Introduction to IRIS Utilities

IRIS utilities help you manage IRIS system and software. You can configure, calibrate, monitor and test the signal processor, radar, and antenna separately. You can also configure IRIS separately.

While some you can run some utilities while IRIS is running, this is not recommended and usually unnecessary.

IRIS Utilities
Utility Run with IRIS Description
Antenna

Provides monitoring and control for the RCP antenna controller.

Allows keyboard/mouse control of the antenna and radar transmitter/receiver/servo system for testing and verification.
Ascope -

General purpose data plotting and radar control program where you can display up to 4 plots from the available parameters:

  • Reflectivity against range
  • Velocity against range
  • Spectrum width against range
  • Log, I and Q RAW A/ D samples against range
  • Log, I and Q time series at a selectable range
  • Doppler spectrum at a selectable range

    Useful for diagnosing problems in the Doppler receiver.

Used to align the LOG and LINEAR channel A/D converters, verify the system overall, and provide an alternative radar control program for changing pulse width, PRF, clutter filters and data thresholding.
Bitex Provides detailed configuration and observation of the information reported by the Built-In Test Equipment (BITE).
Dspx - Helps to debug interface hardware to the signal processor, or debug new software you are developing using the signal processor.
Overlay Edit and display overlay maps that you develop, so that you can see how they appear when displayed on the real-time display or other products.
Setup -

Configures the radar software for the characteristics of the radar, such as the number of pulse widths, the duty cycle limits, the radar wavelength, antenna gain, transmit power, and similar.

Run this utility first.
Zauto -

Calibrates the slope and offset of a test signal within a linear range.

This information is stored in a file and used during programmed radar collection.
Zcal Modifies the calibration file.
IRIS Utilities by Function
Function Radar/Antenna Signal Processor

Configuration

Run configuration utilities after installation or after software and hardware updates.

 Setup Setup, Dspx

Calibration

Fine-tune the system so that it generates the most accurate data possible.

Run calibration utilities periodically or if there is a change to the system hardware.

 - Ascope, Zauto, or Zcal

Monitoring and Testing

Overseeing day-to-day system operation to make sure that it continues to function properly.

Monitoring and testing is ongoing. Run these utilities regularly or when problems arise.

 Antenna, Bitex Ascope, Dspx