sensor is OK and needs no
change.

Figure 16: MSB780X - checking / exchanging compensation sensor

If you suspect, that the sensor is not working correctly, it is possible to exchange the compen-
sation sensor by the following procedure:

• Open the barometer lid. If you have version MSB780X with display, disconnect the display
cable from the connector.
• Disconnect the hoses from the compensation sensor, see figure 16.

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 MSB780(X) - User’s Guide

Table 7: Relative humidity dependence of MSB780 and MSB780X

Maximum value of pressure correction according to RH

Temperature Relative humidity Correction
-50◦ C to 10◦ C (0 to 100) [% RH] < 0.1 hPa
-50◦ C to 23◦ C (0 to 100) [% RH] < 0.2 hPa
-50◦ C to 40◦ C (0 to 80) [% RH] < 0.4 hPa
-50◦ C to 60◦ C (0 to 100) [% RH] < 1.2 hPa

• Unscrew 2 screws holding the compensation sensor and pull the sensor out from the
mainboard gently.
• Install a new compensation sensor in place of the old one.
• Fix the new compensation sensor using two screws.

• Reconnect the hoses to the compensation sensor.

• If you have MSB780X version with display, reconnect the display cable to the connector
on mainboard.
• Close the barometer lid.

4.4.2 Compensation sensor FAQ

- What is the purpose of compensation RH sensor?

The resonating pressure sensor is relying on composition of air (mixture of gases). Adding water
vapor to air changes the ratio of the gases relative amount in the composition. This causes very
slight differences in pressure reading (according to table 7, depending on temperature and RH).
The humidity sensor is used to compensate this systematic error based on known physical
dependencies.

- Does the barometer require dry air, or some desiccant cartridge at the pressure input?

The barometer is designed for use without special air conditioning like desiccant cartridges.
Compensation sensor compensates the effect of RH on pressure reading.

- How long does the compensation sensor last?

The compensation sensor should last more than 5 years. In conditions with very high humidity
and condensation we recommend to check the sensor more often.

- What happens, if the compensation sensor fails or indicates false readings?

The barometer additional error may appear if the compensation sensor does not work right. See
table 7 for ranges and limits.

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 MSB780(X) - User’s Guide

5 Calibration and Adjustment

MSB780 or MSB780X is fully adjusted, compensated and calibrated in factory using a reference
traceable to the national standard according to ISO17025.

User of MSB780 or MSB780X is responsible for calibration of the barometer in appropriate

interval, or when there is a reason to believe, that the MSB780 or the MSB780X is not performing
within acceptable limits. If calibration results show impermissible measurement error, the error
can be removed using adjustment commands via serial interface.

Adjusting MSB780 or MSB780X is done by altering the k and q coefficients in the memory. This
is done by the command "cset", as discussed in section 6.36 on page 49.

MSB780X with more than one pressure transducer has a set of k and q coefficients for each
transducer.

The output pressure is computed using formula 1.

pout = k.pmeas + q (1)

where:

pmeas is pressure measured by pressure sensor in hPa

k is the corrected pressure gain
q is the corrected pressure offset
pout is pressure on the output of the MSB780 in hPa

Note: Entering new adjustment coefficients overrides their previous values. It is advisable to
write down the previous coefficient values, so they are not lost by mistake.

5.1 How to read the current correction values

To get the current correction coefficients values, use the cnf?<cr> command, as described in
section 6.5 on page 34.

5.2 Disabling the correction

It is not possible to turn off correction, MSB780 or MSB780X always uses it to compute the
output value. It is however possible to virtually disable the correction by setting the coefficients

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 MSB780(X) - User’s Guide

as follows: k = 1, q = 0. These are the factory defaults. Resetting coefficients to defaults (k = 1,

q = 0) can be done using command (adjdef), as described in section 6.40 on page 51.

Please write down the old values before altering them, for the case you would like to restore
them.

5.3 Adjusting MSB780X with more than one transducer

For MSB780X with more than one pressure transducer, each pressure transducer is adjusted
separately. To read the pressure value for each transducer d<cr> command can be used. This
command is described in chapter 6.4 on page 33. Alternatively, using the form<cr> command
you may set a message containing the pressure readings from individual pressure transducers
(P1, P2, P3, see page 39).

5.4 One pressure point adjustment

Performing adjustment at one pressure point means adjustment of offset. The output value of
the barometer is shifted by the same amount at any pressure.

This is done by altering the q coefficient only.

To adjust offset, follow these steps:

1. Read the old coefficient values and write them down. For example k = 1, q = 0. For this
use the cnf?<cr> command, as described in section 6.5 on page 34.
2. Compare the reading of the MSB780 or MSB780X against a reference.
For example the MSB780 or MSB780X reads 980.23 hPa, the reference reads 979.99
hPa.
3. Compute the correction. The correction is computed as reference - MSB780 or MSB780X,
i.e. 979.99 - 980.23 = -0.24 hPa.
4. Add the computed correction value to the old q coefficient value. In the example 0 + (-0.24)
= -0.24. This is the new q value.
5. Write the new k and q values to MSB780 or MSB780X memory using command cset<cr>,
as documented in section 6.36 on page 49.

5.5 Two pressure points adjustment

Adjusting a device in two pressure points changes both coefficients; gain and offset, i.e. k and
q. If you would like to adjust MSB780 or MSB780X using two reference pressure points, follow
this procedure:

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 MSB780(X) - User’s Guide

1. Read the old k and q values, write them down.

2. Set the k and q values to default values, k = 1, q = 0 using cset<cr> command.
3. Compare the MSB780 or MSB780X reading against the reference at the first point, write
down the values. For example MSB780 or MSB780X: 750.12, reference: 750.35.
4. Compare the MSB780 or MSB780X reading against the reference at the second point,
write down the values. For example MSB780 or MSB780X: 1100.5, reference: 1099.30.
5. Compute the coefficients as follows:
ref2 − ref1
k= (2)
msb2 − msb1

q = ref1 − k ∗ msb1 (3)

where:
ref1 is the reference reading, lower pressure
ref2 is the reference reading, higher pressure
msb1 is the MSB780 or MSB780X reading, lower pressure
msb2 is the MSB780 or MSB780X reading, higher pressure
Example values:
1099.3 − 750.35 348.95
k= = = 0.995919 (4)
1100.5 − 750.12 350.38

q = 750.35 − 0.995919 ∗ 750.12 = 3.291 (5)

6. Write the new k and q values to MSB780 or MSB780X memory using command cset<cr>,
as documented in section 6.36 on page 49.

5.6 More than 2 pressure points adjustment

If you would like to adjust the barometer using more than 2 calibration points, it is required to
approximate the calibration points using a linear regression calculation. Since linear regression
is commonly known, we do not discuss it in detail.

To compute coefficients k and q, consider the MSB780 or MSB780X readings being x values and
corresponding reference values being the y values. Equations 6 and 7 should be used. Using
calculator, computer program or online calculator is advised. After computing the coefficients
they need to be stored in MSB780 or MSB780X memory the same way, as in previous section.

Pn
xi yi − nx̄ȳ
k = Pi=1
n 2 2
(6)
i=1 xi − nx̄

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 MSB780(X) - User’s Guide

q = ȳ − kx̄ (7)

where:

xi is the MSB780 or MSB780X reading at ith point

yi is the reference reading at ith point
n is the number of calibration points

Sequence of steps:

1. Read the old k and q values, write them down.

2. Set the k and q values to default values, k = 1, q = 0 using cset<cr> command.
3. Compare the MSB780 or MSB780X reading against the reference at the first point, write
down the values. For example MSB780: 750.12, reference: 750.35.
4. Repeat the previous point until you have as many calibration points you want.
5. Compute the coefficients using 6 and 7
6. Write the new k and q values to MSB780 or MSB780X memory using command cset<cr>,
as documented in section 6.36 on page 49.

5.7 “caset” Adjust the analog output

Connect a multi-meter to the analog output and input measured voltage / current values.

Command:

1. without parameter: print of instructions and ranges,

2. one parameter: range(for adjust 1, 2, 3) see table 8, User friendly adjustment - barometer
generate 10 % selected range and ask for value of which the user sees. After entering,
the set 90 % selected range and ask for value of which the user sees again. Then will be
computed the k and q coefficients and save it.
3. three parameters: range(for adjust 1, 2, 3) k - coefficients, q - coefficients,

Example:

caset 3<cr>
10% set, insert value you see at output<cr><lf>
2.00061<cr>

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 MSB780(X) - User’s Guide

Table 8: Range for adjust analog output

Parameter Mode / Range

1 0 .. 5 V
2 0 .. 10 V
3 0 .. 20 mA

90% set, insert value you see at output<cr><lf>

18.0058<cr>
k=0.999682 q=0.000026<cr><lf>
wait.. OK<cr><lf>

6 RS-232 and RS-485 commands

The barometer setup is done primarily via RS-232 or RS-485 (optional). Please refer to this
chapter for detailed information on commands.

6.1 Serial interface command set

Table 9: MSB780(X) commands

MSB780 or MSB780X Commands

Command Short description Page
p poll measurement. 33
d poll extended measurement. 33
cnf? print configuration, probe number and firmware. 34
errors print error status message. 37
sdi12a set sdi-12 address. 37
help displays help. 38
boot restart barometer. 38
seri set communication settings for user RS232. 38
echo1 enable echo. 38
echo0 disable echo. 39
form change output message format. 39
form? get actual output message format. 41
smode change the user port start-up operating mode. 41
smode? get actual user port start-up operating mode. 42
intv change the outputting interval for RUN mode. 42
intv? get actual outputting interval for RUN mode. 41
avrg averaging time. 43
avrg? get actual setting averaging time. 43
Continued on next page

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 MSB780(X) - User’s Guide

Table 9 – continued from previous page

Command Short description Page
addr change the address in POLL mode. 44
addr? get actual address in POLL mode. 44
open access to command mode in POLL mode. 44
close close command mode in POLL mode. 44
send read the output message in POLL mode. 45
unit change the measurement unit. 45
unit? get actual measurement unit. 46
cnfdef set default config (HQFE, HQNH, TQFE, seri). 46
terminal rs232 temporarily redirect RS232 to service port. 46
terminal rs485 temporarily redirect RS485 to service port. 47
terminal probe temporarily redirect probe to service port. 47
dir e: print list of files. 47
type <filename> print file. 48
xmodemr E:\<filename> read file using XMODEM 48
cset set coefficient ’k’ and ’q’ ( Po = k*Pm + q ). 49
set the maximum permissible difference pres-
dpmax 50
sure.
get the maximum permissible difference pres-
dpmax? 50
sure.
adjdef set default adjust config. 51
icaomode set calculation mode for QNH and QFE 51
sets number of decimal spaces (truncating) for
icaodigits 51
QNH and QFE in ICAO mode
hqfe set altitude for QFE corrected pressure. 52
hqnh set altitude for QNH corrected pressure. 53
tqfe set temperature for QFE corrected pressure. 55
set temperature for QFE without saving to
tqfea 55
FLASH.
hhcp set height difference for HCP level. 55
hqfe? get altitude for QFE corrected pressure. 56
hqnh? get altitude for QNH corrected pressure. 56
get default temperature for QFE corrected pres-
tqfe? 56
sure.
get actual temperature for QFE corrected pres-
tqfea? 56
sure.
hhcp? get height difference for HCP level. 56
flash switch to bootloader. -
dt show date and time. 57
setdt set date and time. 57
setpin set PIN code for enable settings via LCD 57
amode set analog output mode and range. 79
asel set analog output quantities. 80
atest analog output test. 81
aerr analog output fault indication setting. 81
Continued on next page

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 MSB780(X) - User’s Guide

Table 9 – continued from previous page

Command Short description Page
caset adjust the analog output 30

Note: Changed settings are immediately stored in FLASH, and will persist after power loss
(reset). Storing parameters in FLASH is indicated by printing message:

wait..OK<cr><lf>

6.2 Basic commands

6.3 “p” Poll measurement command

Sensor returns measured pressure, corrected QFE pressure and corrected QNH pressures.
The units of the quantities can be set using unit<cr> command described on page 45.

The output message format is “pressure,QFE,QNH”.

For example:

p<cr>
1009.066,1010.242,1010.242<cr><lf>

The barometer sends reply immediately.

In case the data is not ready (after power-up), the barometer reply is as follows:

p<cr>
Data not ready<cr><lf>

6.4 “d” Poll extended measurement command

When using MSB780X version with more than one pressure transducer, it is sometimes neces-
sary to read individual pressure measurements per each transducer, for example during adjust-
ment. To read pressure measurement for each pressure transducer, use the d<cr> command.

For example:

d<cr>
Waiting for data ... ready<cr><lf>
Baro 1 - P: 1003.023, f: 10379.8193Hz, Vd: 0.604886V,
RH: 35.201<cr><lf>
Baro 2 - P: 1003.002, f: 10412.8271Hz, Vd: 0.602282V,

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 MSB780(X) - User’s Guide

RH: 35.201<cr><lf>
P result - P: 1003.012, Pqfe: 1003.012,
Pqnh: 1003.012<cr><lf>

The example shows result of the d<cr> command of a two transducer version MSB780X. Pres-
sure measurements for the two transducers follow after P: in hPa unit. The resulting pressure is
also outputted.

6.5 “cnf?” Print configuration

The command prints various configurable parameters, and also serial number and firmware
version (which are not configurable). Furthermore, this command lists the values of correction
coefficients k, q.

Example:

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 MSB780(X) - User’s Guide

cnf?<cr>
Conf:<cr><lf>
model : MSB780X<cr><lf>
display : connected, v2<cr><lf>
probe : OK, SN: 20B1701NN123<cr><lf>
serial : MSB780X-2.0-1709-3DTS-004<cr><lf>
fw. ver : 097<cr><lf>
Sensor 1 : OK<cr><lf>
Sensor 2 : OK<cr><lf>
Sensor 3 : OK<cr><lf>
Sensor 1 s.n. : 00225417<cr><lf>
Sensor 2 s.n. : 00225418<cr><lf>
Sensor 3 s.n. : 00225419<cr><lf>
Coeff. ’k’ sensor 1 : 0.999764<cr><lf>
Coeff. ’q’ sensor 1 : 0.220060<cr><lf>
Coeff. ’k’ sensor 2 : 1.000211<cr><lf>
Coeff. ’q’ sensor 2 : 0.020310<cr><lf>
Coeff. ’k’ sensor 3 : 0.999835<cr><lf>
Coeff. ’q’ sensor 3 : -0.153113<cr><lf>
Coeff. ’k’ for 0..5V : 0.999849<cr><lf>
Coeff. ’q’ for 0..5V : 0.000024<cr><lf>
Coeff. ’k’ for 0..10V : 0.999850<cr><lf>
Coeff. ’q’ for 0..10V : 0.000025<cr><lf>
Coeff. ’k’ for 0..20mA : 0.999894<cr><lf>
Coeff. ’q’ for 0..20mA : -0.000001<cr><lf>
Analog out range : 0 .. 1 V<cr><lf>
Analog out quantity : P<cr><lf>
Quantity minimum : 500.000 hPa<cr><lf>
Quantity maximum : 1100.000 hPa<cr><lf>
Analog out when error : 0.000 V<cr><lf>
Alarm quantity : P<cr><lf>
Alarm minimum : 500.000 hPa<cr><lf>
Alarm maximum : 1100.000 hPa<cr><lf>
sdi12 adr : 6<cr><lf>
barometer adr : 0<cr><lf>
RS232 speed : 9600<cr><lf>
RS232 dataBits : 8<cr><lf>
RS232 stopBits : 1<cr><lf>
RS232 parity : N<cr><lf>
RS232 echo : Off<cr><lf>
RS232 SMODE : RUN<cr><lf>
RS232 INTV : 1 s<cr><lf>
RS485 speed : 9600<cr><lf>
RS485 dataBits : 8<cr><lf>
RS485 stopBits : 1<cr><lf>
RS485 parity : N<cr><lf>
RS485 echo : Off<cr><lf>
RS485 SMODE : POLL<cr><lf>
RS485 INTV : 10 s<cr><lf>
output format : "!" 4.2 P \RN<cr><lf>
Actual UART : Service<cr><lf>
Average time : 100 s<cr><lf>
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 MSB780(X) - User’s Guide

model - model identification.

display - idicates the state of the display and its version.
probe - idicates the state of the external probe and its serial number.
serial - device serial number.
fw. ver - version of the firmware.
Sensor 1 - state of the sensor (OK or Error).
Sensor 1 s.n. - serial number of the sensor.
Sensor 2 - state of the sensor (OK or Error).
Sensor 2 s.n. - serial number of the sensor.
Sensor 3 - state of the sensor (OK or Error).
Sensor 3 s.n. - serial number of the sensor.
Coeff. ’k’ sensor 1 – correction gain for transducer 1.
Coeff. ’q’ sensor 1 - correction offset for transducer 1.
Coeff. ’k’ sensor 2 – correction gain for transducer 2.
Coeff. ’q’ sensor 2 - correction offset for transducer 2.
Coeff. ’k’ sensor 3 – correction gain for transducer 3.
Coeff. ’q’ sensor 3 - correction offset for transducer 3.
Coeff. ’k’ for 0..5V - correction gain for analog output range from 0 to 5 V.
Coeff. ’q’ for 0..5V - correction offset for analog output range from 0 to 5 V.
Coeff. ’k’ for 0..10V - correction gain for analog output range from 0 to 10 V.
Coeff. ’q’ for 0..10V - correction offset for analog output range from 0 to 10 V.
Coeff. ’k’ for 0..20mA - correction gain for analog output range from 0 to 20 mA.
Coeff. ’q’ for 0..20mA - correction offset for analog output range from 0 to 20 mA.
Analog out range - actual setting analog output mode (current or voltage) and range.
Analog out quantity - actual setting analog output quantity.
Quantity minimum - minimum value for quantity corresponding to minimum range output.
Quantity maximum - maximum value for quantity corresponding to maximum range output.
Analog out when error - value for analog output when quantity error.
Alarm quantity - actual setting of quantity watched by alarm.
Alarm minimum - minimum permitted value.
Alarm maximum - maximum permitted value.
sdi12 adr - the address of the sensor on SDI-12 bus.
barometer adr - the address of the barometer in POLL mode.
RS232 or RS485 speed – serial port Baud rate.
RS232 or RS485 dataBits – number of data bits.
RS232 or RS485 stopBits – number of stop bits.
RS232 or RS485 parity – parity parameter.
RS232 or RS485 echo - indicates RS232 echo state.
RS232 or RS485 SMODE - indicates of RS232 mode.
RS232 or RS485 INTV - number of time interval for RUN SMODE in second.
output format - actual FORM message format.
Actual UART - indicates of using interface.
Average time - setting the averaging time in seconds.

For MSB780X with more than 1 transducer, sensor states and coefficients k and q are displayed
for each transducer.

Analog output informations are valid only, if extension card is connected.

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 MSB780(X) - User’s Guide

Table 10: Error state iterpretation

Reply acronym Error interpretation

1000000 lse Precise clock of RTC failure
0100000 hse Precise clock of CPU failure
0010000 bsen Error of some of the three transducers
0001000 sum Error of pressure weighted average value or difference limit
0000100 flash Flash memory failure
0000010 sht Compensation RH sensor error
0000001 crc Flash configuration CRC error

6.6 “errors” Print error message

This command can be used to discover communication problem with the sensor element, with
the internal digital/analog converter, and to verify FLASH checksum. The errors<cr> command
returns three binary values; 0 means no error, 1 means error state.

Example:

errors<cr><lf>
0000000(lse, hse, bsen, sum, flash, sht, crc)<cr><lf>

In the example, there is no error state indicated (seven zeros).

In case of signalized errors, or other problems, please refer to section 11 on page 89.

6.7 “sdi12a” SDI-12 address change

This command is used to change the sensor address on SDI-12 bus. The SDI-12 address is
one character. It can be number 0 to 9, lower-case character a to z or upper-case character A
to Z.

Default SDI-12 address is 0.

sdi12a<cr>
New SDI-12 address: 8<cr>
wait..OK<cr><lf>

The example shows setting SDI-12 address to 8.

In case of incorrect new address (not within correct ranges, see above), the barometer replies:

Wrong format<cr><lf>

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 MSB780(X) - User’s Guide

6.8 “help” Display help

The help<cr> command displays list of available serial interface commands with a short de-
scription.

6.9 “boot” Restart device

This command can be used to restart the device.

Example:

boot<cr>

6.10 “seri” Set communication settings for user RS-232

Possible baud rates are the following: 600, 1200, 2400, 4800, 9600, 19200, 38400, 57600,
115200, 230400.

This command can be used for change UART (RS-232) or RS-485 parameters.

The command affects settings on the port currently connected. If you issue the command via
RS-232, the settings will be used only for RS-232.

When connected via service port, the settings of RS-232 or RS-485 may be changed via prior
redirection to the respective port - see commands terminal rs232 or terminal rs485.

Example:

seri<cr>
SERI: [baud parity databits stopbits] “9600 n 8 1“<cr><lf>
New values: 19200 n 8 1<cr>
wait..OK<cr><lf>

6.11 “echo1” Enable echo

To enable echoing characters on the port currently connected, use this command.

Example:

echo1<cr>
Echo is ON<cr><lf>

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 MSB780(X) - User’s Guide

The barometer will echo characters since now.

Echoing is not supported on some ports. In that case the answer is "Not supported on this
channel ! <cr><lf>".

6.12 “echo0” Disable echo

To disable echoing characters on the port currently connected, use this command.

Example:

echo0<cr>
Echo is OFF<cr><lf>

The barometer will not echo characters since now.

6.13 "form" Change output message format

This command is used to set a format of the message being output by MSB780 or MSB780X
after SEND<cr> command, or automatically if run mode is on. The format string can be up to 126
characters long.

Table 11: Form command fields

Field Description
/ Restore the message to default. Use alone.
0.0 Restore default number formats.
x.y Set number of digits and decimal places.
quantity Quantity value or * characters if value not available.
U Unity symbol as it is (width depends).
U1 ... U9 Unit symbol in the specified number of characters (truncated or space filled
as necessary).
"xxx" String constant (free text).
P Pressure output
P1 Pressure output from transducer 1, same format as P.
P2 Pressure output from transducer 2, same format as P.
P3 Pressure output from transducer 3, same format as P.
QNH QNH calculation
QFE QFE calculation
HCP HCP calculation
P3H Pressure trend
A3H Pressure tendency
TP1 Temperature of pressure transducer 1
Continued on next page

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 MSB780(X) - User’s Guide

Table 11 – continued from previous page

Field Description
TP2 Temperature of pressure transducer 2
TP3 Temperature of pressure transducer 3
DP12 Pressure diference (P1 - P2)
DP13 Pressure diference (P1 - P3)
DP23 Pressure diference (P2 - P3)
\N Line feed character. <0x0A>.
\R Carriage return character. <0x0D>.
\RN Carriage return and line feed characters. <0x0D><0x0A>.
\T Horizontal tabulator character <0x09>.
\0...\255 Data byte with the specified decimal value.
ADDR Device address (left - filled with spaces).
CS2 Modulus-256 checksum of message sent so far, hexadecimal format.
CS4 Modulus-65536 checksum of message sent so far, hexadecimal format.
CSX NMEA XOR checksum of message sent so far, hexadecimal format.
ERR Error flags for P1 , P2 and P3 (if installed, right - filled with spaces); 0 = no
error, 1 = error.
SN Device serial number.

The default output format depends on the device configuration.

Prompt syntax and output example:

form<cr>
Write formatted string for FORM: \33 4.2 P \RN<cr>
FORM format is OK<cr><lf>
|! 997.34<cr><lf>
|<cr><lf>
wait..OK<cr><lf>
send<cr>
! 997.33<cr><lf>

Prompt syntax and output example 2:

form<cr>
Write formatted string for FORM: "! P:" 0.3 P ", QFE:" 0.3 QFE ", QNH:" 0.3 QNH
", TP:" 0.2 TP1 ", err:" ERR ", baroSN:" SN ", CS:" CS4 \RN<cr>
FORM format is OK<cr><lf>
|! P:981.811, QFE:984.929, QNH:1014.641, TP:27.75, err:000, baroSN:MSB780X-2.0-1709-1DTS-054,
CS:1620<cr><lf>
|<cr><lf>
wait..OK<cr><lf>
send<cr>
! ! P:981.834, QFE:984.952, QNH:1014.653, TP:27.02, err:000, baroSN:MSB780X-2.0-1709-1DTS-054,
CS:161A<cr><lf>

Restoring the default output message (depends on the device configuration) and output exam-

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 MSB780(X) - User’s Guide

ple:

form<cr>
Write formatted string for FORM: /<cr>
FORM format is OK<cr><lf>
|! 997.34<cr><lf>
|<cr><lf>
wait..OK<cr><lf>

6.14 "form?" Get actual output message format

To get actual output message format, use the form?<cr> command.

Example:

form?<cr>
start>P \RN <end<cr><lf>
send<cr>
997.55<cr><lf>

6.15 “smode” Change the user port start-up operating mode

Use the command smode<cr> to set the port operating mode.

This command is not supported on service port.

The command affects settings on the port currently connected. If you issue the command via
RS-232, the settings will be used only for RS-232.

When connected via service port, the settings of RS-232 or RS-485 may be changed via prior
redirection to the respective port - see commands terminal rs232 or terminal rs485.

Selected output mode is activated after power outages.

Example:

smode<cr>
Select output mode: STOP RUN POLL SEND
New SMODE:RUN<cr>
wait..OK<cr><lf>

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 MSB780(X) - User’s Guide

Table 12: smode command options

Field Description
The barometer will not send message automatically. The barometer will not
STOP react to SEND<cr> command in this mode. Command mode is open all the
time.
The barometer will send message automatically with period set by intv<cr>.
RUN
Command mode is open all the time.
To open command mode, use open a<cr>, where "a" stands for address
(use command addr<cr> to change it). To close command mode, send
close<cr>. To poll message, send command send a<cr>. The barometer
POLL
does not respond to other commands and other addresses. The barome-
ter in POLL mode does not send the message automatically. This mode is
useful when using multiple barometers on RS-485 bus.
The SEND<cr> command is used to poll message. Command mode is open
SEND
all the time.

6.16 "smode?" Get actual user port start-up operating mode

To get actual user port start-up operating mode, use the smode?<cr> command.

Example:

smode?<cr>
SMODE: RUN<cr><lf>

6.17 “intv” Change the outputting interval for RUN mode

Use the command intv<cr> to set the outputting interval for the RUN mode.

The command affects settings on the port currently connected. If you issue the command via
RS-232, the settings will be used only for RS-232.

When connected via service port, the settings of RS-232 or RS-485 may be changed via
prior redirection to the respective port - see commands terminal rs232<cr> or terminal
rs485<cr>.

Example:

intv<cr>
Select new interval in seconds: 1<cr>
wait..OK<cr><lf>

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 MSB780(X) - User’s Guide

6.18 "intv?" Get actual the outputting interval for RUN mode

To Get actual the outputting interval for RUN mode, use the intv?<cr> command.

Example:

intv?<cr>
INTV: 1 s<cr><lf>

6.19 "avrg" Averaging time

The avrg<cr> is used to set and inspect the averaging time during which the individual mea-
surement samples are integrated to get an averaged pressure reading. The averaging time is
the total averaging time of the resulting pressure. QFE, QNH and HCP corrected pressures are
calculated from the resulting averaged pressure as well. Pressures from individual transducers
(P1, P2, P3) are not averaged.

The output reading is a running average pressure reading. The measurement is updated in nor-
mal measurement mode approximately every 1.6 seconds, depending on the avrg<cr> setting.

Example:

avrg<cr>
Averaging time = 0 s<cr><lf>
New averaging time: 100<cr>
Averaging time = 100 s<cr><lf>
wait..OK<cr><lf>

This values are averaging if is setting time 1 ... 600 s:

• P pressure.
• HCP pressure
• QFE pressure

• QNH pressure

6.20 "avrg?" Get averaging time

The avrg?<cr> is used to get setting averaging time.

Example:

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 MSB780(X) - User’s Guide

avrg?<cr>
Averaging time = 100 s<cr><lf>

6.21 “addr” Change the address in POLL mode

Addresses are required only for POLL mode. It is not supported on service port. Use the addr
a<cr> command to set barometer address, where a is address (0 . . . 255)(default = 0).

Example: the barometer is configured to address 200.

addr<cr>
Select new barometer address:200<cr>
New ADDR 200<cr><lf>
wait..OK<cr><lf>

6.22 “addr?” Get actual address in POLL mode

To Get actual address in POLL mode, use the addr?<cr> command.

Example:

addr?<cr>
ADDR: 200<cr><lf>

6.23 “open” Access to command mode in POLL mode

When all barometers on the serial RS-232 or RS-485 interface are in POLL mode the open a,
where a is address of barometer (0 . . . 255) command sets one barometer temporarity to STOP
mode so that other commands can be entered.

Example:

open 200<cr>
Command mode is opened

6.24 “close” Close command mode in POLL mode

Use the close<cr> command to switch the barometer back to the POLL mode.

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 MSB780(X) - User’s Guide

Example:

close<cr>
Command mode is closed

6.25 “send” Read the output message in POLL mode

Use the send a<cr> command to reading output message once in POLL mode, where a is
address of the barometer (0 . . . 255).

Example:

send 200<cr>
! 995.17<cr><lf>

6.26 “unit” Change the measurement unit

MSB780 and MSB780X internally work with hPa unit. Using this command, it is possible to
change output data unit for each pressure quantity separately. The change applies immediately
for all outputs (p, d, send commands, LCD screen, etc.), apart from SDI command R0 which
always returns result in basic units (hPa).

Available units for pressures are: hPa, inHg, psi, torr, bar, mbar, mmHg, kPa, Pa, mmH2O,
inH2O.

Example:

unit<cr>
UNIT:<cr><lf>
P: hPa<cr><lf>
P1: hPa<cr><lf>
P2: hPa<cr><lf>
P3: hPa<cr><lf>
HCP: hPa<cr><lf>
QFE: hPa<cr><lf>
QNH: hPa<cr><lf>
DP12: hPa<cr><lf>
DP13: hPa<cr><lf>
DP23: hPa<cr><lf>

Select quantity:<cr><lf> DP12<cr> Actual unit for DP12 is hPa<cr><lf>

Available units [ hPa, inHg, psi, torr, bar, mbar, mmHg, kPa, Pa, mmH2O, inH2O ]
: mmH2O<cr>
wait..OK

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 MSB780(X) - User’s Guide

6.27 “unit?” Get actual measurement unit

This command lists all quantities and actual unit of each.

6.28 “cnfdef” Set default configuration

This command reverts configuration to factory defaults, i.e.: - default units (hPa) for all pressure
quantities, - zero values for hqnh, hqfe, hhcp, - tqfe and tqfea temperature for QFE calculation
to 20 ◦ C, - maximum permissible pressure difference between transducers (DPMAX) to 1.0
hPa, - ICAO mode for calculation QFE and QNH corrected pressures, no truncating of results,
- PIN code for enable setting via LCD to "1234", - output message format (FORM) set to "\33
4.2 P \RN", - analog output turned off, - quantity alarm turned off, - recording quantities set to
pressure, external temperature and humidity, - recording periode set to 10 seconds per sample,
- LCD screens configuration (shown quantities), - default configuration for ports, see 13.

Table 13: Default port configuration parameters

Default configuration parameters

Parameter RS232 RS485 Unit
UART Baud rate 9600 9600 Baud
UART parity None None
UART data bits 8 8
UART stop bits 1 1
UART SMODE RUN POLL
UART intv time 1 10 s

Example:

cnfdef<cr>
CNFDEF:<cr><lf>
Set default config? (yes/no): yes<cr>
Default config – OK<cr><lf>
wait..OK<cr><lf>

This command has no impact on adjustment coefficients k and q.

6.29 “terminal rs232” Temporarily redirect the service port to RS232

This command may be used only on the service port. It redirects the service port to RS-232
port.

This command is useful when configuring the barometer using service port. It enables user to
change settings of RS-232 like Baud rate, data bits, stop bits, echo, interval and smode.

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 MSB780(X) - User’s Guide

For example, the user would like to set the RS-232 baud rate via service port.

First the user redirects to the RS232 port:

terminal rs232<cr>
Terminal mode is active. Close it with command "tclose"
!<cr><lf>
RS232 >

Now it is possible to enter commands as if the user was connected via RS-232 port.

seri<cr>

SERI: [baud parity databits stopbits] for example "9600 n 8 1"

New values: "19200 n 8 1"<cr>
wait..OK<cr><lf>

A new Baud rate has been set for RS-232. To cancel the redirection to the RS-232 port, send:

tclose<cr>
Terminal mode was closed !<cr><lf>

6.30 “terminal rs485” Temporarily redirect the service port to RS-485

This command works in the same way as the previous command, but for RS-485.

6.31 “terminal probe” Temporarily redirect the service port to external

probe

This command is supported only on service port. It is used for communication with external
probe which is connected to RS485 port of the barometer. After issuing this command the
barometer prints the status of external probe (whether the probe is or is not responding) and it
resets the external probe by turning off and on its power supply. This command actually makes
the barometer to be a service port to RS485 converter.

6.32 "dir e:" Print list of files

The dir e:<cr> command lists all the files from the internal memory.

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 MSB780(X) - User’s Guide

Example:

dir e:<cr>
DIR e:<cr><lf>
Disk E DIR:<cr><lf>
File name Size [B] Date dmy Time hms<cr><lf>
16030102.CSV 952 28.03.2016 10:32:22<cr><lf>
17030101.CSV 2954 15.03.2017 14:58:04<cr><lf>
17042505.CSV 1826844 25.04.2017 21:23:02<cr><lf>
17042601.CSV 1327 26.04.2017 03:02:02<cr><lf>
17050801.CSV 10772600 09.05.2017 00:13:10<cr><lf>
All clusters: 1000576, Used clusters: 36592, Free clusters: 963984, Cluster size:
1024<cr><lf>
OK<cr><lf>

6.33 "type <filename>" print file

This command will print the content of the file.

Example:

type 16030102.CSV<cr>
1: first line of file<cr><lf>
2: second line of file<cr><lf>
3: etc...<cr><lf>
––- End of file ––-<cr><lf>

6.34 xmodemr - downloading files using XMODEM

This command starts file transfer through XMODEM protocol. It is designed mainly for use with
AWS Service software which enables to list and download files using copy-paste or drag and
drop methods.
If you want to use the command directly, nonetheless it is not very user friendly, you can do it as
follows:

Example:

XMODEMR E:\17030104.CSV<cr> Note: The path, name and extension ARE case sensitive!
Waiting for XMODEM receive.<cr><lf>
The barometer is now waiting for master to start the transfer with ’C’ character (according to
XMODEM standard). You can use for example Hyperterminal software which manages also
packet acknowledging, request for retransmit etc. Note: To prevent from getting stuck, there

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 MSB780(X) - User’s Guide

are timeouts. After the barometer sends "Waiting for XMODEM receive." you have to start the
transmission within next 15 seconds, otherwise the timeout cancels the transfer.

6.35 Adjustment commands

In the following chapters commands for adjusting the barometer are described.

6.36 “cset” Set adjust coefficients

This command enables to adjust the MSB780 barometer by entering two linear coefficients -
offset and gain. If the barometer contains more transducers, two coefficients for each transducer
can be set.

Example:

cset<cr>
Select sensor [ 1 2 3 ] : 1<cr><cr><lf>
CSET for sensor 1 : [ k q ] “0.1234”<cr><lf>
Set new ’k’ coefficient: 1.000156<cr>
k = 1.000156<cr><lf>
Set new ’q’ coefficient: 0.25<cr>
q = 0.25<cr><lf>
wait..OK<cr><lf>

The output pressure is computed using formula 8.

pout = k.pmeas + q (8)

where:

pmeas is pressure measured by pressure sensor in hPa

k is the corrected pressure gain

q is the corrected pressure offset

pout is pressure on the output of the MSB780 in hPa

For MSB780X with more than 1 transducer, there is set of k and q coefficients for each trans-
ducer. When using cset command, user is prompted first, which transducer’s coefficients are
being updated, example for two transducer version:

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 MSB780(X) - User’s Guide

cset<cr>
Select sensor [ 1 2 ] : 1<cr>
CSET for sensor 1 : [ k q ] "0.1234"<cr><lf>
Set new ’k’ coefficient:1.00034<cr>
k = 1.000340<cr><lf>
Set new ’q’ coefficient:0.03<cr>
q = 0.030000<cr><lf>
wait..OK<cr><lf>

In this example, coefficients for transducer 1 were updated.

6.37 “cnf?” Get actual adjust coefficients

To read the actual values of the adjust coefficients k, q, please refer to section 6.5 on page 34.

6.38 “dpmax” Set the maximum permissible pressure difference

To set a new value of the dpmax parameter, use the dpmax<cr> command.

Example:

dpmax<cr>
DPMAX:
Actual value 1.00 hPa
Pressure scale [hPa, inHg, psi, torr, bar, mbar, mmHg, kPa, Pa, mmH2O, inH2O]: hPa<cr>
Set dpmax in hPa, ranges +0.00 .. 5.00 : 0.4<cr>
New dpmax is: 0.40 hPa
wait..OK<cr><lf>

6.39 “dpmax?” Get the maximum permissible pressure difference

To get the dpmax parameter value, use this command.

Example:

dpmax?<cr>
DPMAX: 0.40 hPa<cr><lf>

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 MSB780(X) - User’s Guide

6.40 “adjdef” Set default adjustment

This command resets all adjustment coefficients k, q to their default values. For model MSB780X
with more pressure transducers, this command resets coefficients for all of them. This command
also resets adjustment coefficients of analog output.

Note: It is recommended to write down the previous setting of the coefficients, for the case you
would like to return to the previous state.

Actual k, q values can be read using command cnf?, as described on page 34.

Example:

adjdef<cr>
Set default config? (yes/no):yes<cr>
Default adjust config - OK<cr><lf>
wait..OK<cr><lf>

6.41 Corrected pressure commands - QFE, QNH, HCP

The following sections refer to setting parameters for corrected pressures QFE, QNH, HCP and
its calculation method.

6.42 “icaomode” Set mode for calculation of corrected pressures

This command is used for selection of formula for calculation QFE and QNH corrected pres-
sures. For calculation formulas see hqfe command on page 52 and hqnh command on page
53.

Example:

hqnh<cr>
Actual setting: yes<cr><lf>
Use ICAO mode? [yes/no]: yes<cr>
wait..OK<cr><lf>

If you do not want to change actual setting, enter empty input - only <cr>(<lf>).

6.43 “icaodigits” Set number of decimal praces of corrected pressures

In ICAO mode it is possible to set truncating of QFE and QNH corrected pressures.

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 MSB780(X) - User’s Guide

Table 14: Valid ranges for HQFE parameter

Valid ranges for HQFE parameter

Unit Minimum Maximum
m -30 30
ft -99 99

Example:

icaodigits<cr>
Actual setting: no truncate<cr><lf>
Insert max nr. of decimal digits [0..6 or off(means no truncate)]: 1<cr>
wait..OK<cr><lf>

6.44 “hqfe” Set altitude for QFE corrected pressure

Using this command you can set hqfe, which is height difference between the barometer eleva-
tion and official aerodrome elevation. The hqfe is calculated as the barometer elevation minus
official aerodrome elevation, it is a positive number in cases when the barometer is above the
aerodrome elevation.

Example:

hqfe<cr>
HQFE:<cr><lf>
Actual value 0.00 m<cr><lf>
Distance scale [ft, m]: m<cr>
Set altitude in m, ranges -30.00 .. 30.00 : 10<cr>
New altitude is: 10.00m<cr><lf>
wait..OK<cr><lf>

Available altitude units are m (meters), ft (feet).

Table of valid altitude ranges for different units is in table 6.5.

The corrected QFE pressure is computed using formula 9 or 10 if ICAO mode is turned on.

 
hQF E · g
QF E = p · 1 + (9)
R · TQF E

where

p is adjusted output pressure in

hQF E is height difference between barometer elevation and official aerodrome elevation in m

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 MSB780(X) - User’s Guide

g is gravitational acceleration 9.81 m.s−2

R is gas constant 287 J.kg−1 K −1
TQF E is temperature in K (see tqfe and tqfea commands)

or (if ICAO mode turned on)

 −g
 β·R
β · (−hQF E ) i
QF E = p · 1 + (10)
TQF E
where

p is adjusted output pressure in

β is atmospheric temperature lapse rate -0.0065 K.m−1
hQF E is height difference between barometer elevation and official aerodrome elevation in m
g is gravitational acceleration 9.80665 m.s−2
Ri is gas constant 287.05287 J.kg−1 K −1
TQF E is temperature in K (see tqfe and tqfea commands)

6.45 “hqnh” Set altitude for QNH corrected pressure

Using this command you can set hqnh, which is geometric (not geopotential) official aerodrome
elevation. The hqnh is a positive number in cases when the barometer is above see level.

hqnh<cr>
HQNH:<cr><lf>
Actual value 0.00 m<cr><lf>
Distance scale [ft, m]: m<cr>
Set altitude in m, ranges -30.00 .. 5000.00 : 100<cr>
New altitude is: 100.00m<cr><lf>
wait..OK<cr><lf>

Available altitude units are m (meters), ft (feet).

Table of valid altitude ranges for different units is in table 15.

The corrected QNH pressure is computed using formula 11 or 12 if ICAO mode is turned on.

 
h · g
QN H = QF E · exp   QN H  (11)
α·hQN H
R· T + 2

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 MSB780(X) - User’s Guide

Table 15: Valid ranges for HQNH parameter

Valid ranges for HQNH parameter

Unit Minimum Maximum
m -30 5000
ft -99 16000

where

hQN H is station elevation in m

g is gravitational acceleration 9.81 m.s−2
R is gas constant 287 J.kg−1 K−1

T is standard temperature 288.15 K

α is standard temperature lapse rate -0.0065 K.m−1

or (if ICAO mode turned on)

 −g
 β·R
H − HQN H
QN H = p0 · 1 + β · (12)
T

where
−T
H= − 11880.32 · QF E 0.190263 (13)
β
r · hQN H
HQN H = (14)
r + hQN H

p0 is "standard" pressure 1013.25 hPa

β is atmospheric temperature lapse rate -0.0065 K.m−1

H is equivalent altitude in ICAO standard atmosphere

T is standard temperature 288.15 K
g is gravitational acceleration 9.80665 m.s−2
HQN H (capital letter) is geopotential official aerodrome elevation

hQN H (small letter) is geometric (not geopotential) official aerodrome elevation

r is earth radius 6356766 m

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 MSB780(X) - User’s Guide

Table 16: Valid ranges for HHCP parameter

Valid ranges for HHCP parameter

Unit Minimum Maximum
m -30 30
ft -99 99

6.46 “tqfe” Set temperature for QFE corrected pressure

This command sets default temperature for calculation of the QFE corrected pressure and saves
it to FLSAH memory. The temperature is used as default after each restarting of the barome-
ter. This command is not suitable for periodic use because the FLASH has limited number of
write cycles. For setting actual temperature for QFE corrected pressure, please, use "tqfea"
command.

tqfe<cr>
TQFE:
Actual value 20.00 C<cr><lf>
Temperature scale [C, F, K]: C<cr>
Set temperature in C, ranges -80.00 .. 300.00 : 30<cr>
New temperature is: 30.00C<cr><lf>
wait..OK

Available temperature units are ◦ C, ◦ F, K.

6.47 “tqfea” Set actual temperature for QFE corrected pressure

This command sets actual temperature for calculation of the QFE corrected pressure without
saving to FLSAH memory. The temperature is used immediately. This command is suitable
especially for cases when another system sets actual temperature to MSB periodically.

6.48 “hhcp” Set height difference for HCP level

This command changes the height difference for HCP corrected pressure. The parameter may
be inputted either in ft, or in m unit. Limits for this parameter are in table 16.

Example:

hhcp<cr>
HHCP:<cr><lf>
Actual value 0.00 m<cr><lf>
Distance scale[ft, m]: m<cr>

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Set height difference in m,

ranges -30.00 .. 30.00 : 0.1<cr>
wait..OK<cr><lf>

In the example the new HHCP parameter was set to 0.1 m.

6.49 “hqfe?” Get altitude for QFE corrected pressure

hqfe?<cr>
HQFE: 0.00 m<cr><lf>

6.50 “hqnh?” Get altitude for QNH corrected pressure

hqnh?<cr>
HQNH: 100.00 m<cr><lf>

6.51 “tqfe?” Get default temperature for QFE corrected pressure

This command is used to print the default temperature value used for QFE correction after reset
of the barometer.

Example:

tqfe?<cr>
TQFE: 30.00 C<cr><lf>

6.52 “tqfea?” Get actual temperature for QFE corrected pressure

This command is used to print the temperature value actually being used for QFE correction.

Example:

tqfea?<cr>
TQFE actual: 30.00 C<cr><lf>

6.53 “hhcp?” Get height difference for HCP level

This command is used to print the height difference for HCP corrected pressure.

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Example:

hhcp?<cr>
HHCP: 0.10 m<cr><lf>

6.54 "dt" Get date and time

Use this command to print the current date and time.

Example:

dt<cr>
Actual date and time: 10:49:07 28.03.2016 Monday<cr><lf>
Date and time format: HH:MM:SS DD.MM.YYYY <cr><lf>

6.55 "setdt" Set date and time

Use this command to set the current date and time.

Example:

setdt<cr>
Actual date and time: 10:49:07 28.03.2016 Monday<cr><lf>
Date and time format: HH:MM:SS DD.MM.YYYY <cr><lf>
Set time in HH:MM:SS format:12:59:59<cr>
Set date in DD.MM.YYYY format: 29.03.2016<cr>
Date and time was set correctly.<cr><lf>
Actual date and time: 12:59:59 29.03.2016 Tuesday<cr><lf>

6.56 "setpin" Set new PIN code

Setting of some measurement parameters (hqfe, hqnh, ICAO mode, etc.) is protected by PIN
code to prevent changes by unauthorized person. The PIN can be changed via LCD touch-
screen after entering the old PIN or via this command without need to know the old PIN.

Example:

setpin<cr>
Insert new PIN (1-8 nums, empty = off): <cr><lf>
4321<cr>

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wait..OK

If you enter empty string (<cr> only) the PIN will not be asked and the access via LCD is free,
unprotected. Factory default PIN is "1234".

7 Display access

This section refers only to MSB780X versions with touchscreen display option.

If your barometer is equipped with the touchscreen display, you can benefit from direct reading
of the actual pressure value, pressure trend, graph view and other directly on the barometer.
You can also change some device settings through the display.

Following functions may be displayed:

• Actual value of pressure, QNH, QFE, HCP

• Actual value of other quantities (see Table 21 on page 82)
• Pressure trend

• Graph
• Device settings
• Version and serial number info

7.1 Basic screens

The barometer features three basic screens, which may be switched by tapping on the screen.
After power-up or reset, the barometer displays the first of them:

This screen displays the following information:

• System time

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• Battery/charging state (battery version only)

• Barometer state (State: OK or ER with error number)
• Quantity and unit which is displayed

• Pressure trend (PT: icon is displayed 30 minutes after reset)

• T: temperature from external probe (when connected)
• H: relative humidity from external probe (when connected)

• P: pressure (default option, all from Table 21 on page 82 are possible)

• Screen number (1/3)
• Graph and Menu buttons
• |R| icon, if recording to SD card is running

The screen is divided into three active touch areas:

• Graph - switch to Graph screen

• Menu - switch to Menu

• the rest of screen area - switch to next main screen

The default quantity (P) can be changed to a different quantity in Menu -> Display -> Home
screen (1/3). You can find the list of available quantities in the Table 21 on page 82.

The second and the third screens show values of three optional quantities in three rows, simul-
taneously. They can be chosen in Menu -> Display -> Home screen (2/3) and (3/3).

This example screen shows the following values:

• P - actual pressure
• T - temperature from external probe
• RH - relative humidity from external probe

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7.2 Graph screen

Graph view is activated by tapping the Graph button on the main screen. Example of the Graph
screen is in the following picture:

The graph always shows time on horizontal axis and measured pressure on the vertical axis
(with no regard on what is shown on basic screens).

The vertical axis is auto-scaled with minimum axis span 1 hPa.

The scale of horizontal axis can be chosen in Display menu, as described in section 7.9 on page
70.

Tap anywhere on the screen area switches back to the last shown basic screen.

7.3 Main menu

By tapping the Menu button on a basic screen you can enter the Menu:

Four buttons on the right are used to navigate through the menu. Buttons and move the
cursor up or down. Button is used for entering submenus or for saving changes. Button
is used to exit submenus.

7.4 Menu structure

• Main menu
– Recording
∗ Recording
∗ List

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∗ Periode
∗ Quantities
∗ Memory
– Measuring
∗ HQFE
∗ HQNH
∗ TQFE
∗ HHCP
∗ DPMAX
∗ ICAO settings
∗ Edit from LCD
– Interfaces
∗ SDI12
∗ RS232
∗ RS485
∗ Analog output
∗ Ext. probe
– System
∗ Set Date/Time
∗ Diagnostic (allQ)
∗ Diagnostic (devs)
∗ Baro sensors
∗ Serial number
∗ Version
– Display
∗ Home screen (1/3)
∗ Home screen (2/3)
∗ Home screen (3/3)
∗ Settings
– Alarm

7.5 Recording menu (logging data to SD card, view in graph)

MSB780X features data recording. In the recording menu there are submenus:

• Recording Start/stop recording, actual file and recording info

• List File browser and viewer, plotting graphs, deleting files
• Periode Setting of sampling periode for recording
• Quantities Selecting which quantities will be logged
• Memory SD card memory info, formatting SD card

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Note: You can start recording only if date and time are correctly set. If it is not, you will be
automatically redirected to "Set Date/Time" screen

Recording screen
This screen is used to start and stop recording.

Start recording by tapping on the "Record" button.

This screen also shows the name of file which will be created, sampling periode of recording
and number of quantities selected to be recorded. File name is generated automatically and
consists of date (yymmdd) and order number of record within the day.
After the recording is started, the screen changes a bit:

You can stop recording using the "Stop" button. If you exit this screen with button, recording
will continue on background which is signalized by |R| icon on the main basic screen.
On this screen there are also lines showing actual size and number of lines in the file being
created.
RecTime shows how long has been the recording taken till now in days:hours:minutes:seconds.

List screen (view records in graph)

This screen is used for viewing logged data and deleting files individually. After entering the List
submenu you can see the list of recorded files on SD Card as follows:

Tap the button to enter the file menu:

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Here you can see file name and time/date of storing file (not begin of recording). You can tap
"DELETE FILE" which deletes the file after approving with YES button or tap "SHOW GRAPH"
which leads to this screen:

Select the quantity to plot. When the barometer processes the data you can see more details:

• File: file name, i.e. also date of start (yymmdd)

• Started: start time of record, i.e. time of the first sample (hh:mm:ss)
• Q[unit] selected quantity and its unit (applies also for next min/max values)
• QmaxTot total maximum of selected quantity (see note below)
• QminTot total minimum of selected quantity (see note below)
• Qmax gr maximum of graph scale (see note below)
• Qmin gr minimum of graph scale (see note below)
• Periode sampling periode of record
• Samples count of recorded samples within the file

Note: "Qmax gr" and "Qmin gr" are shown here instead of "QmaxTot" and "QminTot" when they
do not fit in graph view numerically (if they are more than 4 digits long after rounding to whole
number).
Tap the GRAPH button to show graph.
Example:

Tap anywhere on the screen to get back to previous screen with details.

Periode screen
In this submenu you can enter new sampling periode for recording. The change will apply when
new recording is started. You can find actual value in "Recording" screen.

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Note: Lower periode leads to larger record files and longer time needed for file transfer to PC.

Quantity screen (selecting quantities to be recorded)

This screen is used for selecting quantities which will be recorded:

Use arrows to browse the list of available quantities and MARK/UNMARK button to select/deselect
them.
Some of quantities are always selected ("MANDATORY") to prevent forgetting to select them.
"Nof q." shows number of selected quantities. Note: More recorded quantities leads to larger
record files and longer time needed for file transfer to PC

Memory screen (info and formatting)

Here you can see amount of used/free/total memory and count of files stored in SD card mem-
ory. You can also format the memory, i.e. delete all records and files at once.

7.6 Measuring menu (measurement settings)

View of Measuring menu is in the following picture:

In Measuring menu, you can display and change values of the following parameters:

• HQFE - Altitude for QFE corrected pressure

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• HQNH - Altitude for QNH corrected pressure

• TQFE - Temperature for QFE corrected pressure
• HHCP - Altitude for HCP height corrected pressure
• DPMAX - Maximum permissible difference between pressure transducers
• ICAO settings - Mode of QFE and QNH calculation, truncating of QFE and QNH reading

Note: These settings can be altered only after allowing it by entering correct PIN code in "Edit
from LCD" submenu. To enable editing parameters from LCD go to "Edit from LCD"

and tap the "[CHANGE]" button. If a PIN is set, barometer will ask for it:

If you enter correct PIN (default is "1234") you will see editing is now ALLOWED:

You can also use appropriate serial line commands to alter the settings without PIN code.

Example screen for HQFE setting (HQNH and HHCP are very similar):

Note: EDIT button is visible only if editing is enabled in "Edit from LCD" submenu.

Tap EDIT button to change actual value. Insert new value using numeric keyboard. You can tap
on "[m]" to switch actual unit to "[ft]". Example screen for entering new value:

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Entered value is accepted only if it is in allowed ragne of the parameter:

• Range for HQFE: see Table 14 on page 52

• Range for HQNH: see Table 15 on page 54

• Range for HHCP: see Table 16 on page 55

Example screen for TQFE setting:

Note: EDIT button is visible only if editing is enabled in "Edit from LCD" submenu.

This screen shows both actual and default TQFE values. "Stored val." is the value stored in
memory, used (copied to actual one) after barometer power on. "Actual value" is the value being
used for calculation now. If barometer is connected to some external system which updates
actual temperature through serial port, using tqfea command (page 55), the actual and stored
(default) values may differ. You can change both values at once by tapping EDIT button and
entering new value. The change will be also stored to FLASH memory.

Example screen for DPMAX display:

Note: EDIT button is visible only if editing is enabled in "Edit from LCD" submenu. This screen
shows maximum permissible pressure difference between transducers. Tap EDIT button to
enter new value. On the screen with numerical keyboard you can tap on actual unit to change
the unit of new value.

Example screen for ICAO settings:

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Note: [CHANGE] buttons are visible only if editing is enabled in "Edit from LCD" submenu. Tap
the [CHANGE] button to change the setting. For detailed description of meaning see icaomode
command on page 51 and icaodigits command on page 51.

7.7 Interfaces menu (settings of interfaces)

Interfaces menu allows user to display Interfaces settings, such as SDI-12 address of the barom-
eter, baud rate of RS-232, baud rate of RS-485(optional), analog output(optional), or external
probe(optional). It is possible to change settings of analog output.

Screen of Interfaces menu is in the following picture:

Screen of SDI12 menu is in the following picture:

In this screen you can see the actual SDI-12 address of MSB780 or MSB780X. The SDI-12
address in the example is 6.

Screen of RS232 menu is in the following picture:

Note: Parameters of interfaces cannot be altered using display. This should prevent from unin-
tentional changes.

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Please use serial commands to change the parameters of interfaces.

Screen of Analog output menu is in the following picture:

• "Range" shows actual range of analog output and its unit, i.e. current/voltage mode. Lower
number regards to Q.min value, higher number regards to Q.max value. "V" means that
analog output works as voltage source, "mA" means that analog output works as current
source. Use buttons and to change the range and button to apply and save the
chosen range.

• "Quant." shows chosen quantity, which is transferred to analog output. You can change
it using "QUANT" button in the bottom line. In the square brackets there is unit of the
quantity. The unit is used automatically according to quantity setting and it can be changed
using unit command (page45). Q.min and Q.max values are always in the same unit and
they are automatically recalculated if the unit is changed, i.e. they stay, physically, without
change (only numbers change).
• "Q.max" is the value of chosen quantity which is represented as the top of range of analog
output. It can be changed using "MAX" button in the bottom line.
• "Q.min" is the value of chosen quantity which is represented as the bottom of range of
analog output. It can be changed using "MIN" button in the bottom line.
• "Act.Q" shows actual value of the quantity being transferred to analog output.
Note: If Q.max is less than Q.min, analog output still works properly, but there is negative
coupling between the quantity and analog output. For example, if Range=0-1V Q.max=0,
Q.min=1000, Act.Q=700, than the Output would be 0.300 V.

• "Output" shows actual value of voltage or current calculated and being set to the analog
output.

Ext. probe screen:

If the external probe is connected to MSB780X transfer standard, data from external probe are
displayed.

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• State - connected or not connected

• SN - serial number of connected external probe
• RH - measured value of relative humidity
• T - measured value of temperature
• DP - calculated value of dew point

7.8 System menu (Date/Time, diagnostics, serial/version numbers)

In system menu you can set date/time and browse diagnostic information, firmware version and
barometer serial number.

Screen of System menu is in the following picture:

Set Date/Time:

Tap on DATE or TIME button to set date or time. Then the number which you can modify is
blinking. Set correct value using arrows and then tap NEXT button for going to the next number.

Diagnostic (allQ): On this screen you can see values or states of all quantities:

If some quantity is not available then only the state of the sensor measuring the quantity is
shown. For example, if you have a barometer in version with 2 transducers, the third pressure
P3 will not be available and there will be reading "P3: err #64" which means third transducer
was not found.

Diagnostic (devs): This screen shows states of internal devices.

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This advanced diagnostic information is mainly for professionals to find a potential problem, if
something is wrong with the barometer.

Baro sensors: This screen shows serial numbers and calibration numbers of all installed trans-
ducers.

Serial number: This screen shows serial number of the barometer.

Version:

Version helps identifying the firmware version. It may be helpful when solving problems in some
cases.

7.9 Display menu (shown quantities, graph time-scale, backlight settings)

Display menu screen is shown in the following picture:

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In "Home screen" submenus you can set which quantities are shown on "basic screens" after
starting the MSB780X. Example of Home screen (2/3) is in the following picture:

Use arrows to select quantity on the first basic screen or buttons "SET1", "SET2" and "SET3" to
adjust quantity in line 1, 2 and 3 of the second and third basic screen.
You can see the list of available quantities in Table 21 on page 82.

Settings menu is in the following picture:

Use "Scale" button to alter time scale (X axis) of the graph accessible from basic screens and
"B-off" button to alter LCD’s automatic backlight off time.

Available graph time-scales:

25m : 25 minutes 15 seconds per sample
5h : 5 hours 3 minutes per sample
25h : 25 hours 15 minutes per sample
10d : 10 days 2.5 hours per sample
10W : 10 weeks 17 hours per sample
10M : 10 months 2.8 days per sample

Auto-off LCD backlight available times: Always on, 15m, 2m, 60s, 30s, 15s.

7.10 Alarm

The MSB780X transfer standard includes buzzer, which can produce an alarm when a mea-
sured quantity is outside the allowed range (or inside not allowed range - see note below). The
range is defined by lower and upper limits.
The alarm can only be set for one quantity at a time.
Alarm screen looks as follows:

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Use "QUANT", "MAX" and "MIN" buttons to alter quantity and limits settings.
You can see available quantities in Table 21 on page 82.
Note: If you swap min/max limits, i.e. in "Alarm min" is higher value than in "Alarm max", then
the alarm also swaps behavior. In such case the alarm is activated when measured value is
inside the interval. Note: If sensor measuring the quantity watched by alarm fails then the alarm
is activated. For example if alarm is set to watch quantity measured by external probe RHT and
the probe is disconnected, alarm is activated.

8 SDI-12 reference

8.1 Introduction to SDI-12

SDI-12 stands for serial data interface at 1200 baud. It is a standard to interface battery powered
data recorders with micro-processor based sensors designed for environmental data acquisition
(EDA).

Figure 17: SDI-12 Bus

Only three wires need to be connected when using SDI-12. To use SDI-12 a SDI-12 compliant
data recorder is required. Follow the instructions given by the data recorder manufacturer to set
up the SDI-12 communication.

8.2 SDI-12 commands supported by MSB780

All SDI-12 commands start with address (a stands for address), and are terminated by !. All SDI-
12 sensor responses start with address (a stands for address), and are terminated by <cr><lf>
(which are ASCII characters 0x0d 0x0a).

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8.3 SDI-12 commands set

Table 17: MSB780 SDI-12 commands

MSB780 SDI-12 Commands

Command Short description Page
?! Address query command. 74
a! Acknowledge active command. 73
aAb! Address change command. 74
aC! Start concurrent measurement command. 74
aD0! Send data command. 75
aI! Send identification command. 74
aM! Start measurement command. 74
aM1! Start measurement command, return also HQFE, HQNH 75
aR0! Continuous measurement in basic units. 75
aR1! Continuous measurement in user units. 76
aV! Get verification. 76
aXD1! Send data command from transducer 1. 76
aXD2! Send data command from transducer 2. 76
aXD3! Send data command from transducer 3. 76
aXV! Get extended verification. 77
aXHQFE<v>m! Set HQFE to value <v> m 78
aXHQNH<v>m! Set HQNH to value <v> m 78
aXTQFE<v><u>! Set TQFE to value <v>, unit <u> (C, F, K) 78
aXHHCP<v><u>! Set HHCP to value <v>, unit <u> 78
Set DPMAX to value <v>, unit <u> (hPa, inHg, psi, torr,
aXDPMAX<v><u>! 78
bar, mbar, mmHg, kPa, Pa, mmH2O, inH2O)
aXK1<v>! Set k1 adjusting coefficient to value <v> 78
aXK2<v>! Set k2 adjusting coefficient to value <v> 78
aXK3<v>! Set k3 adjusting coefficient to value <v> 78
aXQ1<v>! Set q1 adjusting coefficient to value <v> 78
aXQ2<v>! Set q2 adjusting coefficient to value <v> 78
aXQ3<v>! Set q3 adjusting coefficient to value <v> 78

8.4 a! Acknowledge Active Command

This command is used to ensure that a sensor is responding to a data recorder or another
SDI-12 device. It asks a sensor to acknowledge its presence on the SDI-12 bus.

Example:

0!<cr>0<cr><lf>

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8.5 aI! Send Identification Command

This command is used to query sensors for their SDI-12 compatibility level, model number, and
serial number.

0I!<cr>013MS-MIS MSB7801.11.2.11505-183 <cr><lf>

8.6 ?! Address Query Command

When a question mark (?) is used as the address character with the acknowledge active com-
mand (a!), the sensor will respond as if it is being addressed on the SDI-12 bus. For example,
if a sensor detects ?!, it will respond with a<CR><LF>, no matter what its address may be. This
will allow a user to determine the address of a sensor. The user should understand that if more
than one sensor is connected to the bus, they will all respond, causing a bus contention.

Example:

?!<cr>0<cr><lf>

8.7 aAb! Address Change Command

This command is used to change barometer’s address a to b.

Example:

0A4!<cr>4<cr><lf>

In this example the SDI-12 address was changed from 0 to 4.

8.8 aM! Start Measurement Command

This command tells the sensor to take a measurement. The sensor does not, however, return
the measurement to the data recorder after this command. It returns the time until one or more
measurements will be ready and the number of measurements that it will make. The send data
(D0!) command must be issued to get the measurement(s).

0M!<cr>00073<cr><lf>

The sensor reply means it will take maximum “007” seconds to finish measurement, and three
values will be measured.

To tell the data recorder that the sensor has finished its measurement(s) and the data are ready.

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A service request is issued by the sensor after an M, MC, or V command, when it has finished
its measurement. After receiving the service request or after specified time elapses, the data
recorder issues aD0! command to get the measured data:

0D0!<cr>0+1009.066+1009.066+1021.121<cr><lf>

The output data is +pressure+QFE pressure+QNH pressure.

The units of the quantities can be set using serial port, or service port, see command unit on
page 45.

8.9 aM1! Start Measurement Command, return also HQFE, HQNH

This command behaves similarly to the previous command, but it will return also HQFE and
HQNH parameters at the end of the aD0! response.

Example:

0M1!<cr>00075<cr><lf>
When the measurement is ready, the device returns service request:
0<cr><lf>
Send the send data command:
0D0!<cr>
0+985.937+986.281+992.741+3.00+55.00<cr><lf>

The last two parameters are HQFE [m] and HQNH [m].

8.10 aD0! Send Data Command

This command is used to get data from the sensor. MSB780 does not distinguish between D0,
D1 etc.

8.11 aR0! Continuous Measurement (basic units)

This command returns last measured value of pressure. (Pressure is measured periodically,
new data is available each measurement period, see Parameters of sensor)

The output message format is “pressure QFE pressure QNH pressure”.

Example:

0R0!<cr>0+1009.066+1009.066+1021.121<cr><lf>

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Table 18: Verification result interpretation

Reply Interpretation
+1+0+0+0+0 ADC error
+0+1+0+0+0 Flash CRC error
+0+0+1+0+0 Copensation RH sensor error
+0+0+0+1+0 Flash memory failure
+0+0+0+0+1 Pressure measuring error

For R0 command the values of pressure are alwais in basic unit [hPa].

8.12 aR1! Continuous Measurement (user units)

This command returns last measured value of pressure. (Pressure is measured periodically,
new data is available each measurement period, see Parameters of sensor)

The output message format is “pressure QFE pressure QNH pressure”.

Example:

0R0!<cr>0+1009.066+1009.066+1021.121<cr><lf>

For R1 command the values of pressure are in user defined units for each quantity separately.
For unit preferences see command unit on page 45. For list of quantities and available units
see Table 21 on page 82.

8.13 aV! Get Verification

This command starts the verification procedure.

0V!<cr>00005<cr><lf>

A subsequent 0D0!<cr> command returns verification result.

Example:

0D0!<cr>0+0+0+0+0+0<cr><lf>

8.14 aXD1! Send data command from transducer 1

This command is used to get data from the sensor, specifically from transducer 1. If MSB780
has more then one transducer, it can be use commands aXD2!<cr> from transducer 2 and

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aXD3!<cr> from transducer 3.

Example:

0XD1!<cr>

0+999.620+10367.5377+0.600085+50.00+0.103364<cr><lf>

Where

0 sdi-12 barometer address

+999.620 pressure in hPa from transducer 1

+10367.5377 frequency in Hz from transducer 1

+0.600085 voltage in V from transducer 1
+50.00 relative humidity

+0.103364 pressure correction from compensation sensor

<cr><lf> line termination

8.15 aXV! Get extended verification

This command return information about firmware version.

Example:

0XV!<cr>

0v. 042,Nov 4 2015,15:45:14<cr><lf>

Where

0 sdi-12 barometer address

v. 042 firmware version

Nov 4 2015 date of build firmware
15:45:14 time of build firmware

<cr><lf> line termination

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8.16 Setting parameters via SDI-12

Various parameters can be set via SDI-12 interface.

Example of setting a new value for parameter HQFE:

0XHQFE2.3m!<cr>
0+2.300000m<cr><lf>
0XHQFEstore!<cr>
0+2.300000m<cr><lf>

The new value of parameter HQFE has been set to 2.3 m and stored to non-volatile memory.

List of parameters which can be set is in table 19.

Table 19: MSB780 SDI-12 commands

Parameters accessible via SDI-12

Parameter Short description Unit
HQFE Set altitude for QFE corrected pressure m, ft
HQNH Altitude for QNH corrected pressure m, ft
TQFE Temperature for QFE corrected pressure C, F, K
HHCP Altitude for HCP corrected pressure m, ft
DPMAX Maximum permissible pressure difference hpa, inHg
K1 Adjust coefficient gain for sensor 1
Q1 Adjust coefficient offset for sensor 1
K2 Adjust coefficient gain for sensor 2 (when installed)
Q2 Adjust coefficient offset for sensor 2 (when installed)
K3 Adjust coefficient gain for sensor 3 (when installed)
Q3 Adjust coefficient offset for sensor 3 (when installed)

8.17 Reading parameters via SDI-12

The parameters listed in table 19 can be read. For example to read the HQFE parameter:

0XHQFE?!<cr>
0+2.300000m<cr><lf>

9 Analog output

The analog output can work in voltage or current mode. The following ranges are available:

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Table 20: Analog output ranges

Parameter Range
a 0 .. 1 V
b 0 .. 5 V
c 0 .. 10 V
d 0 .. 20 mA
e 4 .. 20 mA
x OFF

• from 0 V to 1 V
• from 0 V to 5 V
• from 0 V to 10 V

• from 0 mA to 20 mA
• from 4 mA to 20 mA

For wiring see figure 14 on page 23.

Settings of analog output can be altered using LCD (Menu->Interfaces->Analog output, see on
page 68) or using serial commands (see next paragraphs).

9.1 “amode” Set analog output range

To set the analog output output range, use the amode command.

Example:

amode<cr>
Actual mode: 0 .. 10 V<cr><lf>
Please select range/mode:<cr><lf>
a) 0 .. 1 V<cr><lf>
b) 0 .. 5 V<cr><lf>
c) 0 .. 10 V<cr><lf>
d) 0 .. 20 mA<cr><lf>
e) 4 .. 20 mA<cr><lf>
x) OFF<cr><lf>
empty = exit<cr><lf>
Your choice: c<cr>
wait.. OK<cr><lf>

The analog output is now set as voltage output from 0 to 10 V.

To turn the analog output off:

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amode x<cr>
wait.. OK<cr><lf>

The analog output is now turned off.

Important: After setting range, remember to set also the AERR value.

9.2 “asel” Analog output quantity and scale

This command is used to select a quantity and range to be displayed on the analog output.
Commands and parameters are not case sensitive.

Command:

1. without parameter: print actual settings

2. "off" parameter: turn analog output off
3. four parameters: quantity, unit , min, max. Set analog output for chosen quantity and unit.
The output will be scaled according min, max limits.

Example setup:

asel p hpa 900 1100<cr>

wait.. OK<cr><lf>

The analog output will display values of pressure in range 900 hPa to 1100 hPa.

Example without parameters:

asel<cr>
Insert parameters: quantity(or "off" to turn off analog
output) unit min max<cr><lf>
Actual analog out quantity: P<cr><lf>
Quantity minimum : 900.000 hPa<cr><lf>
Quantity maximum : 1100.000 hPa<cr><lf>

You can see available quantities in Table 21 on page 82.

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9.3 “atest” Analog output test

To test the analog output, use atest command to force a value. The value will be forced until
the same command is fed without parameters. The valid range of test voltage / current is the
same as current analog output range.

Command:

1. without parameter: turn off test mode and print list of testing ranges
2. three parameters: range, value, correction flag. Flag 1 to use correction, 0 no correction.

Example:

atest d 5 1<cr>
Last set: 5.000000<cr><lf>

Analog output is forced into current (0 mA to 20 mA) range and analog value is forced to 5 mA,
correction is used.

To cancel the test mode, use no parameter, for example:

atest<cr>
Test mode off<cr><lf>
atest range(abcde), value(V or mA),
[useCorr (0 or 1, default=0=no)]<cr><lf>
Ranges:<cr><lf>
a) 0 .. 1 V<cr><lf>
b) 0 .. 5 V<cr><lf>
c) 0 .. 10 V<cr><lf>
d) 0 .. 20 mA<cr><lf>
e) 4 .. 20 mA<cr><lf>
x) OFF<cr><lf>

9.4 “aerr” Analog output error indication

If for some error condition the pressure can not be measured, the analog output displays the
error value.

The valid range for error value is within current range of the analog output.

Command:

1. without parameter: print list of actual value,

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2. one parameter: set new value.

Example:

aerr 10<cr>
Actual error value: 0.000 V<cr><lf>
New error value: 10.000 V<cr><lf>
wait.. OK<cr><lf>

10 Technical Data

10.1 Quantities

Besides pressure, the barometer enables to measure, display, output and watch by alarm sev-
eral quantities. In the table 21 you can find the list of available quantities with short description
and acronyms.

Table 21: Available quantities

Available quantities
Acronym Meaning Available units
hPa, inHg, psi, torr, bar,
P pressure (weighted average of all transducers) mbar, mmHg, kPa, Pa,
mmH2O, inH2O
hPa, inHg, psi, torr, bar,
P1 pressure of transducer 1 mbar, mmHg, kPa, Pa,
mmH2O, inH2O
hPa, inHg, psi, torr, bar,
P2 pressure of transducer 2 mbar, mmHg, kPa, Pa,
mmH2O, inH2O
hPa, inHg, psi, torr, bar,
P3 pressure of transducer 3 mbar, mmHg, kPa, Pa,
mmH2O, inH2O
hPa, inHg, psi, torr, bar,
HCP HCP corrected pressure mbar, mmHg, kPa, Pa,
mmH2O, inH2O
hPa, inHg, psi, torr, bar,
QFE QFE corrected pressure mbar, mmHg, kPa, Pa,
mmH2O, inH2O
hPa, inHg, psi, torr, bar,
QNH QNH corrected pressure mbar, mmHg, kPa, Pa,
mmH2O, inH2O
Continued on next page

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Table 21 – continued from previous page

Acronym Meaning Available units
hPa, inHg, psi, torr, bar,
DP12 pressure difference between transducer 1 and 2 mbar, mmHg, kPa, Pa,
mmH2O, inH2O
hPa, inHg, psi, torr, bar,
DP13 pressure difference between transducer 1 and 2 mbar, mmHg, kPa, Pa,
mmH2O, inH2O
hPa, inHg, psi, torr, bar,
DP23 pressure difference between transducer 1 and 2 mbar, mmHg, kPa, Pa,
mmH2O, inH2O
T temperature from external probe C, F, K
RH relative humidity from external probe %
Tw wet bulb temperature from external probe C, F, K
w water ratio from external probe g/kg
Td dew point from external probe C, F, K
bs1T temperature of transducer 1 C, F, K
bs2T temperature of transducer 2 C, F, K
bs3T temperature of transducer 3 C, F, K
iRH humidity of measured air %
temperature of measured air and internal tem-
iT C, F, K
perature in barometer
iDP dew point of measured air C, F, K

10.2 Performance

Barometric pressure range 500 hPa to 1100 hPa (or as specified)

Linearity < 0.02 hPa
Hystersis < 0.02 hPa
Accuracy (at 23 ◦ C) 0.10 hPa
Total accuracy 0.15 hPa (−50 ◦ C to +80 ◦ C)
Typical long-term stability better than ± 0.05 hPa/year
Calibration Traceability National standard
Warm-up time after power-up less than 7 seconds

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10.3 Analog output accuracy

The accuracy of the analog output is calculated with extension factor k = 2 over the temperature
range.

Range Accuracy Value Range

0 ... 1 V < 0.13 mV 0.0080 % 0.0044 %
0 ... 5 V < 0.59 mV 0.0109 % 0.0009 %
0 ... 10 V < 1.18 mV 0.0113 % 0.0004 %
0 ... 20 mA < 0.020 mA 0.0755 % 0.0245 %
4 ... 20 mA < 0.020 mA 0.0776 % 0.0482 %

%Range
Accuracy = ±[( %V alue
100% × Analog_value) + ( 100% × Analog_range)]

10.4 Operating Environmental

Pressure range 500 hPa to 1100 hPa

Temperature range −50 ◦ C to +80 ◦ C
Temperature range with display −10 ◦ C to +80 ◦ C
Relative humidity (0 to 100) % RH
4000 hPa (not affecting sensor calibra-
Overpressure limit
tion)
Burst pressure limit 7000 hPa
Enclosure IP66, IP65 with display

10.5 Inputs and Outputs

Supply voltage 5 to 35 V DC
Resolution 0.001 hPa
Communication RS-232, RS-485, SDI-12
Number of transducers 1 to 3

10.6 Power consumption

Option Power supply current @ 12 V

1 transducer 32 mA
2 transducers 64 mA
3 transducers 96 mA
Display backlight add 3 mA
Analog output add 20 to 40 mA*
Sleep mode less than 0.1 mA

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* Depends on range setting and load.

10.7 Drawings

On the following pages are shown the drawings of barometers MSB780, MSB780X. The dimen-
sions are in millimeters.

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Figure 18: Drawing of MSB780

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 MSB780(X) - User’s Guide

Figure 19: Drawing of MSB780X

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 MSB780(X) - User’s Guide

Figure 20: Drawing of mounting bracket with PTB330 compatible montage holes

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11 Troubleshooting

This section lists several most common symptoms of problems and actions that should be taken
in order to solve them.
Table 22: Troubleshooting

Troubleshooting
Problem Possible cause Solution
Measure power supply voltage on termi-
nals PWR+, GND. Check, if measured
Barometer is not work-
voltage is within range, refer to section 2.3
ing, no signs of func- Incorrect power supply
on page 12.
tionality.
Check correct polarity of the power supply
applied.
Measure power supply current. Check,
if the current is within normal values, re-
Barometer is dam- fer to section 2.3 on page 12. If the
aged power supply current is zero, or too high,
please send the barometer for factory ser-
vice with a description of the problem.
Try different RS-232 parameters. All pos-
sible settings can be found in section 6.10
on page 38.
If you have version with display, check set-
Incorrect serial line pa-
tings of RS-232 through display.
No reply on RS-232 rameters - baud rate,
If you have service cable available, you
data bit count, parity...
can use Service serial port with fixed com-
munication settings to access the barom-
eter. Please refer to section 2.9 on page
15.
Use ?!<cr> SDI-12 command to deter-
mine barometer’s address. During this
command, no other device can be con-
nected to the SDI-12 bus. Change
the barometer current address using
aAb!<cr> command, please refer to sec-
No reply on SDI-12 Wrong SDI-12 ad-
tion 8.7 on page 74.
bus dress
If you have version with display, you can
view the SDI-12 address using it, please
refer to section 7.7 on page 67.
You can also check current SDI-12 ad-
dress using user RS-232, or service serial
port.
Continued on next page

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Table 22 – continued from previous page

Problem Possible cause Solution
Display is not working,
Display flat cable is
but the barometer re- Open the barometer lid and reconnect the
not connected to the
sponds to commands cable.
mainboard
via interfaces.
Compensation sensor Compensation sensor Install compensation sensor, please refer
error is signalized is not installed to section 4.4 on page 25.
If compensation sensor is installed, but
there is still the error signalized, the sen-
Compensation sensor
sor may be faulty. Replace the compensa-
is faulty
tion sensor with a new one. You can order
it from MicroStep-MIS.
Other errors are sig- Barometer is dam- Please contact MicroStep-MIS service, re-
nalized aged fer to section 11.1 on page 90.

11.1 In case of problems...

It is recommended to rely on manufacturer service if you experience any problems. Even if

you have well trained personnel, it is more probable, that your barometer will be successfully
serviced in hands of the designers of the product.

When sending the product back to MicroStep-MIS please try to send a description of problems
along with the product. Pack the barometer properly, stuff the package with enough shock-
absorbing material in order to prevent it from damage during transport.

If you experience problems with the product, we would like to know about them in order to
improve the future designs.

Direct contact in case of problems with MSB780 or MSB780X:

[email protected]

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12 Ordering Information

In table 23 you can find order codes for different configuration of MSB780 or MSB780X barom-
eters.
Table 23: MSB780 and MSB780X ordering information

Order Code Box type Number of transducers LCD Display

MSB780 small 1 No
MSB780X1 big 1 No
MSB780X2 big 2 No
MSB780X3 big 3 No
MSB780X1D big 1 Yes
MSB780X2D big 2 Yes
MSB780X3D big 3 Yes

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13 Firmware update

13.1 Hardware required for firmware update

To perform a firmware update of MSB780 or MSB780X a service cable is required. This acces-
sory can be ordered from MicroStep-MIS.

If your PC/notebook features a RS-232 port, you do not need the USB to RS-232 convertor.

If you use the USB to RS-232 convertor, you may need to download a driver. Newer operating
systems tend to have the driver installed, or can install it automatically.

Figure 21: Accessories required for firmware update

1. USB to RS-232 convertor

2. RS-232 to UART convertor

3. Service cable for MSB780 or MSB780X
4. Power supply

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 MSB780(X) - User’s Guide

Figure 22: Correct connection of the convertors and cables

Figure 23: Connecting the service cable to the service connector of the MSB780

13.2 Firmware Loader software

After the service cable has been properly connected, MicroStep-MIS Firmware Loader software
can be used to upload a new firmware. You can obtain this software from MicroStep-MIS.

Follow these steps to upload a new firmware to the barometer:

1. Start the program Microstep-MIS Firmware Loader, as seen in figure 24 and click on button
Open.

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2. Choose the firmware file with .mstepfw suffix. Figure 25.

3. After selecting the firmware file, you can see the information about the firmware, as seen
in Figure 26.

4. Select a serial port the barometer is connected to. If there is only one choice, it will be
selected automatically.
5. Select baud rate 230400.
6. Click Start button to start the upload. Process of uploading is displayed in Figure 27.

7. After successful transfer of firmware the Configuration is printed. New firmware version
number is also displayed (fw. ver). See Figure 28.

Figure 24: Firmware Loader basic window

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 MSB780(X) - User’s Guide

Figure 25: Selecting the firmware file

Figure 26: Information about selected firmware

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 MSB780(X) - User’s Guide

Figure 27: The transferring process

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 MSB780(X) - User’s Guide

Figure 28: Listing information after successful transfer of firmware

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14 History of changes

14.1 V 1.1
• Fixed resolution to three decimal places in [hPa] units.
• Corrected string “0000” to “000” in chapter “Start Measurement Command (aM!).

• Updated “Principle of operation” chapter, added NOTE on calibration.

14.2 V 1.2

• Added Resolution to table “Parameters of sensor”.

• Changed Serial interface UART 3.3 V to RS-232.
• Increased level of “Table of contents” to 2
• Removed “analog output” from “Introduction” chapter.

• Added “RS-485 serial interface” to “introduction” chapter.

• Added “5 terminal version” picture

14.3 V 1.2.1
• Added “seri” command
• Added “cset” command

14.4 V 1.2.2
• Added following commands: hqfe, hqnh, tqfe, hqfe?, hqnh?, tqfe?, unit, unit?

14.5 V 1.2.3
• Added Section: Maintenance.

14.6 V 1.2.4

• Added Section: Calibration and Adjustment.

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14.7 V 1.3

Changes in this version are connected with hardware version 1.2.1 and firmware version 12 and
more.

• Changed picture in section Terminals.

• Changed typical power consumption @12 V from 67 mA to 32 mA. Power consumption
has lowered since new hw. ver. 1.2.1.
• Changed terminal markings TX, RX to TXD, RXD.
• Changed line termination from <cr><lf> to <cr>, or <cr><lf>. MSB780 accepts <cr> as an
alternative line ending since fw version 12.
• Changed default echo on to default echo off, with an option to turned echo on using a
command. This is valid since fw ver, 12.
• Renamed section "Notes on onboard jumper and trimmer" to "Note on onboard trimmer".
There is no more jumper on the PCB since fw. ver. 1.2.1.
• Changed example in section "Print configuration...". Since fw. ver. 12, the output of this
command looks differently.
• Added section "Get Verification (aV!)", which describes a new SDI-12 command, present
since fw. ver. 12.

14.8 V 1.4

Changes in this version are connected with hardware version 1.2.1 and firmware version 14 and
more. MSB780X version is first mentioned in this revision.

• Added hyperlinks to the document. References are now clickable in the electronic version.
• Added mention of MSB780X version at many places.
• Added table of supply currents.
• Added sections 2.9, 4.4, 6.4, 8.7, 8.7, 11
• Updated section Maintenance.
• Updated section Calibration and Adjustment
• Added new commands in the section Serial interface command set.
• Added table 10 representing error states.
• Renamed section 6.10, and updated.
• Added function HCP and related commands.
• Added section Display access.

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14.9 V 1.5
• Updated section 4.4.

14.10 V 1.6
• Updated title photo; MSB780 case changed color from black to silver.

• Updated section 4.4.

14.11 V 1.7

• Updated values in table 7 on page 26.

14.12 V 1.8

• Added section Change firmware of the barometer. Added section Ordering information.

14.13 V 1.9

• Added subsection Change output message format.

• Added subsection Get actual output message format.
• Added subsection Change the user port start-up operating mode.

• Added subsection Get actual the user port start-up operating mode.
• Added subsection Change the outputting interval for RUN mode.
• Added subsection Get actual the outputting interval for RUN mode.

14.14 V 1.10
• Fixed response to aM! command

• Changed response to aD0! command after aV!

• Added warm-up time information

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14.15 V 1.11
• Moved table MSB780X approximate power supply current to a new section Power con-
sumption in section Technical Data. Altered Sleep mode consumption from 6 mA to less
than 0.1 mA @ 12 V.
• Removed table MSB780 parameters with duplicate parameters from section Intrduction.
The parameters remain in section Technical Data.
• Rewritten section Hardware - Power Supply.

• Modified aV! command response.

14.16 V 1.12

• Added items to the cnf? command.

• Added options P, P1, P2, P3 for FORM command.

14.17 V 1.13
• Added commands terminal rs232 and terminal rs485.

14.18 V 1.14
• Added page reference to table MSB780 commands and MSB780 SDI-12 commands.
• Added commands aXD1!, axD2!, aXD3!, aXV! for SDI-12.

14.19 V 1.15
• Changed structure of document

• Added section Power saving mode

• Changed time in SDI-12 reply of M command: max. response time changed from 5 s to 7
s

14.20 V 1.16
• Fixed a typo in the QNH calculation

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14.21 V 1.17
• Added specifiers QNH, QFE, HCP, P3H, A3H, TP1, TP2, TP3, DP12, DP13, DP23 for the
form command.

14.22 V 1.18
• Added SDI-12 commands for setting HQFE, HQNH, TQFE, HHCP, DPMAX, K1, Q1, K2,
Q2, K3, Q3 parameters.
• Added SDI-12 command aM1! to get measurement also with HQFE, HQNH parameters
• Added drawings.
The new features are implemented in firmware 046 and higher.

14.23 V 1.19
• Added transfer standard section

• Minor corrections

14.24 V 1.20

• Added Alarm subsection

• Added Analog output connection section
• Added Terminals of the TS

• Minor corrections in Interface menu subsection

14.25 V 1.21

• Added new screenshots

• Minor corrections

14.26 V 1.22
• Added new screenshots
• Added commands dt, setdt, dir e:, type <filename>

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14.27 V 1.23
• Actualized "cnf?" listing
• Actualized basic screens subsection

• Added commands avrg, avrg?

14.28 V 1.24
• Added: Analog output commands amode, asel, atest, aerr, caset
• Actualized "cnf?" listing
• Small corrections in text.

14.29 V 1.25
• Added: several commands, ICAO mode, many LCD screens and settings

• Actualized: large manual revision and actualization

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