Frequently Asked Questions
All software, manuals, and instruction files for your instrument are included on a USB memory stick included with the instrument. Insert this into a USB port on your computer and download all its contents.
In DARWin, right click on the spectral plot window. A menu of display data options appears and you can check the boxes that apply to get the data values that you want on your plot.
Choose the auto-integration setting (10 averages) to start and the spectrometer and software will do the optimization for you to select the best integration time.
At present DARWin supports its own .sed and .raw data file types. The .sed files are ASCII files so they can be imported directly into software that accepts ASCII files, for example Excel, ENVI, TSG, and more.
In DARWin’s pull down menu, you should select the correct optic (from the list) that you have attached to the fiber. For example if you are using a pistol grip accessory with a bare fiber, then choose the fiber calibration. If you have a 10° lens attached to the fiber on the pistol grip, then select 10° lens from the list. If you have a contact probe attached, select contact probe, and so on. There are 8 choices on the menu – positions 5-8 can be replaced with new attachments if you have ordered more than eight. The appropriate files for the additional optics will be found on the USB stick with your software. To load, just right click on the optics pull down menu and DARWin will ask you which file you wish to load.
When the pistol grip is turned on, you will see the red dot through the viewfinder of the scope. The scope is mounted to the pistol grip by a picatinny rail. The scope is helpful in focusing more accurately on the target area you want to scan – especially when using an FOV lens.
The ILM-550 is a separate light source. Turn on the power switch and it provides diffuser lighting to a large surface area. The bulb is easy to replace. Unscrew the diffuser from the housing and the bulb pulls out.
The recently re-designed ILM-105 is typically used with the leaf clip bundle and the bifurcated fiber optic cable. In most of these applications it is rail mounted to the spectroradiometer, usually a PSR+ or an RS-3500. On the ILM-105, you will see the SMA-905 connector attached to a cap that is approximately 1 cm deep. Just unscrew the cap and you will see the bulb behind the SMA-905 connector. Don’t touch the bulb with your bare hands. Wear gloves or hold it with a tissue or piece of cloth. The bulb has 2 prongs- pull the bulb out to remove it – push the two prongs in to replace with a new bulb.
The ILM-105 has a coaxial cord that plugs into any of our lithium ion batteries or (in typical use) into the instrument itself (for example the PSR+ or the RS-3500). The power from the instrument battery is used for the leaf clip bundle with ILM-105.
You can order an inline or a right angle diffuser for use with your instrument. Each diffuser you order is separately calibrated and marked so that you use the proper calibration file for that individual diffuser. To use the diffuser, connect it to the end of the fiber. Point the diffuser directly at a light source (including the sun) and take a measurement which will automatically be calculated in an irradiance value.
Our metal clad fiber optic cables are pretty rugged. The best way to ensure that the fiber doesn’t break is to keep from bending it too sharply – the minimum bend radius is 10 centimeters. If you suspect you have broken fibers, hold the end of the cable that is inserted in the spectrometer or the spectroradiometer up to a light source. Any broken fibers will appear dark when you look at the end that plugs into your accessories.
The larger end (wider diameter) of the fiber optic cable is inserted into the instrument ; the smaller (narrower) end is inserted into the accessories, for example the contact probe, leaf clip, pistol grip, etc.
To see an example of connecting the fiber optic cable to a spectroradiometer, you can look at our short YouTube video at the following link: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZjJB1kEkzU4
No. Use the battery charger to charge your two lithium ion batteries and run the PSR+ using them. The battery charger will not output enough electricity to run the instrument. Also, don’t attempt to charge the batteries while they are in the instrument – remove and charge.
In DARWin, on the right hand side of the screen when scans are first collected, there is an instrument status toolbar with selected instrument parameters that include internal temperature and operating voltage. Operating voltage should not be lower than 6.8v – an alarm will notify the user if it drops to this level.
Our White Reference Plate is designed to be used as the reference material for reflectance scans. The plate is made of polytetrafluoroethlyene (PTFE) and has high diffuse reflectance. Over time the surface of the plate may become dirty or scratched. In order to restore the plate to its original properties, it can be cleaned by sanding the PTFE material under
running water with a 220-240 grit waterproof emery cloth until the surface is totally hydrophobic (water beads and runs off immediately). Sanding should be done gently, in
a figure-8 motion, rinsing away the sanded off layer as you go. When complete, dry the surface by blowing nitrogen or clean compressed air over the surface.