In this blog, I will be demonstrating what the WXsmart and WCU are like to use, the array of settings that can be changed, the process of updating firmware and what the whole set-up looks like on my review bench.
Table of Contents
WXsmart User Interface & Settings
The WXsmart (WXS) base unit is the brains of the WXsmart system and it is completely driven by a touch screen user interface. Key safety and set-up information is available in the WXsmart station booklet and most of the menus are illustrated in their WXsmart Menu document, both of which can be downloaded from their website.
By default, the unit will be at the home screen which shows the tools connected to each channel and detected/selected tips, the set-point and current temperatures, the instantaneous power as a column graph, time to sleep, time, network connectivity and bench-top tools detected.
A single swipe in either left or right direction will take you to the respective channel settings for that channel, allowing for you to change the current temperature either to a preset, or by incrementing/decrementing the value by pressing on the arrow keys. The channel can also be turned off. There are shortcuts to tip settings and tool settings from this screen.
In the case of tool settings for supported tools, this includes the ability to change the LED ring light colour, making for easy immediate visual identification of tool especially when multiple handpieces of the same type may be used.
A further swipe in the same direction brings you to the power graph which shows the supplied power to the channel as a percentage, and the temperature as reported by the tool.
Swiping up on the home screen brings you to the bench screen which illustrates the connected bench devices. In this case, I built an additional 6p6c roll-over cable to attach the WCU to the second serial port, thus both WXair and WCU are showing.
Similar to the home screen, a left or a right swipe will bring you to the respective benchtop tool page – in the case of the WXair and a hot air tool, this allows you to configure the percentage of air; in the case of the WCU, it is a graph showing recorded WCU temperatures.
Swiping down from the home screen opens up the settings screen which consists of many icons. Blue-labelled icons can be pressed, while white-labelled icons are locked out. This may be because of a restricted user account, not having appropriate devices connected or because it is a paid option requiring licenses.
Individual menus often follow the convention of a scrollable left half with a list of options and the right-half being used to show and manipulate values. The station keeps a track of a lot of variables and is quite configurable!
Here are examples of tool settings which are available, showing that almost everything is customisable and that information about calibration, use and production is recorded within each tool for traceability.
There is a “solder drop” counter, but somehow, I don’t seem to find it triggering accurately. There is no documentation about this as far as I know.
The station has the ability to set up user accounts with limited access, preventing changes to station settings to ensure process compliance. It doesn’t necessarily preclude a station from being used, as it seems the channels are still in the last state on power-up, but the UI will not be usable without logging in or having an account log-in by default. The entry of text is performed with the on-screen keyboard, but as the touch targets are relatively small, I found text entry to be difficult in a reliable and speedy manner. Instead, I found mis-clicks and failures to register touches on occasion as if the alignment of the screen was not precise, although cleaning the screen with the microfibre cloth did occasionally help. It seems this is difficult to avoid because of the size of the screen.
The station has localisations for a range of regions.
Connectivity includes the use of Ethernet on the rear of the device or the in-built Wi-Fi. I found the Wi-Fi not to be all that sensitive (it showed 3/4 bars when in the same room as the router, and 2/4 bars in an adjacent room) compared to other devices, but was still sufficient in my case to have a reliable connection. The connection can also be configured to change addressing and hostname parameters.
The information screen provides information about the station and firmware – the shipped version was V144.6.52.7.
The peripherals screen acts as a bit of a catalog of devices which can be connected and controlled through the WXsmart.
Time is automatically set, unless you choose otherwise.
Factory resetting the unit requires the serial number to be entered. Numeric inputs are made using the on-screen number pads, but because of the size of the screen and the touch overlay, occasional misregistration can occur.
Finally, the MQTT configuration allows for the WXsmart to connect to an MQTT server for Manufacturing Execution System (MES) integration. More about this will be elaborated in the next chapter.
WCU User Interface
The WCU has a three soft-button user interface with a monochrome LCD for user feedback. This unit has version 0207 firmware installed.
Once turned on, the unit shows the battery level status and current temperature.
Pressing the menu button toggles to the first function which is to run a calibration cycle after selecting channel and the start button. It is interesting to note that the calibration process is initiated from the WCU and not the WXsmart.
Pressing the menu button again shows the calibration measurement count to understand the usage of the thermocross sensor. The count can also be reset from this page.
The final page allows for changing the measurement unit. Pressing and holding the menu button turns the unit off, or it will automatically time-out and shut down to save power.
Firmware Upgrade
During the course of the review, a new firmware version was released.
To initiate the upgrade requires downloading and unzipping the firmware to a USB stick. This is inserted in the WXsmart’ USB port and the Firmware Available button in the Information screen is used to begin the update.
The process requires quite a bit of time to apply, after which the screen goes white and the unit reboots.
The unit appears to run the update (again) after the reboot, taking many minutes.
Once completed, it reboots with the new firmware version V156.6.58.7.
The new firmware adds new paid options and a UI improvement to show connected USB devices on the home screen.
Arranging the Bench
There are a lot of parts – so here is how I’ve arranged it on my review bench. Note that Weller were kind enough to supply an ESD mat and additional tips which were not part of the original kit.
As a result, this is what the review bench looks like. Aside from the parts supplied by Weller, I’ve got some safety glasses and a Duratool fume fan from a previous element14 prize. I’ve added a Duratool PCB holder to make things easier when soldering, an Andonstar digital microscope to examine my efforts, a set of SmartTweezers for testing SMD components, a Keysight DMM for testing larger components and an IKEA desk lamp so I can see what I’m doing. Reels of lead-free solder include the Weller SAC M1 (SAC305), Aim Solder Sn100C, Loctite (Multicore) 95A and 99C lead-free alloys for testing, on 3D-printed spool holders. I have a Kester 2331-ZX flux pen, some Duratool desoldering braid and a 3D printed component lead former. Aside from that, there are books and boxes of components and old PCBs for desoldering. To complete the ESD set-up, a grounding plug and wrist strap is used.
Conclusion
The setup process of the WXsmart is straightforward. The touch user interface is beautiful, colourful and intuitive. If you can operate a smartphone, you’ll have no trouble interacting with the WXsmart. Configuration pages are divided into a scrolling list on the left and value manipulation on the right. There are, however, a few terms and acronyms which can be confusing to a first-time user though and some localisations could possibly be improved. It’s great to see just how customisable the unit is. Unfortunately, text entry is a bit tricky with the limited size of the screen, although numeric entry is a bit more tolerable. It was discovered that the touch screen can be a bit touchy if it’s a bit dirty. Some tasks, such as swapping from a tool setting page to a bench setting page require a few more swipes than I would like and changing the temperature manually can require quite a few taps. I imagine that such user interface elements could be improved by allowing direct entry or adding additional shortcuts.
That being said, there is a philosophical divide here that affects not only the WXsmart but anything that uses touch-screens. The WXsmart's touch screen may provide all the functionality of a traditional user interface, but it has no tactility. While soldering, my eyes are usually on the workpiece. Being able to “feel” the button to elicit a change could be an advantage as it may reduce the need to take eyes off a workpiece. While this may not be a major issue especially where settings are “locked in”, I feel this deserves mentioning as it takes some getting used to. Furthermore, some of the nice visualisations are perhaps a little “redundant” as one is usually not looking at the screen while they’re soldering.
Firmware updates of the WXsmart allows for features to be added and issues to be resolved in the field. The upgrade process is quite lengthy, however, was successful in the review which added a number of paid options and minor improvements to the user interface. A user manual isn’t required for the most part although the picture-heavy guides which remind me of IKEA manuals and short introductory YouTube videos often leave something to be desired when considering the use of more advanced features (e.g. locked users, tip locking).
The WCU is a good addition for automatic calibration of tip offset as long as it is connected with a serial data cable. It is easy to operate with its monochrome LCD and colour-coded terminals for the correct installation of the thermocross sensor. It is unfortunate that it is not powered by the WXsmart and requires a 9V battery, although it seems the battery will last quite a while. The review bench is completed by adding additional accessories on-hand.
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This blog is part of the Weller WXsmart Connected Hand Soldering Platform RoadTest Review.