Ambient WS-2080 RF Reset?
Posted: Sun 03 Dec 2017 8:56 pm
Folks-
Wondering if anyone has come up with a clever way to reset the RF connection on an Ambient WS-2080?
I've been working on a Python script to monitor various things to try to make my weather station, running Cumulus MX on a Pi3, handle various failure modes. It monitors the Diag log for "Sensor contact lost" and that happens to the WS-2080 more often than I would like. (The transmitter is a bit under 100' away, well within the 300' max. It seems rather sensitive to the orientation of the console**.)
At any rate the manual says one can press and hold the [down] key for 5 seconds, and then wait several minutes. My watchdog also monitors a old web cam that needs to be power-cycled periodically when it hangs, so I have a 2 relay module with a free relay at my disposal. I've not yet cracked the case of the WS-2080, but I'm thinking I could put the relay contacts across the down key / button if I can find connections.
I'd be interested in a solution that doesn't involve hacking the console, but I've not thought of one. Any ideas?
Cheers,
Bob
** I've tinkered with various orientations of the console. What I had in mind was to wall-mount it next to the Pi. It seems like it drops the RF link considerably less often if I simply put it on my desk in the same vicinity - more or less horizontal. Since I've not taken it apart, I'm not sure if I could spot the antenna - or if there might be a way to change it. I'd guess it might be just a trace on the PC board. (At 433 MHz a quarter-wave antenna would be longer than the largest dimension of the console; ~174 mm.)
Wondering if anyone has come up with a clever way to reset the RF connection on an Ambient WS-2080?
I've been working on a Python script to monitor various things to try to make my weather station, running Cumulus MX on a Pi3, handle various failure modes. It monitors the Diag log for "Sensor contact lost" and that happens to the WS-2080 more often than I would like. (The transmitter is a bit under 100' away, well within the 300' max. It seems rather sensitive to the orientation of the console**.)
At any rate the manual says one can press and hold the [down] key for 5 seconds, and then wait several minutes. My watchdog also monitors a old web cam that needs to be power-cycled periodically when it hangs, so I have a 2 relay module with a free relay at my disposal. I've not yet cracked the case of the WS-2080, but I'm thinking I could put the relay contacts across the down key / button if I can find connections.
I'd be interested in a solution that doesn't involve hacking the console, but I've not thought of one. Any ideas?
Cheers,
Bob
** I've tinkered with various orientations of the console. What I had in mind was to wall-mount it next to the Pi. It seems like it drops the RF link considerably less often if I simply put it on my desk in the same vicinity - more or less horizontal. Since I've not taken it apart, I'm not sure if I could spot the antenna - or if there might be a way to change it. I'd guess it might be just a trace on the PC board. (At 433 MHz a quarter-wave antenna would be longer than the largest dimension of the console; ~174 mm.)