Overview

This section describes the configuration and typical utilisations for managing your devices with the MT Manager.

• Configuring the MT Manager and your devices
  • General settings
  • Using the Device Settings window
    • Header
    • Configuration file
    • Modeling parameters
    • Device Settings
    • Output Configuration
      • Xbus mode Output Configuration Window
      • String report mode Configuration Window
      • CAN mode Configuration Window
      • Output configuration window in file mode
      • Getting ready for logging
    • Synchronization options
• Using the NTRIP Client
• Using the Device/XDA Data View terminals
  • Device Data View
    • Using the message terminals
    • Composing a message
  • XDA Data View
• Typical utilisations
  • Logging data
  • Replaying logged data
  • Exporting ASCII data
    • ASCII Exporter – File Name
    • ASCII Exporter – Delimiter Options
    • ASCII Exporter – Empty field options
    • ASCII Exporter – Exported data
    • ASCII Exporter – file format
  • Exporting KMZ data
• Using multiple industrial motion trackers

Configuring the MT Manager and your devices

General settings

Changing the settings of your devices can be done (dependent on the setting) in:

1. Device Settings sub-window (see #Using the Device Settings window).
2. Message terminals (refer to #Using the message terminals). Be cautious when changing settings here, as you can send any message to the industrial motion tracker, even if the specific device does not support the message.

Note: changing the settings in the Device Settings window requires the user to explicitly invoke writing to the MT:

Press the “Write to MT” button, to actually save your changes to non-volatile memory in the MT device. MT Manager will then write the settings to the device and rescan for devices:

In the Device Settings window, it is important to write the changes made to the device.

Using the Device Settings window

The Device Settings window lets you modify all non-data output related settings, such as communication and filter settings.

Header

The header shows general information on the industrial motion tracker

In the header, you will find the following parameters (all read-only, except for LocationID).

Explanation of the information in the header of the Device Settings window

Configuration file

With the MT Manager, it is possible to save and load a predefined set of settings, such as synchronization settings, output configuration and baud rate. These settings can be copied from a device into a dedicated file. The file can then be loaded and the same settings can be applied to another industrial motion tracker with the same product code, e.g. MTi-30. This feature is useful for system integrators that need to configure many devices.

The following settings are saved (message ID between square brackets):

1. RotSensor and RotLocal [0xEC]
2. Baudrate [0x18]
3. Filter profile (if available, otherwise the filter profile in the device will be used) [0x64]
4. Extended Output Mode [0x86]
5. Position (Latitude, Longitude, Altitude) [0x6E]
6. Location ID [0x84]
7. OptionFlags (see Low Level Communication Protocol Document) [0x48]
8. OutputConfiguration [0xC0]
9. OutputMode (legacy) [0xD0]
10. OutputSkipFactor (legacy) [0xD4]
11. Period (legacy) [0x04]
12. SyncSettings [0x2C]
13. GnssPlatform [0x76]

To save a setting, click the “Save Settings” button in the MT Settings dialog.

A pop-up screen opens that allows you to save the settings in a name that you prefer. As the settings are product dependent, you could include the name of the product in your file name, e.g.”Test1_MTi-30.xsa”.

To load a settings file, click the “Load settings” button. Again, a window opens that lets you navigate to an xsa configuration file. Opening the file applies all the settings to the industrial motion tracker in the order listed above. If no or only some settings cannot be applied, a warning will be issued. Settings that could be applied up until the incompatible setting are applied though.

Although the configuration file can be read, it is not recommended to make changes to the file. It is easier to load the settings into the device, make the required changes and save the settings again (in the same file). 

Modeling parameters

In the modeling parameters tab you can find the calibration parameters of the accelerometers, gyroscopes and magnetometers (offset, gain and misalignment. Refer to Family Reference Manual for details).

The modeling parameters show values determined in Xsens' calibration procedure.

Device Settings

In the Device Settings tab, you will find options to set up the device's communication and it is possible to change the behaviour of the sensor fusion algorithm in the industrial motion tracker. 

The information displayed in the Device Settings tab

Device settings in the MT Settings dialog show various device-specific settings.

Output Configuration

The output of the industrial motion tracker can be fully configured in terms of data packets in the data message, output frequency, and representation format. This can all be done in the Output Configuration tab. Depending on the used Motion Tracker there can be different modes available in the output configuration dialog as shown below.

The modes in the Output Configuration window

The mode can be selected at the top of the Output Configuration window.

Xbus mode Output Configuration Window

The most complete Output Configuration Window is shown in the figure below. When the industrial motion tracker is first used, or when it is in factory settings, the Output Configuration window will be in Xbus Mode with the outputs in the default configuration (the default configuration depends on the product). The Output Configuration Window only shows the outputs available for the connected device.

The Output Configuration window of an MTi-670 that is attached to MT Manager. When another device is attached, the output configuration window may contain fewer options.

String report mode Configuration Window

The String report mode Configuration Window allows setting the ASCII strings for MTi 10-series, MTi 600-series and MTi 100-series. Note that only a single frequency can be chosen here. Setup the string reports with the message terminals or via XDA to apply different update frequencies per string output. 

String report mode output configuration options

Refer to the Low Level Communication Protocol Document for details on the various NMEA messages.

CAN mode Configuration Window

The CAN mode Configuration Window allows setting the CAN output messages for the MTi 600-series. Refer to the MT Can Protocol Documentation for details on the various CAN messages.

CAN mode output configuration window of an MTi-670

Output configuration window in file mode

The output configuration window will be read-only when a file is loaded. It is possible, however, to view the settings of the recorded file.

The Output Configuration Window of a file that contains data from an MTi-G-710. All outputs are shown, but cannot be edited.

The meaning of all data fields and screens is explained in the Family Reference Manual and Low Level Communication Protocol Documentation. A few functionalities of the Output Configuration window are explained in the table below.

Buttons in the Output Configuration window

Getting ready for logging

Before you start logging your data, be sure to take the following steps first:

1. Set the Log File Name and set the desired working directory, refer to section #Logging data.
2. Choose the desired output format, refer to section #Output Configuration. For post-processing purposes, make sure to use the XDA processing preset. MT Manager will select the minimally required data packages for post-processing, so it is possible to add more outputs.
3. Setup the desired coordinate system (refer to the Family Reference manual on using the Sensor Rotation Matrix and the Local Rotation Matrix). With the MT Manager, the coordinate system used for the sensor data cannot be changed during post-processing.
4. Choose the correct baud rate when using serial interfacing. Make sure this baud rate is high enough to accommodate data sent over the serial interface (for total data size and frequency, refer to the Low Level Communication Protocol Documentation).
5. Choose the setting profile most appropriate for your application. It is possible to process sensor data with another filter profile, but note that orientation data cannot be reprocessed at all.

Note: The first packet counter is an arbitrary number between 0 and 65535 due to the recording concept used in MT Manager.

Synchronization options

For detailed explanations of the functions and how to use them, refer to the Low Level Communication Protocol Documentation and Synchronization with the MTi.

When opening the Synchronization configuration tab in the Device Settings window, the Configured Settings list is empty for most devices. Press add to start configuration of a synchronization function.

Starting the setup of a synchronization option.

List of available synchronization functions

The graphic on the screen will help you determine the behaviour of each function and parameters. The red line in the graphic shows the voltage received or sent out; the grey arrows or grey lines show the MTData2 packets. If functions are on separate Sync lines, they can be used together.

Trigger Indication

The function trigger indication can be used to get a marker inside the MTData2 packet without interfering with the data itself.

Trigger Indication sets a marker in the MTData2 packet when a voltage is read on the SyncIn line. The red line represents the voltage on the Sync line

Synchronization options of the Trigger Indication function

Send Latest

Send Latest allows to send the latest available data that has been processed onboard the industrial motion tracker (it is thus used as a SyncIn). Send Latest ignores the output frequency selected in the Output Configuration window (but not which outputs are selected) and will prevent data from being outputted until a Send Latest pulse or ReqData message is received. As sampling is done at a very high frequency, it is not possible to let the sample moment be determined by the Send Latest function. However, it is possible to adjust the frequency of the sampling. Use the ClockBiasEstimation function for that. Remember that it is possible to use functions together if they are on separate Sync lines.

The following parameters can be used:

List of options for Send Latest synchronization functionality

Send Latest configured as Rising Edge

Interval Transition Measurement

Interval Transition Measurement sends out a pulse on the SyncOut line at a frequency of 400 Hz (when Skip factor is 0). Interval Transition Measurement can be used to trigger external devices.

The Interval Transition Measurement with its default settings.

List of options for Interval Transition Measurement (SyncOut) functionality

Clock Bias estimation

It is possible to slightly adjust the duration of the clock ticks of the internal sampling in the MTi. This can be useful when you have an accurate external clock (e.g. GPS time pulse, 1 PPS) that you want to synchronize the MTi to. It can also be useful to synchronize multiple MTi’s, so that the number of data points in a certain amount of time is equal. For Clock Bias Estimation, it is needed to know the frequency of the signal you feed into the MTi. Note that you can still choose another output frequency, unrelated to Clock Bias Estimation.

List of options for Clock Bias Estimation synchronization functionality

Clock bias estimation on a clock of 4 Hz.

GPS ClockSync

When a GNSS/INS device has a valid GNSS fix, the time pulse from the GNSS receiver is used to synchronize the internal clock of the MTi. The functionality is identical to the (external) Clock Bias estimation.

GPS Clock Sync synchronizes the crystal of the MTi and the GPS clock.

The GPS ClockSync function is enabled by default with specific settings; it is possible to disable the functionality or adapt the settings though. This is not recommended and should only be done when a more accurate clock is available or when a different clock bias estimation is required. A warning dialog will pop-up; choosing Yes will re-enable the GPS Sync.

Warning that you are about to delete the GPS clock Sync

StartSampling

StartSampling can be used to accurately time the reception of the industrial motion tracker data. It is not possible to trigger every sample, but it is possible to start the digital signal processing.

With StartSampling, the industrial motion tracker will only start sending data when a pulse has been received

1PPS Time-pulse (Out)

GNSS/INS devices can output a hardware pulse (length 100 us) every second at the exact UTC second.

1 PPS Time pulse in the Synchronization dialog

Multiple functions

It is possible to configure multiple synchronization functions on the industrial motion tracker. This can be useful if you need to synchronize multiple devices. If multiple entries are set on the same line, an error is given (see below).

The Sync Options dialog gives a warning when settings are conflicting or duplicate.

Deleting a configured setting

In order to remove a setting, select the configured setting in the Configured Settings list and click Delete.

Using the NTRIP Client

The NTRIP Client window (see figure below) can be accessed via the Tools drop-down menu and allows the user to connect with an NTRIP mounting point in order to receive RTCM correction messages via the internet. The RTCM messages will automatically be fed back to the GNSS receiver of the connected device in order to achieve accurate positioning data. For an MTi-680G, this means that the messages will be sent to the internal GNSS receiver. For an MTi-680, this means that the messages will be sent out over the GNSS_TxD line to the externally connected GNSS receiver. This window is only available when a GNSS/INS device with RTK support is connected.

NTRIP Client configuration window.

The NTRIP Client window is divided into two sections:

1. Under NTRIP caster settings, the user can log-in to the desired NTRIP server by providing the address, port number, username and password.
2. The NTRIP stream section allows for further configuration of the NTRIP setup:
   1. The "Update mount points" button can be used to refresh the dropdown menu for NTRIP mount points.
   2. The "Mount point details" button will open a separate window with an overview of all available mount points for the configured provider (see figure below).
   3. The "GGA transmit interval" indicates the interval in seconds at which the current location of the industrial motion tracker is transmitted to the NTRIP server. This is a requirement for obtaining RTCM messages.
   4. Alternatively, it is possible to manually set the position (latitude, longitude, altitude) that is transmitted to the NTRIP server, instead of transmitting the real-time position as estimated by the industrial motion tracker.
   5. Finally, the "Start" button will initiate the NTRIP connection. An increasing number of bytes transmitted should be visible. The MT Status View (see Overview MT Manager) can now be used to check the RTK fix status.

The NTRIP Mount point details include a detailed overview of all available mount points.

Using the Device/XDA Data View terminals

MT Manager has two message terminals: the Device Data View shows the communication over the serial or USB port; the XDA Data View shows the communication between MT Manager and the Xsens Device API. To understand the low level XBus Communication protocol, it is recommended to use the Device Data View.

Device Data View

The Device Data View allows monitoring the communication over the serial or USB interface of the MT (i.e. the XBus Communication protocol, see the Low Level Communication Protocol Documentation). It can also be used to compose messages in ASCII; the composer will set the required bits, will include the XBus header (preamble, message ID etc) and will calculate the correct checksum. The message can then be written to the device.

The Device Data View showing data that is being received from the industrial motion tracker.

Functions available in the Device Data Viewer

Using the message terminals

The Device Data view has two fields that display the messages sent to the device and received from the device. Both fields have the same features. This section covers the analysis of Xbus data or “Normal output” messages. Alternatively, if the MT is configured to output NMEA strings, then these outputs can be visualized by selecting the “String output” radio button.

A typical view of received MTData2 messages shown in the Device Data View

The first column contains a counter, not related to the Data ID “Packet Counter”. The second column contains the timestamp of the message (hh:mm:ss.sss). The message itself is split into 5 different parts:

• FA FF: Preamble and Bus ID
• MID: default shown in human-readable format, e.g. MTData2
• Length of the data message (in italic)
• Data in the message, default in hexadecimal format
• Checksum (in bold)

Double-clicking on the data message opens a dialog that shows which data is in the message. It shows the message ID, number of data items (if applicable) and a description of the individual items, both parsed and in hexadecimal format. 

Double-clicking on the data will show the contents of a message, both parsed and in hexadecimal format.

Right-clicking on the data in the window shows a menu with options.

The options in the menu in the Device Data Viewer after right-clicking the data.

Composing a message

Using the message terminals to set up the industrial motion tracker is straightforward. Note that you often need to be in Config Mode to be able to write a message. Then, choose the Message you want to send, using the dropdown menu.

Composing a message in the Device Data View can be done by selecting a message from the "Compose' menu

When you choose a message that starts with “Set” or that needs extra arguments, the text in the button marked “Edit” will be augmented with an Enter icon.

Click "edit" to make changes to the message selected from the "Compose" menu.

Press Enter or Edit to edit the Data field; you could make changes in the field itself as well.  

After clicking “edit”, the data field from the message can be edited.

When the data message is composed, the Send button is augmented with an Enter icon. Press Enter or the Send button to send the message to the MT. Note that you should receive an Acknowledge message, visible in the “Received from”-field.

Messages showing the acknowledgement sequence in the low-level Xbus protocol

To verify the settings you just wrote to the device, you can request the settings; in this case the settings were correctly set:

An example showing how to request settings from the industrial motion tracker.

XDA Data View

The XDA Data View is hidden by default. It can be enabled through Tools > Preferences. The XDA Data View allows monitoring the communication from XDA to MT Manager. Comparing this with the messages in the device message terminal shows which messages are added or calculated by XDA. The XDA message terminal can also be used to compose messages in ASCII; the composer will set the required bits, will include the XBus header (preamble, message ID etc) and will calculate the correct checksum. The message can then be written to the device.

The dialog for the XDA message terminal is very similar to the dialog of the device message terminal. Two fields are added: the “Data packets”-field and the “Other messages”-field. The fields “Sent to device” and “Received from device” are the same as the fields in the Device Data view, with the exception that MTData2 messages are excluded from these fields (i.e. only Set-, Req-messages and their acknowledge messages are shown).

The XDA message terminal has an extra field with respect to the Device Data Viewer, showing the data received from the Xsens Device API (XDA).

The “Data packets”-field shows the data packets that are generated by the Xsens Device API. These do not have to be the same as the data messages that are sent by the MT: when XDA processes e.g. orientation data based on dq/dv, orientation data is added to the data packets stream (depending on the selected output configuration).

The “Other messages”- field shows warnings generated by XDA.

Typical utilisations

This section describes a selection of typical utilisations of the MT Manager.

Note: It is necessary to let the system stabilise right after start-up (filter stabilisation can take up to 60 seconds) in order to get more reliable measurements.

Logging data

Logging data can be started and stopped by pressing the “Record / Stop Record” button:

The generated log file (.MTB file) will be written to the folder specified in the toolbar at the top of the main window under “Current directory”. By default, this is the root directory of the MT Manager installation (e.g. C:Program FilesXsensMT Software Suite xxxx.xMT Manager).

This setting can be changed in the toolbar at the top of the main window under “Current directory”. Make sure that you have administrator permission for the folder you want to save data in.

The default log file name can be changed by going to “Tools” -> “Preferences…” and selecting “Logging”:

The logging name can be changed in the Preferences window. Use <time> and/or <trial> to ensure unique file names

Replaying logged data

Playback of logged data can be done by opening an .MTB file that has been previously recorded:

Go to “File” -> “Open File…” (or by pressing “CTRL+O”) and select the .MTB file:

Log files of the MT Manager have a .mtb extension

A dialog will be opened that allows you to set the filter profile to process the data with (also exporting). If you want to process the data with a different filter profile, you have to reopen the file.

When opening an .mtb that contains SDI data, you choose the desired filter profile.

When you have selected the applicable filter profile, a dialog opens that shows the file loading progress.

The file loading screen, displaying relevant information on the file.

Parameters shown when data is being processed from a file

Logged data can either be presented at once in a graph or played back in real time. These two settings can be chosen via “Tools” -> “Preferences...” -> MT Manager -> Graphs -> File Plotting Method: Real-time or All Data

The behaviour of the graphs can be adapted in the Preferences - Graphs window.

Time options:

The number of points in the graphs can be chosen in this dialog. When setting the time to a higher value, the data in the graphs can be investigated over a long period of time.

The “Play” and “Rewind” buttons can then be used to control the playback:

The Playback toolbar

It is recommended to open the desired views before starting the playback.

Exporting ASCII data

Data previously logged into a .MTB file can be exported to the ASCII format. After opening a .MTB file, click Export (). The Export Configurations window will open.

ASCII exporter settings dialog

Here the default file name is defined as:

<inputfile>-<seqnr>-<time>.txt, where

inputfile is the original name of the logged file

seqnr is incremented each time the corresponding .MTB file is processed.

time is the time read from the system (Windows) clock

You can change the output path in this screen (the output path is the same as the “current directory” in MT Manager). The default export file name is displayed in the Filename field. You can edit this name before exporting. Press the “Export” button to complete the export. Make sure you have writing rights for the specified folder.

In the next sub-sections you will find details of the exporter types.

ASCII Exporter – File Name

The file name can be configured with the following parameters:

Parameters that can be chosen to automatically form a file name for the ASCII exporter

ASCII Exporter – Delimiter Options

It is possible to choose the delimiter options that can help you to import the columns of data of the exported file into an external program. You can also define your own delimiter (one character from the extended ASCII table).

In the delimiter options, you can even choose your own exotic delimiter, e.g. § or ¼

ASCII Exporter – Empty field options

As the industrial motion tracker can export data at different output frequencies per data output, it is required to choose the behaviour when data does not exist in one (exported) data package. You can choose with which placeholder this field is filled. You can also insert your own string (unlimited). The empty field placeholder will help you when importing the data into an external program. NaN is commonly used in Excel.

When no data is available in a row, specify your own characters for the empty cell/field.

ASCII Exporter – Exported data

The ASCII exporter can export many data quantities. Select those required in the Exported Data section.

Options for data export

ASCII Exporter – file format

The output consists of a header with settings information and the actual data which is delimited by the delimiter chosen.

The following picture shows the first part of an example of an exported ASCII data file in Excel, still as .txt format:

Exported ASCII txt file in Excel. Empty fields are filled with NaN (configurable in the Preferences window).

The table below describes the column headers in the ASCII exported file.

Overview of all possible exported columns in an ASCII file

Exporting KMZ data

It is possible to export data from a GNSS/INS device to a KMZ file. The KMZ file contains geo-referenced data points with corresponding orientation, velocity, GNSS mode and times. The contents of the KMZ file can be customized to match the user’s preferences. The steps to export a KMZ file are:

1. Load a .mtb file of a GNSS/INS device. This file must contain processed orientation and position, SCR data (including GNSS PVT data) or data that can be processed with XDA.
2. Set the preferences of the KMZ exporter via Tools->Preferences->Exporters.
   1. Choose a Filename template.
   2. Choose the maximum number of markers per second. The default value is 1; you should adapt this value to your velocity: too many data points per second may cloud the data points in Google Earth.
3. Export the file via File -> Export. You can change the output path and file name here. 

The file can now be loaded into e.g. Google Earth.

An MTi-G-710 data point in Google Earth

Using multiple industrial motion trackers

Multiple Motion Trackers can be managed with the MT Manager, as can be seen in the screenshot below.

Managing an MTi-300 (left) and an MTi-7 (right)