TC-Log
Quick start guide
Version 1.0.4.1.
Date 1 may 2018

Tecnosoft s.r.l.
Via Galvani, 4, 20068, Peschiera Borromeo (MI) - ITALY
Tel.: +39 02 26922888 - Fax: +39 02 26922875
e-mail (support): assistance@tecnosoft.eu - web: tecnosoft.eu
Copyright © 2017 Tecnosoft s.r.l.
Neither the whole nor any part of the information contained in this manual, nor the product described in it may be adapted or
reproduced in any material or electronic form without the prior written consent of the copyright holder. This product and its
documentation are supplied on an as-is basis and no warranty as to their suitability for any particular purpose is either made or implied.
Tecnosoft s.r.l. will not accept any claim for damages howsoever arising as a result of use or failure of this product. Your statutory rights
are not affected. This product or any variant of it is not intended for use in any medical appliance, device or system in which the failureof the product might reasonably be expected to result in personal injury. This document provides preliminary information that may besubjected to change without notice. No freedom to use patents or other intellectual property rights is implied by the publication of thisdocument.

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Index
License agreement..................................................................................................................................2
TC-Log logger.........................................................................................................................................4
Description..............................................................................................................................................7
Software installation................................................................................................................................7
Troubleshooting.......................................................................................................................................9
Connecting the TC-Log logger................................................................................................................9
Tutorial 1 - Data acquisition: start and download the data logger.........................................................10
Tutorial 2 - Logger’s calibration.............................................................................................................11
Calibration with a dry well...............................................................................11
Calibration with a mission data.........................................................................12
Calibration from a file......................................................................................13
Running the software............................................................................................................................14
Toolbar area..................................................................................................14
Start.........................................................................................................14
Stop..........................................................................................................14
Chart.........................................................................................................14
Save.........................................................................................................14
Load..........................................................................................................14
Print..........................................................................................................14
Export.......................................................................................................15
Calibrate....................................................................................................16
Configuration area..........................................................................................17
Start at......................................................................................................17
Acquisition rate...........................................................................................17
Mission length............................................................................................17
Export folder..............................................................................................17
Options area..................................................................................................18
Temperature unit........................................................................................18
Print title...................................................................................................18
Print table..................................................................................................18
Data logger area............................................................................................18
Serial........................................................................................................18
Version......................................................................................................18
Status.......................................................................................................18
Battery......................................................................................................18
Memory.....................................................................................................18
Read.........................................................................................................18
Reset ROM.................................................................................................18
Thermocouples...........................................................................................18
Acquisition Graph area....................................................................................19
Current View Statistics.................................................................................19
Chart controls.............................................................................................20
Data Table area..............................................................................................21

License agreement
Read this license agreement thoroughly before using the Software. Using and copying this Software is subject to the acceptance of

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this agreement.
If you choose to refuse the following conditions, please delete the downloaded software or return the support where this Software issaved to the provider.
This agreement involves Tecnosoft srl, Peschiera Borromeo, Milano, Italy (henceforth called Tecnosoft) and the User (be it a physicalor juridical person) for the following software products (henceforth called Software): "TC-Log" and any software productaccompanying it.
Tecnosoft grants the user a revocable, non-exclusive, limited right to use a copy of the software on one or more computers provided
that the user accepts the following conditions.
1. User license. The Software is property of Tecnosoft and cannot be copied nor sold without the prior written authorization of
Tecnosoft. The Software is protected by Italian and European Laws and by International Treaties concerning intellectual
properties and copyright.
2. Exclusion of liabilities. Except for what stated by applicable laws, in no case can Tecnosoft be considered liable for damages orlosses, direct or indirect, including, but not limited to, loss or missing income, suspension of activities, loss of information or any
other monetary or economical damage, deriving from proper or improper use of the Software even if Tecnosoft has been advisedof the possibility of such damages. In any case, the responsibility of Tecnosoft for such damages will be limited to the price paid
for the Software. This clause is applied even if the User does not accept the license agreement of the Software.
3. Use of Software results. It is User's responsibility to check that results given by the Software are correct and appropriate. In
no case the Software should be used if such use can be threatening to the health or life of human beings. This clause is appliedeven if the User does not accept the license agreement of the Software.
4. Updates. If the Software is an update of a previous version, the license is transferred from the old version to the update. Only
the update can be used.
5. Separation of components. The Software is licensed as a single product. Components cannot be separated.
6. Limitations. The User cannot convert, decode, decompile or disassemble the Software, except for what is explicitly requested byapplicable laws.

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TC-Log logger
TC-Log is a temperature logger based on thermocouples. The logger comes in different versions: in a mini case without
sockets and in a big case and panel connectors (K, T or universal type).
TC-LOG 8 USB S

TC-LOG 8 USB / TC-LOG 8 K USB / TC-LOG 8 T USB+ = above- = below+

USB port

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USB port

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The old model was available in different versions: in a mini case without sockets and in a big case and panel connectors.
They accept any type of thermocouple and need an interface for PC connection.
TC-LOG 8 S+ = above- = below

TC-LOG 8+

ResetbuttonResetbuttonNot a USB
port

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TCL Interface

with TC-Log 8 S

with TC-Log 8

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Description
The TC-Log software is designed to handle the data acquired from the Tecnosoft TC-Log 8 data logger. The TC-Log 8
data logger is an acquisition system that records data from up to 8 thermocouple sensors.
Thermocouples may be purchased with or without a calibration certificate from Tecnosoft. If you purchase calibrated
thermocouple sensors you will be provided with a calibration certificate and a file containing calibration data for eachthermocouple.
Thermocouples can be read with or without loading the calibration file. A calibration procedure is implemented to allow theuser to adjust the thermocouple readings even on the field.

Software installation
To install the software please double click the Setup.exe file (with the disk icon) and the following window will open:

To proceed press Next.
Now the user can be choose where to install the software and if to install it for all users or for the current user only. Press
Next to proceed.

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To start the installation process choose Next. From now on, no options can be changed, the installation can only becompleted or aborted.

If necessary, administrator permissions will be requested, and the installation will complete.

Now, the drivers for the interface or the logger (if you have a TC-Log 8 USB) will be installed. Press Next to continue.

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Press Finish to complete the installation process.

Press Close to close the installation program.

Troubleshooting
If you have any problem with the data logger connection, disconnect the USB cable, wait for the cursor to stop spinningand reconnect the cable (you might need to do it multiple times). If the software is misbehaving, restart the program.

Connecting the TC-Log logger
Install and complete the software installation before connecting the TC-Log data logger to the PC.
The TC-Log data logger is connected to the PC via a USB interface.

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Tutorial 1 - Data acquisition: start and download the data logger
After installing the software, its icon can be found on the desktop (Tecnosoft icon). Connect the logger, eventually using
the interface, and then start the TC-Log software by double clicking on the icon.

Before starting a mission, one should be sure that (see reference number in the above image):
1. all and only the loggers that should be started are connected and visible in the window (scroll to the bottom incase some are hidden)
2. the logger's battery is charged and not depleted
3. the logger does not contain any data that has to be saved (save it before starting a new mission. See further toknow how to save data). All data that are present inside the logger will be overwritten at each start
4. all the channels that have to be recorded are checked (ticked checkbox in the upper right corner of every sensor).
If the checkbox is not ticked the sensor's data will not be recorded. To save space in the logger's memory
uncheck all the sensors that are not needed
5. the acquisition rate is set to the desired value
6. the Mission length is not shorter than necessary
7. if necessary, the mission start is delayed to wanted the time (it is not necessary to update it manually if themission should start immediately, since it will be done automatically)
Now the Start button can be clicked and the logger/s can be disconnected from its/their interface.
At the end of the mission, reconnect the loggers and the interfaces to the computer and start the program. The chart andthe table will show the new data. If it doesn't happen, click the Chart button.
The data can now be saved, printed and exported.
Every start will overwrite the previous mission’s data. The data, until a new mission is started, will remain in the logger's
memory and can be downloaded again.

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Tutorial 2 - Logger’s calibration
It is possible to calibrate all sensors at once (by pressing the Calibration button in the main window in the upper rightcorner) or to calibrate just one sensor alone (right click on the sensor itself).
The calibration process can be done in three ways:• with a dry well, executing the reads on the fly• with a mission's data
• with a calibration file provided by Tecnosoft

Calibration with a dry well

The calibration dialogue, which you can open clicking on the Calibrate button, shows in the upper left corner the serial of
the logger it is referring to (a window will open for each logger), a box in which you can enter the reference thermometer's
temperature and a list which will contain the calibration points.
The process’ steps are:• be sure that all the sensors that should be calibrated are enabled (the checkbox in the upper right corner of thesensor should be ticked)• insert the thermocouples in the dry well and wait for it to reach the desired temperature• type in the current temperature (REFERENCE TEMPERATURE) from the reference thermometer in proper field• click on Add >>• if you want to remove a point from the list select it and click << Remove• when the points have all been listed, click Calibrate• if you want to delete the calibration and restore the standard thermocouple's tables, click Reset

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Calibration with a mission data
This mode allows to use mission data to calibrate the logger. The mission must contain the data of all the sensors you
want to calibrate. During the mission the logger will record temperature steps. They need to be saved in a .txt file together
with their timestamps (example of format: 2017/09/22 23.54.10;110.034), one for each line in the .txt file.
The Calibrate button can now be clicked (top right of the main window, minding the logger being considered in thecalibration window) and then click Auto Calib. The software will ask for the .txt file previously mentioned. The mission's
data will be downloaded from the logger and the following window will be shown:

Each row in the table represents one temperature step (just like in the .txt file). To change the data taken from the mission
for a certain temperature step do as follows:• be sure to be in the correct tab (the sensor's number is the tab's title)• click on the table's row that needs to be changed• if necessary, select Zoom and keeping the left mouse button pressed drag the cursor on the chart to zoom
• click on Select and keeping the left mouse button pressed drag the cursor on the chart to change the mission's
data's selection• click Set
The Error column shows the difference between the reference temperature (Value) and the average of the reads(Average).
After the necessary adjustment click Ok button placed at bottom left corner of the graph itself. A confirmation dialogue will
open and the calibration will be written in the logger's memory. The same window as above will be shown with thecalibrated values and the errors corrected.

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Calibration from a file
If the thermocouples were provided with a calibration file, it can be used to apply a specific calibration.
Click Calibrate (top right in the main window) and click Load. After selecting the calibration file, the following window willopen:

On the left there are the sensors that can be calibrated, on the right the file content is listed.
A calibration, right list referred to a sensor’s number, is applied by selecting it and clicking the << button next to a sensor.
Alternatively you can apply all calibrations to the sensors as they are listed with the bigger << button next to thecalibrations themselves.

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Running the software
Starting the software this window will be shown:

Toolbar

Options

Configuration

Data logger

Data Table
Acquisition Graph

The software's main window is divided in six areas: Toolbar area, Configuration area, Options area, Data logger area,
Acquisition Graph area and Data Table area.

Toolbar area
At the top of the window, the toolbar contains the buttons used to trigger all actions required to manage the data logger.

Start
The Start button triggers the data logger acquisitions with the acquisition rate and mission length specified in the
Configuration area. Once the data logger is started the status of the data logger in the data logger area switches to
Recording.

Stop
The Stop button stops all the data loggers.

Chart
The Chart button will download the acquired data and refresh the graph in the Acquisition Graph tab, while also rebuilding
the data table.

Save
The Save button will export a loadable TC8 file containing the table. TC-Log will ask where to save the file.

Load
The Load button opens a window dialog that allows the user to choose what TC8 file to load. Its content will fill theacquisition graph and the data table. The user will be able to print the loaded mission by pressing the Print button and toexport an Excel copy of the table.

Print
The Print button will open the printer devices dialog, allowing the user to choose and configure a printer. The print preview
window will appear after the settings confirmation, displaying all the pages that will be printed and their layout. The user
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will then be able to print a copy of the document.

In the first page you will find the statistics taken from the graph (the zoomed view if present) and the mission's statistics,
depending on the devices synchronization (if they all have the same start date and time and the same acquisition ratethey will be lumped together, otherwise the statistics will be shown on a per-device basis). Below the statistics there willbe the graph (if it was zoomed in the program there will also be an unzoomed version at the bottom). If the Print Table
checkbox in the Options area was selected, the pages after the first one will show the data table. The thermocouples that
weren't enabled in the graph won't be shown. A cell in the table will be empty if no value for the thermocouple is available
at the corresponding time.

Export
The Export button is used to save an Excel file that contains a copy of the data table.

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Calibrate
The Calibrate button is used to calibrate thermocouples. When clicking on the button the following window will be
displayed (once for each logger):

This window can be used to load the Tecnosoft calibration file for given sockets and calibrated thermocouples.
To load the Tecnosoft calibration file press the Load button. After selecting the calibration file (.tcc) the following window
will be displayed:

On the left you will find a box for each socket present on the TC-Log data logger (the fields will be empty for sensors thathave been disabled in the main window). On the right side a list of calibrated thermocouples will be available. Drag thecalibrated thermocouple on the socket or select one and use the association buttons to assign it (use single << buttons tomove a single sensor or the collective << button to move all the sensors in the listed order, if they are connected in thesame order on the data logger).
The calibration dialogue lets the user apply an additional correction to the thermocouples. To apply the additionalcorrection all the thermocouples must be inserted in a calibration device such as a thermostatic bath or a dry well, with areference thermometer. Once the temperature in the bath/well is constant insert the temperature value from yourreference instrument in the left field and press Add >>. One or more reference temperatures can be added to adjust
calibration on the field. When finished press Calibrate to write the correction factors to the thermocouples.
The Reset button will restore the default calibration.
The calibration window can be recalled for a single thermocouple by clicking the right mouse button on the thermocouple
box (green box for K type thermocouples in the main window) and selecting Calibrate.
The Auto Calib button will let the user calibrate the thermocouples for multiple points by having a mission's data and thereference thermometer's data. The reference temperature and the corresponding time (yyyy/MM/dd
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HH.mm.ss;000.00) have to be written in a .txt file which will be loaded by the program. The following window will beshown:

By selecting a row in the table, the user can modify the considered time span when calculating the data by dragging the
cursor on the graph with the left mouse button clicked. Pressing the Set button the row will be modified with the newvalues. To apply the calibration press Ok. By closing the window the calibration will be discarded. If the calibration
succeeded a new window will then be shown with the calibrated values.

Configuration area
The Configuration area contains the settings used to start and capture data.

Start at
The data loggers can be started with a delay. This control allows the user to set the time at which the data loggers will bestarted. If the set time is too soon or in the past the program will correct it automatically. The data loggers can be
detached after the start of the mission.

Acquisition rate
The acquisition rate can be adjusted to acquire data more or less frequently. A warning will be displayed if the set value is
too low for the logger to be able to comfortably record it. If the acquisition rate is set too low the timing of the acquisitions
could be earlier than what it should be.

Mission length
Set here the duration of the mission: when the time is elapsed the acquisition will stop (suggestion: set a wide margin on
the real mission duration).

Export folder
The export folder is the path where the software will save the exported files. It can be changed during the process.

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Options area
The Options area contains the settings used to configure the program.

Temperature unit
The temperature unit, when changed, converts the readings of the thermocouples in the selected unit of measure, also
redrawing the graph and the table.

Print title
Set here the title of the printed document. It will be displayed in the print preview.

Print table
This checkbox selects whether a table containing all the data from the graph should be printed and shown in the preview.
The table contains the same data as the graph.

Data logger area
The data logger area contains information about the data logger. If the data logger area is empty check the USB
connection and the connection between the logger and the interface.
When a data logger is connected the following information is shown:

Serial
It is the serial number of the data logger.

Version
It is the firmware version of the data logger.

Status
The status of the data logger can be:• stopped if a download process has been executed• recording if a mission has been started• waiting for [date] if the logger has to wait before getting the first acquisition• failure, if it was reset (it is still operational)

Battery
The battery status will display the actual battery charge. If the battery status turns red the battery is low and must be
replaced soon.

MemoryThe memory use is displayed in red. The maximum number of acquisitions depends on how many thermocouples areenabled. With all 8 thermocouples the available memory will be of a maximum of 4352 readings.

Read
The read button will execute a reading of all enabled thermocouples. If the real time checkbox is ticked the readings willkeep being executed at the set acquisition rate, filling the table and the graph with data. It is recommended to set an
acquisition rate of at least five seconds.
Temporary files will be saved in the default folder as a backup.

Reset ROM
By pressing the right mouse button on the logger a context menu will be shown. It allows the user to reset the logger's
internal memory, in case there had been problems when writing it in precedence. This will delete all calibrations.

Thermocouples
Every socket of the TC-Log 8 is displayed as a box numbered as the labels on the data logger. On the upper right of eachbox a checkbox can be switched on and off to enable or disable the thermocouple.
Note: disabled thermocouples will be not recorded.
By pressing the right mouse button on a thermocouple the single sensor can be calibrated.
The text at the top is the name of the table that the sensor is using. It either represents the thermocouple's type andelements or the thermocouple's serial, its type, the sensor's number and the caibration's creator (user/Tecnosoft).

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The sensor is presented like this:The color remarks the thermocouple's type.
By pressing the right mouse button on the sensor this will be shown:••

Calibrate: the calibration window will be shown for the single sensor, so that it can be calibrated individually.
Choose thermocouple type: it allows the user to change the thermocouple's table.

Acquisition Graph area
The Acquisition Graph area contains the graph that displays the acquisition data and the controls to manipulate the chart
itself.
Press the left mouse button and drag the cursor on the chart to select an area to be zoomed. To undo this action roll themouse wheel backwards (towards the user) to gradually decrease the zoom level. To go back by one step in the zoomed
view use the buttons at the end of the graph's scroll bars can be used.

Current View Statistics

The current view statistics section allows for the automatic calculation of the graph's main statistics, like its highest
temperature, its lowest temperature, the average temperature, the difference between the highest temperature and thelowest temperature and the cursor's statistics.
By clicking the Calculate Stats button the program will highlight the timespan that goes from the Start Date Time until
the End Date Time, extracting the highest value, the lowest value and calculating the delta and the average. If athermocouple is disabled it will not be held in consideration.
By clicking on a point in the graph the Selected Date and the Selected Thermocouple's temperature will be displayed.

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Chart controls

When the thermocouples are used to measure the temperature on moving parts that reach a given position at different
times, it makes sense to shift graphs in time before visually comparing them.
Select a data logger or individual thermocouples and set an amount of time. Click the Set button to shift the selected
graphs by the set amount. The amount can also be negative. The Reset button will restore the selected thermocouple's
original position.
In the Series Control section the user can enable or disable each individual thermocouple or all the thermocouples of adevice. A disabled thermocouple won't be counted when calculating the minimum/maximum/average values and it won't
be displayed in the printed table.

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Data Table area

The Data Table area displays the graph's data in a table format. When printing, if the option to print the table is selected a
copy of this table will be printed.

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