Progressive International Electronics PCXZ - Manual (Page 49)

Progressive International Electronics PCXZ
Version 4.2/April 2005 Page 41
PCXZinstall
T Have you run PIE’s diagnostics? Often when a dispenser/reader site is being upgraded with
a POS using our PCXZ, the dispensers and readers may have existing problems keeping them
from performing 100%. Don’t assume all problems during a POS start-up installation are
POS related. PIE supplies two simple diagnostic tools to help determine the location of the
problem — 1) PCC Demo Test Program, an external software utility, and 2) PCXZ built-in
diagnostic functions, accessed through the diagnostic port. See Dispenser Control Center Demo Test
Program and PCXZ Internal Diagnostics at the beginning of this section.
T Have dispensers/readers been initialized correctly? Some dispensers/readers behave
erratically when power-cycled during an installation or upgrade. You may need to power
down the dispensers/readers, wait 30 seconds, then power up the dispensers/readers to
initialize them correctly.
T Have counter-balances been implemented to identify erroneous hose totals? Some
dispensers may return erroneous hose totals or even no totals at all. It is recommended that
the POS application software generate its own running totals in addition to the dispenser
polled totals in case there are problems of this nature.
T Have new dispenser/reader batteries been installed? Dispensers/readers have a battery
backup system to allow them to retain setup information in case of a power failure.
Unfortunately the batteries in the dispenser are rarely replaced and therefore setup
information, such as dispenser/reader IDs, are lost during a power glitch. Many problems
can result from dead batteries, including the two immediately preceding this one.
T Is there fuel in all tanks? Are leak detectors falsely tripping? Make sure that there is fuel in
the tanks at the site for all products. Also, leak detectors on the submersible dispenser can
falsely trip, causing the dispenser to dispenser slowly or not at all. These two hydraulic
problems occur more frequently than one would believe. It always pays to check the obvious.
T Have circuit breakers been tripped or turned off? There are many circuit breakers at a
fueling site that control power to all the components of the dispensing system — POS,
controllers, DBoxes, dispensers/readers, submersible dispenser, etc. If any of these breakers
are tripped or turned off, the performance of the entire dispensing system is affected.
Furthermore, these breakers may be located in different places throughout the facility.
T Have you tested, using a step-by-step approach? The startup of a new installation can
present all kinds of problems that exhibit seemingly illogical situations. Multiple, layered
problems may exist, complicating the diagnosis. At this point it is wise to try to work with a
small portion of the site equipment, get that running correctly, then add additional equipment
to the overall system, step by step. As an example of this approach, try running only one
dispenser (such as dispenser ID 1) with the PCXZ controller and the PCC DEMO program.
Once this step has been completed successfully, continue to put additional dispensers in the
system. After all dispensers are responding correctly using this setup, exit the PCC DEMO
program and bring the POS application online. This approach will provide a way to
determine which problems exist and where they are located.