Inputs, Outputs, Switched Power and Sensor Interfaces

Digital Inputs

3 digital inputs

Wake device on input change

Internal pull-up and pull-down resistor options

48V maximum input

Analogue Inputs

1 x analogue input reading 0V to 5V

Battery voltage: built-in analogue input reading 4V to 16V

Digital Output

1 x switched ground (open collector) output

Used to switch relays or trigger other devices

SDI-12

This interface is commonly used in agricultural sensors and measurement devices:

·        Soil moisture probes

·        Temperature

·        Electrical conductivity (EC) of soils

·        Dissolved salts

·        Other SDI-12 probes and sensors

I2C Interface

I2C (inter-IC communications) is an interface commonly used in sensor modules. This allows the Flexi1 to talk to a wide range of sensors including:

·        Temperature

·        Humidity

·        Vibration

·        CO2 gas

·        And numerous others

RS232 / TTL

The serial interface can be set to operate at either RS232 levels or TTL (3.3V) levels. This allows the Flexi1 to talk to a wide range of external sensors, modems, and other systems.

3.3V Switched Power

Used to control the 3.3V power to external sensors and peripherals. Load limited and short circuit protected.

Vbat Switched Power

Used to control the battery power to external sensors and peripherals. Load limited and short circuit protected. This passes the battery voltage to the external device or sensor.

Optional GPS

The optional GPS module allows the Flexi1 to periodically update its location and time. This is very handy to know the exact position of your sensors.

Power

The Flexi1 has been designed from the ground up to be an ultra-low power device. When the device is not performing its logging or data upload functions it can enter sleep mode where it uses less than 10uA current. This allows the device to be battery powered for most applications.

The Flexi1 has been designed to allow operation over a wide range of input voltages (4V to 16V maximum), resulting in a range of power options:

·        Small AAA alkaline battery pack

·        Larger alkaline battery packs (AA, C, D)

·        AAA or AA Lithium battery packs

·        9V small battery or lantern battery

·        12V sealed lead-acid for higher power operations

·        Lithium-thionyl-chloride battery options @ 3.6V per cell

         (extreme temperature batteries)

·        5V USB wall socket power supply

·        12V wall socket power supply, with optional battery backup

·        12V sealed lead-acid battery with external solar panel and charger

Configuration & Testing

USB Device

The robust USB port on the Flexi1 allows the device to be easily plugged into a laptop, netbook or tablet in order to access the menu on the device whilst in the field.

Using the support menu, a technician can configure, test, and monitor the performance and operations of the device.

Push Button and Status LEDs

The built-in button can be used to activate the default behaviour (as configured) for the Flexi1.

For example, a single press of the button can initiate an SDI-12 sample from a soil moisture probe. A long press of the button can initiate a data transfer via the cellular FlexiCard.

The two status LEDs provide visual feedback on the operation of the device without requiring the USB port to be used.