HOBOware Pendant Temperature/Light Data Logger and Pendant Optic USB Base Station & Coupler
reviewed by Robert Pritchett
Onset Computer Corporation 470 MacArthur Blvd. Bourne, MA 02532 PO Box 3450 Pocasset, MA 02559-3450 1-800-564-4377 508-759-9500 http://www.onsetcomp.com/Products/temperature_logger_guide.html Released: February 2006. Requirements: Mac OS® X versions 10.3.x or 10.4.3 or later; Java Runtime Environment (JRE) version 1.4.2 or 1.5 ; 256 MB system RAM (512 MB recommended); 7 MB free disk space; USB port required for U-series loggers, or a USB port on a Keyspan USB Server (part number US-4A) connected through Ethernet; Serial port or USB Serial Adapter for HOBO Weather Station, Micro Station or FlexSmart Logger; 1024 x 768 (minimum) display resolution. Microsoft Windows XP Professional or Home Edition, or Windows 2000 Professional, or Windows 2000 Server; Java Runtime Environment (JRE) version 1.4.2 or 1.5; 256 MB system RAM (512 MB recommended); 3.5 MB free disk space after installing the Java Runtime Environment; USB port required for U-series loggers, or a USB port on a Keyspan USB Server (part number US-4A) connected through Ethernet; Serial port or USB Serial Adapter (part # CABLE-USB232) for HOBO Weather Station, HOBO Micro Station, and HOBO FlexSmart Logger; 800 x 600 (minimum) display resolution, 256 colors (1024 x 768 or greater recommended). Pendant Data logger - $39 or $49 USD (8K or 64K memory), Pendant Optical USB Base Station & Coupler - $59 USD. HOBOware software Mac or Win, $95 USD each. https://www.onsetcomp.com/Commerce_Pages/product.ccml Strengths: Offers the Mac scientific community the same data-logging opportunities that were available in Windows-only environments. Weaknesses: Installation requires shutdown and reboot. Ditto with the upgrade to 2.1.2. Don’t reverse the devices in the coupler. They won’t read or write if you do (they use the same key slots.) Applications: http://www.onsetcomp.com/Applications/applications.html http://www.hobohelp.com/applications/4095_applications.html FAQs: http://www.onsetcomp.com/MiscInfo/whats_a_data_logger.html Software SpecificationsHOBOHelp: http://www.hobohelp.com/ |
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On land, in sea, underground and even in space, the HOBO data loggers have been literally everywhere since 1981, monitoring data for use in improving conditions base d on temperature, light and other changing conditions. Now these units are readable on Macs with the latest rev of the HOBOware® software.
What got me interested in their products was their announcement of their weather station for Macs. What was sent to me was the Pendant temp/light and Pendant Optical USB Base Station & Coupler. The Base Station looks similar to the Pendant with the Coupler removed. The Coupler uses infrared technology so that the business-end of the pendants can be used in close proximity. Data can transfer from field units to the station units and information can than be transferred to the HOBOware software to create charts and export information (or import) from other sources) for evaluation and human readout.
The pendant data-loggers either come with 8K or 64K of memory and depending on how often samples are taken, the replaceable batteries can last up to a year or longer. The units are gasketed so the can withstand water intrusion up to 30 meters (100 feet) under water. Data transfer is done through the use of infrared technology from one device to another.
OnSet Computer Corporation has been running energy-awareness contests through http://www.iscienceproject.com/ and have been loaning energy-monitoring equipment to teachers at http://www.iscienceproject.com/contest/instantloaner.html as a way to get HOBO data loggers into the hands of students. By the way, NASA has been using these things to monitor conditions around astronauts for years as well.
I received CDs with each device, but I upgraded to
version 2.1.2 online for this review.
What would you do with a data logger anyway? I’ve
linked to the applications section above so you can go there and see for
yourself how these have been used to justify fixing or replacing equipment that
has been found to be faulty or to prove that something needs to be done to
resolve an issue that surfaced when the data logger was used. Such as HVAC
systems, refrigeration units, vending machines, or for checking either lighting
or other temperature conditions.
Setup was easy enough, but I found that if I inadvertently switched the coupler end-to-end, the base station could not read the data logger, so pay attention to the labels and the arrows, since the plastic ridge that acts as a key is identical for either device.
I also found that the check for updates function in the HOBOware software didn’t function immediately (it took a while), so to check for updates, I went to my browser and went to the website from there instead of from inside the software app.
In order to check out the Pendant or any other device that is used with the HOBOware software, a Status screen looks like this;
I ran the Pendant temp/light as I went from home to office and back for a couple of days and this is the readout I got;
There is a “Growing Degree Days Assistant” that contracts the size of the plot over time. Can you imagine this dragged out over a 1-year period?
Now because these units are waterproofed, they can be outdoors. They also have desiccant inside in case any moisture gets through the plastic see-though containers.
Data files can be saved and used in projects, tweaked and adjusted for presentations.
And the Help function works as expected in Mac OS X as a tab at the top of the screen when in HOBOware. I don’t see a Ubinary version yet, but I expect as Mactels get more used, the folks at OnSet Computer Corporation won’t be far behind.
What I’d really like is to get my hands on one of their 15-channel weather stations with plug-and-play modules that do everything from soil moisture, leaf wetness and rainfall to barometric pressure, winds speed and direction, photosynthetic light (PAR) and solar radiation, but we are looking at quite a bit of money to get one of those. The agricultural industry is where those would make the most sense.
