Connection Background

IODP taps into Gyroscope #3, which is located in the DP Room

Open

We connect to it via a serial port from the old Armed Forces Network console: upper right of the blue cabinet in the picture below, which is just aft of Gyroscope#3 in the DP Room:

Open

This serial cable is converted to an ethernet connection via a Black Box module:

This Black Box is in the port side blue cabinet, lowermost shelf, inside wall.

(During Exp. 396T, EM ordered 3 more of these converters. IRIS also uses one.)

The ethernet cable from this Black Box converter is connected to a blue Trendnet fast ethernet switch/hub just above it. In turn, this Trendnet switch is connected via a cable running under the DP Room floor and up into another network cabinet just behind the DP Room door:

In this network cabinet is the main DP Room enterarys switch for IODP:

As of 29 October 2021, the cable for the gyroscope is connected to physical port #1. It was previously connected to port #7, which is found out to be non-functional.

Troubleshooting and FAQ

1. Gyroscope goes offline. No response in either (a) NaviPac > Gyroscope > I/O > Connect; (b) NaviPac-Online > Instrument Spy; (c) Ping using CMD window. Warning message in NaviPac: "Could not connect to port: A connection attempt failed because the connected party did not properly respond after a period of time, or established connection failed because connected host has failed to respond 192.168.190.99:10001"

Work with the MCS. Check the different network hardware identified in the previous section (Connection Background).  On 2021 Oct 29, an ethernet port in the enterasys switch box behind the DP Room door was found to be faulty, so the Gyro connection was switched from physical port #7 to #1.

2. Gyroscope #3 was serviced between June 1 to 10 in Cape Town. Both the fluid (June 1) and then the sphere (June 9) were replaced, before a final calibration was made on June 10, 2022. This is part of a 5-year preventive maintenance.