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SDI-12 Sensor Setup

SDI-12 stands for serial data interface at 1200 baud. It is a standard to interface battery powered data recorders with micro-processor based sensors designed for environmental data acquisition (EDA). eTrackers can support up to 62 SDI-12 sensors while an AVO can support 10 SDI-12 sensors. More information about SDI-12 sensors can be found in our SDI-12 Quick Start Guide. To add a SDI-12 sensor to your station navigate to the Station Management page and select 'SDI-12 Sensors' from the side menu. On the SDI-12 summary page click the '+ Sensor' button to get started. Follow the steps below to add your new SDI-12 sensor.

SDI-12 summary with no sensors

SDI-12 Sensor Setup Steps

Please note that if there are to be multiple SDI-12 sensors in the system, each sensor must have a unique SDI-12 address assigned before it is connected to the eTracker/AVO.

  1. Give your new sensor a unique name and select the address that you want to connect your sensor to. SDI-12 Wizard Step 1
  2. You can now add parameters to your new sensor. You can select a sensor template from the dropdown list to auto-generate parameters (auto generated parameters can be edited or added to later) or select 'Custom' to create your own custom parameter configurations. SDI-12 Wizard Step 2
  3. Select 'Custom' to add your own sensor parameters. To begin, select the M Command that you would like to add parameters to and click the '+ New M Parameter' button. SDI-12 Wizard Step 3
  4. Name the parameter, select an input unit and set the parameters 'Incoming Order' which defaults to the first available. When you're satisfied with your parameter configuration, click 'Add M Parameter'. SDI-12 Wizard Step 4
  5. Repeat step 4 to add additional parameters to your sensor. When you're finished click the 'Create Sensor and x Parameters' button.

    SDI-12 Wizard Step 5

  6. You should now see your new SDI-12 sensor in the side menu list as well as the Sensor Summary page list. Click on the sensor from either list to make further configurations. SDI-12 Setup Page