MAPS interface

From Anemos wiki

The Anemos MAPS position sensor device is equipped with multiple control modes and output interfaces.

Interfaces

There are multiple interfaces, some for convenience functionality and some for production usage.

Currently all the interfaces include connecting to the device over LAN using one of two standard ways.

Reaching the device over ethernet connection

Each MAPS device is supplied with an ethernet connector. If you connect your device to your local subnet, it will attempt to obtain an IPv4 address as a DHCP client. After a successfull connection and setup you can reach the device using it's ip address via it's MAPS interface:Graphical Interface|Graphical Interface or Websocket interface. Please consult your local system administrator for obtaining the IP address of the device.

Reaching the device over Wi-Fi

MAPS divices - on request of customer - can be accessed via Wi-Fi. In this case, the device works as a wireless access point, that you can connect to using your computer or mobile device. After connection the device has a fixed IPv4 address that you can use for connection. For details on authentication and the IP address of the device consult the product information material supplied with your device.

As open Wireless connections are not desirable in some environments, the one can request a device without Wi-Fi access.

Graphical interface

All the MAPS devices are equipped by a web-based interface. The interface can be reached by typing the ip address of the device into a browser, and opening the control webpage. Depending on customer requests and the version of the MAPS device, the dive might require login information that is supplied with the device.

The main purpose of the web-based interface is setting up the device and tracking it's status.

On activation, the interface shows information about the sensor including:

  • Position output,
  • A surface for browsing previous output logs of the device,
  • Configuration parameters of the device,
  • Tools for fine-tuning the mechanical setup of the device,
  • Debug information.

In a typical use case, the graphical interface is used in short periods of time, setting up, and checking the device.

A detailed description of the Graphical Web-interface can be found in this dedicated document.

Websocket interface

For long term usage and integration with the system of the customer, one can use the network interface.

The network interface is using the websocket protocol for communication. Depending on the control mode, each device opens listens websocket connection open on one or more ports set in the settings of the file.

Control modes

Depending on the use-case the MAPS devices can operate in various different modes. Among others, the device can be set up the following modes:

  • Standalone mode, where it is gathering position information without external intervention. In this case collected data can be gathered later.
  • Network stream mode, where the device is continuously streaming position data to over a network connection.
  • Software trigger mode, when the user can connect to the device over the network and it encodes a position data on request.
  • Hardware trigger mode, when triggering can be done by sending a hardware signal that can by used for synchronizing the device to an external source with a sub-millisecond accuracy.

For a detailed description on Control modes please refer to the related document.