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Specifying MTi-680 orientation in MT-manager

saadtiwana_int

Hi,

When the MTi-680 is mounted/used in a non-default orientation (for example when mounted upside down such that the connector is on top), how do I tell the module what the mounting orientation is?

I have tried to search through the documentation. In the Device Settings window (in MT Manager) I have seen the RotSensor and RotLocal vectors, and my guess is that one of those is used to specify the mounting orientation (RotSensor?). However, the MT manager user manual doesn't give more details about it and asks to refer to the MTi Family Reference Manual, which is a dead end because I couldn't find the information there. I also tried looking up the information in the MTi-600 series User Manual but no luck. I have seen the "orientation Reset" control in the MT manager but I do not want to reset the module to any orientation, but rather want to utilize the calibration values to determine the orientation with the up-side-down mounting.

Regards,
Saad

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  • +1

    Ok, I have found a way to accomplish this. I read in the MT Manager user manual:

    "RotSensor and RotLocal: These two rotation matrices are used to apply orientation resets or arbitrary alignments."

    This gave me an idea and so here is what I did:

     After connecting the MTi-680 to computer and opening MT Manager, placed the sensor upside down, set the "Orientation Reset Method" to "Inclination Reset" and clicked the "Reset orientation" button. Then I pressed the "Save current orientation reset" button to save it in the device. 

    image

    The reason for saving to device was so that next time I open the "Device Settings" view, I can see the stored rotation matrix. In this case, i found it as following:

    image

    As I expected, only the RotSensor was updated. In an ideal case, the values should have been 0, +1 or -1 but since my reference surface wasn't ideal, I saw some values very close to 0, +1 and -1. I then manuall changed them to the nearest amongst 0 , +1, -1 as follows:

    image

    I then hit "Apply". And that's it. The new orientation was set to be upside down, while maintaining the original calibrated tilt alignments.

  • 0 in reply to saadtiwana_int

    Hi ,

    Apologies for the delayed response. This forum is not actively monitored by all of our product specialists, so if you require quick support in the near future then it is best to send us an email at support@xsens.com.

    Your solution should indeed solve the problem. The key here is that this RotSensor matrix flips the sensor frame (that is printed on the side label of your MTi) upside-down. It basically inverts the direction of the Y- and Z-axes of your device while the X-axis is left pointing "forward". 

    The MT Manager User Manual has been updated to refer to our BASE article instead.

  • 0 in reply to xsenssupport

    Hi,

    Thanks for your response, and no worries for the delay. The reason I opted to post here instead of via email was so that the information stays available to anyone who maybe runs into the same issue and searches for it in future Slight smile

    Btw, when the rotation is flipped like this, should I expect the visualization in 3D viewer to flip as well, or that is expected to follow the original orientation printed on the side of the device?

    On a related note, may I suggest adding some indication of what each component of the RotSensor and RotLocal is for in the manual or besides the values on the GUI? I understand it is something that people knowledgeable in the domain will already know, but for the rest of us noobs it might be helpful Slight smile. Just a suggestion

    Best Regards,
    Saad

  • 0 in reply to saadtiwana_int

    Hi,

    Definitely, thanks for the feedback! We have registered your suggestion to add tooltips to some of the settings in MT Manager in order to add clarity for the user and we hope to implement that in a future release of the MT Software Suite.

    To answer your question: Yes, the 3D view block is expected to still show the physical orientation of the device. However the Roll/Pitch/Yaw values shown in that view (and in the orientation plot) should be as expected after the RotSensor/RotLocal matrices have been applied.

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  • 0 in reply to saadtiwana_int

    Hi,

    Definitely, thanks for the feedback! We have registered your suggestion to add tooltips to some of the settings in MT Manager in order to add clarity for the user and we hope to implement that in a future release of the MT Software Suite.

    To answer your question: Yes, the 3D view block is expected to still show the physical orientation of the device. However the Roll/Pitch/Yaw values shown in that view (and in the orientation plot) should be as expected after the RotSensor/RotLocal matrices have been applied.

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