Centaur UserGuide 17935R4
Centaur UserGuide 17935R4
The information in this document has been carefully reviewed and is believed to be reliable. Nanometrics Inc.
reserves the right to make changes at any time without notice to improve the reliability and function of the
product.
No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system or transmitted, in any form or by any
means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise, without the prior written permission of
Nanometrics Inc.
Nanometrics Inc.
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Kanata, ON K2K 2A1
Canada
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Centaur User Guide Nanometrics Inc.
Contents
2.6 Power 22
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4.4 Digitizer 29
4.8 Communications 40
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4.8.1 Discovery 40
4.8.2 Ethernet 41
4.9.1 NP UDP/HTTP Streaming 42
4.9.2 QSCD20 Streaming 46
4.9.3 Throttle 47
4.9.4 Fragmentation 47
4.13 Events 54
4.16 Power 65
4.17 Timing 66
5.1.1 Events 67
5.1.2 Device 69
5.1.3 Storage 70
5.1.4 Data 72
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5.1.5 Time 73
5.1.6 Alerts 74
5.3.3 Control 81
5.3.4 Discovery 84
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About Us 142
Contact Us 142
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1Secure Digital
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* Available if PTP is enabled in your firmware. Contact technical support for more
information.
All models listed above are available with SeedLink licensing pre-configured.
Alternatively, you can purchase a license that allows you to access SeedLink and other
licensed features after you acquire your Centaur.
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Centaur continuously records seismic data, state-of-health (SOH) data, and configuration data in a
proprietary database called the Store. The Store wraps when it is full and records over the oldest
data. The frequency with which the Store wraps is shown in the Internal Storage section of the
Health Page.
Data is recorded to the Store in Nanometrics Protocol (NP) format, but seismic data can be
streamed in SEEDLink and NP formats for networked deployments, and/or archived to removable
media in MiniSEED format. In addition, selected SOH channels are available in Steim compressed
formats. For networked deployments using continuous streaming, the Store is used to back fill any
data lost during transmission downstream.
Regardless of whether you deploy Centaur as a networked or standalone device, the internal
storage acts as your primary media. You can retrieve data from internal storage on the
Maintenance page.
The most effective backup for your data is to use an SD card as your secondary (removable)
media, and configure continuous archiving. Use an SD card that is formatted as FAT32 or ext4.
When you enable continuous archiving, the Centaur continuously records data in MiniSEED format
to the SD card. You can also configure Centaur to archive events and SOH data to the SD card.
When the SD card is full, the Centaur continues recording data to its internal storage media, but
stops writing data to your SD card. Any configured streamers are unaffected when the SD card is
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full. You can monitor the amount of space that data archiving consumes on your SD card from the
Removable Media section of the Maintenance page.
For standalone deployments, swapping out removable media is a more convenient way of
harvesting data than downloading data from internal storage using a laptop and Ethernet cable.
Data retrieval via SD card swap or internal storage download is referred to as file transfer.
The Centaur reserves a small backup Store on the removable media (SD card), if one is present, or
in RAM if no SD card is available. The backup Store is used in the rare event that internal storage
fails. The backup Store does not grow over time, nor does the backup Store overwrite your data.
For networked deployments using continuous streaming, the backup Store can backfill a limited
amount of data lost during transmission.
As mentioned above, the most effective way to back up your data is to archive data continuously
to your SD card.
14983-8M
14983-10M
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Cable - Centaur External 17949-3M Flexible cable that connects to Centaur models
SOH with Part Numbers 17954 and 17955. The cable
provides three inputs for equipment (± 5 V range)
with slow moving signals.
External SOH sealing plug CON1904 External SOH sealing plug (used to protect the
External SOH connector when not in use).
Ethernet cable sealing CON0284 RJ-45 sealing plug (used to make the Ethernet
plug cable connector waterproof).
GPS antenna cable LMR- 12785 LMR-400 very low loss RF coaxial cable.
400 low loss
Available in lengths up to 80 m.
GPS bullet antenna 15699 A 3.3 V thread-mount GPS bullet antenna with a
TNC connector.
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USB Wi-Fi Accessory Kit 17630 A kit containing a USB Wi-Fi dongle, O-ring, and
Media Bay dome cover to connect Centaur over
Wi-Fi
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The Centaur can be configured to archive MiniSEED data, event data, and SOH data to an SD 1 card
formatted as FAT32 or ext4. The event data can be archived in multiple industry-standard formats.
Before data archiving can be enabled, an SD card (formatted as FAT32 or ext4) should be inserted
into the media slot on the Centaur. When properly inserted and ready for use, the Media LED will
blink green and the Media Eject LED behind the media door will be solid red for 10 minutes (it will
then turn off to save power).
To safely remove the SD card, push and release the Media Eject button in the media bay. Wait for
the Media Eject LED to turn solid green, which indicates that it is safe to remove the card.
1Secure Digital
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To prevent data loss or corruption, the data cartridge and SD card should never be
The status of the SD card in use is indicated by the Media LED on the instrument, and on these Web
Interface pages:
If your SD card is full or corrupt, the instrument continues recording data to its Store, but stops
writing data to your SD card. Any configured streamers are unaffected when the SD card is full or
corrupt.
SD Card Troubleshooting
o The most effective way to retrieve data directly from the Centaur's internal storage1 is by
downloading it from the Maintenance page to your computer.
o To ensure sufficient space on your SD card, you can remove older time series data from
your continuous archive. The safest method for transferring data from the SD card is to con-
nect it to your computer. Alternatively, you can use secure FTP and the client application
of your choice to manage your continuous archive files.
o Individual archive files can also be downloaded from the Download archive files link from
the Maintenance page.
o If your SD card is corrupt or damaged, you can try to repair it from the Maintenance page.
You may also re-format the card. Repair and re-formatting of SD cards is performed in the
Removable Media section of the Maintenance page.
1The device writes all of the data it receives to an internal storage. The internal storage works
like a ring buffer and it wraps around when it is full and records over the oldest data.
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streaming, and remote configuration changes while also recording data to the storage media.
Regardless of whether data is streamed and/or archived to secondary, removable media (SD card),
the Centaur continuously records data to internal storage. For more information, see About Data
Storage.
A technician must visit the Centaur in the field to retrieve the data, which is done by replacing the
removable media with empty media or by downloading data from the internal storage.
In a networked deployment, a Centaur is deployed as part of a network and the recorded time
series data is written in NP format to the internal storage and then streamed over the network to a
data acquisition server, such as Apollo Server. As an additional backup, the Centaur can be
configured to continuously write the time series data in MiniSEED format to a FAT32 or ext4
formatted SD card.
The field technician does not typically visit the Centaur in the field after it has been installed, but
instead uses a Web browser to make any necessary configuration changes and receive the streamed
data.
Typically, the data access method you choose is influenced by the remoteness and duration of the
deployment.
o Network device that allows data downloads, continuous streaming to a data acquisition
server (such as Apollo Server), and remote configuration changes.
o Stand-alone device to record continuous data on removable media for extended periods of
time (accessed later via file transfer or retrieving the SD card when a technician is visiting
the site).
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Regardless of whether data is streamed and/or archived to a secondary removable media (SD
card), the Centaur continuously records data to internal storage. For more information, see About
Data Storage.
Continuous Streaming
Continuous data streaming is usually the preferred data access method for longer term
deployments.
Continuous data streaming is enabled through the use of a cellular modem, Low Earth Orbit (LEO)
modem, or VSAT communication system, such as Nanometrics' Libra II VSAT System.
File Transfer
File transfer is more common for short-to-medium term deployments when streaming is not
possible or practical. You can remove the SD card from the media bay and swap in a new SD card
without causing any data gaps between the records on the two cards. Alternatively, you can
connect to the Centaur via Ethernet to download the data stored in its internal flash memory.
Data Formats
For a list of available data formats you can use for file transfer from SD card or internal storage,
see Recording (Continuous) and Recording (Events) in the specifications.
To view the data formats available for data streaming, see Data Streaming in the specifications.
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The table below illustrates the typical use cases for deployment and data access.
No File transfer:
* VSAT is not commonly used for temporary installations, but there are temporary stations that use
VSAT.
** Streaming is normally required for permanent stations because file transfer is often impractical.
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Each Centaur comes factory configured with several default configuration settings. The factory
configuration addresses the most common use cases for the Centaur and means that most devices
will require minimal pre-installation configuration.
To check the configuration, you must connect the GPS cable, Ethernet cable, and power cable and
wait for the device to power up. Once started, you need to access the Web interface of the
Centaur to verify or change the configuration.
You should ensure the following settings are configured to your needs prior to deploying the device
in the field:
o Sample rate
o Sensor type
o Detector settings
o Ethernet settings
o Streamer settings (Networked deployment)
The most appropriate grounding plan will depend on your application and the installation
environment. Following is some general information you can take into account when planning
grounding for a Centaur installation.
o Power — The Centaur power connector has 3 pins to allow the Centaur to conform to the
site grounding system. You can connect the power return pin and ground, but combining
grounding and power return in the same conductor limits the site grounding options. The
recommended practice is to establish a single ground point for the station and ground
everything to that point, which minimizes the chances of ground loops and signal noise cre-
ated by the power system.
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o Peripheral power — The Centaur provides primary power to attached peripheral devices via
the Sensor connectors. This power is switched to allow devices to be controlled by the user
through the Centaur. The Centaur monitors for over-current conditions and will auto-
matically switch off power to a peripheral if excessive current or a short is detected. The
voltage provided to the Centaur is passed on to the attached peripherals. The current
demand of each attached peripheral and the consequent voltage drop through the Centaur
and peripheral cables should be taken into consideration when designing the power system
to ensure that sufficient voltage is supplied to each peripheral.
The External SOH cable is only applicable to Centaur models that have an external SOH
input.
You can make the Ethernet cable connector on the Centaur waterproof by
installing a sealing plug (shipped with the Centaur).
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i. Your Centaur ships with the grounding wire attached. If you must attach a new grounding
wire, strip one end of the grounding wire and crimp the grounding lug around the grounding
wire.
ii. Attach the grounding lug to the grounding hole using the M4x5 screw and the M4 washer.
See the Top View of the Centaur for the grounding hole locations.
iii. Connect the other end of the grounding wire to a grounding point at the site.
3. Apply power. When you connect the power cable to the power source, the Centaur will power
up immediately. It will take approximately 4 to 5 minutes for the device to completely start up.
If the device fails to power up, the power supply voltage might be below the configured
Power on threshold.
In configurations that have long GPS cables and lightning protection, an overall system design
approach must be taken which balances the grounding requirements with the protection
requirements. This approach requires an understanding of the Centaur grounding, the sensor
grounding, power supply grounding, and local site grounding.
2.6 Power
The Centaur power connector has 3 pins to allow the instrument to conform to the site grounding
system. You can connect the power return pin and ground but combining grounding and power
return in the same conductor limits the site grounding options. The recommended practice is to
establish a single ground point for the station and ground everything to that point, which
minimizes the chances of ground loops and signal noise created by the power system.
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1. With a 19 mm socket, loosen the jam nut from the SOH connector on the Centaur.
When removing the jam nut, be careful not to push or knock the connector into
the chassis. If the connector drops into the chassis, you will have to open the Cen-
taur cover to retrieve the connector.
2. Place the ring from the sealing plug over the connector.
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You can create a direct connection to your Centaur using a link-local IP address or you can create
a network connection to the device.
For Centaur, use the link-local IP address of 169.254.33.33 (3 channel model) or 169.254.35.35 (6
channel model) with a subnet mask of 255.255.0.0.
You can access the Centaur user interface over Wi-Fi using the optional USB Wi-Fi Accessory Kit
(Nanometrics part number 17630).
Apollo Discovery must be run on the same subnet as the devices you want to
find.
3. Confirm that the serial number displayed on the Web interface matches your Centaur. If it
does not, then you are connected to a different Centaur in your network.
After connecting to the Centaur, either through the link-local address or via a DHCP-
enabled network, you can configure a static IP address for your deployment.
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1. From the upper right corner of the Web Interface, click Log On. The Log On dialog box will
be displayed.
2. Enter the default admin user account (user name: admin, password: admin).
3. Click the OK button. On the Web Interface, admin will display in place of Log On.
We recommend that you change your password after you have logged on for the first time.
1. From the upper right corner of the Web Interface, click on admin and select Change pass-
word from the list. The change password dialog box will be displayed.
2. Enter your User name, your Old password, and your New password.
3. Confirm your new password by entering it in the Confirm new password field.
4. Click the OK button. The dialog will close and your password will be set to the new pass-
word.
The calibration user account and password allows you to upload a custom calibration file to the
instrument (see Upload Custom Calibration Signal File). To do this you will need to log in to the
instrument using an SSH1-based file transfer protocol such as SFTP2 or SCP3.
1. Log into the instrument using the terminal application of your choice and start an SSH ses-
sion. Use the IP address of the instrument as the host name and the default port number of
22.
1Secure Shell
2SSH File Transfer Protocol
3Secure Copy
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We recommend that you change your password after you have logged on for the first time.
See Changing the admin password.
o Reset — Discard any unapplied changes and reload the current configuration
settings.
o Apply — Implement changes before they are committed. The device will
operate with the new settings but will discard them if it is restarted.
o Commit — Permanently save changes. The device will use these new con-
figuration settings each time it restarts until new settings are committed.
If you do upload a configuration file, keep in mind that you might have to use Apollo Discovery to
find the new IP address assigned to the device if the Ethernet mode changes from Static IP or Link-
Local to DHCP.
Apollo Discovery is a Nanometrics command-line application that searches the LAN and returns the
model number, serial number, IP address, and other information about the Nanometrics devices
and applications that it finds.You can download Apollo Discovery from our support Web site:
http://support.nanometrics.ca.
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The license file is uploaded from the About page on the Web Interface.
From the upper right corner of the Web Interface, click the Configuration menu icon.
1. Click About.
2. Click the Upload link.
3. Click Choose File, browse to the license file location, and click Upload.
4. Click OK.
Retrieval mark
The date and time the last data was retrieved by Apollo Project for a Field Archive project.
Apollo Project automatically stores this date in the Centaur after it retrieves data for a Field
Archive project and uses it as the starting point for a future data download. The Retrieval Mark
box is blank if Apollo Project has not been used to download data from a Centaur for a Field
Archive project.
You can delete the date if you want Apollo Project to download all of the data from the start of
the project the next time you run a Field Archive project. You can also change the date if you
only want data downloaded from a specific point in time.
This setting is only used by Apollo Project for Field Archive projects. If you do not use
Apollo Project or Field Archive projects, you can ignore this setting. For more information
on data retrieval and Field Archive projects, see the Apollo Project User Guide.
You should only select Verbose or Debug as the logging level if you were instructed to do
so by Nanometrics Technical Support because it generates a large number of log messages
that can slow down the system and shorten the amount of time in the log files.
This setting only applies to Centaur models that have an external SOH input. See
applicable models.
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4.4 Digitizer
The Centaur Digitizer has three or six time series data channels that are constantly digitizing data.
The data from each of these channels is recorded and written to the internal storage.
You can capture data at two concurrent sample rates by enabling secondary output, and setting
different sample rates on your primary and secondary channels. For example, you may wish to
continually stream your data at a lower sample rate on primary channels and archive data to an SD
card at a higher sample rate on secondary channels.
You can also configure general settings for the Centaur Digitizer such as frames per packet on
primary and secondary channels, as well as front end, input filter, and detector configuration
settings.
The settings for Digitizer A are for Sensor A, channels 1 to 3. The settings for Digitizer B are for
Sensor B, channels 4 to 6.
Select this option to enable the streaming of continuous data products, such as QSCD20 data (see
also QSCD20 Streaming), and to summarize triggered events.
The input voltage ranges represent the differential between the sensor positive and negative signal
inputs in volts peak-to-peak. The maximum input range is 40 volts peak-to-peak. This represents
the case of a differential input signal that at one peak has +10 V on the positive input and –10 V on
the negative input (20 V peak). At the other peak, the differential input is –20 V for a peak-to-
peak input range of 40 V. The input range to Digitizer sensitivity mappings are provided in the
Digitizer Performance section of the specifications.
o If you want to accurately measure full-scale sensor activity, the input range of the digital
recorder must be greater than the maximum output level of the sensor. However, if the
sensor has a very large dynamic range and the input range is set to a large value (to capture
full-scale movement), accuracy will be lost when measuring very weak seismic signals.
o If you want to accurately measure very weak seismic signals, the input range of the sensor
must be set to a small enough value to accurately digitize weak signals. If strong seismic
events occur that exceed the configured range, these signals will be clipped. Increased sens-
itivity (lower input ranges) also tend to increase overall data volume.
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You can configure your sampling rate, enable DC removal, and set your frames per packet for your
primary data channels.
If you are using a six-channel Centaur, you will need to configure your primary channel settings
for both Digitizer A and Digitizer B.
Output type
Output type allows you to apply a Linear Phase filter to the digital signal processing and recording
on primary channels, which is the default selection, or to disable data recording altogether.
The number of samples per second taken from the continuous analog sensor signal by the Centaur
to make a discrete-time signal. The default is 100 Hz (100 samples per second).
The number of standard Steim data frames per packet for transmission and storage of the primary
time series data. Smaller packets reduce the streaming latency, but will greatly increase the
requirements for streaming throughput and data storage.
If you want to capture data at two concurrent sample rates, you must enable the Secondary output
type. You can also configure other settings for your secondary channels to reflect your data
retrieval needs.
If you are using a six-channel Centaur, you might want to configure secondary channel settings for
both Digitizer A and Digitizer B.
By default, the Secondary output type is Disabled. To enable it, select Linear Phase.
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The number of samples per second taken from the continuous analog sensor signal by the Centaur
to make a discrete-time signal. The default is 100 Hz (100 samples per second).
The number of standard Steim data frames per packet for transmission and storage of the primary
time series data. Smaller packets reduce the streaming latency, but will greatly increase the
requirements for streaming throughput and data storage.
The order of the high pass filter applied to output data. The sum of the high and low pass orders
must not exceed 5.
The 3 dB corner frequency of the high pass filter applied to output data when the high pass order is
non-zero. The ratio of this corner frequency to the sample rate must be between 0.000001 and
0.499999.
The order of the low pass filter applied to output data. The sum of the high and low pass orders
must not exceed 5.
The 3 dB corner frequency of the low pass filter applied to output data when the low pass order is
non-zero. The ratio of this corner frequency to the sample rate must be between 0.000001 and
0.499999.
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The trigger input filter is a common band pass filter applied to the channel data prior to being
processed by the trigger1 detectors2.
1A message generated by the device when the STA/LTA ratio for a channel goes above the
configured trigger on ratio or when the configured threshold value is exceeded. Each
trigger is assigned a number of votes (on the source device) that it casts towards getting an event
declared.
2Algorithms applied to channels and used to declare seismic signals of interest
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The Centaur uses detectors combined with a voting system to declare an event. A detector is an
algorithm that is applied to a channel and is based on either a configured threshold value or a
configured STA1/LTA 2 ratio. As soon as the channel detector detects that the threshold value or
STA/LTA ratio has been exceeded, it generates a trigger3 for that channel. When the Centaur sees
this trigger, it counts how many votes4 are assigned to the channel that generated that trigger:
o If the number of votes are equal to or higher than the configured number of required votes,
an event is declared with the date and time from the trigger.
o If not enough votes were received from the trigger, then the Centaur waits for additional
triggers for a configured period of time to allow for transmission latency.
o If not enough votes are received within the configured period of time, the triggers are dis-
carded and no event is declared.
o If enough votes are received, an event is declared and written to the internal storage and
posted on the Events page.
Event declaration can happen locally using only the channels of the Centaur or it can happen
across a network between multiple devices if you enable the option to share triggers across a
network.
Type n
configured trigger on ratio or when the configured threshold value is exceeded. Each trigger is
assigned a number of votes (on the source device) that it casts towards getting an event declared.
4The number of votes assigned to each channel that it can cast towards getting an event declared.
The higher the number of votes, the greater the impact that the channel has on event
declaration. To ensure proper event declaration, you should give zero votes to a channel that you
do not want to affect the event declaration at all and a lower number of votes to channels at noisy
stations.
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Votes n
The number of votes assigned to each channel that it can cast towards getting an event declared.
The higher the number of votes, the greater the impact that the channel has on event declaration.
To ensure proper event declaration, you should give zero votes to a channel that you do not want
to affect the event declaration at all and a lower number of votes to channels at noisy stations.
The value that must be exceeded for the channel detector to generate a trigger for that channel.
You only have to configure this setting if you selected Threshold as the detector type.
The amount of time after a threshold has been exceeded that the channel detector will wait
before it generates a trigger for that channel.
This setting can be used to ensure that multiple triggers are not generated if a threshold is
exceeded several times in a very short period of time. Multiple triggers could result in the
declaration of multiple events when really it is only one event.
You only have to configure this setting if you selected Threshold as the detector type.
You only have to configure this setting if you selected STA/LTA ratio as the detector type.
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You only have to configure this setting if you selected STA/LTA ratio as the detector
type.
Trigger on ratio n
Choose a value low enough to be sensitive to events of interest but high enough to minimize false
triggers.
You only have to configure this setting if you selected STA/LTA ratio as the detector type.
The STA/LTA ratio below which the associated channel trigger ends.
Latch LTA n
If you select this option, the LTA is held at the value when the channel triggered and is not
updated while the channel is triggered.
If you do not select this option, the LTA continues to be calculated and updated while the channel
is triggered.
In both cases, the trigger terminates either when the trigger off ratio is achieved or when the
Maximum duration has expired.
You only have to configure this setting if you selected STA/LTA ratio as the detector type.
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After this time period has expired, the trigger is ended even if the Trigger off ratio has not been
achieved.
You cannot edit the settings of any of the default sensor configurations but you can click Add on
the main Sensor Library page and create your own editable custom sensor configuration or you
can click Copy at the bottom of any default sensor configuration page to make a copy of it and
then edit it.
Sensor name
SP/LP mode
XYZ/UVW mode
Needs power
Select this option if the sensor needs power (active sensors). Do not select it for passive sensors
that do not require power.
Select this option if the sensor is a Nanometrics smart sensor (for example, Trillium Borehole,
Trillium Posthole, or Trillium Compact).
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Sensitivity units
Sensitivity value
Channel n orientation
Refer to your sensor manual for the appropriate sensor control line settings and values for your
sensor. Specific control line settings are required to make some of the sensor controls available on
the Sensors page.
You can edit the Sensor mass position SOH settings for any custom sensor configurations that you
create.
SOH enabled n
Select this check box to allow the Centaur to record the voltage level of the mass position SOH
input and generate an SOH channel for this input.
SOH label n
The name you enter here will appear on the Sensors page and in the CSV file you download from
the Maintenance page (Environment group of the SOH groups).
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SOH monitor n
Select this check box if you want the status of this mass position SOH input to impact the overall
status of the device.
This means that if a warning or error condition is reported for this mass position SOH input, it will
be indicated in red on the Health page, Sensors page, and in the status bar at the top of each
page. It will also be indicated by the Sensor LED on the Centaur.
An error condition is reported for the mass position SOH input when the SOH input voltage rises
above the SOH high threshold value. This error condition is indicated in red on the Health page,
Sensors page, and in the status bar at the top of each page. The Sensor LED on the Centaur blinks
red when this error condition occurs.
An warning condition is reported for the mass position SOH input when the SOH input voltage rises
above the SOH low threshold value and stays below the SOH high threshold value. This warning
condition is indicated on the Health page, Sensors page, in the status bar at the top of each page.
The Sensor LED on the Centaur blinks yellow when this warning condition occurs.
No error or warning condition is detected for the mass position SOH input when the SOH input
voltage is below the SOH low threshold.
You can set thresholds for delayed or immediate recentring (yellow and red thresholds
respectively) and set the number of retries and retry intervals to achieve centred masses.
You must have a control line configured for Mass Centre and have at least one of the following
thresholds enabled:
o Auto Centre on Yellow – The Centaur will initiate mass centring when any axis has been
above the Yellow Threshold for more than the Yellow Holdoff Time. If all axes drop below
the Yellow threshold during holdoff time, then the holdoff time is cancelled.
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o Auto Centre on Red – The Centaur will initiate mass centring 1 minute after any axis
exceeds the Red Threshold. You can configure the number of retries, as well as the con-
figured retry interval. Retries will be attempted until all axes are below the yellow
threshold or until the number of retries per Auto Centre have been executed.
Once configured, the Control section on the Sensor page will indicate that automatic mass
centring is enabled.
The minimum voltage level used to indicate that the mass position is out of range. Mass centring is
initiated one minute after this level is crossed for any sensing element.
The threshold range is from negative to positive, for example 1 indicates a threshold range of – 1
to +1.
Enter a number that is equal to or higher than 0.001 and greater than the yellow threshold (if
used).
If you use both the red and the yellow thresholds, ensure that you set the yellow
threshold as the lower mass position limit and the red threshold as the higher mass
position limit (red >= yellow).
Auto-Centre on Red
Select this option if you want the Centaur to initiate mass centring when the Red Threshold is
crossed. By default, this option is not selected.
The minimum voltage level used to indicate that the mass position is marginal. Mass centring is
initiated after the Yellow Holdoff Time has expired.
The threshold range is from negative to positive: for example, 1 indicates a threshold range of –1
to +1.
Enter a number that is equal to or higher than 0.001 and lower than the red threshold (if used).
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Auto-Centre on Yellow
Select this option if you want the Centaur to initiate mass centring when the Yellow Holdoff Time
expires.
The number of hours the Centaur waits when any mass position voltage is higher than the yellow
threshold but lower than the red threshold before initiating mass centring.
The maximum number of re-attempts the Centaur makes to centre the masses.
The number of minutes the Centaur waits before trying to automatically centre the masses again.
4.8 Communications
You can configure a Centaur for network access via an IP connection over an Ethernet connection.
4.8.1 Discovery
Enable discovery
Select this check box to allow the Centaur to periodically send out small multicast identification
messages to other Nanometrics devices and applications on the network.
IP address
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Port number
4.8.2 Ethernet
Ethernet mode
The method the Centaur uses to acquire an IP address for communications over the LAN.
By default, each Centaur ships in DHCP mode so it can automatically obtain an IP address in your
network. If needed, you can also use the following Link-Local address: 169.254.33.33 (3 channel)
or 169.254.35.35 (6 channel)
If you change this setting to another Ethernet mode (Static IP or Link-Local) and then change it
back to DHCP, you can use Apollo Discovery to find the new IP address assigned to the device. You
will need this new IP address to be able to commit the change you made to the Ethernet mode
setting because the previous IP address will no longer work.
Apollo Discovery is a Nanometrics command-line application that searches the LAN and returns the
model number, serial number, IP address, and other information about the Nanometrics devices
and applications that it finds.
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NP UDP/HTTP Streaming
QSCD20 Streaming
Throttle
Fragmentation
4.9.1 NP UDP/HTTP Streaming
Name
Enable
1The transfer of packets of data at a steady high-speed rate from the device to downstream
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o Voltages
o Temperature
o Sensor SOH
o External SOH
o Timing information
Select this option to stream system SOH data to a downstream network management or monitoring
tool, such as Antares Network Management.
Antares Network Management is a network management and diagnostic tool that allows you to
assess the overall status of the network at a glance and to drill down into network issues in a wide
range of areas including power, data availability, timing, latency, configuration, and firmware
versions. Antares Network Management uses SOH data, log files, and configuration information
available from the various assets in the network as well as data derived by monitoring data
availability, latency, and error correction workload to provide you with this picture of network
performance.
Stream triggers/events
Select this option to stream triggers and events. For trigger1 settings, see also Trigger Detectors
and Trigger Input Filters. For event2 settings, see Events.
Stream alerts
Select this option to stream alerts generated by the Centaur for events such as start-ups, shut
downs, and major errors.
1A message generated by the device when the STA/LTA ratio for a channel goes above the
configured trigger on ratio or when the configured threshold value is exceeded. Each trigger is
assigned a number of votes (on the source device) that it casts towards getting an event declared.
2Seismic activity that is detected and declared by the instrument using a voting system and
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Alert messages include a time stamp and a brief description. These messages are also displayed on
the Health page.
Select this option to stream raw data that came from an external source.
The raw data is inserted into an NP packet and streamed in the NP format.
Channel list
After you have selected the type of data you want the Centaur to stream, you have the option to
use a filter to specify exactly which channels the Centaur streams.
The filter is a comma-separated list of the SCNL (Station, Channel, Network, and Location) names
of the channels you want streamed. The network, station, location, and channel codes used in the
SCNL list are defined in the Channel Naming settings and in the location and channel code settings
of the raw TCP receivers.
You can use an asterisk (*) to represent one or more characters in a channel name and an
exclamation point (!) to exclude a network, station, location, or channel. The exclamation point
always has to be placed before the SCNL element that should be excluded.
The format for specifying SCNL elements in a filter is NN.SSSSS.LL.CCC, where NN is the network
code, SSSSS is the station code, LL is the location code, and CCC is the channel code. The S, C, and
N elements must be represented in the filter and each element must be separated by a dot (.). The
L (Location) element is optional.
Examples:
If you do not want to filter the data, type an asterisk (*) into the box. A single asterisk means that
all available data will be streamed.
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Destination
-OR-
Port number
The port number used by the Centaur to stream data in the NP format.
If you are streaming to Apollo Server, ensure that the Apollo Server UDP receiver is
configured to listen to this port number.
ReTx strategy
Defines the manner in which requests to retransmit data are prioritized and processed.
The time in which recent requests should be processed before the oldest requests are processed.
You only have to configure this setting if you selected Oldest Data First, with Recent Data
Threshold as the ReTx Strategy.
1The first octet of a valid multicast IP address must be between 224 and 240, inclusive. Each of
the last three octets can be any positive integer from 0 to 255.
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If the streaming destination address is multicast1, you can increase the Time-To-Live (TTL2) of
the packets by specifying the number of networks (routers) that the packet must cross to reach the
destination.
For example, if the packets have to cross five networks to reach the destination, you should set
the Multicast TTL to 5.
All of the routers must support the Time-To-Live feature. In some cases, this feature might
be disabled for security reasons (Denial-of-Service attack).
4.9.2 QSCD20 Streaming
A QSCD20®3 data stream sends QSCD20 encoded packets to destination software capable of
consuming QSCD20 data. The data is produced using the primary sample rate(s) of the digital
recorder(s), and this sample rate should be at least 100 sps for quality data. Data is streamed in
one second packets with each packet timestamp containing the time of the last sample considered
for that second of data. The timestamp is UTC4 aligned.
Enable
The port number on the streaming device used to stream QSCD20 data. The UDP source port is
configurable to facilitate flexibility when passing packets through firewalls.
1The first octet of a valid multicast IP address must be between 224 and 240, inclusive. Each of
the last three octets can be any positive integer from 0 to 255.
2Time-To-Live
3Quick Seismic Characteristic Data (QSCD20®) from 20 sps data. QSCD20 is a region-specific
streaming format. If your system requires QSCD20, contact customer support for more information.
4Coordinated Universal Time
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A valid unicast IP address, including the port number, of the data stream destination in dotted
decimal format. The destination must be software capable of consuming QSCD20 data. Up to 5
destinations can be identified.
4.9.3 Throttle
If you have a low-throughput link, the throttle configuration settings allow you to configure the
maximum data output of the streamer.
Enable throttle
Select this option to set the maximum data throughput of the NP streamer.
4.9.4 Fragmentation
This feature supports data paths with components that block packets larger than a particular
threshold. For instance, if you are using a router that does not allow IP fragmentation, the
fragmentation configuration settings allow you to configure the maximum packet size.
Enable fragmenting
Select this option to set the maximum allowable packet size. If enabled, packets larger than the
configured threshold will be broken into smaller packets.
Include CRC
Select this option if you want a cyclic redundancy check performed on each fragment to verify
that the data is not corrupted.
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You can create and configure raw data TCP receivers to acquire raw data. Once the raw data has
been acquired, you can configure a streamer to stream the data to a data acquisition server.
Before the raw data is streamed, it is inserted into an NP packet so that it can be streamed in the
NP format.
Name
Enable
Select this option to enable the raw data TCP receiver to receive data.
Server IP address
Port number
The number of the port used by the TCP server to stream data. The raw data TCP receiver acts as
a TCP client and connects to this port and then the external device streams data to the Centaur.
For example, you configure this port number in the I/O Configuration settings of a Trimble®
NetR9.
The maximum amount of time in seconds that the modem will wait for data from the TCP socket
before disconnecting from the socket.
After the modem has disconnected from the socket, it will reconnect and wait for a response
again.
1BINEX is a binary exchange format for GPS and GNSS data. For more information on BINEX, see
http://binex.unavco.org/binex.html.
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Make sure that the TCP server (for example, a Trimble® NetR9) is configured to stream
data to the Centaur in the BINEX format.
Channel index
A number from 2001 to 2099 used to identify the raw data channel.
Each raw data TCP receiver should have a unique channel index number.
You only need to change this number if you are enabling more than one raw data TCP
receiver on a single Centaur
The number of packets the Centaur waits for before it creates an NP packet.
-OR-
A two character alphanumeric code for the location and a three character alphanumeric code for
the channel name, separated by a dot.
Example: L0.RAW
These codes are used for filtering the data that is streamed to a downstream device and should be
unique for each raw data TCP receiver. For more information on filtering, see the description of
the Channel list setting of the NP UDP/HTTP streamer.
The station and network codes are defined by the Channel Naming settings.
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o Data Retrieval – The channel names are used in the file headings and default file names for
all types of retrieved data. The names act as labels to help you identify the data. For more
information, see Retrieve Data from the Internal Storage.
o Filtered Streaming – When you configure the Centaur to stream data, you have the option to
define an SCNL-based filter to limit what channels are streamed. The Centaur refers to the
channel names when it performs the filtering.
Centaur retains only the currently configured channel name. Historical naming information is not
preserved.
When you make a query to retrieve data or to view a waveform from Centaur, make sure to use
the channel name that is currently configured, not the channel name that was configured when
the data was recorded.
Network code
A two character alphanumeric code (the alpha characters must be uppercase) that represents the
network that the Centaur belongs to.
Station code
A five character alphanumeric code that represents the station where the Centaur is located.
A two character alphanumeric code (the alpha characters must be uppercase) that represents the
time series location of the Centaur.
A three character alphanumeric code (the alpha characters must be uppercase) that represents
each of the time series data channels.
A three character alphanumeric code (the alpha characters must be uppercase) that represents
each of the secondary data channels.
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SOH code
A two character alphanumeric code for the location and a three character alphanumeric code for
the channel that represents the SOH for the Centaur.
Before you enable this feature, make sure that you have inserted an SD card (formatted as FAT32
or ext4) into the SD card slot behind the media bay door of the Centaur.
In addition to streaming data from the Centaur to a network application or device and
archiving data to a removable SD card, you can also retrieve time series and SOH data
directly from the Centaur's internal storage1 by downloading it from the Maintenance
page to your computer.
Select this check box to allow the Centaur to continuously write MiniSEED data files to the SD card.
Each file contains multiple 512-byte MiniSEED records of waveform data for all live channels and is
stored in a folder named for the day it was recorded. The location of this folder is YYYY/MM/DD.
The format of the name of each MiniSEED data file is as follows: NE.STN.LO_YYYYMMDD_
HHMMSS.miniseed
The network, station, and location names are defined in the Channel Naming configuration
settings.
1The device writes all of the data it receives to an internal storage. The internal storage works
like a ring buffer and it wraps around when it is full and records over the oldest data.
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The number of 512-byte MiniSEED records contained in each file is determined by the duration you
select here.
Select the number of output files to be generated: one file per channel or one file per station.
The per channel option produces many small files, the per station option produces one large file.
The filter is a comma-separated list of the SCNL (Station, Channel, Network, and Location) names
of the channels you want archived. The network, station, location, and channel codes used in the
SCNL list are defined in the Channel Naming settings and in the location and channel code settings
of the raw TCP receivers.
You can use an asterisk (*) to represent one or more characters in a channel name and an
exclamation point (!) to exclude a network, station, location, or channel. The exclamation point
always has to be placed before the SCNL element that should be excluded.
The format for specifying SCNL elements in a filter is NN.SSSSS.LL.CCC, where NN is the network
code, SSSSS is the station code, LL is the location code, and CCC is the channel code. The S, C, and
N elements must be represented in the filter and each element must be separated by a dot (.). The
L (Location) element is optional.
Examples:
If you do not want to filter the data, type an asterisk (*) into the box. A single asterisk means that
all available data will be archived.
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You can specify a pattern for naming the archived MiniSEED files using the following parameters:
The default pattern includes all parameters and is in the following format:
o ${N}.${S}.${L}.${C}_${ID}_${TIME}
o XX.STN01.LO.HHZ_centaur-6_0345_20130912_073356
o ${S} is required
o ${C} must be excluded
Include SOH archive
Select this check box if you also want SOH data files archived to the SD card.
The SOH data files are separate files and they are stored in a folder called soh. The location of
this folder is YYYY/MM/DD/soh.
SOH archive format
If you selected the option to archive SOH data, select the format for archiving the SOH files.
Archiving SOH data in CSV format is time consuming and might impact the performance of
the device.
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4.13 Events
The Centaur uses detectors combined with a voting system to declare an event. A detector is an
algorithm that is applied to a channel and is based on either a configured threshold value or a
configured STA1/LTA 2 ratio. As soon as the channel detector detects that the threshold value or
STA/LTA ratio has been exceeded, it generates a trigger3 for that channel. When the Centaur sees
this trigger, it counts how many votes4 are assigned to the channel that generated that trigger. If
the number of votes are equal to or higher than the configured number of required votes, an event
is declared with the date and time of the trigger. If not enough votes were received from the
trigger, then the Centaur waits for additional triggers for a configured period of time to allow for
transmission latency. If not enough votes are received within the configured period of time, the
triggers are discarded and no event is declared. If enough votes are received, an event is declared
and written to the internal storage and posted on the Events page.
Event declaration can happen locally using only the channels of the Centaur or it can happen
across a network between multiple devices if you enable the option to share triggers across a
network.
The window of time into which the trigger on times of the channels must fall in order for those
channels to be included in the same event.
Required votes
The minimum number of votes required for the Centaur to declare a group of triggers as an event.
configured trigger on ratio or when the configured threshold value is exceeded. Each trigger is
assigned a number of votes (on the source device) that it casts towards getting an event declared.
4The number of votes assigned to each channel that it can cast towards getting an event declared.
The higher the number of votes, the greater the impact that the channel has on event
declaration. To ensure proper event declaration, you should give zero votes to a channel that you
do not want to affect the event declaration at all and a lower number of votes to channels at noisy
stations.
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The amount of time, in seconds, the Centaur waits to see if the minimum number of required votes
is met for event declaration. This wait time allows for transmission latency and any other delays
that might occur.
The maximum event duration time should always be longer than the coincidence window
duration.
The number of seconds of data archived before the event declaration time.
The number of seconds of data archived after the event declaration time.
The Centaur Events Data Archive feature archives event1 data and SOH data (optional) to a
removable SD card. The event data can be archived in multiple industry-standard formats.
Before you enable this feature, make sure that you have inserted an SD card (formatted as FAT32
or ext4) into the SD card slot behind the media bay door of the Centaur.
In addition to archiving event data to a removable SD card, you can also manually declare
an event on the Events page.
Select this check box to allow the Centaur to write event data to the SD card.
Each event data file is stored in a folder named for the day the event was recorded. The location
of this folder is events/YYYY/MM/DD.
1Seismic activity that is detected and declared by the instrument using a voting system and
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The format of the name of each event data file is as follows: NE.STN.LO_YYYYMMDD_
HHMMSS.format
If the per channel option is selected for the MiniSEED output files setting, then the
channel name is also added to the name of the event data file before the YYYYMMDD_
HHMMSS.
The network, station, and location names are defined in the Channel Naming configuration
settings.
Enable MiniSEED
Select this check box to archive the event data in the MiniSEED format.
Select the number of output files to be generated: one file per channel or one file for all
instruments.
The per channel option produces many small files, the per station option produces one large file.
Other format
Select the desired file format from the list to archive event data in that format.
The filter is a comma-separated list of the SCNL (Station, Channel, Network, and Location) names
of the channels you want archived. The network, station, location, and channel codes used in the
SCNL list are defined in the Channel Naming settings and in the location and channel code settings
of the raw TCP receivers.
You can use an asterisk (*) to represent one or more characters in a channel name and an
exclamation point (!) to exclude a network, station, location, or channel. The exclamation point
always has to be placed before the SCNL element that should be excluded.
The format for specifying SCNL elements in a filter is NN.SSSSS.LL.CCC, where NN is the network
code, SSSSS is the station code, LL is the location code, and CCC is the channel code. The S, C, and
N elements must be represented in the filter and each element must be separated by a dot (.). The
L (Location) element is optional.
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Examples:
If you do not want to filter the data, type an asterisk (*) into the box. A single asterisk means that
all available data will be archived.
You can specify a pattern for naming the archived files using the following parameters:
The default pattern includes all parameters and is in the following format:
o ${N}.${S}.${L}.${C}_${ID}_${TIME}
o XX.STN01.LO.HHZ_ centaur-6_0345_20130912_073356
${S} is required
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Include SOH archive
Select this check box if you also want SOH data files archived to the SD card.
The SOH data files are separate files and they are stored in a folder called soh. The location of
this folder is YYYY/MM/DD/soh.
SOH archive format
If you selected the option to archive SOH data, select the format for archiving the SOH files.
Archiving SOH data in the CSV format is time consuming and might impact the
performance of the device.
The Centaur has the ability to send and receive triggers1 and events2 and from other devices via
a multicast UDP3. The votes4 associated with triggers received from other devices are used in the
event detection and declaration process and the events received from other devices are displayed
and downloadable on the Events page of the local device.
Share triggers
1Messages generated by the instrument when the STA/LTA ratio for one or more channels go above
the configured trigger on ratio or when the configured threshold value is exceeded. Each trigger is
assigned a number of votes (on the source device) that it casts towards getting an event declared.
2Seismic activity that is detected and declared by the instrument using a voting system and
The higher the number of votes, the greater the impact that the channel has on event
declaration. To ensure proper event declaration, you should give zero votes to a channel that you
do not want to affect the event declaration at all and a lower number of votes to channels at noisy
stations.
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If you enable this option, event declaration will happen both locally, using only the three channels
of the local device, and across all of the devices in your network.
Share events
If you enable this option, you can view and download the events received from other devices on
the Events page of this device.
Multicast group
All devices that share triggers and/or events have to use the same multicast IP address
and port number.
Port number
The port number used by the Centaur to share triggers and/or events with other devices (send and
receive)
All devices that share triggers and/or events have to use the same multicast IP address
and port number.
Multicast TTL
You can increase the Time-To-Live (TTL) of the trigger data packets by specifying the number of
networks (routers) that the trigger data packets must cross to reach their destination.
For example, if the trigger data packets have to cross five networks to reach their destination, you
should set the Multicast TTL to 5.
You can configure the Centaur to calculate peak ground motion data products for any connected
and configured accelerometer sensors. When this feature is enabled, the Centaur calculates the
1The first octet of a valid multicast IP address must be between 224 and 240, inclusive. Each of
the last three octets can be any positive integer from 0 to 255.
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PGA1, PGV2, and PGD 3 values for each declared event, writes the calculated values to the
internal storage4 with the event, and posts them on the Events page.
The PGA reported by the Centaur is based on measurements of the acceleration in the two
horizontal directions (north-south and east-west).
Select this check box to allow the Centaur to calculate peak ground motion data products for each
event.
You can view the calculated PGA, PGV, and PGD values on the Events page.
This option is only applicable to a Centaur with 6 channels (two sensor ports).
Centaur ships with three configuration template files that can be used to configure the automatic
sending of email notifications when events are declared and completed. Once these files have
been configured, two emails are sent automatically for each event. The first email is sent as soon
as the event is declared and the second email is sent when the event has completed. The emails
are sent to the email addresses specified in the configuration files.
like a ring buffer and it wraps around when it is full and records over the oldest data.
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See the Help for more information on event detection and declaration. You can access the
help by clicking Help in the upper-left corner of the user interface of the device.
1. Use the following commands to copy the three configuration template files that shipped
with Centaur to /etc/nanometrics/config and remove the suffix (.template) from the copy:
cp /usr/share/nanometrics/event-email/conf/event-email.conf.template
/etc/nanometrics/config/event-email.conf
cp /usr/share/nanometrics/event-email/conf/event-declared.-
conf.template /etc/nanometrics/config/event-declared.conf
cp /usr/share/nanometrics/event-email/conf/event-complete-email.-
conf.template /etc/nanometrics/config/event-complete-email.conf
2. Modify the email server settings contained in event-email.conf so that they match the out-
going mail settings for your network and specify the email addresses of all intended recip-
ients.
3. Modify the variables contained in event-declared-email.conf to determine the content of
the event declared email notification (the first email that is sent).
The first line of this file is the subject of the email and the other lines in the file are
the body of the email. The available variables are as follows:
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o stationName — The SCNL information for the local device (the SCNL inform-
ation for a device is configured in the Channel Naming settings)
o instrumentID — The ID of the local device as shown at the top of the user inter-
face of the device
The following variables are available for the event completed email notification in
addition to the ones listed in step 3:
o event_pga — The PGA of the local device, calculated after the post-event
time has elapsed (see Configuration -> Events)
o max_pga — The highest PGA value from the devices in a group, calculated
after the post-event time has elapsed (see Configuration -> Events)
o max_pga_instrumentID — The ID of the device with the highest PGA value
o max_pga_stationName — The SCNL information for the device with the
highest PGA (the SCNL information for a device is configured in the Channel
Naming settings)
The SOH reporting rate of the SOH channels (for example, GPS, time, and storage). Default: 60 s.
The SOH reporting rate of the three external SOH inputs. Default: 60 seconds. You can see voltage
readings for connected equipment on the Sensors page, in the External SOH Inputs section.
This setting only applies to Centaur models that have an external SOH input. See
applicable models.
Number of frames used in each SOH packet. A smaller value means less latency, but more
overhead.
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Channel names are used in the file headings and default file names of the data that is retrieved
from the internal storage. These channel names act as labels and help the SeedLink clients identify
the data. Before you enable a SeedLink server, ensure that you have configured the channel name
settings.
The Seedlink Server feature requires a separate licence that has to be installed on the
Centaur. Please contact Nanometrics at sales_mkt@nanometrics.ca for more information or
to purchase a licence.
Name
Once you have configured the SeedLink server, its name will appear in the left pane of the
Configuration dialog box, under the SeedLink server section of the tree. Select the name of the
SeedLink server to edit its settings.
Enable
Select this check box to allow Centaur to stream data from this SeedLink server.
Clear this check box to disable this SeedLink server, stopping data acquisition from this source.
Port
The SeedLink clients have to be configured to use this port number to acquire data from the
Centaur SeedLink server.
1The device writes all of the data it receives to an internal storage. The internal storage works
like a ring buffer and it wraps around when it is full and records over the oldest data.
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Select this option to ensure that the SeedLink server sends data in chronological order.
If a packet is missed, the SeedLink server will wait up to the set threshold time (Short term
complete threshold [s]) before sending any more packets. Once the threshold time is crossed, the
SeedLink Server will send the next available packet and ignore the missed packet if it is received.
Short term complete should be used with Hydra and Earthworm slink2ew clients.
The number of seconds the SeedLink server will wait to receive a missed packet before continuing
to send data.
This threshold value is only used if the Short term complete enable option is selected.
Produces only one second SeedLink packets by recompressing the data into new Data Records.
Real-time streaming is supported when this feature is turned on. When enabled, the
SeedLink client should not send in any backfill requests, such as DATA command with
sequence number, or TIME command with begin and/or end time.
Throttle
The throttle fields display under each SeedLink server added, allowing you to enable a throttle and
to specify the maximum throughput bit rate:
o Enable throttle is selected by default. Uncheck this field if you do not want to limit the net-
work transfer rate.
o Maximum throughput bit rate (bps) allows you to specify the maximum output bit rate. The
default maximum is 2056000 bps.
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4.16 Power
If the power supply voltage is below the configured Power on threshold, the
Centaur will not power up. If this happens, you can bypass the power supply
threshold settings and force the Centaur to power up by pressing the Force Power
On button behind the media bay door to override this threshold.
The voltage reported at the sensor is lower than the voltage applied at the connector due
to cable and connector losses, and small voltage drops in protective circuitry.
Power on [mV]
When the external power supply voltage rises above the Power on threshold, the Centaur powers up
immediately.
If the current external power supply voltage is less than a newly committed Power on
threshold, then the Centaur will not automatically power up the next time the power is
disconnected and reconnected unless the Force Power On button behind the media bay
door is pressed to override these thresholds.
When the external power supply voltage falls below the Low voltage shutdown threshold, the
Centaur performs a safe shutdown.
If the current external power supply voltage is less than a newly applied Low voltage
shutdown value, then the Centaur will automatically shut down. If not committed, the
Centaur will revert to the previous Low voltage shutdown value.
When the external power supply voltage falls below the Low voltage disconnect threshold, the
Centaur powers off immediately.
Set the disconnect to a value that will properly protect the battery for your power supply.
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4.17 Timing
GPS configuration is not applicable when PTP is enabled as the timing source in
your firmware. Contact technical support for more information.
GPS power mode
o Duty cycled — The GPS is duty cycled automatically. The GPS receiver is switched on until
the fine lock is reached in the system clock and then switched off until the estimated time
uncertainty reaches a predefined limit such that the expected time error is less than the 100
µs specification. This is the most efficient setting for power consumption.
If the GPS is configured to Duty cycled the Health page will indicate a time error if the
modelled uncertainty exceeds 100 µs.
o Always on — The GPS is always on. This mode uses more power, but provides the most accur-
ate timing.
If the GPS is configured to Always on the Health page will indicate a time error if the
modelled uncertainty exceeds 5 µs.
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Each section on the Health page shows you the current state of health and status of your Centaur,
grouped by component.
You can quickly check the health of the device from any page by looking at the status bar
at the top of the page. The first section of the status bar displays both text and an icon to
show the status of the device.
5.1.1
Events
Most Recent
The date, and Peak Ground Acceleration (PGA), Peak Ground Velocity (PGV), and Peak Ground
Displacement (PGD) of the most recent event.
Events Archive
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o Archive OK— The SD card is archiving event data or is ready to archive event data and the
last event was archived successfully.
o No archive media— The SD card is missing. Insert an SD card or disable the archiving of
event data.
o Archive error— The archive is corrupted or another error has occurred. Replace or reformat
the current SD card.
o Archive full— The SD card is full and no more event data can be archived. Replace the cur-
rent SD card or delete some of the archived events on the card.
o Disabled— The Centaur has not been configured to archive event data to a removable
SD card.
Trigger Window
The window of time, in seconds, into which the Trigger on times of the channels must fall in order
for those channels to be included in the same event.
Voting Threshold
Each channel of the Centaur can cast a specified number of votes towards getting an event
declared and the voting threshold is the minimum number of total votes required for it to declare
an event.
You can configure the number of votes each channel casts towards getting an event declared and
you can also configure the voting threshold. To ensure proper event declaration, you should give
zero votes to a channel that you do not want to affect the event declaration at all and a lower
number of votes to channels in noisy locations.
Trigger Detectors
For more information on how to enable and configure detectors, see Trigger Detectors.
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5.1.2
Device
System — Uptime
System — Configuration
If you have applied some changes to the configuration settings but not yet committed them, this
value will be red. If you do not commit these outstanding changes before the next time the
Centaur restarts, these changes will be lost.
System — Firmware
If you see testcode as the value, this means that you have upgraded the firmware but not
yet made it permanent by committing it. Go to the Maintenance page and click Commit in
the Firmware section to commit the new firmware.
The voltage level being supplied to the Centaur by the power source.
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Environment — Temperature
The internal temperature may be several degrees higher than the ambient temperature.
5.1.3
Storage
o Archive OK — The SD card is archiving MiniSEED data or is ready to archive MiniSEED data
and the latest data was archived successfully.
o No archive media — The SD card is missing. Insert an SD card or disable the archiving of Min-
iSEED data.
o Archive error — The archive is corrupted or another error has occurred. Replace or reformat
the current SD card.
o Archive full — The SD card is full and no more MiniSEED data can be archived. Replace the
current SD card or delete some of the archived events on the card.
o Disabled — The Centaur has not been configured to archive MiniSEED data files to a SD card.
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The percentage of the total space used of the removable media card.
The total size of the removable media card is shown in the tooltip.
o Temporary location — Internal storage has failed and data is being written to a backup
Store.
o Recording — The internal storage is functioning correctly and recording data.
o Reindexing — The index within the internal storage is being recalculated and synchronized
with the actual data that is available. Reindexing might take a long time depending on how
much data is in the internal storage. Data will continue to be generated during reindexing
and will not be lost. You will not be able to perform any other operations that involve the
internal storage until it has finished reindexing.
o Not ready — The internal storage is not ready for recording because it is being resized, cre-
ated, reformatted, or re-created.
o Not enough space — There is not enough free space in the internal memory to accommodate
the intended full size of the internal storage. It will continue to operate normally with a
reduced maximum capacity.
o No internal storage — The internal storage is corrupt or missing. Please contact Nanometrics
Technical Support if you see this status.
1The device writes all of the data it receives to an internal storage. The internal storage works
like a ring buffer and it wraps around when it is full and records over the oldest data.
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The internal storage works like a ring buffer and it wraps around when it is full and records over
the oldest data. This value is the estimated time, in days, that a packet stays in the internal
storage.
The rate that packets are being written to the internal storage.
5.1.4
Data
Sample Rate
The number of samples acquired every second, in hertz, by the Centaur for the primary channels.
The number of samples acquired every second, in hertz, by the Centaur for the secondary channels
(if enabled).
Sensitivity
The overall sensitivity of the system, expressed in units of counts per velocity unit.
Status
Control
A status of Unexpected means that one or more of the sensor control settings do not match the
saved configuration settings for that sensor. For example, Unexpected is displayed if the XYZ/UVW
Mode configuration setting for a sensor is set to XYZ but the sensor control is set to UVW.
You can view more detailed status information for the sensor controls on the Sensors page.
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5.1.5
Time
Status
The status of the internal system clock used to timestamp the data produced by the instrument.
o Initializing— The instrument has just powered up and it is attempting to synchronize its time
to the GPS receiver.
o Time OK— The timing quality of the internal system clock is accurate to within 100 μs.
o No antenna— The GPS receiver has detected that the antenna is not connected or not draw-
ing a current.
o Antenna short— The GPS receiver has detected a short in the antenna.
o Time error—The GPS receiver is unlocked and it is past the initialization stage (the first 10
minutes after the instrument powers up).
-OR-
If the GPS is configured to Always On, the Health page will indicate a time error if
the modelled uncertainty exceeds 5 µs, or 100 µs if the GPS is configured to
Automatic. See also GPS settings.
When the instrument powers up for the first time or after it has been shut
down for a long period of time, it will check to see if there has been a time
step in UTC1 (the introduction of a positive leap second). It takes
approximately 13 minutes for the instrument to make this check and the
Timing status will be red until this check has been completed.
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Uncertainty
Based on clock drift and temperature measurements, this is an estimation, in µs, of the timing
uncertainty of the digital recorder clock. The longer the GPS receiver is unlocked, the higher the
timing uncertainty.
GPS Satellites
The number of satellites used by the GPS receiver for position calculation.
When the instrument starts up, its GPS receiver needs to lock onto the signals from a minimum of
four different satellites to calculate a three-dimensional positional fix, consisting of latitude,
longitude, and altitude. If less than four are visible, reposition the antenna so that it has good
visibility of the open sky.
Earth Location
5.1.6
Alerts
The Alerts section provides you with a list of recent system-related events such as start-ups,
shutdowns, and configuration changes.
1Precision Time Protocol: a protocol used to synchronize with nanosecond accuracy the real-time
network synchronize their clocks with the master by constantly exchanging timing messages with
it. The TitanEA Master is a PTP master.
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External LEDs:
o Overall Status
o Link
o Time
o Media
o Sensor A/B
Internal LEDs:
o Media Eject
o USB Eject
Off
Solid red
Initial power-on.
Blinking yellow
Blinking green
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Blinking red
There is a fault or condition that prevents the Centaur from operating properly. If none of the
other LEDs indicate an error condition, check the Health page to determine the possible cause.
o The GPS receiver is not locked or the GPS antenna is disconnected or shorted.
o The Data Archiving feature is enabled but the SD card is missing, full, corrupt, or could not
be prepared for use.
-OR-
The Force Power On button was pressed to force the Centaur to bypass the power supply
threshold settings and power up. Once the Force Power On button is pressed, the Power
LED will change from solid red to blinking yellow and then to blinking red.
Off
-OR-
1The device writes all of the data it receives to an internal storage. The internal storage works
like a ring buffer and it wraps around when it is full and records over the oldest data.
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Solid green
Flickering green
Off
Blinking yellow
The GPS receiver is initializing and attempting to acquire a lock. It will attempt to acquire a lock
after the Centaur powers up.
Blinking green
Blinking red
The GPS receiver is unlocked, the time uncertainty is >100 μs, and the GPS initialization stage is
past.
-OR-
No GPS antenna is connected, the GPS antenna is not drawing a current, or the antenna has poor
visibility of the open sky.
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Off
For more information, see Events Data Archive and Continuous Data Archive.
Blinking yellow
Blinking green
Blinking red
The SD card is missing, full, or corrupt or it could not be prepared for use.
The 3 channel model of the Centaur has one Sensor LED and the 6 channel model has two. In
addition to the Sensor LEDs, you can also view information about the sensors on the Health and
Sensors pages of the user interface.
Off
Blinking yellow
Blinking green
All three mass position values are between the high and low configurable threshold values.
Blinking red
There is an error condition that could prevent the sensor from operating properly.
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The USB port is not currently supported for the Centaur for data archiving.
Off
Blinking red
The USB device has been inserted and it is being prepared for use.
-OR-
The button next to the USB device has been pushed and the device is being prepared for safe
removal.
The buttons next to the SD card and the USB device have been pressed and held for more than 6
seconds and then released to initiate a safe shutdown of the Centaur. Both LEDs will blink red
while the Centaur is shutting down and then go off.
Solid red
The USB device is ready to use or is being used and it is not safe to remove it.
It will turn from solid red to off after 10 minutes to save power.
Solid green
The button next to the USB device has been pushed, the device has been prepared for safe
removal, and it is safe to remove the USB device.
If the USB device is not removed within 10 minutes after it has been prepared for safe removal and
the LED turns solid green, the device will be prepared for use again and the LED will turn to
blinking red.
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Off
For more information, see Events Data Archive and Continuous Data Archive.
Blinking yellow
Blinking green
Blinking red
The SD card is missing, full, or corrupt or it could not be prepared for use.
Additionally, you can manage some aspects of seismometer operation, and access the Web
interface of a Nanometrics smart sensor on the Sensors page.
Each sensor port on the Centaur has three mass position seismometer SOH inputs and, if enabled,
the voltage levels of these inputs are recorded at the configured SOH report interval and displayed
on the Sensors page. The seismometer mass position SOH values are also included in the
Environment SOH group, which you can download from the Maintenance page.
You can edit the Sensor SOH settings for any custom sensor configurations that you create and
view the Sensor SOH settings for any of the default sensor configurations.
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If your Centaur has an External SOH input and you have connected sensors to record analog SOH
signals (± 5V), you can see the external SOH values displayed on the Sensors page. The SOH input
provides three external SOH channels that record voltage levels at the configured External SOH
report interval.
External SOH values are included in the Environment SOH group, which you can download from the
Maintenance page.
This only applies to Centaur models that have an external SOH input. See applicable
models.
5.3.3 Control
Mass centring is a key function in the control section of the Sensor page. You can also temporarily
toggle the axis mode from UVX to XYZ for debugging purposes.
You can control some aspects of sensor operation using the controls on the Sensors page. Specific
control line settings are required to make some of the controls available and not all controls are
available for all sensor types.
If one or more of the sensor control settings do not match the saved configuration settings
for that sensor, the status of Unexpected will be displayed in the Data section of the
Health page. For example, Unexpected is displayed if the XYZ/UVW Mode configuration
setting for the sensor is set to XYZ but the sensor control is set to UVW.
Accessing the Web interface of a Nanometrics smart sensor through the Centaur can cause
low levels of noise on the output signals of the sensor. When serial communication with the
sensor is enabled, the Web Interface generates a status error due to the generated noise.
Disable serial communications when you have completed debugging activities.
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Axis
o XYZ/UVW On=UVW
-OR-
XYZ/UVW Off=XYZ
Period
The lower corner of the seismometer response can be changed from the normal long-period (LP)
operating mode to a short-period (SP) response.
Changing to SP mode is useful when levelling the seismometer, allowing you to see the mass
positions quickly respond to changes in tilt, or once the seismometer is levelled, to allow the mass
positions to quickly settle. Be sure to leave the seismometer in long-period (LP) mode when
recording seismic signals.
o SP/LP On=SP
-OR-
SP/LP Off=LP
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Mass centre
Initiates automatic motorized re-levelling of the internal seismometer, and the re-centring of the
masses.
o Mass Centre
Mass lock
o Mass Lock
-OR-
Mass Unlock
Indicates whether automatic mass centring is enabled or disabled. Automatic mass centring is
disabled by default. You enable automatic mass centring in Configuration settings. For more
information, see Auto Mass Centring.
The Automatic mass centring field is visible only if you have configured a control line for
mass centring.
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5.3.4 Discovery
After you connect a Nanometrics smart sensor (such as a Trillium Compact or a Trillium Posthole)
to the Centaur and select it in the Sensor Library for Sensor A or B (6 channel model only), click
the Discover button on the Sensors page to detect it and load the smart sensor details.
After it has been detected, you can access the Web interface of the Nanometrics smart sensor by
changing the Serial setting to A or B and clicking the hyperlink in the name of the sensor.
Accessing the Web interface of a Nanometrics smart sensor through the Centaur can cause
low levels of noise on the output signals of the sensor. When serial communication with the
sensor is enabled, the Web Interface generates of status error due to the generated noise.
Disable serial communications when you have completed debugging activities.
If you want the Centaur to detect and declare seismic events in addition to continuously recording
time series data, you have to enable a detector for one or more of the time series channels and
assign a number of votes to all channels with enabled detectors. The Centaur uses the detectors
combined with a voting system to declare an event. A detector is an algorithm that is applied to a
channel and is based on either a configured threshold value or a configured STA/LTA ratio. As soon
as the channel detector detects that the threshold value or STA/LTA ratio has been exceeded, it
generates a trigger for that channel. When the Centaur sees this trigger, it counts how many votes
are assigned to the channel that generated that trigger. If the number of votes are equal to or
higher than the configured number of required votes, an event is declared with the date and time
of the trigger. If not enough votes were received from the trigger, then the Centaur waits for
additional triggers for a configured period of time to allow for transmission latency. If not enough
votes are received within the configured period of time, the triggers are discarded and no event is
declared. If enough votes are received, an event is declared and written to the internal storage
1The device writes all of the data it receives to an internal storage. The internal storage works
like a ring buffer and it wraps around when it is full and records over the oldest data.
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and posted on the Events page. If configured, the time series data for the event is also written to
a removable media card.
Event declaration can happen locally using only the channels of the Centaur or it can happen
across a network between multiple devices if you enable the option to share triggers across a
network.
You can view information about the declared events on the Events page, download them locally
from devices in the network, and, if required, you can also manually declare an event. The
information on this page is updated each time you access the page or each time you manually
declare an event. You can check the Last updated information in the lower-right corner to see
the age of the data.
The Events page shows you the date and time of each event1 recorded in the internal storage2
as well as the peak ground motion data products, cause and source, and the number of triggers3
for that event. It also shows whether the event has been archived to the removable media or not.
If the Centaur has been configured to automatically archive events to an SD card, then all
declared events will be on the SD card as well as in the internal storage.
You can download locally to your computer any event that has been archived to the removable
SD card. The available formats depend on the configuration for the events data archive. To
download archived events, select the checkboxes next to the events you want to download and
then click Download
1Seismic activity that is detected and declared by the instrument using a voting system and
like a ring buffer and it wraps around when it is full and records over the oldest data.
3Messages generated by the instrument when the STA/LTA ratio for one or more channels go above
the configured trigger on ratio or when the configured threshold value is exceeded. Each trigger is
assigned a number of votes (on the source device) that it casts towards getting an event declared.
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The archived events are downloaded locally in a compressed file (.zip) that contains all available
formats.
You cannot download events that are only stored in the internal storage on the Events
page but you can retrieve data from the internal storage on the Maintenance page.
You can log into the instrument with read-only access and download MiniSEED event data from the
SD card using a secure FTP1 connection and the FTP client application of your choice.
Once you have logged on to the instrument, you can locate MiniSEED event data in the following
location on the SD card:
o /var/archive/events
The instrument must have an SD card installed and the instrument must be configured to
archive data (see Events Data Archive and Continuous Data Archive) to use this feature.
You have to log on to the instrument using the calibration user account (user name:
calibration, password: calibrate) to download events via secure FTP.
We recommend that you change your password after you have logged on for the first time.
See Changing the Calibration Password.
You cannot delete events that are only stored in the internal storage but you can delete any events
that have been archived to the removable SD card. You have two options for deleting events:
o You can select the checkboxes next to the events you want to delete and then click Delete.
-OR-
You can click the Delete all event archives button to delete all existing content on the SD
card.
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You have to be logged on using the admin user account to delete all of the event archives
on the SD card and you have to confirm that you want to do it since this action cannot be
undone.
We recommend that you change your password after you have logged on for the first time.
See Changing the admin password.
If you know that an event1 occurred but for some reason it was not declared as an event (for
example, not enough votes were cast to get an event declared or the voting threshold was set too
high), you can manually declare an event on the Events page. The manual declaration is based on
the historical data stored in the internal storage 2.
You have to log on using the admin user account before you can declare an event.
We recommend that you change your password after you have logged on for the first time.
See Changing the admin password.
The event will appear in the list of Events on the Events page as soon as you click Declare Event.
You will be able to download it and view the peak ground motion products for the event as soon as
it has been successfully retrieved from the internal storage. The Source column will help you
distinguish automatically declared events from any that have been declared manually (user).
If the sensor needs to be calibrated, you can also perform a sensor calibration on this page using a
calibration signal file format.
1Seismic activity that is detected and declared by the instrument using a voting system and
like a ring buffer and it wraps around when it is full and records over the oldest data.
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The Waveform page shows a horizontal signal line, or trace, in near-real time for each channel of
the Centaur.
The trace represents the amplitude of the signal received by the Centaur after DC offset1
correction has been performed. The traces all begin and end at the same time and the starting
time is shown in the lower-left corner of the data plot with time increasing to the right. The
current time scale is shown at the bottom of the data plots between the current time and the plus
and minus buttons. You can click the plus and minus buttons to increase or decrease the time
scale.
o Click the pause button at the bottom of the data plot or click any of the
traces to pause the traces. The colour of the traces changes to blue when
paused.
o Click the rewind or fast forward button or click and drag the cursor on a
trace to move back and forward in time. The amount of data buffered will
limit how far back in time you can go.
o The SCNL2 and sample rate is shown in the upper-left corner of each trace
plot as well as the mean, RMS, minimum, and maximum. You can use the
mean value to configure the Channel offset setting.
1. Log on using the admin user account. See Logging on to the Web Interface.
2. Select a sensor from the Sensor list on the Waveform page (6 channel model only).
1The deviation from zero of the signal average over time. A signal should have a middle point at
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5. Select Create event if you want the Centaur to create an event during the calibration.
The duration of this generated calibration event is based on the duration of the signal file
plus the pre- and post-event times. This event will be available for download on the Events
page when the calibration has finished.
When calibration starts, a small signal offset might be generated for between 1-2 s, and
then the first sample of the calibration signal file is driven at the top of a second. That
second is at least 5 s after the Start calibration button has been clicked.
If you would prefer to create your own calibration signal file, you can do so using a raw
(headerless) file format and then you can use an SSH1-based file transfer protocol to
upload it to your Centaur so that it will be available for selection in the signal file list on
the Waveform page.
Use the file format information below to create a custom calibration signal file in an
uncompressed raw sample format and when you are done upload it to your Centaur. You can use
any software that can export raw (headerless) audio files, such as Audacity®, to create the custom
calibration signal file.
If you do not want to manually create a calibration signal file, we have provided you with a Ruby
script that you can use to create a raw signal file. You can download it by typing the following
path into the location bar of your browser: http://IPaddressofyourCentaur/calibration/create_
externalsensor_calibration_signal.rb
1Secure Shell
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When you run the script using Ruby, you have to specify the signal type (sine or step), the duration
in seconds, the amplitude in V, and a name for the output file. Once the file has been created,
upload it to your Centaur and then select it from the Signal File list on the Waveform page to
perform a calibration.
Header None
Channels
Start 0 bytes
offset
Sample 30 000 Hz
rate
0 (0x0000) 0V
32767 (0x7FFF) -5 V
After you have created a custom calibration signal file, you can upload it to your Centaur using an
SSH2-based file transfer protocol such as SFTP3 or SCP4.
1In this order, the bytes of a multibyte value are ordered from least significant to most significant.
2Secure Shell
3SSH File Transfer Protocol
4Secure Copy
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Port number 22
Password calibrate
You have to be logged in with the admin user account to perform any of the tasks on the
Maintenance page.
We recommend that you change your password after you have logged on for the first time.
See Changing the admin password.
You should only click Shutdown on the Maintenance page if you are in the same location as
the Centaur because it is not possible to power it up remotely.
1The device writes all of the data it receives to an internal storage. The internal storage works
like a ring buffer and it wraps around when it is full and records over the oldest data.
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Before you upgrade the firmware on your Centaur, refer to the release notes for the
specific firmware version for recommendations and special considerations.
The Delete button on the Maintenance page is used to delete the firmware installation
package. The actual firmware will not be deleted. If a firmware installation package does
not exist on internal storage, then the Delete button is disabled.
1. Contact Nanometrics Technical Support to obtain the latest firmware upgrade package (.tgz
file) and download it to your computer.
2. Access the Web Interface for your Centaur and navigate to the Firmware section on the
Maintenance page.
3. If required, click the Commit button to make the active firmware permanent.
If the currently loaded firmware has already been committed the Commit button is
disabled. You can also verify if the firmware is committed from the Device section
on the Health page.
4. If the Available Firmware field displays the version number of a previously uploaded install-
ation package, click the Delete button to remove the installation package from your Cen-
taur. If no installation package is present, the Available Firmware list is disabled.
Only one installation package can be present on the Centaur. The previous version
must be deleted before you can upload the latest firmware installation package.
Deleting a previously uploaded firmware installation package will not affect the
operation of your Centaur.
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d. Click the Apply button to temporarily install the firmware. Your upgrade must be
applied before it can be committed. The progress of the installation is shown in the
installation log.
This operation will take several minutes. The Centaur will restart
automatically after it has completed installing the firmware. You should not
navigate away from the Maintenance page until the Centaur has completed
installing the firmware and the device has restarted.
e. After the Centaur has restarted, navigate to the Firmware section on the Main-
tenance page and click the Commit button to ensure the newly upgraded firmware is
installed.
6. The installation package is no longer required once the firmware has been committed to the
Centaur. Click the Delete button to remove the firmware installation package from your
Centaur.
Deleting the firmware installation package will not affect the operation of your
Centaur.
In addition to streaming data from the Centaur to a network device and archiving data to the
removable SD card, you can also retrieve time series and SOH data directly from the Centaur's
internal storage1 by downloading it from the Maintenance page to your computer.
When you specify the date and time range of the retrieval, remember that the internal storage
wraps around when it is full and records over the oldest data. The frequency with which the
internal storage wraps is shown in the Internal Storage section on the Health Page.
Only one data retrieval request can be run from one Centaur at any time. Any subsequent
retrieval requests will be processed when the current download has finished.
1The device writes all of the data it receives to an internal storage. The internal storage works
like a ring buffer and it wraps around when it is full and records over the oldest data.
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If required for troubleshooting purposes, you can view and save the system logs for your Centaur
by clicking Log files in the Download files section on the Maintenance page.
If an SD card is present and configured to archive continuous and/or event data, and SOH data,
you can periodically download archive files.
From the Maintenance page, in the Download Files section, click Archive files.
The archive opens in a separate tab in your browser where you can select the files you wish to
download.
The .store directory on the SD card is the file system reserved by the Centaur for backup
storage. Do not delete the .store directory or modify files within the directory. The best
way to protect your data is to configure continuous archiving to your SD card. For more
information, see About Data Storage.
Continuous data are stored in directories labelled by date. Event data are contained in the events
directory. If you have enabled SOH in either or both continuous and event archives, you will see an
soh subdirectory in these archives.
Archive files can only be downloaded one file at a time using this method. As an
alternative, you can download multiple files using secure FTP and an FTP client of your
choice.
Downloading archived files from the SD card while it is in the SIU is very slow due to data
bus speed limitations. It is recommended that you retrieve data from the internal media
(Store) via the Maintenance page if it has not wrapped already, or by physically removing
the SD card and copying data directly onto a computer.
You can download channel response data directly from the instrument in IRIS RESP or dataless SEED
format. The response is based on the current instrument configuration.
1. From the Maintenance page, in the Channel Response section, select the desired file
format from the Choose response file format drop down list.
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A zip file containing one response file for each channel will be downloaded to your browser's
download location.
o information about the status and the percentage of memory used on your SD card.
o the ability to remotely re-format your SD card in FAT32 or ext4 format.
o a repair function that runs a file system check on your SD card.
Format SD Card
Format your SD card by selecting either FAT32 or ext4 and clicking Format on the Maintenance
page. Any data on your SD card is permanently deleted and a new file system is set up for reading
and writing data.
Repair SD Card
When you repair your SD card by clicking the Repair button on the Maintenance page, Centaur
runs a file system check on your SD card and repairs the file system, if possible.
Typically, you only need to perform internal storage maintenance tasks when instructed to do so
by Nanometrics Technical Support for troubleshooting purposes. These tasks involve using Internal
Storage Tools on the Maintenance page to reindex or re-create the data Store, which is located in
internal storage media. For more information about internal storage, see About Data Storage.
To reindex the Store, which is located on the internal storage media, click Reindex on the
Maintenance page. The index within the Store is recalculated and synchronized with the actual
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data that is available. Reindexing might take a long time depending on how much data is in the
Store. Data will continue to be generated during reindexing and will not be lost.
To re-create the Store, click Re-create on the Maintenance page. All data in the Store is
permanently deleted and a new Store is created.
In the event of internal storage failure, the Status LED flashes red on the instrument and there will
be a warning message on the Health page indicating that data is being written to a temporary
location. In this case the temporary location is either the SD card, if present, or RAM if no SD card
is present.
The instrument reserves 500 MB of space on the SD card for backup storage. When backup storage
on the SD card reaches capacity, the Centaur overwrites the oldest data in the pre-allocated
backup file system. The backup storage does not overwrite data in the SD card's continuous or
event archive(s).
A smaller store in RAM is reserved for backup storage. The backup Store in RAM is primarily used to
backfill a limited amount of data lost during network outages for deployments using continuous
streaming.
Read the information in this topic carefully before you shut down or restart your Centaur from the
Maintenance page.
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You should only click Shutdown on the Maintenance page if you are in the same location as
the Centaur because it is not possible to power it up remotely.
You have to shut down a Centaur before you disconnect the power to avoid potential data
corruption and the possibility of a lengthy reindexing of the internal storage on restart.
When you click Shutdown, all data files are closed and saved and the Web server is shut down so
that no data is lost when the power is disconnected. You can disconnect the power to the Centaur
when all of the LEDs on the case have turned off.
Restart a Centaur
In general, you should only click Restart on the Maintenance page if instructed to do so by a
Nanometrics representative for troubleshooting purposes. Some data loss will occur while the
Centaur is restarting.
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Syntax
l Unless indicated otherwise, all parameters are optional. Optional values are given in the
format {a|b}. The curly braces and vertical bar indicate the options and are not part of the
API request.
l Note that APIs where all parameters are optional require the use of at least one parameter
to return data.
l The use of bold-italics indicates the default value of an optional parameter.
BASE URIs
Use the following URI to return data from a device using the bandId/instrumentID parameter.
/api/v1/bands/availability.json
Use the following URI to return data from a device using the channels parameter.
/api/v1/channels/availability.json
.json is part of the base URIs. If you specify any parameters, you must remove .json from
the API request.
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Parameters
type
Format: type={all|timeSeries}
Select
bandId/instrumentID
Format1: bandId=instrumentId_SN/band/timeSeries1
Format2:dataSource={instrumentId_SN|NX.STN}
Notes:
channels
Use this parameter to specify a channel data source. Note that a binder is required.
Format: channels={NX.STN.*}
Example snippet:
/api/v1/channels/availability?channels=XX.*.*.*&type=timeseries...
Notes:
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view
Format: view=trimmed
Notes:
l Time ranges are trimmed to the time defined by the Time parameter.
l Sequence numbers are removed.
Time
Format: {start|end}Time=yyyy-MM-ddTHH:mm:ss.sssZ
Select:
l start to define the start time for retrieving data using the ISO8601 standard.
l end to define the end time for retrieving data using the ISO8601 standard.
Notes:
Millis
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Format: {start|end}Millis=#############
Select:
Notes:
l Since 1970
l If you do not specify an end time, then it is assumed that the end time is the current time.
Nanos
Format: {start|end}Nanos=###################
Select:
Notes:
l Since 1970
l If you do not specify an end time, then it is assumed that the end time is the current time.
Examples
This section provides examples of requests. Availability information for the requested data source
and time period (or all if unspecified) is returned. The date and time in the returned data is in
ISO8601 format, including nanoseconds. For instance, the combined date and time format is 2013-
06-25T10:32.26.000000000Z.
Note that "ranges" in output indicate gaps in the data. Several ranges in an output could indicate a
problem.
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bandId/instrumentId
http://10.10.10.10/api/v1/bands/availability?type=timeseries&startTime=2013-06-
21T12:00:00.000Z
http://10.10.10.10/api/v1/bands/availability?dataSource=centaur-3_
0007&type=timeseries&startTime=2013-06-21T00:00:00Z
http://10.10.10.10/api/v1/bands/availability?dataSource=centaur-3_
0007&type=timeseries&startMillis=1371686400000&endMillis=1371772800000
Trimmed example of the JSON data returned for bandId/instrumentId (... indicates
where the data would continue)
“availability”: [
“startTime”: “2013-06-18T17:03:31.180000000Z”,
“endTime”: “2013-06-19T15:01:44.035000000Z”
},
“startTime”: “2013-06-19T15:01:59.350000000Z”,
“endTime”: “2013-06-19T22:27:50.760000000Z”
},
...
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channels
http://10.10.10.10/api/v1/channels/availability?type=timeseries&startTime=2013-06-
21T12:00:00.000Z
http://10.10.10.10/api/v1/channels/availability?channels=XX.*.*.*&type=timeseries&startTime=2
013-06-21T00:00:00Z
http://10.10.10.10/api/v1/channels/availability?channels=!XX.*.*.*&type=timeseries&star
tMillis=1371686400000&endMillis=1371772800000
Trimmed example of the JSON data returned for channels (... indicates where the data
would continue
“availability”: [
“startTime”: “2013-06-18T17:03:31.180000000Z”,
“endTime”: “2013-06-19T15:01:44.035000000Z”
},
“startTime”: “2013-06-19T15:01:59.350000000Z”,
“endTime”: “2013-06-19T22:27:50.760000000Z”
},
...
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l query
l version
l application.wadl
l starttime
l endtime
l network
l station
l location
l channel
l quality
l minimumlength
l longestonly
l format
l nodata
Example snippet:
/fdsnws/dataselect/1/query?network=XX&station=S0001&location=*&channel=ZZ
Z&starttime=2015-05-20T18:21:00.000&endtime=2015-05-20T18:22:00.000
This API has been deprecated. We recommend that you use the FDSN-WS Data Retrieval
API.
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BASE URI
/retrieval
Parameters
Group
Use this parameter to select either seismic data or SOH data to download.
Format: Group={TIME_SERIES|SOH}
Select:
Notes:
l The TIME_SERIES option is required if you wish to use the TIME_SERIES_[n] parameter.
l The SOH option is required if you wish to use the ENVIRONMENT, TIMING, or TRIGGER
parameters.
TIME_SERIES_[n]
Use this sub-parameter to select time series data if you have specified the TIME_SERIES group.
Select true to download time series data for the defined channel.
Notes:
l You can only use this parameter if you have specified the TIME_SERIES group.
l At least one channel must be defined. If you do not define a channel an HTTP 500 error stat-
ing that "no channels were selected" will result.
l One or more channels may be included in each request.
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ENVIRONMENT
Use this sub-parameter to retrieve environment SOH data if you have specified the SOH group.
Format: ENVIRONMENT=true
Select true to download environment SOH data for the defined time range.
Notes:
l You can only use this parameter if you have specified the SOH group.
l This parameter can be called with the TIMING and TRIGGER parameters.
l Several SOH groups may be selected and multiple groups can be downloaded in a single
request.
l Refer to SOH Groups for a listing of the data available for each SOH group.
TIMING
Use this sub-parameter to retrieve timing SOH data if you have specified the SOH group.
Format: TIMING=true
Select true to download timing SOH data for the defined time range.
Notes:
l You can only use this parameter if you have specified the SOH group.
l This parameter can be called with the ENVIRONMENT and TRIGGER parameters.
l Several SOH groups may be selected and multiple groups can be downloaded in a single
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request.
l Refer to SOH Groups for a listing of the data available for each SOH group.
TRIGGER
Use this sub-parameter to retrieve environment SOH data if you have specified the SOH group.
Format: TRIGGER=true
Select true to download trigger SOH data for the defined time range.
Notes:
l You can only use this parameter if you have specified the SOH group.
l This parameter can be called with the ENVIRONMENT and TIMING parameters.
l Several SOH groups may be selected and multiple groups can be downloaded in a single
request.
l Refer to SOH Groups for a listing of the data available for each SOH group.
Millis
Use this parameter to define the start and end time for the seismic or SOH data.
Select:
SOH Groups
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Timing uncertainty
BASE URI
/api/v1/instruments/soh
Parameters
instrumentId
Format: instrumentId=[instrumentId]
Notes:
l If you do not specify an instrument, the instrument will report its own SOH.
pretty
Format: pretty={true|false}
Select:
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BASE URIs
/api/v1/responses/channels.dataless
/api/v1/responses/channels.resp
/api/v1/responses/channels.JSON
Parameters
allInOne
Use this parameter to gather all of the channel response files into one file for downloading.
Format: allInOne={true|false}
Select:
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The specifications for the Centaur are listed in the following tables:
Channels
l standard digital recorder option: 3 or 6 channels optimized for active-output broadband seis-
mometers
l high-gain digital recorder option: 3 or 6 channels designed for passive-output sensors such as
geophones
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A 6-channel Centaur may have one 3-channel bank of each type (standard and high-gain) or both
banks of the same type.
Sampling
Resolution
Input Impedance
l 10V, 5V, 2.5V, 1V, 0.5V, 0.25V peak-to-peak differential, software selectable
Sensor Types
Short period passive seismometers and geophones for High-Gain digital recorder model
Control Lines
6 per sensor input - typically used for Cal enable, mass centre, mass lock/unlock, and selecting
XYZ/UVW
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Configurable assert and de-assert behaviour is consistent across all control lines
Sensor Power
Supply power pass-through to sensor (9-36 VDC, 1A). Over-current and surge protected
Serial Interface
Type
Preamp Gain
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Sample Rates
1, 2, 5, 10, 20, 40, 50, 80, 100, 200, 250, 500, 1000, 2000, and 5000 sps
A second sample rate can be selected from the sample rates above
Low-pass Filter
Digital Filters
Low-pass and high-pass high-quality digital filters, independently user configurable from first to
fifth order with corner frequencies from 0.1 mHz to 50% of sample rate.
Different filters may be independently configured for primary and secondary sample rates and for
the Sensor A and Sensor B channel banks on 6-channel Centaurs.
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Accuracy
Dynamic Range
Sample rate (sps) @ 40 Vpp input range (μV) @ 2 Vpp input range (μV)
10 0.71 0.28
Sample rate (sps) @ 10 Vpp input range (μV) @ 0.5 Vpp input range (μV)
10 150 20
100 430 46
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Sample rate (sps) @ 10 Vpp input range (μV) @ 0.5 Vpp input range (μV)
200 600 63
7.1.4 Calibration
Signal Source
Attenuation
Attenuate the calibration signal by the specified value. Options are 1, 10, 100, 1000. Factory
default is 1.
Waveforms
This only applies to Centaur models that have an external SOH input. See applicable
models.
Channels
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Sampling
Resolution
Formats
Internal Storage
Removable Media
SD card up to 64 GB
Triggers
Captured Data
1A version of SEED data which only contains waveform data. No station or channel metadata is
included.
2A packet format developed by Nanometrics that is used for the transmission of data.
3A version of SEED data which only contains waveform data. No station or channel metadata is
included.
4American Standard Code for Information Interchange
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Data Products
Peak Ground Motion (PGA, PGD, PGV) statistics available on instrument for connected
accelerometers
File Transfer
Media Exchange
Continuous
Data Formats
Events
Triggered event data: email, secure file transfer, other options available
7.1.10 Timing
Timing System
External PTP v1 (IEEE 1588-2002) timing source (optional firmware, please contact Nanometrics.)
1A packet format developed by Nanometrics that is used for the transmission of data.
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Timing Accuracy
<500 μs (using external PTP v1 (IEEE 1588-2002) timing source on local LAN)
GPS Receiver
GPS Power
PTP (optional)
High-precision network timing via Nanometrics PTP Master on same LAN (IEEE 1588-2002)
7.1.11 Communications
Web-based UI
Interfaces
IP Addressing
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Protocols
Removable Media
SD card protected in waterproof media bay. Media eject button and LED ensures gap-free swapping
System status, Ethernet link, Time quality, Media card status, and Sensor A & B state-of-health
Buttons
7.1.13 Connectors
Sensor
MIL-C-26482 Series 1
Power
MIL-C-26482G Series 1
Ethernet
USB
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GPS Antenna
MIL-C-26482 Series 1
This only applies to Centaur models that have an external SOH input. See applicable
models.
7.1.14 Power
Power Supply
Protection
Battery Manager
Grounding
1Threaded Neill-Concelman
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If you have:
Housing
Aluminum
Weather Resistance
Rated to IP-68 with connectors mated or capped (48 hours immersion at 2 m depth)
Humidity
0 to 100%
Operating Temperature
-20°C to +60°C
Storage Temperature
-40°C to +70°C
Weight
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Size
Length: 196 mm
Width: 137 mm
Height: 88 mm
EX3
LCE Absolute clock phase microseconds The difference between the digitizer clock and
error the GPS receiver. When GPS value is off or
unlocked, as indicated by GST, the LCE value
will be 0.
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VM1 Sensor SOH channels 1 microvolts This value typically represents mass position.
to 6
VM2 l VM1 to 3 for Sensor A SOH 1 to 3
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VPB Digitizer buffer percent This value is typically 100% once the buffer is
used full.
GPL GPS PLL status 0=no lock, 1=coarse lock, 2=fine lock, 3=free
running
The kit contains a USB Wi-Fi dongle that you can install permanently (using the O-ring and Media
Bay dome cover supplied in the kit) or use temporarily depending on your needs. The Wi-Fi
connection is only activated when the Wake button on the Centaur is pressed. Wi-Fi access to the
Centaur is automatically disabled after the Wi-Fi connection has been idle for more than 5 minutes
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or when the device is shut down or restarted. It is also disabled when the USB eject button is
pressed (used for safe removal of the dongle).
1. Accessing the Web interface of the Centaur over Wi-Fi can cause low
levels of noise in the digitized data.
2. Ensure your Wi-Fi device is at least one metre from the Centaur to
achieve reliable communications.
At a high level, you have to perform the following steps to access the Centaur over Wi-Fi:
You can also press the Wake button before you insert the USB Wi-Fi dongle but you have to
insert the dongle within 4 minutes of pressing the button.
3. Select the Centaur wireless network on your Wi-Fi device and type the password w1f1admin
to connect to it.
We recommend that you change your password after you have logged on
for the first time. See Changing the admin password.
The name of the wireless network is centaur-3_XXXX or centaur-6_XXXX, where XXXX is the
serial number of the device.
4. Type http://centaur or http://192.168.77.1 into your browser to access the Web interface
of the Centaur.
When you have finished accessing the Web interface, press the USB eject button and
wait until the USB eject LED turns solid green before you remove the USB Wi-Fi
dongle and replace the Media Bay cover. If you are installing the dongle
permanently, you do not need to press the USB eject button but you do need to
place the O-ring onto the Media Bay dome cover (both supplied in the USB Wi-Fi
Accessory Kit) and screw the dome into the Media Bay slot to protect the Media Bay
from the elements.
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o Power connector
o Sensor connector
o External SOH Input Pinout
Connector type:
o Souriau 851-06JC8-3AS
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Connector type:
o 26-pin, shell
size 16,
female
o MIL-C-26482
Series 1
Recommended
mating connector:
o Souriau 851-
06A16-26P
C CH1-
S CH2-
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P CH3-
J SEN_SOH3
G SEN_CTRL3
Z SEN_CTRL4
c SEN_CTRL5
Y SEN_CTRL6
L SEN_CAL3
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b CHGND Chassis
This only applies to Centaur models that have an external SOH input. See applicable
models.
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If required for your application, you can make the Ethernet cable connector on the Centaur
waterproof by installing a sealing plug onto the end of the Ethernet cable.
o The Ethernet cable sealing plug that was shipped in the box with the Centaur
o A crimping tool
o A wire cutter/stripper tool
o An Ethernet cable
o An Ethernet cable connector (RJ45)
1. Cut the RJ45 connector off of the end of the Ethernet cable and dispose of it.
2. Thread all three parts of the Ethernet cable sealing plug separately onto the Ethernet cable
in the following order: sealing nut, coupling nut, body.
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3. Crimp a new RJ45 connector onto the end of the Ethernet cable in accordance with the
EIA/TIA T568B wiring diagram for a Cat 5 cable.
4. Press the tab down into the groove on the RJ45 connector and slide the body of the Ethernet
cable sealing plug down onto it.
5. Fit the coupling nut onto the body and move it to the end near the RJ45 connector.
6. Thread the sealing nut onto the other end of the body and tighten it.
After you have tightened the sealing nut, it should not be possible to slide the cable
through the Ethernet cable sealing plug: there should be no movement at all.
7. Plug the Ethernet cable into the Ethernet connector on the Centaur, thread the coupling nut
on to the Ethernet connector, and tighten it to seal the entire connection.
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o Top View
o Side View
o View of External Connectors
o View of Open Media Bay Door
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The external SOH input is not available on all Centaur models. See applicable models.
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The external SOH input is not available on all Centaur models. See applicable models.
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In accordance with the terms of the Apache licence, a copy of the licence has to be included with
the redistribution of any product containing Apache software:
1. Definitions.
"License" shall mean the terms and conditions for use, reproduction, and distribution as defined by
Sections 1 through 9 of this document.
"Licensor" shall mean the copyright owner or entity authorized by the copyright owner that is
granting the License.
"Legal Entity" shall mean the union of the acting entity and all other entities that control, are
controlled by, or are under common control with that entity. For the purposes of this definition,
"control" means (i) the power, direct or indirect, to cause the direction or management of such
entity, whether by contract or otherwise, or (ii) ownership of fifty percent (50%) or more of the
outstanding shares, or (iii) beneficial ownership of such entity.
"You" (or "Your") shall mean an individual or Legal Entity exercising permissions granted by this
License.
"Source" form shall mean the preferred form for making modifications, including but not limited to
software source code, documentation source, and configuration files.
"Object" form shall mean any form resulting from mechanical transformation or translation of a
Source form, including but not limited to compiled object code, generated documentation, and
conversions to other media types.
"Work" shall mean the work of authorship, whether in Source or Object form, made available under
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About Us
Nanometrics is an award winning company providing monitoring solutions and equipment for
studying man-made and natural seismicity. Headquartered in Ottawa, Ontario, with offices and
representatives world-wide, Nanometrics has over 30 years’ experience, delivering solutions to
customers across the globe. Nanometrics real-time and portable systems are utilized by the world’s
leading scientific institutions, universities and major corporations. Our pedigree is founded on
precision instrumentation, network technology and software applications for seismological and
environmental research. We specialize in collecting and analyzing critical real time data for
global, regional and local seismic networks. We deliver world-class network design, installation
and training services throughout the globe in a safety conscious environment.
Contact Us
Nanometrics Inc.
Phone: +1 613-592-6776
Toll free: +1 855-792-6776 (within North America)
Fax: +1 613-592-5929
Email: sales_mktg@nanometrics.ca
Web: www.nanometrics.ca
Technical Support
Registered customers can use our support portal to track and manage all support questions and
equipment repairs and download application notes, product manuals, software updates, and
release notes.
If you have not yet registered for an account, you can start using our support portal by visiting us
at http://support.nanometrics.ca and clicking Register to create an account or by sending an
email to techsupport@nanometrics.ca or support@nanometrics.ca to have an account
automatically created for you.
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