M#s Spreadsheet

The M#s spreadsheet contains all of the properties associated with each measurement in a Data Block file.

• Each row contains all properties of a single measurement

• Each column contains a single property for all measurements

Some columns in the M#s spreadsheet are only made visible when certain Options are authorized in your software.

1. Drag the Vertical Blue Splitter Bar to the left to display the M#s spreadsheet.

2. Or execute Display | M#s Spreadsheet.

If the M#s spreadsheet contains more rows & columns than are currently displayed, scroll bars will appear on the bottom and right side of the spreadsheet.

Spreadsheet columns can be re-ordered by dragging and dropping them into a new position.
Selected spreadsheet rows can be moved by executing Move Selected M#s Up/Down

Data Block Window Showing M#s Spreadsheet.

Showing & Hiding Spreadsheet Columns

• Right click on any spreadsheet and execute Show/Hide Columns from the menu.

The File | Data Block Options box will open displaying the Show/Hide tab.

• Check columns to show them, and Un-check columns to hide them, and click on OK.

Reset Spreadsheet Column Widths

• Right click on any spreadsheet and execute Reset Column Widths from the menu.

Unique Measurement Numbers (M#s)

• Each measurement in a Data Block has a unique M# M# is an abbreviation for Measurement Number. Each measurement function in a Data Block or Acquisition window has a unique M#. Also, each shape component in a Shape Table window has a unique M#. Each M# in the connected Animation Source must be Assigned to a DOF of the structure model in order to display shapes from the Source in animation. Each un-measured DOF on the model is animated by creating an M# Interpolation using nearby Measured and Fixed DOFs., listed in the Select M# column in the M#s spreadsheet.

• M#s are used in the Animation equations in a connected Structure window to retrieve measurement data for displaying shapes in animation.

Selecting M#s

A selected measurement has a shaded background in the graphics area, and its Select M# button has a green background.

Selecting M#s in the M#s spreadsheet

• Right click on the spreadsheet and choose one of the Edit | Select M#s commands from the  menu

• Double click on the Select M#s column heading to select or un-select all M#s.

• Click on the Select M#s button for an M# to select it.

Selecting M#s in the Graphics Area

• Hold down the Ctrl key and click in the graphics area to toggle the selection of its M#

• Right click on the graphics area, and execute one of the Edit | Select M#s commands from the  menu.

Changing M#s Properties

• Click on a property cell in the M#s spreadsheet, and edit the property of a single M#

Changing the Property of All (or selected) M#s

• Double click on the column heading of the property to be changed.  A dialog box will open.

• Choose or enter the property value, and click on OK.

Re-Ordering Spreadsheet Columns

• Click & drag the column header to move a column to a new position

Spreadsheet Vertical Scrolling

If a vertical scroll bar is displayed on the right side of a spreadsheet,

• Click on the spreadsheet and spin the mouse wheel to scroll the spreadsheet vertically

Spreadsheet Text Size

• To change the text size in a spreadsheet, click on the spreadsheet, hold down the Ctrl key, and spin the mouse wheel

Cut, Copy & Paste Text

• Select one or more spreadsheet text cells

• Hold down the Ctrl key and,

• • Press the X key to cut the selected text to the Clipboard

  • Press the C key to copy the selected text to the Clipboard

  • Press the V key to paste text from the Clipboard into the selected cells

Visible Column

Shows or Hides each M#.

Hidden M#s are not displayed, and are excluded from all Data Block calculations.

Measurement Type Column

Contains the Measurement Type of each M#

• Click on a cell in this column to display a list of available Measurement Type choices.

DOFs Column

Contains the DOFs of each M#

• Measurement DOFs are the locations on the test article (Point number and measurement direction) where the sensors were located when the measurement data was acquired.

• Each DOF is either a Roving DOF (moving transducer) or a Reference DOF (fixed transducer).

Single Channel Measurement

• Each single channel measurement (Auto correlation, Auto spectrum An Auto Spectrum is calculated by multiplying the Fourier spectrum of a signal by its complex conjugate. The Auto spectrum has magnitude only. Its phase is zero. An Auto spectrum can have either Linear (RMS) units or Power (MS) units. Linear or Power engineering units are chosen in the Linear Power column in the Traces spreadsheet.) has a single Roving DOF

• For example, If a sensor is located at Point 1 and is sensing in the X direction, its DOF is 1X

Cross Channel Measurement

• A cross channel measurement (FRF An FRF (Frequency Response Function) is a cross-channel frequency domain function that defines the dynamic properties of a structure between an excitation Force and the Response caused by that force. An FRF is defined as the ratio (Response DFT / Force DFT). The FRF is a special case of a Transfer Function, where the response is the numerator (Output) and the force is the denominator (Input). or Cross spectrum A cross-channel function that is calculated by multiplying the Fourier spectrum of a waveform by the complex conjugate of the Fourier spectrum of another waveform.), has both Roving & Reference DOFs, separated by a colon (:).

• Roving Impact Test:  If an FRF was measured by impacting at DOF = 1X and a (fixed) accelerometer has DOF = 2Z, then the FRF DOFs are 1X : 2Z.

• Shaker Test:  If an FRF was measured with a shaker located at DOF = 1X and a (roving) accelerometer has DOF = 2Z, then the FRF DOFs are 2Z : 1X.

Using the DOF Generator

• Double click on the DOFs column header to open the DOF Generator for creating DOFs.

• (See Using the DOF Generator) section in this chapter for details on using the DOF Generator

Units Column

Contains the transducer engineering units of each M#..

• Typical input units are excitation force units.

• Typical output units are displacement, velocity, or acceleration response units.  

• FRF units consist of both input & output units (response output units / force input units).

• Transmissibility units are (Roving response output units / Reference response input units).

• Cross spectrum units are (response units)^2 or (response units * force units).

• ODS FRF units are (Roving response units * Reference response units).

Color Column

Contains the line color of each M#.

• All measurements are displayed using their M# color, except in the Contour Map format.

To color all (or selected) M#s using either a Single Color or the colors in the Contour Colors tab in the File | Data Block Options box,

• Double click on the Color column header.  The following dialog box will open.

• Select a color type and click on OK.

Sound Column

Plays the sound of the measurement through the sound system on your computer.  

• If the Band Cursor is displayed, then only the samples in the cursor band are played through the sound system.

• If the selected M# is a frequency domain M#, it is Inverse FFT'd before playing it through the sound system.

Label Column

Contains a text description of each M#.  

Data Type Column

Contains the Data Type of each M#.

• Click on a cell in this column to display a list of available Data Type choices.

Scale Method, Minimum Scale, & Maximum Scale Columns

Contains the scaling method used to display each M#

Auto Scale

• Displays each M# with its maximum value near the top of the graphics display.

Relative Scale

• Displays each M# relative to the maximum value of all of the M#s in the Data Block.

Fixed Scale

• Displays each M# between user-specified Minimum & Maximum values.

Format | Vertical Axis

• Auto, Relative or Fixed scales can also be chosen for all (or selected) M#s in this dialog box.

Date/Time Column

Contains a text date & time of the acquisition or calculation of each M#.   

Group Column

Groups are used for scaling different types of shape data (such as vibration and acoustic data), so that both can be displayed together in animation.

• If no names are entered in this column, all M#s are treated as belonging to the single Group.

• For shape animation, contour colors can be defined for each Group. (See the Color Contours tab under the File | Data Block Options command for details.)