DataView reports are the primary tools for displaying and analyzing measurement data
that has been recorded on your AEMC instrument and downloaded to your PC.
DataView reports provide a wealth of information you can use to monitor numerous parameters
and conditions within your facility.
Reports enable you to identify system inefficiencies, detect alarms and other anomalies, and perform
analytical and corrective actions, all from the convenience and comfort of your computer.
Creating a DataView report involves the following general tasks:
1.
Record and store measurement data on the instrument.
2.
Download this data and save it on the PC via the appropriate DataView Control Panel.
3.
Select the DataView template and data file for generating the report.
4.
Save the report.
The steps required to perform these tasks, and the order of these steps, can vary depending
on where you are in the DataView software, what Control Panel you may be using, how much
customization you want to do to the report, and other factors.
In this video, we discuss the simplest and quickest way to generate a report, which involves
creating a report from the default template in a DataView Control Panel.
For demonstration purposes, we will use the Control Panel for AEMC's PEL Model 100 Series
Power and Energy Logger to create the report.
Other Control Panels may require different steps for generating reports, but the overall
process is similar to the PEL Control Panel.
In future videos, we will explain how to generate reports that require more customization and
configuration.
Before you begin, download and save the recording session from the instrument to the PC.
The DataView online Help walks you through the procedure for doing this.
The recorded data is stored on the PC with the file extension .icp.
Then open the appropriate Control Panel, which in the example shown in this video is the
PEL Control Panel.
As noted earlier, an essential step in creating a DataView report is to select the template
for creating the report.
The template determines what data will be included in the report, and how it will be
displayed.
To choose the default template for creating reports in the PEL Control Panel, click Tools
in the menu bar at the top of the screen.
Then click Select Report.
This displays the Templates dialog box.
All available templates are listed.
This includes standard templates that ship as part of the PEL Control Panel software,
as well as any custom templates you may have created.
The default template is designated by an asterisk.
In this example we will use the Basic report template, so we will leave this as the default.
Note that this dialog box also lets you enter an explanatory comment that describes this
template.
The next step is to open the data file from which to create the report.
Select File from the menu bar, and then click Open.
This displays the Open File dialog box.
This dialog displays the .icp files currently stored in the default DataFiles sub-folder.
Select the appropriate file from the list, or browse through the folders to find the
file.
When the file is located and selected, click Open.
The file now appears in the Navigation frame under My Open Sessions.
Highlight the file, and click File in the menu bar.
Then click Create DataView Report.
This displays the Select Data to Export dialog box.
You can also display this dialog box by clicking the Create Report icon in the toolbar.
The Select Data to Export dialog allows you to specify which data contained in the selected
.icp file will be included in the report.
For example, at the top of the dialog box are fields for defining the start date and
time for the recorded data, and the end date and time.
Only data recorded within this time period will be displayed in the report.
You can also click the Total duration button to include all the data recorded during the
session.
Below the Total Duration button are several check boxes that let you select and deselect
the type of data to include in the report.
Which check boxes are activated depends on the data recorded in the session.
In this example, the check boxes Export Event log and Export Session totals are active,
while Export Summary is grayed out and inactive.
Near the bottom of the screen is the Open Address Book button, which lets you add explanatory
information to the cover sheet of the report.
This button opens the Session Properties dialog box at the Operator tab.
This tab lets you enter information about the person that performed the recording session.
The name, address, and contact information entered in this dialog box will be added to
the data file and displayed in the generated report.
In this example we have previously created three Operator records; we can choose one
of these listed names or create a new operator record on the fly by clicking New and filling
out the fields.
The Site tab in the Session Properties dialog box lets you add information about the facility
in which the recording session took place.
As with Operator, you can select one of the pre-existing records, or create a new one
now.
The information entered into the Operator and Site tabs will be displayed on the front
cover sheet of the generated report.
Below the Open Address Book button is the Set Exception Levels button.
This displays a dialog box for specifying which exception worksheets are to be included
in the generated report, and the exception type and levels to use for each channel type.
After you have completed all the dialogs, click OK.
After a few moments the generated report appears on the screen.
You can browse through the pages of the report, and use DataView features to zoom in and view
details that may be of particular interest.
You can now save the report by clicking File in the menu bar and selecting Save.
This displays a dialog box for naming and saving the report on the PC.
Note that DataView reports are stored as file type .dvw.
This concludes our discussion about how to create a DataView report using the PEL Control
Panel.
Again, this represents a simple and quick way to create a report from a recorded data
session.
You can also create customized reports that filter and display data in accordance with
your particular requirements and specifications.
This will be the subject of a separate video.
To view additional videos about DataView and all other AEMC products, please visit our
YouTube channel.