Datasheet

HPCOM
2017

HPCOM HART Pocket Communicator

Smallest, lightest, and

smartest carry on HART
communicator available today.

Description Features
The HPCOM is a reliable HART hand held configurator for • Hand held configuration and monitoring for HART
field devices. It simplifies configuration or data analysis in field instruments at the field or control room.
the field. The HPCOM has communication compatibility
with all HART field instruments. The HPCOM is used at • HART interface plugged with robust connector.
process control plants for commissioning, diagnosis,
• Software driver for over 350 existing HART
data monitoring and configuration changes of HART
instruments.
instruments.
• New driver can be developed upon customer
specification or DDL source file.

• Lithium Ion rechargeable battery.

• Large memory storage for software .

• Easy to upgrade or add new device driver.

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Table of Contents communication, monitoring and configuration of

HART devices. The HPCOM software is based upon
1. General Overview...................................................................2 manufacturer device description files (DDL) and thus
2. Setup & Installation................................................................2 allows access to all menus and parameters as designed
3. Using the HPCOM Software.................................................4 by the manufacturer.
4. Troubleshooting................................................................... 11
HPCGraph
This graphing application allows device variables to be
trended over time in an easy to view graphical format.
1. General Overview Device parameters can be simultaneously graphed in
various colors for easy identification.
General Principles HPCLogger
The HPCOM is composed of three main components This software application allows the logging of device
plus accessories. These parts consist of the Palm variable values over rate. A wide range of variables can
handheld, the HPCOM HART interface hardware, and be logged automatically at a user selectable sample
the HPCOM Palm applications. time, or manually one by one. These logs can be saved
and transferred to a PC for further analysis.
The HPCOM is ready to go right out of the box. The
Palm has been preinstalled with the HPCOM HART HPC301
configuration software and is ready to communicate The HPC301 software is the predecessor of the HPCOM
with HART devices. The user needs only to attach software. It allows the configuration and monitoring of
the HPCOM HART interface to the Palm, connect the HART devices but is not DDL derived. This application
pinch connectors to the HART network and launch the has been included as an alternative to using the DDL
HPCOM application. based menu and parameter structures of HPCOM for
those whom have grown accustomed to the HPC301
Hardware Overview layout for devices such as the Smar line of transmitters.

The HPCOM HART interface is designed to connect to

the Palm multi connector located on the bottom of the
Palm handheld, allowing communication between the 2. Setup & Installation
Palm and the HART network.
Hardware Overview
The included pinch connectors easily connect to any
1. 2. 3. 4. 5.
HART network for instant communication. The HPCOM
is ideal for plant or factory because of its economic
energy consumption and portable design.

Software Overview
The HPCOM software includes 4 preloaded applications:
HPCOM, HPCGraph, HPCLogger and HPC301. Fig. 1. - HPCOM Box Contents

HPCOM
The main application of the HPCOM, allows Before setting up your HPCOM, please verify that all box

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contents are included. The HPCOM box contents can be

seen above in Figure 1.

1. Palm PDA - The included Palm is pre loaded with the +

HPCOM software. The battery of the Palm may require
charging. Please read the Palm documentation before -
using.
2. HPCOM Interface - The HPCOM hardware interface
attaches to the bottom of the Palm and connects to Fig. 2. - Connection to the HART network

the HART network. See the following section on how to

Charging the Palm handheld via the HPCOM
correctly use this interface.
Interface:
3. Product Documentation & Software - Contains
The Palm handheld can be charged with the HPCOM
the documentation and software. Note: The HPCOM
Interface still connected. To charge the Pam with the
software is already preloaded onto the Palm PDA.
HPCOM interface connected. The Palm handheld will
4. Power Supply - Connect it to the Hot sync cable
indicate it is being charged. The HPCOM hardware
interface to recharge the Palm.
and software can be used as normal while the Palm is
5. Palm USB Hotsync Cable - Connects the Palm to
charging.
your PC to Hotsync via USB.
Note: The HPCOM Interface is powered from the Palm
Hardware Setup & Usage battery and requires no additional power supply to
function.
Before using the HPCOM fully charge the Palm.

Connecting/Disconnecting the HPCOM Interface: Software Setup & Installation

Insert the HPCOM Interface into the multiconnector
It is recommended to install the Palm software onto your
of the Palm handheld as shown in Figure 2 below,
PC in order to enable Hotsyncing and to backup the files
pushing the HPCOM Interface connector into the
contained on your Palm. This will ensure that the HPCOM
multiconnector slot until locked in.
along with your Palm settings will be recoverable if your
Connect the pinch connectors to the HART line. Palm lose its memory. In this case a simple Hotsync will
Communication requires a minimum load of 250 restore these files and settings automatically.
Ohms on the HART line. The Palm is now ready to
The installation of the Meazura and Palm software can be
communicate. Tap the HPCOM icon on the Palm screen
completed by inserting the Springfield Research Product
to load the software and begin communicating.
CD into the CD-ROM drive of your PC and selecting the
To disconnect the HPCOM Interface, pull the interface “MEZ1000 Setup” .
away from the Palm handheld firmly, avoiding any
Reinstalling the HPCOM software with Hotsync backup from
twisting or sideways force.
PC:
If you have installed the Palm software onto your PC and
completed at least one Hotsync, PC will contain a backup
of the HPCOM software and any other Palm data since
your last Hotsync. In this case all you must do is connect
the Palm to your PC and Hotsync.

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Reinstalling the HPCOM software without Hotsync backup

from PC:
If you have not installed the Palm software onto your
PC and completed at least one hotsync, will need to
install both the Palm software and the HPCOM onto
your PC. Installation of the Meazura and Palm software
can be completed by inserting the Springfield Research
Product CD into the CD-ROM drive of your PC and
selecting the “MEZ1000 Setup” .

A copy of the HPCOM software is contained on the

included Springfield Research Product CD. When a
complete reinstallation is necessary, this CD can be
used to reinstall all the HPCOM applications onto the Fig. 3. - HPCOM

Palm handheld. Simply insert the CD into the CD-ROM

drive of your PC and follow the on screen instructions HPCOM
to install the desired applications. Please note: the Palm
Allows the user to poll for devices on the HART network,
software must already be installed on your PC in order
communicate with them and configure their various
to successfully reinstall any HPCOM software.
parameters. Based upon Device Description files (DDL).
All the menus, variables and methods are supported as
defined by the manufacturer DDL.
3. Using the HPCOM Software The HPCOM is already loaded with support for devices
from a range of manufacturers. In addition, new device
Opening the HPCOM drivers can soon be downloaded from the Springfield
The HPCOM applications, HPCOM, HPCGraph, Research website and added into HPCOM. For more
HPCLogger and HPC301 can be found under the HART information on adding or requesting new device
category. Select “HART” from the dropdown list located drivers, see the device drivers section.
at the upper right corner of the Palm screen. This will
After selecting HPCOM from the HART category of the
display the various HPCOM applications as shown in
applications screen, an “About HPCOM” screen will
Figure 3. Opening any of the HPCOM applications is as
appear. This screen identifies the Version number of
simple as selecting it on the screen.
the software you are running along with important
The following sections will discuss the general usage of copyright information. To continue the main
each of these programs. application, select “OK”, or select “Cancel” to return to
the application selection screen.

Registering the HPCOM

The HPCOM comes registered from the factory.
Unregistered software will require to fill out the included
HPCOM registration form and agree to the terms and
conditions of the agreement. This form should be
emailed to Springfield Research Corp. You will receive
your registration code shortly via email.

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Enter the registration code received at the registration Polling for Multiple Devices
code prompt. A successful code will notify the user To poll for multiple online devices within an address
and the registration screen will no longer appear at the range:
startup of HPCOM.
1. Select the checkbox next to the “From/To” option.
2. Choose the start and end search addresses from the
corresponding drop down menus located next to the
“From” and “To” options respectively.
3. Select the “Poll” button.

Polling by Tag
To poll for an online device by tag:

1. Select the checkbox next to the “Tag” option.

2. Enter the tag of the device you are looking for in the
field located next to “Tag”.
3. Select the “Poll” button.
Fig. 4. - Polling Screen

Navigating Device Parameters

Once a device is selected, the main menu of the device
will be opened.

The main menu of most devices will lead to various

submenus, parameters and methods. Menus and
Methods are represented by buttons. Selecting a menu
button will open the corresponding submenu. Selecting
a method button will execute the corresponding action.

Editable fields are available for changing various

parameters of the device. Editable variables will include
Fig. 5. - Live List Screen
either a text field denoted by a dotted underline or a
Polling for Devices
drop down list denoted by an arrow. Examples of this
The polling screen is automatically opened at the start
can be seen in the figure below. These variables can be
of HPCOM. As seen in Figure 4, the polling screen allows
edited by the user and sent to the device by selecting
the user to choose a polling by device address, address
the “Send” button at the bottom of the screen.
range (0-15) or by tag. After HPCOM polls the network,
all found devices will be listed. To open a particular At the bottom of every submenu there is three
device, simply select it from the list. buttons:“Send”,“Back”,and“Done”.The Send button will
send any changes you have made to the editable fields
Polling for a Single Device
of the current menu to the device. Once the send is
To poll for a single online device by address:
complete, the values have been successfully sent to the
1. Select the checkbox next to the “Device Address” device. The Back button will return you to the previous
option. menu. The Done button will return you to the main
2. Choose the address of the device by selecting it from menu of the device.
the drop down menu located next to “Device Address”.
3. Select the “Poll” button.

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and methods can then be accessed as designed by the

manufacturer.

Uninstalled or Unsupported Devices

When an uninstalled or unsupported device is found
by HPCOM, the software will display a device driver
number. Devices may be requested to be added by
sending this device driver number along with your full
contact information to sales@springres.com. Devices
for which the device driver is not installed may still be
accessed in generic mode via the HPC301 software. Check
the HPCOM Device Driver Library located at
Fig. 6. - Typical Device Main Menu www.springres.com for the most up to date device drivers.

To add a device driver to HPCOM:

1. Download the device driver file “mmddrr.prc” from
the www.springres.com HPCOM device driver library (or
email) and save it to a location on your computer.
2. Double click the *.prc file to have it added to your
Palm Hotsync list.
Note: The Palm desktop software must be installed on
the computer.
3. Connect your Palm to your computer to Hotsync.
4. The new device driver is now downloaded to your
Palm and available for use in HPCOM.

Fig. 7. - Various Editable Fields The HPCOM Device Driver files follow a naming
convention of “mmddrr.prc” where: mm = HART
Device Drivers
Manufacturer Code
The HPCOM software is based on the Device
dd = Device Code rr = Hardware Revision Code
Description Language (DDL). This language was
created to offer a standardized method of detailing
all the variables, commands and parameters of a
specific device as well as to describe the basic menu HPCLogger
structure and layout that the end user should see when
The HPCLogger application enables the user to log
communicating with a manufacturers device. Device
variables over time automatically or manually and store
description files are created by the device manufacturer
these variables for later trending or processing. The
and allow the device parameters and menus to be
stored logs can be easily transferred to your PC.
displayed and structured as the manufacturer intended.
The HPCOM software builds on these DDL’s to offer
compatibility with a range of HART devices directly
from your Palm PDA.

HPCOM is preloaded with all supported devices at the

time of purchase. The various device parameters, menus

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1. Select a device from the Live List.

2. Select the desired 4 variables to log from the 4 drop
down menus on the Specific Monitor screen (Figure 8).
3. Select “Done”.

Selecting Logged Variables

To start logging:
1. From the Live List screen, enter the desired sample
time in minutes (Figure 9) .
The default value is 1.
2. Select the “Start Logging” button to go to the logging
screen (Figure 10).
3. From the logging screen you may select to
Fig. 8. - Specific Monitor Screen automatically log or manually log the selected
variables. Automatic logging will log the variables
NOTE: at the interval entered on the Live List screen, while
Only devices which support command 33 of the HART manual logging requires the user to select each time
specification will support custom selection of logging the variables should be logged.
variables. Devices which do not support this command
To automatically log:
will only log the default variables as described above
4. Select the “Auto Log” button.
and will not have access to the Specific Monitor screen.
5. Select the “Done” button when finished.

Starting HPCLogger To manually log:

To start HPCLogger, follow the steps below: 4. Select the “Manual Log” button.
5. Select the “Log Now” button repeatedly as desired
1. Select the HPCLogger icon from the Palm application (Figure 11). 6. Select “Done” when finished.
menu. This will open the application and bring you to the
polling screen.
2. The polling screen is common to all HPCOM
applications. Simply select the address, address range or
tag of the device(s) you wish to poll for and select “Poll”
3. After execution of the Poll, the list of devices found will
be displayed.

Selecting Logged Variables

By default, the device variables that will be logged are
the PV (primary device variable), PV%, Out (mA), and
SV (secondary device variable). If the device supports
command 33 of the HART specification, you alternatively Fig. 9. - Live List Screen

have the option to log different variables.

After you have started HPCLogger and polled for devices

(see section 3.3.1) follow these steps to select nondefault
variables:

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HPCGraph
The HPCGraph application allows the graphical
trending of up to 4 variables simultaneously from any
HART device. Graphs can be customized and saved for
offline viewing.

Starting HPCGraph
To start HPCGraph, follow the steps below:

1. Select the HPCGraph icon from the Palm application

menu.
Fig. 10. - Logging Screen 2. The polling screen is common to all HPCOM
applications. Select the address, address range or tag of
the device’s) you wish to poll and select “Poll”.
3. After execution of the Poll, the list of devices found
on the bus will be displayed.

Selecting Variables to Graph

The default variables that will be graphed are the
Current, PV (primary variable), SV (secondary variable),
and TV (tertiary variable). If the device supports
command 33 of the HART specification, the option to
alternatively log different variables is available

Fig. 11. - Manual Logging After you have started HPCLogger and polled for
Transferring Logs to a PC devices follow these steps to select which variables will
To transfer logs to a PC, follow these steps: be graphed:

1. Install the Springfield Conduit software into your PC 1. Select a device from the Live List.
with the Palm Desktop software. 2. Select the check boxes next to the variables you
The Conduit software can be downloaded the product wish to graph. The color underneath each check box
CD from www.springres.com. corresponds to the line color of the graph (Figure
2. Execute a Hotsync between your Palm and your PC. 12). If the device supports command 33 of the HART
3. The newly created data files will be located in the specification, variables other than the default may be
<palm folder>\<user name>\Datalogger directory graphed by selecting the “Spec Monit” button. From
of the PC.The naming convention for these log files the specific monitor screen, 4 variables may be selected
are dMMDDXXXXXX.txt where: MM is the devices from the 4 drop down lists. Check the boxes for the
manufacturer code in hexadecimal format (for example, variables you wish to graph (Figure 13).
3e for Smar) 3. Select the “Graph” button when are selected the
DD is the devices type code in hexadecimal format (for variables.
example, 01 for the LD301)
XXXXXX is the devices serial number in hexadecimal
format.
4. Open the text file

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fields.
NOTE:
Settings Start Stop Done
Only devices which support command 33 of the Button Button Button Button
HART specification will support custom selection of
Ymax
graphing variables. Devices which do not support
this command will only log the default variables as Variable List
Graphing
described previously and will not have access to the Window

Specific Monitor screen.

Ymin

Xmin Xmax
X Axis Scroll Buttons

Fig. 14. - Graphing Screen

Variable List - Located on the left side column, the

variable list provides information for each of the 4
graphed variables. The variable name, current value and
line color is shown for each variable. Graph Window -
This is the area where the 4 variables will be graphed.
Fig. 12. - Variable Selection
Each color corresponds to the appropriate variable in
NOTE: the Variable List.
At any time during the variable selection, the “Device
Ymax,Ymin,Xmax,Xmin - The X & Y scale for the Graph
Status” button may be selected to view the current
Window is based upon the minimum and maximum
device status information.
values as shown by Ymax, Ymin, Xmax and Xmin
respectively. To change the scale of the graph, select
the “Settings” button.

Settings Button - This button opens the setting screen

where the scale of the graph can be changed (Figure
15).The values for the vertical scale (Ymax,Ymin) and
the horizontal scale (Xmax, Xmin) can be edited by
entering a new value into the corresponding fields.
Once select “Done” to return to the graph screen. The
graph will reflect the scale that was entered.

Start Button - This button will start the graphing of the

selected variables.
Fig. 13. - Specific Monitor
Stop Button - This button will stop the graphing of the
Using Graphs selected variables.
Once the graphing variables have been chosen and the Done Button - To stop the graphing and exit the
“Graph” button has been selected, the graphing will graphing screen, select this button. The graphed data
proceed. An example of the graphing screen can be will automatically be saved to the palm.
seen in Figure 14 along with descriptions of its various

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X Axis Scroll Buttons - These two arrow shaped buttons

will scroll the X axis in the corresponding direction. This
is useful for graphs a large amount of trending data.

Fig. 16. - Offline Graphics File Selection

Fig. 15. - Settings Screen

Offline Graphing
The graphing data is automatically stored to the Palm
for review.

“Offline” graphs can be accessed from the polling

screen. Follow these steps to open and view an offline
graph:

1. From the main polling screen of HPCGraph, select the

“Offline Graphics” button.
2. A list of all currently available offline graphs will be Fig. 17. - Offline Graphics

displayed (Figure 16). Select a file and it will be loaded

(Figure 17). The offline graph files follow the following HPC301
naming convention: dMMDDXXXXXXgf where: The HPC301 software can be used to access devices in
MM is the devices manufacturer code in hexadecimal generic mode which do not currently have a loaded
format (for example, 3e for Smar) Device Driver in HPCOM. The usage of HPC301 is similar
DD is the devices type code in hexadecimal format (for to HPCOM. Simply poll for devices from the polling
example, 01 for the LD301) screen and navigate the device parameters. HPC301 can
XXXXXX is the devices serial number in hexadecimal access any HART device in generic mode as well as fully
format. support a collection of specific HART devices including
the full line of Smar HART devices. For more information
on the operation of the HPC301, contact Springfield
Research Corp.

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Springfield Research reserves the right to make changes to design and functionality of any product
without notice. Springfield Research does not assume any liability arising out of the application or
use of any product. Springfield Research logo is registered trademarks of Springfield Research.
HART is a registered trademark of the HART Communication Foundation.
© 2017 Springfield Research Corp. All rights reserved

Springfield Research Corporation

3350 NW 22nd Terrace Suite 500 • Pompano Beach, FL USA 33069
Tel: +1 (954) 657.8849 • Fax: +1 (954) 657.8895 • sales@springres.com •
www.springres.com

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