Manually Measure Drag on TracStar® iSeries Machines

by Dustin Wilson
Posted in Articles & Job Stories, CONNECTIONS, INFUSION
This article was featured in the November 15, 2022 issue of McElroy Connections.
A construction worker wearing a safety vest and hard hat operates a McElroy machine with a large black pipe, using a control panel with a touchscreen outdoors.

Measure drag pressure manually on TracStar® iSeries machines

The ability to manually measure drag on TracStar iSeries machines is available now. Introduced in the April 2022 software update (DataLogger® version 119, 1.26 and Carriage Control Module version 1.033) the new option can add functionality at all FusionGuide™ levels once enabled.

Measuring drag manually is most effective for dynamic drag scenarios such as:

  • Situations in which the location along the guide rods is critical for proper drag measurement. The manual drag feature allows the user to control the position at which drag is measured.
  • Jobsites on terrain that is uneven or has extreme inclines/bends.

Enable Manual Drag

A tablet screen displays the TRACSTAR 900i DataLogger interface with large START, REPORTS, and SETTINGS buttons, a vault warning icon, 3 reports logged, 110% battery, and the McElroy logo at the bottom.
Fig. 1
A digital interface for iSeries Management shows configuration settings for a TracStar® 900i HF machine, including machine details, temperature offset, and various toggle options on a dark background.
Fig. 2
  1. From the Start menu on the DataLogger app tap the TracStar iSeries logo in the upper left-hand corner (Fig. 1) to access the “iSeries Management” menu (Fig. 2)
  2. From the “iSeries Management Menu” (Fig. 2), tap “YES” on “Allow Manual Drag” to enable the manual drag process setting
A digital interface displays interfacial pressures for bead, soak, and fuse at 75, 0, and 75 PSI. Drag pressure is 34 PSI. Options to measure drag, view previous drag, or measure manually are shown.
Fig. 3

Measure Drag

  1. Follow the guided workflow on the DataLogger to log a joint. Once the “Pressures” menu appears (Fig. 3) press the “Measure Drag Manually” button.
  2. Move the carriage to the desired position to measure drag. Typically, 1.5“ to 2” from the pipe ends.
  3. Tap the “Measure Drag Manually” button (Fig. 3)
  4. On the “Manual Drag” screen (Fig 4), the carriage position as reported by the carriage linear transducer is reported on the far left. This gives the operator an improved view to observe carriage movement beyond a visual indication. The dial in the middle and set of up/down arrow buttons on the right control the power. Power can be increased by dragging the slider on the dial clockwise or by using the up/down arrow buttons.
A digital interface for Manual Drag showing a slider set to 223 mm, a confirm button, up/down arrows, and status indicators for sensor connection and battery at 10%.
Fig. 4
  1. To enable the dial on this screen the carriage position lever must be set to the closed position. The up/down arrow buttons will light up as a confirmation. (Fig. 5)
  2. Once the carriage position lever is locked in the closed position the operator can increase power until movement is observed.
  3. When the desired drag is reached as determined by the operator, return the lever to the center position. Drag has not been calculated at this point. An automatic process must run to determine the actual drag pressure, meet point, slip check, and fusion pressure values. When the lever is returned to center a “Confirm Drag” button will be enabled. (Fig. 6)
A digital interface for manual drag adjustment shows a drag value of 73 MM, a circular slider, arrows for adjustment, and a Confirm Drag button. Instructions appear at the top with McElroy branding at the bottom.
Fig. 5
A touchscreen interface for MANUAL DRAG displays a slider set to 74 mm, a circular control, up and down arrows, and a CONFIRM DRAG button. Text and controls are on a black background with green accents.
Fig. 6
  1. Select the “Confirm Drag” button (Fig. 6) to begin the automatic portion of the process. Once “Confirm Drag” is selected the operator will need to confirm the manual drag measurement is complete on the DataLogger, then confirm the automatic movement by pressing the confirmation button on the keypad (Fig. 7-8).
A tablet screen displays a Manual Drag adjustment interface with a popup asking, Is manual drag adjustment complete? and two buttons labeled No and Yes. The Confirm Drag button is partially visible behind.
Fig. 7
A tablet screen displays a “Drag Measurement in Progress” pop-up with various icons, a large green checkmark, and a “Cancel Drag Measurement” button over a pressure measurement interface.
Fig. 8
  1. The auto process will now begin.
  2. Once complete the user will be taken to the main drag measurement screen and the measured drag pressure will be presented to the user.
  3. The operator can now proceed with the fusion process.

For more assistance, contact McElroy Technical Support
(918) 831-9224
techsupport@mcelroy.com

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