Manual | Software | Installation | Tips | ZM Data Plotter
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ZM30 Antenna Analyzer
RESOURCE PAGE
Manual | Back to Top
The Users Manual contains full operational description and instructions on using the ZM30 Antenna Analyzer.
Download
ZM30 Users Manual
ZM30 Software | Back to Top
ZM30 Software Update Version 6.0g [Right-click on link and "Save as.." to download]
(Aug 1, 2010)
- Removed the "No DDS Signal" check from Calcs
- Updated Z and R computation accuracy in Calcs.asm
- Added Start_Freq and End_Freq to EEPROM, thus allowing Frequency and Band recall on start-up and initial Scan PB
- Removed unnecessary references to 6m and VHF freqs in Band selections
- Removed "Step Size" in SETUP (already done when selecting Custom Band setting in the Band menu)
- Removed "Set Debug" and "Monitor" from SETUP menus
- Removed Debug Mode state in View Settings
- Added display of Band setting in View Settings.
[Don't forget to select Setup ==> Default Settings to keep internal memory in sync with new software load.]
After loading a new software update, re-calibrate your ZM30 using the proceedure in Appendix C, page 24 of the ZM 30 Manual (download above)
Software
Installation Guide | Back to Top
The Software Installation Guide can be found in Appendix B, pages 21 through 23 of the ZM30 Manual (download above).
Tips & Tricks | Back to Top
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Discharge Antenna Static
-- Antennas can develop large static electric charges of sufficient voltage to damage
the MOS devices in the front end of the ZM30. It is an absolute necessity to discharge any antenna before connecting it to the ZM30. Do this by shorting the shell and center pin of the coax connector to each other, and then to ground. If using ladder line, short the two wires to each other and then to ground.
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Default
Settings -- It is a good practice to select Setup ==>
Default Settings after loading new software onto your ZM30. This
brings back most settings to the standard/default state for normal
operation. This is also a handy menu selection to bring back all settings
to the default state after selecting many alterations during a measurement
session. (Note: This menu selection does not affect
Calibration data, so you do not need to recalibrate after selecting
Default Settings.)
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Custom
Band Scan -- If you wish to scan a band of requencies whose
start/end frequencies are not already available in the menu selections,
you can set the custom Star and End frequencies in the Setup menu. Once
you exit Setup, you must then select Band ==> Custom Band in order for
those new Start/End frequencies to take effect when the Scan button is
pressed.
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Finding
Resonance -- Once you have found the minimum SWR for the antenna
system being measured while manually adjusting in Impedance mode or after
automatically scanning, you may wish to drop the frequency dial resolution
down to a lower increment in order to more precisely determine the
resonance frequency. Press and hold the Dial while turning to move
the cursor to a lower point in the display and continue adjusting the
frequency while monitoring the SWR display.
ZM
Data Plotter | Back to Top
Download ZM Data Plotter (ZIP file)
Note: Complete instructions for using the ZM30 Plot MS Excel® macro can be found in Appendix E, page 29-34, of the ZM30 Manual (download above).
Here is a wonderful little MS Excel® macro program that takes the scan data produced by the ZM30 Antenna Analyzer and automatically generates a plot of the SWR, Resistance and Reactance. By a simple keystroke and pointing to the previously-uploaded data file, the macro generates a colorful scaled graph such as this one that shows the results from a multiband dipole:
Screen shot of Excel Data Plotter
2-30 MHz scan of K7SBK multiband dipole
using ZM30 and the MS Excel® Plot macro
Note all the useful data shown in the
plot: major resonance at 14 MHz, interesting minor resonances at the SWR dips
at 5 and 24 MHz, interesting behavior of resistance and reactance at various
frequencies, and especially on either side of the resonances.
DESCRIPTION
The TeraTerm "log" function
allows you to write a ZM30 data file to anywhere on your PC and name it
anything you like very easily.
ZM30plot is an MS Excel® workbook containing a macro that goes and gets these
files and imports them into MS Excel®. It then plots a graph of the data and
the macro subsequently terminates leaving you inside MS Excel® to do what you want
with the graph and data.
It can handle multiple data sets on separate MS Excel® sheets and then the whole
thing can be saved as a workbook containing the graphs and datasets.
The workbook and its macro is written in MS Excel® 2003.
OPERATION
1) Getting the ZM30 scan data
into the PC
When you bring up TeraTerm, select "Log" under
the File menu and select a filename and location where you want your data file
to go. Then just get your scan data from the ZM30 in the normal way ...
connect it to the PC with your serial cable, select the Data Option "Send
during scan" on the ZM30, and then hit the Scan button! The data sent to the PC and shown on the screen will be saved to the file you specified
when you close TeraTerm.
2) Displaying the plot of your
antenna scan
Double-click on the ZM30plot.xls file on your PC, which
will bring up MS Excel® and load the worksheet. (You may need to select the
"Allow macro execution" button if it pops up in Excel when you run
the program.) A message will be shown in the workbook saying "ZM30
Data Plotter: CTRL m to select input file". Press Control and M at
the same time and a dialog box will come up for you to navigate to the data
file you just created from the scan. Once you select it, a chart of the
scan data will be displayed. You can print the chart or save it as a
unique filename, like the name of your antenna or date of the scan.
Caution: Don't change the read
only property on the workbook file and then save a 'used' workbook back on
top of it - it can result in a real mess :-)
ZM30 Plot is a great way to archive graphic results of one's antenna work.
This is a plot of the dummy antenna that
N2APB uses during ZM30 development.
