Cat® Terrain v7 for Grading and Loading Caterpillar

All Machines Position Message System

Usage:

- TER

Terrain uses an All Machines Position (AMP) message system to send messages between the onboard software and the office software. The AMP message system reduces the following:

Time taken for the office to formulate office position reporting messages, by using the All Machines Position (AMP) reporting method
Number of messages in the system, by using unacknowledged PR2 messages from the machine

The following sections discuss AMP-related warnings and explain the effect of machine state on AMP function:

Reference: For further information about using AMP messaging, refer to the MCU Help, "AMP Reference".

AMP Glossary

Valid Position - A valid position is any position with GNSS status higher than "Autonomous", meaning accuracy is less than 51.2m.

Next time to report - All messages, from the office or from the machine, include a "next time to report". The machine and office use this value to decide whether the machine and office are out of contact. The "next time to report" is the Position Distance Interval divided by the speed.

Heartbeat - A heartbeat is a message sent at regular intervals. The machine and office use heartbeats to decide if the machine and office are out of contact.

AMPTimeOut - A machine reports as "AMPTimeOut" when the machine does not receive an AMP message when expected. The office then declares the machine "AMPTimeOutReported" to all machines.

Loss of Heartbeat - The office declares the machine has "loss of heartbeat" when the office does not receive a PR2 message when expected.

Position and Radio Status

Show/hide table




Illustration 1	g03396186
Position and radio status buttons / icon on right-hand side of lower status bar (1) No GPS Position Status button (flashing) (2) Low GPS Position Status button (3) MineStar Network button (4) No Connection icon (developers/ testers only)

Show/hide table

Table 1
Position and Radio Status Buttons / Icon⁽¹⁾
#	Button / Icon	Notes
(1)	No GPS Position Status	The onboard software and the satellite receiver cannot communicate. No positioning is available. Select to open the "GPS Diagnostic" window. Act to return the position status to "DGPS", "Fixed", or "Float".
(2)	Low GPS Position Status	The position accuracy is low. The ideal number of satellites are not available for reliable positioning. Select to open the "GPS Diagnostic" window. Act to return position status to "DGPS", "Fixed", or "Float".
(3)	MineStar Network	Broadband radio communication to the office is unavailable. Select to open the "Communications Diagnostics" window. Any or all the following are missing: onboard radio, office radio, MineStar comms server, MineStar server. Act to return the radio status to operational.
(4)	No Connection	Loss of radio communications between G610 display module and the office PC (developers and testers only)

Show/hide table

⁽¹⁾	Refer to Illustration 1.

Using the Radio Network for AMP Messaging

Show/hide table

The Terrain software must complete several processes before the machine is safe to move. Do not start work until all start-up messages have cleared. Starting work before all of the processes are complete may result in serious injury or death. If a warning message does not clear, contact the office.

Show/hide table




Illustration 2	g02708517
Machine initializing

As the machine starts up, the onboard software warns the operator not to move as the machine initializes and checks for a valid position. The onboard software is checking the system that manages communication between the office and the machine. The white background indicates that the message will soon change. The onboard software then responds to actions in the following tables:

Show/hide table

Table 2
Action
The machine starts and checks the AMP status. If the software initializes correctly, the machine sends a valid position.
Outcome
The operator waits.

Show/hide table

Table 3
Action
The office receives a valid position.
Outcome
The office sends at least one AMP message to the machine. The AMP message contains a list of all the machines. The "Initializing..." warning clears.

Show/hide table

Position data is not accurate enough for precise positioning. Errors in positioning will cause the indicated machine position on the display to be incorrect. The actual position of the machine may not appear on the display of nearby machines. Moving the machine may result in personal injury or death. Use extreme caution when working in this area. Contact the office if the condition persists.

Show/hide table




Illustration 3	g03377614
Machine does not find valid position

Show/hide table

Table 4
Action
The machine did not find a valid position from the satellite receiver, and the accuracy is less than "Autonomous".
Outcome
The machine does not send a PR2 message.

Show/hide table




Illustration 4	g03377616
Waiting for AMP message from office

Show/hide table

Table 5
Action
The machine finds a valid position from the satellite receiver and sends a PR2 to the office. The machine waits for the AMP message from the office.
Outcome
The warning in illustration 4 remains on the screen while the onboard software has not received a full AMP message from the office. A full AMP is an AMP message with the flag "UpdatingAllMachines". The onboard software waits for the time defined in the $ Seconds to Request All Machine Position key. The onboard software then sends out an AMP request message to the office. If the message does not disappear, then the office software or the radio network has an issue that must be resolved. Contact the office.

AMPTimeOut

After receiving the initial AMP message, the machine must report to the office with or without a valid position. The machine uses the initial AMP message as the definitive list of all machines, even if the list includes unknown machines. The unknown machines take the Machine Type of 0 (zero) and the ID of 0 (zero).

The office then sends out AMP messages more frequently than the anticipated machine reporting interval. Each AMP message includes a "next time to report". The machine uses the "next time to report" to decide if the machine and office are out of contact.

If the machine does not receive an AMP message within the "next time to report" or with incorrect readings, the machine reports to the office as "AMPTimeOut". The office forwards the "AMPTimeOut" to all machines. No response is needed from those machines.

Machine Status in AMP Messaging

Status of Unknown Machines

If a machine has an unknown ID or machine type, the machine is included in the AMP message lists. The machine is listed as "Machine Type 0" and "ID 0". To resolve this error, use the office to update the onboard software when possible to include a new machine ID in the machines list.

Reference: Refer to Systems Operation, RENR9562, "Cat^® Terrain Office Software".

"OFF" or "ON" Machine Status

The AMP message system can list a machine as "OFF" or "ON". This information is not stored in the mach_cfg.txt file.

Examples of machines listed as "OFF" include:

Machines that are being configured
Machines that have sent a shutdown2 message to the office
Machines that have not shut down successfully, can be forced to "OFF", and the position updated manually
Machines that were forced "OFF"
Machines designated as "Infrastructure"

The machine listed as "OFF" appears on the display as an orange circle bisected with a verticle line. The office stops listing a machine as "OFF" after a short time. The office will include the machine in a list when responding to an AllMachinesPositionRequest message. The position of a machine that is "OFF" is altered by using Cat MineStar System.

"Infrastructure" Machine Status

The AMP message system can list a machine as "Infrastructure". This information is not stored in the mach_cfg.txt file. Use Cat MineStar System to insert a machine type in the machinetype.mwf file which marks machines as "Infrastructure".

Infrastructure includes semi-fixed objects such as light towers or radio access trailers.
Infrastructure does not appear on the display in v 4.1.

If the machine has no positioning system, the machine can be categorized as:

Stationary - Mark as "OFF". The machine cannot report a position.

Moving - For example, being towed. Mark as "ON". The tow vehicle reports the position to the office. The office manually enters position as the position of the machine.

If the machine has a positioning system, the machine can be categorized as:

Stationary - Mark as "OFF". Set "Position Time Interval" at every several minutes.

Moving - For example, moving more than a Position Distance Interval =10 m, but slowly or being towed. Set position reporting frequency less than for a machine categorized as Stationary.