Missioning iButtons

iButton 2 Excel provides a simple and efficient way to mission iButton devices. Missioning is the name of the process where iButton devices are set up for a particular experiment or trial.

With iButton 2 Excel you can specify the start time for an experiment as well as the sampling rate. Additionally we also provide a way to write a Tag to the device for easier identification. This Tag can include a prefix and suffix, as well as an automatic incrementing number. The great thing about this custom tag is you can use it to physically label the iButtons and when it comes to downloading the tag will also be captured and exported along with the data to excel.

Like downloading, there are two modes of operation, Manual and Automatic. Both modes work by first inserting an iButton into the standard reader which can be purchased from Digikey here.

Manual missioning is achieved by clicking the Mission button on the main toolbar. You will get feedback in the Missioning panel down the bottom of the main screen. It will say “Missioning Device” which indicates the instructions are being written to the iButton. Following this it will say “Mission Started” indicating that the iButton is carrying out the mission you programmed.

Automatic mode is basically the same except there is no user action needed to mission the device. Just plug the iButton in missioning will begin. To enable automatic mode toggle the “Auto Mission” button. Be careful as automatic (and manual) missioning will cause the iButton to reset its buffer and any data on the iButton will no longer be retrievable.

The interface below shows the missoning panel in iButton 2 Excel. The “Previous Tag” and “Next Tag” buttons increment and decrement the tag number. The “Auto-increment Tag” checkbox will automatically increase the tag number each time an iButton is missioned.

The sampling rate can be adjusted from 1 to 255 minutes.