My Requests
My Requests

    Drivers Manual

    iXblue Std Bin (UTC) - 05

    Description

    This is a driver with user-interface in order to encode messages for - and decode messages from an iXblue INS that supports the STD BIN protocol.

    Info

    Note that the input of this driver works with versions 1 - 5 of the iXblue standard binary protocol.

    Note that the output of this driver only works with version 3 and higher of the iXblue standard binary protocol.

    During normal operation the INS will establish an accurate position for the ROV based on the integration of Inertial, Doppler, USBL, Depth Sensor and Surface Positioning (Computation Node Result) information.

    This driver can send the necessary surface positioning information to the INS in order to enhance the INS solution. At the same time it will read and decode the integrated accurate ROV position and attitude data, which can be used in a separate Computation.

    There are 3 versions of this driver:

    1. Serial 
    2. Network - TCP
    3. Network - UDP

    The user-interface for all drivers is exactly the same, only the I/O protocol is different.

    See also the Interfacing Notes at the System Interfacing tab.

    In case your setup does not require to receive any data from the unit, and you only need to send data to the INS, see the additional comment in the Output setup section at the Qinsy Config tab.

    Driver Information

    Driver iXblue std bin INS Interface Type Serial / UDP / TCP Driver Class Type counted
    UTC Driver (question)  Yes Input / Output Input and Output  Executable DrvQPSCountedUI.exe
    DrvQPSCountedUIUDP.exe
    DrvQPSCountedUITCP.exe
    Related Systems

    Related Pages

    Decoding Notes

    The following data blocks can be received and decoded from the INS:

    • Position navigation system

      Slot ID What is it?
      INS Position result from the INS
      GPS1 Position input from GPS 1 as setup in the INS
      GPS2 Position input from GPS 2 as setup in the INS
      GPSMANUAL Manual position that was set in the INS
      USBL1 Position input from USBL 1 as setup in the INS
      USBL2 Position input from USBL 2 as setup in the INS
      USBL3 Position input from USBL 3 as setup in the INS
      LBLX_BYY Position input from LBLX (1,2,3,4) data block, beacon with ID BXX (e.g. B01, B02, etc.) as setup in the INS
    • Pitch Roll Heave Sensor
      In order to decode the Pitch Roll Heave Sensor data block the user does not need to enter any slot information.
      The Quality indicators for pitch, roll and heave are their respective SDs.


    • Gyro compass

      Slot ID Data block Comment Quality
      HEADING Gyro Compass data block Make sure to enter it using capitals Heading Standard deviation
    • Surface navigation
      • LBL1, LBL2, LBL3, LBL4
      • Quality indicators for LBL observation are the SDs.


    • Time synchronization system
      • External UTC

    • Speed log
      Based on the selected slot, the following data elements can be decoded by the speed log system:

      Observation type Slot Data block Value Quality
      Bearing COG

      Course and speed over ground

      		 Course over ground None
      Speed SOG Speed over ground None
      EMLOG1 EMLOG1 data block Longitudinal water speed Speed standard deviation
      EMLOG2 EMLOG2 data block Longitudinal water speed Speed standard deviation
      DVL1W_SPD

      DVL1 Water speed data block

      		 Speed vector calculated from longitudinal speed and transverse speed



      		 None
      DVL1G_SPD DVL1 Ground speed data block
      DVL2W_SPD

      DVL2 Water speed data block
      DVL2G_SPD DVL2 Ground speed data block
      Angle DVL1W_ANG DVL1 Water speed data block Angle created calculated from longitudinal speed and transverse speed None
      DVL1G_ANG DVL1 Ground speed data block
      DVL2W_ANG DVL2 Water speed data block
      DVL2G_ANG DVL2 Ground speed data block

    • Underwater Sensor

      Observation type Slot Data block Value Quality
      ROV Depth DEPTH Depth data (Raw) Depth Depth standard deviation
      ROV Depth INS_HEIGHT INS Position Height result -Height INS Position Height standard deviation
      Sound velocity SOUND_VELO External Sound velocity External sensor speed of sound None
      Sound velocity DVL1G_SND DVL Ground Speed DVL speed of sound None
      ROV altitude DVL1G_ALT DVL altitude (bottom range) None
      Sound velocity DVL1W_SND DVL Water speed DVL speed of sound None
      Sound velocity DVL2G_SND DVL Ground Speed 2 DVL speed of sound None
      ROV altitude DVL2G_ALT DVL altitude (bottom range) None
      Sound velocity DVL2W_SND DVL Water speed 2 DVL speed of sound None



    • Acceleration, velocity and rotation rate
      Based on the selected slot, the following data elements can be decoded by the acceleration, velocity and rotation rate system:

      Observation type Slot Data block Value Quality
      Northing Speed NORTH_VELO

      Speed data block in geographic frame

      North velocity

      		 North velocity std. deviation
      Easting Speed EAST_VELO East velocity East velocity std. deviation
      Vertical Speed HGT_VELO Up velocity Up velocity std. deviation
      Velocity Y XV1_VELO Speed data block in vessel frame VX1 velocity None
      Velocity X XV2_VELO VX2 velocity
      Velocity Z XV3_VELO VX3 velocity
      Acceleration Y XV1_ACCL

      Accelerations data block in vessel frame

      Acceleration XV1

      		 None
      Acceleration X XV2_ACCL Acceleration XV2
      Acceleration Z XV3_ACCL Acceleration XV3
      Rate of turn Y XV1_RATE

      Body rotation rates data block in vessel frame

      Rotation rate XV1

      		 None
      Rate of turn X XV2_RATE Rotation rate XV2
      Rate of turn Z XV3_RATE Rotation rate XV

    • Miscellaneous
      Most elements of the protocol are available as a Miscellaneous observation.
      The following table shows which slot IDs to use for each data element:

      Slot data block value Quality
      TEMP_FOG

      Temperatures

      		 Mean temperature FOG None
      TEMP_ACC Mean temperature ACC None
      TEMP_ANA Sensor board temperature None
      HEAVE

      Heave/Surge/Sway

      Real time heave at selected lever arm

      		 None
      SWAY

      Real time sway at selected lever arm

      		 None
      SURGE

      Real time surge at selected lever arm

      		 None
      HEAVE_RAW

      Real time heave without lever arm

      		 None
      SMART Smart Heave

      Smart Heave At primary lever arm

      		 None
      HDG_RATE

      Heading/Roll/Pitch rate


      		 Heading rotation rate None
      ROLL_RATE Roll rotation rate None
      PITCH_RATE Pitch rotation rate None
      CURR_VELO

       Current data block in geographic frame

      		 Current speed vector calculated from north and east current Square root of the TPU computed from eat and north SD
      CURR_DIR Current direction calculated from north and east current Square root of the TPU computed from eat and north SD
      HEAVE_VELO

      Heave/Surge/Sway speed

      Real time heave speed (at selected lever arm)

      		 None
      SWAY_VELO

      Sway speed (at selected lever arm)

      		 None
      SURGE_VELO

      Surge speed (at selected lever arm)

      		 None
      EAST_ACCL

      Acceleration data block in geographic frame

      		 North acceleration None
      NORTH_ACCL East acceleration None
      HGT_ACCL Vertical acceleration None
      DMI_COUNT

       DMI data block

      Pulse count

      		 None
      EVENT_A

      Event marker A data blocks

      Event count

      		 None
      EVENT_B Event marker B data blocks Event count None
      EVENT_C Event marker C data blocks Event count None
      DVL1G_XV1

       DVL1 Ground speed data block

      XV1 longitudinal ground speed

      		 XV1 speed standard deviation
      DVL1G_XV2

      XV2 transverse ground speed

      		 XV2 speed standard deviation
      DVL1G_XV3

      XV3 vertical ground speed

      		 XV3 speed standard deviation
      DVL1W_XV1

       DVL1 Water speed data block

      XV1 longitudinal water speed

      		 XV1 speed standard deviation
      DVL1W_XV2 XV2 transverse water speed XV2 speed standard deviation
      DVL1W_XV3 XV3 vertical water speed XV3 speed standard deviation
      DVL2G_XV1

       DVL2 Ground speed data block

      XV1 longitudinal ground speed

      		 XV1 speed standard deviation
      DVL2G_XV2

      XV2 transverse ground speed

      		 XV2 speed standard deviation
      DVL2G_XV3

      XV3 vertical ground speed

      		 XV3 speed standard deviation
      DVL2W_XV1

       DVL2 Water speed data block

      		 XV1 longitudinal water speed XV1 speed standard deviation
      DVL2W_XV2 XV2 transverse water speed XV2 speed standard deviation
      DVL2W_XV3 XV3 vertical water speed XV3 speed standard deviation
      INSSENST1

      AHRS or INS Sensor Status

      		 Sensor Status 1 None
      INSSENST2 Sensor Status 2 None
      INSALGST1

      INS Algorithm Status




      		 Algorithm Status 1 None
      INSALGST2 Algorithm Status 2
      INSALGST3 Algorithm Status 3
      INSALGST4 Algorithm Status 4
      INSSYSST1 INS system status

      		 System Status 1 None
      INSSYSST2 System Status 2
      INSSYSST3 System Status 3
      INSUSRST INS User Status User Status None
      AHRALGST

      AHRS Algorithm

      Algorithm Status

      		 None
      AHRSYSST1 AHRS System Status

      		 System Status 1 None
      AHRSYSST2 System Status 1
      AHRSYSST3 System Status 1
      AHRUSRST1

      AHRS User Status

      User Status

      		 None

    Encoding Notes

    The following messages can be sent to the INS:

    • USBL1 / USBL2 / USBL3
      This message contains the ROV position, as computed by Qinsy using USBL or LBL information.
    • GPS1 / GPS2 / Manual GPS
      This message contains the vessel's launch point position, as computed by Qinsy using GPS or RTK information.
    • UTC
      This message contains the exact UTC time for the time of output, from the Qinsy Time Synchronization system.

    It is the user's responsibility which message or combination of messages are being sent to the INS and at which output rate.

    Interfacing Notes

    Input

    • Navigation Data Message (Incoming)

      Normally the driver will time stamp the data when it arrives at the COM-port (or UDP port), but this may introduce latency due to variable calculations and/or serial/network characteristics.
      So, when the INS unit is interfaced with an external PPS/UTC input, it is recommended to use the time from the decoded messages in order to timestamp the data.

      This can be achieved when the following criteria are met:

      • Your template setup has a valid Time Synchronization (PPS) system
      • The so-called 'UTC' driver is selected (see also paragraph Drivers.io Options below)
      • The Time System Data Message is received, preferably with an update rate of 1 Hz.

    Output

    • Std Bin USBL Position Message (Outgoing)
      The time inside the output message will be the exact time (UTC) for the computed ROV node position.
      In case option Deskew ROV Node Output is enabled, then it will be the exact moment of output.

    • Std Bin Vessel Launch Position Message (Outgoing)
      The time inside the output message will be the exact time (UTC) for the computed launch node position.
      In case option Deskew Launch Node Output is enabled, then it will be the exact moment of output.

    System Config

    This part explains how to set up the iXblue web interface.

    Output

    1. Only work with Version 3 of the Std Bin format.
    2. Make sure to set up the correct Lever Arm and that it corresponds with what is set up in Qinsy. (In one or the other, not both)
    3. Recommended update Rate is 20-25 Hz with a max of 50 Hz.
    4. You can still log Smart heave via a Miscellaneous system in Qinsy if Real Time Heave is selected here.
    5. Either Serial or Network can be selected here.
    6. The following network options work for Qinsy:
      • UDP (example above)
      • UDP Broadcast
      • TCP Server

    Input

    Network settings

    1. Select the input of which you want to change the settings
    2. Select the iXblue Std Bin format
    3. Both Ethernet and Serial can be used.
    4. If Ethernet is selected then the following options can be used:
      • UDP (example above)
      • UDP Broadcast
      • TCP Server
    5. Enter the IP address of the Qinsy PC
    6. Qinsy sends the data back on port + 1.
      In Output port 8111 was entered so in this case Qinsy will send back on 8112.

    GNSS settings

    1. In this example GPS1 is selected. Make sure the same is set for the USBL ID in the Qinsy User interface.
    2. Make sure to set up the correct Lever Arm and that it corresponds with what is set up in Qinsy. (In one or the other, not both)

    USBL Settings

    1. In this example USBL 1 is selected. Make sure the same is set for the USBL ID in the Qinsy User interface.
    2. Make sure this Lever Arm matches with what was set up in Qinsy.
    3. No need to enter a TP Code.

    UTC Settings

    1. Select the UTC item
    2. Select the correct pulse port
    3. Make sure this is set up correctly, especially the order of Pulse and Time.

    Qinsy Configuration


    All systems can be set up as normal in Qinsy Database Setup, using the slot IDs described below, to determine which source of data to use.
    More information can be found under the tab Coding Notes.

    General driver info

    Port number Should be the same as the output port on the iXblue web interface.
    IP address Default is 192.168.36.xxx
    xxx is the last part of the serial number of the unit.

    There are 3 options on how to work with this driver:

    Input only No output selected in the online user interface
    Input & Output

    Serial

    • Input and output on the same COM port

    UDP

    • Input on the port set up in the template
    • Output on port +1

    TCP

    • Input on the port set up in the template
    • Output on port +1
    Output only

    Only add an output driver.

    Qinsy will output on the port that is selected in the template.

    Position Navigation system

    Receiver number
    Slot ID What is it?
    INS Position result from the INS
    GPS1 Position input from GPS 1 as set up in the INS
    GPS2 Position input from GPS 2 as set up in the INS
    GPSMANUAL Manual position that was set in the INS
    USBL1 Position input from USBL 1 as set up in the INS
    USBL2 Position input from USBL 2 as set up in the INS
    USBL3 Position input from USBL 3 as set up in the INS
    LBL<X>_B<Y>

    Position input from LBLX (where X is 1,2,3, or 4) with beacon ID in the range "B00" through "B99"

    Make sure that the system outputs beacon IDs in the supported range. The user can set the beacon IDs in the RAMSES software. Qinsy will only be able to decode data from beacons with an ID that starts with a capital B and is followed by two digits. E.g. "B00", "B01", ..., "B99"
    Receiver Positions

    Select the datum the INS is outputting on.

    Gyro Compass

    Slot ID Enter HEADING in order to decode the heading message.

    Pitch Roll Heave Sensor

    Node (Lever Arm): Make sure this offset matches with the Lever Arm selected in the iXblue web-interface.
    Conventions
    Item Convention
    Roll Positive heeling to starboard
    Pitch

    Positive bow down

    Heave Positive upwards

    Underwater Sensor

    1. After setting up the communication on the first page you can now Add the observations you want to decode:



    2. Select the correct Observation and Location.

      Observation Type

      You can select one of the following options:

      • ROV Depth
      • ROV Altitude
      • Draft
      • Pressure
      • Sound Velocity
      • Revolution
      Location -  At Node Location of sensor in iXblue web interface.
    3. Make sure to select the correct Slot Value. See tab page Coding Notes for more information.

      Note that there are two ROV Depth observations available: one with Slot "DEPTH" and the other one with Slot "INS_HEIGHT".
      The first one will decode the raw depth reading as reported by the external depth sensor and the latter will use the decoded height from the INS position but with reversed sign.

    4. Select the correct Unit and enter corrections if required.

    ARPA System

    The ARPA system can be used to expose LBL or USBL their positions. In order to set this up a selection of the vessel object and the object its radar antenna.

    Output (Only)

    • You do not need to define an extra output driver in the template setup. The driver will automatically output the messages to the same port as the incoming data.

      In case your setup does not require decoding of any incoming message from the unit, and you only have to output data to the INS, then you can select driver "iXblue Std Bin (Output only)", or "Network (TCP) - iXblue Std Bin (Output only)". 

    Qinsy Online

    The driver has user-interface, and therefore will always be present in the Windows task bar.

    When going on-line for the first time, locate the driver, and change the Setup parameters:

    Output datum

    Output datum is Survey Datum

    Display - Generic

    Received Data is sent in the correct format and is decoded.
    Valid The decoded data is accepted by the algorithm and is also being used by the algorithm.
    Waiting No data received.
    Rejected The decoded data is not accepted by the algorithm and therefore not used by the algorithm.


    You can download the above display example XML here: iXblue - Std Bin format - Status.xml

    • Add a Generic Display
    • Open the above XML

    Note that you need to add the following miscellaneous observations to decode these:

    • To your Template:


    • To the Generic Layout Editor when Online:

    Adding extra items

    In case you want to add more items yourself you'll need the iXblue manual and take the following steps:

    1. Go to Raw Data → Observation Systems
    2. Add
    3. Check the iXblue manual on what you want to decode and in which message it can be found
    4. Select the same one here
    5. Add a Value item
    6. Add a mask for Operator
    7. Check what the Status value is
    8. Open a Programmer calculator and enter it as a Hexadecimal value
    9. Check what the corresponding Decimal result is
    10. Enter this as Operator Value
    11. Add a Translation, example below:

      Result will either be 0.00 or 1.00.
    12. Select on what you would like to show.

    Driver online user interface

    Hiding user interface

    It is possible, once the driver is set up or when no output is required to hide the user interface.

    The option to do this can be found here:

    1. Open the "Driver Settings" from the Qinsy Controller


    2. Then with the checkbox you can hide it

    Also, if you are just using the driver to decode information and not to output to an INS, you can hide the UI.

    Driver Layout Menu: Setup




    		 VESSEL SETUP
    Vessel: Select from the available defined objects the vessel from which the ROV will be launched.
    Launch Point Computation: Select the computation for the launch point of the ROV on the vessel. This output of this computation will be used for the GPS1 message.
    Launch Point Node: Select the node for the launch point of the ROV on the vessel. This node will be output as the GPS1 message.
    GNSS Identification:

    This setting should match with the setting on the input page of the iXblue interface. Options are:

    • GPS 1
    • GPS 2
    • Manual GPS

    If GNSS 1 is set in the iXblue web interface like shown in the picture:

    You should select GPS 1 as well in the Qinsy user interface.
    Launch Point Quality: Select whether to use the qualities computed by the Computation (based on the SDs configured in Database Setup) or Manual qualities for the message.
    Manual:

    Manual quality values for the GPS1 message.

    Enter the following values comma-separated: quality, latitude SD, longitude SD, height SD, latitude/longitude covariance.

    Quality

    Also known as Solution mode.

    Quality indicator

    Corresponding SD attributed to GPS position fix if no GST is received

    Positioning system mode indicator
    0 Data invalid N/A
    1 10 m Natural
    2  3 m Differential
    3 10 m Military
    4 0.1 m RTK
    5 0. 3 m Float RTK
    6 - 255 Data invalid Other mode
    Latitude SD Standard deviation of the Latitude
    Longitude SD Standard deviation of the Longitude
    Height SD Standard deviation of the Height
    Latitude/Longitude covariance Also known as HDOP

    		ROV USBL POSITIONING
    ROV: Select the ROV object.
    ROV Computation: Select the computation that is used to compute the position of the ROV under water.
    ROV Node: Select the node for which the calculated position should be sent to the INS in the USBL1 message.
    USBL Identification:

    This setting should match with the setting on the input page of the iXblue interface. Options are:

    • USBL 1
    • USBL 2
    • USBL 3

    If USBL 1 is set in the iXblue web interface like shown in the picture:

    You should select USBL 1 as well in the Qinsy user interface.
    ROV Quality: Select whether to use the qualities computed by the computation (based on the SDs configured in Database Setup) or manual qualities for the USBL1 message.
    Manual:

    Manual quality values for the USBL1 message.

    Enter the following values comma-separated: latitude SD, longitude SD, height SD, latitude/longitude covariance.

    Latitude SD Standard deviation of the Latitude
    Longitude SD Standard deviation of the Longitude
    Height SD Standard deviation of the Height
    Latitude/Longitude covariance Also known as HDOP

    Driver Layout Menu: Results

    Example sending Launch Point position Example sending ROV position

    Info

    Note that either Launch Point or ROV data is shown based on which message is sent to the INS.

    Launch point data is shown when GPS data is sent to the INS, ROV data is shown when USBL data is sent.


    Output

    Launch Point / ROV:

    The last encoded position for the selected Launch Point Node which will be outputted.

    Displayed are the [Update Time], Latitude, Longitude and height.

    • Lat/Long: Survey datum
    • Height: Chart Datum
    Launch Point / ROV Quality:

    The last encoded quality figures.

    Displayed are quality, latitude SD, longitude SD, height SD, latitude/longitude covariance.

    Input

    INS Position:

    The last decoded position data from the position data block.

    Displayed are the [Update Time], Latitude, Longitude and height.

    • Lat/Long: Survey datum
    • Height: Chart Datum
    INS Attitude:

    The last decoded attitude data from the Attitude & Heading data block.

    Displayed are the [Update Time], the Heading, Pitch and Roll.
    INS Velocity:

    The last decoded three axis velocity data from the Speed data block in vessel frame.

    Displayed are the [Update Time], Velocity XV1, XV2 and XV3.
    INS Time:

    The last decoded time information from the extUTC data block.

    Displayed is the UTC time.

    Driver Layout Menu: Options

     

    Lock Settings

    Enables locking the user-interface settings of the Setup and Options menu, in order to prevent making changes by mistake.
    If this option is not present, then you may find a shortcut to this option in the menu under the dialog's upper-left icon.
    Show Tooltips

    When hovering the mouse over the left column rows, you will get some more information. Disable if this becomes annoying...
    If this option is not present, then you may find a shortcut to this option in the menu under the dialog's upper-left icon.
    iXblue INS Output:

    • UTC + USBL
      Output both UTC and USBL messages. This option is only useful when the ROV is in the water.

    • UTC + GPS
      Output both UTC and GPS messages. This option is only useful when the ROV is not in the water yet.

    • USBL
      Output USBL messages. This option is only useful when the ROV is in the water.

    • GPS
      Output GPS messages. This option is only useful when the ROV is not in the water yet.
    • UTC
      Output the UTC message. No position information is send to the INS, only time information.
    • [No Output]
      Disable any output. When there is no need to output data back a system, you can hide the UI via the Controller → Settings → Driver Settings → Taskbar settings.
    UTC Output: Select the desired output update rate for the UTC message. Output of this message can only be triggered on time. Every second is recommended.
    GPS Output: Select the desired output update rate for the GPS message. Output of this message can only be triggered on time.
    The position source is defined in the Setup menu under Vessel Setup.
    USBL Position:

    Select the desired output update rate for the USBL message. The output rate is defined as a fraction of the update rate of the computation was chosen in the setup.

    Optionally, a 'maximum age' can be used. If this option is selected, the last sent USBL position will be resent if the maximum age expires before a new result has been computed.
    Max age Only available when 'From system [every trigger + max age]' is selected under 'USBL position'
    The maximum age of the USBL output. The last sent USBL position will be resent after this many seconds if no new result has been computed.
    Output datum

    By default this would be on source datum (normally WGS'84).

    With this option the user may force the outputted position to be on Survey datum.
    Deskew Launch Node Output: Select Yes in order to skew the time and position of the launch point node to the time of output (GPS message), using the current SOG and COG. Note that the SOG and COG depend on the Controller's Computation Setup, Object COG/SOG - Prediction Parameters Settings. The height value is not deskewed.
    Deskew ROV Node Output: Select Yes in order to skew the time and position of the ROV node to the time of output (USBL message), using the current SOG and COG. Note that the SOG and COG depend on the Controller's Computation Setup, Object COG/SOG - Prediction Parameters Settings.
    The height value is not deskewed.

    Dialog Buttons

    Setup Invoke the Setup Menu
    Results Invoke the Results Menu
    Options Invoke the Options Menu
    Clear Will clear the messages displayed below.
    Note that at the moment (Qinsy 9.3.0) nothing is shown.

    Viewing ARPA targets

    In order to view any LBL or USBL beacon as an ARPA target a Navigation Display must be added.

    1. Adding the navigation display can be done through Options on the menu bar
    2. Press Display Manager...
    3. Within the Display Manager, a display can be added using the Add display option. 
    4. Give it an appropriate title and select 
    5. Press OK to add it.

    In order to see these targets the navigation display may need additional configuration

    1. Within the navigation display right click anywhere in the display to open up the context menu and press View Properties...
    2. Within the properties navigate to Layers >  Targets and make sure to have Other system targets ticked.