DataTrak Software

[mweitz]

Depending on your tanks and how their program works.

The reality is that if it knows your service pressure, your tank size and how much gas you consumed it will come pretty close, even with an overfill, because the ratio of gas / PSI stays fairly close even on overfills. The real issue is that tanks have different volumes, and it doesn't take that into account.

I'm emailing back and forth with them, but their tech support doesn't get it .... or I don't

Mark

 

[mweitz]

Aha, I got the answer:
This is an email from the GM of Uwatec, reposted with permission:

The issue you found is due to the fact that DataTrak was developed in Europe at the time when Uwatec was not present on the US market yet, and hence the programmers were not aware of the US habit to define tanks by their volumes at full pressure. For Europeans, the issue is simpler because tanks are defined by their empty volume, i.e. for instance 15 liters for a 95 cuft tank. So every unit of pressure amounts to a determined standard volume of gas at reference conditions (typically atmospheric).

In the US manner, as you point out, by defining a tank by its full volume, you need to specify also the pressure at which that volume is achieved. Datatrak is not programmed to accept a second entry, so a standard pressure was assigned and this causes miscalculations for most tanks (I think it uses 3000psi but I could be wrong, don’t have the info in front of me).

We remedied to this in the SmartTRAK software. In this, you can either define tanks by their empty volume (which will require one data entry only) or by their full volume, and SmartTRAK will ask you for volume AND pressure. Either way, the calculation turns out the same numbers.

For you to be able to correctly calculate your SAC rate, you have three options:

1) use DataTrak but enter the actual volume of gas in the tank (ratio of actual pressure to operating pressure times rated volume)

2) switch Datatrak to metric and enter the empty volume (an aluminum 80 is a 10l tank)

3) download SmartTrak from www.uwatec.com (free download), then import your DataTrak logbook into SmartTrak and use its many features. You will still have to download the dives from the dive computer to the PC via the memomouse and DataTrak, but you can then use the SmartTrak interface for editing the information.

A confirmation of the validity of the SmartTrak model is the following: we have recently released a 3gas computer, the Smart TEC, which can also receive tank data from 3 transmitters. So on a typical dive with a 15l/95cuft main tank, and a 5l/30cuft pony bottle, during the dive the diver switches from a large tank to a small one, but once you enter all the information in SmartTrak, you will see a constant SAC (assuming of course that the actual breathing rate in the dive does not change). I am including a logbook example (black vertical lines denote gas switch).

Please don’t hesitate to contact me if you have further questions or comments.



Dive safe,

Sergio

Dr. Sergio Angelini

General Manager

Uwatec AG

 

[mweitz]

As a follow up, I did install the Smart Trak software. It is pretty cool, but it did lose three of my dives in the import. I'll figure out what happened to them over the weekend. The good news is, if you use a HP tank your SAC is a little better than you thought it was as far as I can tell.

Mark

 

[mweitz]

So, I imported the wrong file, long story, but I got my three dives.

The SmartTrak software is pretty darn cool compared to the DataTrak. Better interface, a lot more fields, places to put photos and such. It really acts more like a little database. Nifty little application for a free download to use as a computer based logbook (just back it up).

It is a bit of a PITA to get your new dives into it. You still have to D/L them into DataTrak, but when you do subsequent dives, it just picks up the new ones when you do the import into SmartTrak, pretty cool.

Mark

 

[Corigan]

It is a bit of a PITA to get your new dives into it. You still have to D/L them into DataTrak, but when you do subsequent dives, it just picks up the new ones when you do the import into SmartTrak, pretty cool.

I noticed that the other day when I tried to come in and download my dives straight into SmartTrak. I had to go into my old datatrak and import into it since the memomouse seems to have been phased out in the SmartTrak (big suprise). Definately a better software package. I like how you can customize everything in there and add your own headings. The buddy partner list with pictures, fish id list, and of course the tank list being fully configurable is a nice touch.

Matt