CIRCUITWERKES: Sicontroller Overview

The Sicontroller interface is designed to make setup extremely quick and easy. The setup menu for an 8 channel Sicon-8 can be easily completed in 15 to 30 minutes. A 32 channel Sicon-8 can be done in just a little longer. Setting up multiple sites is as easy as saving the current configuration and importing it to as many sites as you desire and making any site specific changes that might be necessary.

Double clicking on any meter in the main interface pops up just that channel's meter & controls. This form can be resized from very tiny to full screen. The main Sicontroller can be minimized to the system tray while one or more single meters are left open.

The CircuitWerkes Sicontroller interface software for the Sicon-8 remote control

The FREE Sicontroller program lets you monitor, control and setup your Sicon-8 from any PC equipped with a serial port or a USB-to-serial adaptor. The Sicontroller program also works with serial-to-Ethernet converters and can be used locally or over a network or the Internet. You can monitor a Single Sicon-8, or many different Sicon-8s using the tabs in the Sicontroller program. A special multi-site grid view shows users of multiple units a quick overview of each site. In addition to basic setup and control, the Sicontroller adds extra features, not found in the hardware such as sending e-mails during alarm conditions & automatically syncronizing the Sicon-8's clock to your local PC.

Below: Sicontroller with a single big meter

Below: Multiple single windows with main program minimized.

Configuring Sicon-8 hardware is made simple through the Sicontroller's intuitive interface.

Basic channel setup is shown below. All major parameters can be setup or changed for every channel

Labels for all controls, meters, and status inputs are configurable and can be stored in the software and/or uploaded to the Sicon-8 hardware. Labels and settings that are stored only in the software can be saved and used to configure multiple sites. Only after uploading the settings do they actually take effect in the Sicon-8 hardware. Additionally, configurations and labels from existing Sicon-8s can be downloaded and saved locally for backup purposes or to create a template for multiple station programming.

Site setup takes you through almost every programmable option for your Sicon-8, including many that are not available via DTMF. The top part of the site setup menu does not change and includes "universal" settings such as time constants and general setup switches.

Below the universal settings are tabs that give you access to the detailed settings for the Sicon-8's various functions.

The Sicon-8's event scheduler can be programmed to log readings at a specific time or at periodic intervals. In addition, readings are logged whenever an alarm or control event occurs. The Sicon-8 stores about a week's worth of logs in a FIFO buffer so that the oldest readings are continously flushed as new ones are made. In addition to the usual metering/status logs, the Sicon-8 keeps a record of any internal errors in a separate file that you can download and review.

The Sicontroller interface features tabs that support multiple sites. By clicking different site tabs, you can switch from one site to another. In addition, multiple instances of the Sicontroller software can be run so that different cities or companies can each be displayed in their own program.

Using the Sicontroller Software to set up audio/voice responses in the Sicon-8

One of the most tedious jobs in most talking remote controls is setting up the voice responses. The Sicontroller software makes this task
"so simple a caveman could do it". Ooops. Sorry. That one's already been used by someone else's product. But easy it is.

All you have to do is get your words into individual WAV or MP3 files. You can then drag and drop them from whatever directory they are in to the programming grid. You can preview the words or phrases as you go using your PC's speakers. You can also cause the Sicon-8 to playback whatever audio is currently stored in each memory location.

Once you have all of the words in place, you can program individual lines, groups of words or the entire array at once. The entire task takes only minutes to complete (once you have your words recorded, of course). Many of the most common English words are already recorded for you and are supplied with the Sicontroller program. Changing the voice responses to other languages is as easy as recording your own prompts and uploading them to the Sicon-8.

Visit The Sicontroller Download page.

Sicontroller channel main setup	Calibrating meters is super easy with Sicontroller. Just put in the value that the sample represents, make up a Units label, set the voice label & click "apply".	Setting meter alarms & actions
Setting status alarms & actions	Channels 1-6 relay setup	Channels 7 & 8 relay setup