3M Electronic Marking System EMS Marker Locator 1420iD User Manual

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E. Dual 3M™ Marker Locate
Step 1. Press Locate/OK [5].
Step 2. Press Marker [SK]. 
Step 3. Press MARKR 1 [SK Toggle] to select 
desired Utility.
Step 4. Press MARKR 2 [SK Toggle] to select 
desired Utility.
Note: Only the marker types enabled in the setup menu will be shown. (See 4.C. 
Enabling/Disabling Marker types). When scanning for markers, the Gain Level [12] 
should be set high.
 −The third and fourth soft key commands will populate with the types of 
utilities selected for Marker 1 and Marker 2.
Step 5. Adjust the Gain [4] down until the bar graphs open.
 −The bar graph will close, the audio will increase, and the Signal Strength 
[10] will be maximum when the locator detects a marker of the specified 
utility.
 −When one of the two markers is detected, press the “XXX Only” [SK] for 
the detected utility marker. (“XXX” represents the marker types selected. In 
the above example, PWR Only and TEL Only.)
 −The unit will switch to Single Marker Locate in order to pinpoint the 
marker.
Step 6. Press Markr 2 [SK Toggle] to return to Dual Marker Locate.
F.  3M iD Marker Depth
Step 1. Lower the tip of the locator to the ground over the targeted marker.
Step 2. Press Depth [SK].
 −The locator will examine the marker 
(Calculating, please wait...).
 −If the marker is a 3M iD Marker, the 
locator will display the depth of the 
marker, and its identification (serial) 
number. 
						

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Step 3. To save the depth reading, press Mem 
Select [SK].
 −Five depth readings can be saved with 
the time, date, and its identification 
number.
 −Save [SK] will place each entry in 
sequential order in memory (M1 - M5) 
until five readings have been stored. 
The unit will overwrite saved entries 
in excess of five, beginning with M1.
Step 4. Optional: Press Clear All [SK] to delete all stored depth information.
Step 5. Press Mem Select [SK] to select a specific memory location to store the depth 
readings. When the preferred location appears on the screen, press Save [SK]. 
The display and memory location will populate with the current information.
Step 6. Each memory location can be reviewed by pressing Mem Select [SK].
Step 7. Press Locate/OK [5] to return to Marker Locate Mode.
G. Passive 3M™ Electronic Marker (Non-iD) Depth
Step 1. Lower the tip of the locator to the ground over the targeted marker.
Step 2. Press Depth [SK].
 −The locator will examine the targeted marker. 
 −The display will instruct the operator to raise the unit 6 inches (15.2\
 cm) 
from the ground.
Note: This 6-inch (15.2 cm) rise must be exact for the depth reading to be accurate. 
A suggestion is to utilize a 15.2 cm (6 inch) piece of plastic pipe or wood as a spacer 
between the ground and the tip of the receiver for this precise measurement.
Step 3. Raise the unit 6 inches (15.2 cm). Press 
Depth [SK] key again. The estimated depth 
of the marker from ground level will be 
displayed.
 −Five depth readings can be saved with 
the time and date.
Step 4. To access the memory locations, press Mem 
Select [SK].
 −Save [SK] will place each entry in 
sequential order in memory (M1–M5) 
until five readings have been stored. 
The unit will overwrite saved entries in 
excess of five, beginning with M1. 
						

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Step 5. Optional: Press Clear All [SK] to delete all stored depth information.
Step 6. Press Mem Select [SK] to select a specific memory location to store the depth 
readings. When the preferred location appears on the display, press Save [SK]. 
The display and memory location will populate with the current information.
Step 7. Each memory location can be reviewed by pressing Mem Select [SK Toggle].
Step 8. Press Locate/OK [5] to return to Marker Locate Mode.
5. Creating/Editing Templates for 3M™ iD Markers
In the User Template screen, the operator can create and modify templates for writing 
to iD markers. Note that the easiest way to create user templates is by using the 3M™ 
Dynatel™ PC Tool Kit software on a PC and then downloading them to a locator via the 
RS232 Serial Port [14] on the receiver and the provided RS232 cable or RS232-to-USB 
adapter cable. The 3M™ Dynatel™ PC Tool Kit software is available free of charge 
at www.3M.com/dynatel under the Software section; 2550/2573/2250M/2273M/1420 
Locator PC Tools xx.x.x (EXE xx.xMB).
A. Creating New Templates
Menu [6] + Data/Templat [SK:2] + User Templat [SK:2c]
Step 1. Select Create New by pressing the up/down 
arrows [SK].
Step 2. Press View/Edit [SK].
Step 3. Name the template.
Step 4. Press Modify [SK] to manually enter the 
name of the template.
Step 5. Select UserEdit.
Step 6. Press Locate/OK [5]. 
						

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Step 7. Move the boxed cursor by pressing the left/
right arrows [SK] or up/down arrow [SK] to 
move the cursor up or down.
Step 8. Press Select [SK] to enter the alphanumeric 
character.
 −Entry will appear at the top of the screen.
Step 9. Press Locate/OK [5] when the entries are 
complete and to save the entries, or press 
Exit [SK] to cancel entries. Pressing Locate/
OK [5], or Exit [SK], will return to the 
template display.
Note: To clear the previous field entry, select 
the ‘back arrow’ with the cursor and delete the 
previous entry.
Step 10. Navigate through the fields by pressing the 
left/right arrows [SK].
Step 11. Press Modify [SK] to populate the 
highlighted field.
Step 12. When modifying the Labels (left hand side 
of template information) there are three 
options for editing that are presented: 
b. UserEdit.
c. Choosing one of the common 
(compressed) terms from the available 
list of terms.
d. Del Row (delete row).
Step 13. When modifying the Descriptions (right 
hand side of template information) there are 
four options for editing that are presented: 
e. UserEdit.
f. Delete Row.
g. Last 10 UserEdits.
h. Show All - lists common compressed 
terms. 
						

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Step 14. Populate as many fields as possible from 
the drop-down list of common (compressed) 
terms available to conserve marker memory 
space, or choose UserEdit if a term is not 
found to meet the user's requirements. Select 
term by pressing the up/down arrows [SK] 
and press Locate/OK [5].
Step 15. Navigate to the next field by pressing the 
left/right arrow [SK].
Step 16. Press Modify [SK] to populate the 
highlighted field.
Step 17. Populate additional fields, as needed, 
using the above procedure steps 15 and 16. 
Templates are limited to six Label and six 
Description fields (256 bits of data total).
Step 18. When the template is complete, save the 
template by pressing Locate/OK [5].
B. Editing Templates
The operator can select an existing template and 
make changes to it in the same manner described in 
5.A. Creating New Templates. The following save 
screen will appear.
Over Write: Saves all modifications that have been made to the original template.
Rename: Overwrites the old template with the new name and all modifications. Display 
will return to the template name field. Modify the name of the template and press 
Locate/OK [5] to save. 
						

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Save New: Creates a new template containing all information. Original template remains 
unchanged. Display will return to the template name field. Modify the name of the 
template and press Locate/OK [5] to save.
Cancel: Clears all modifications made to any unsaved template.
6. Writing 3M™ iD Markers
The Write Mode enables the user to write information into 3M™ iD markers. It is also 
possible to edit the information to be written into an iD Marker.
Menu [6] + Write Mode [SK:1]
Step 1. Select a template from the list on the display 
to be written into the marker by pressing 
the up/down arrows [SK] to highlight the 
preferred template. ‘Last Written /Read’ is 
the most recent data that was written to/read 
from a marker by the locator.
Step 2. Press View/Edit [SK].
 −Four Write Mode options will be 
displayed at the bottom of the screen.
 −[SK1] Overwrite: Will overwrite any 
data existing on an unlocked marker if 
`Yes' is selected and `No' will prevent 
overwrite.
 −[SK2] X-Type: Choose `Yes' if writing to 
a Gen 2 marker and `No' if writing to a 
Gen 1 marker. Gen 2 markers will have 
an "X" following the serial number that 
is printed on the attached tag.
 −SK3] Marker: Select type of marker to 
be written by repeatedly pressing Marker 
[SK Toggle].
 −[[SK4] Lock/Unlocked: Press [SK4] to 
toggle between locking and unlocking 
the marker. The default setting is 
unlocked and note that a locked unit 
cannot be modified once locked. If the 
marker will be locked then a verification 
screen will appear to ensure that the 
marker is locked intentionally. 
						

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Step 3. Press Menu/OK
 −The selected template will be displayed.
 −The arrow on the right side of the 
display indicates there is more 
information than can be displayed on 
the screen (scroll down by pressing the 
down arrow [SK]).
Step 4. Enter user information that will be written 
to this marker. (See 6 A Modifying 3M™ 
Marker Data to be Written).
Step 5. Verify that all information is correct.
Step 6. Hold the locator directly over the top of the 
marker. The locator should be within the 
following maximum writing ranges for each 
of the different 3M iD Marker formats:
 −Near Surface iD Marker = 6 in (15 cm) 
maximum.
 −Ball iD Marker = 12 in (30 cm) 
maximum.
 −Full Range iD Marker = 24 in (61 cm) 
maximum.
Step 7. Press Start Write [SK].
Step 8. After writing to the iD Marker is completed, 
the following screen will be displayed.
The following messages may appear in the writing process.
 −Message 1. If the overwrite option was 
set to "No" And there was data present 
on the target market then the following 
screen will be displayed. 
						

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 −Message 2. When writing to a passive 
marker or the wrong frequency then the 
following will be displayed.
 −Message 3. This screen indicates that 
X-Type marker option was incorrectly 
set to "Yes" or "No". Verify the serial 
number that is displayed on the marker 
ends with an “X” to select "Yes" for 
X-Type, else select "No".
Note: Once the marker data has been locked, the information contained on\
 the marker 
is PERMANENT. Choosing to permanently lock the marker data is irreversible. Once 
the data is locked it can not be overwritten. Assure that the data that is being written is 
correct before proceeding.
A. Modifying 3M™ Marker Data to be Written
To alter the information to be written into the 
marker
Press Menu [6] + Write Mode [SK]
Step 1. Select a template from the list on the display 
to be written into the marker by pressing 
the up/down arrows [SK] to highlight the 
preferred template. ‘Last Written/Read’ is 
the most recent data that was written to/read 
from a marker by the receiver.
Step 2. Press View/Edit [SK]. 
 
Four Write Mode options will be displayed 
at the bottom of the screen.
 −[SK1] Overwrite: Will overwrite any 
data existing on an unlocked marker if 
‘Yes’ is selected and ‘No’ will prevent 
overwrite. 
						

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 −[SK2] X-Type: Choose ‘Yes’ if writing to 
a Gen 2 marker and ‘No’ if writing to a 
Gen 1 marker. Gen 2 markers will have 
an “X” following the serial number that 
is printed on the attached tag.
 −[SK3] Marker: Select type of marker to 
be written by repeatedly pressing Marker 
[SK Toggle].
 −[SK4] Lock/Unlocked: Press [SK4] to 
toggle between locking and unlocking 
the marker. The default setting is 
unlocked and note that a locked unit 
cannot be modified once locked. If the 
marker will be locked then a verification 
screen will appear to ensure that the 
marker is locked intentionally.
Step 3. Press Menu/OK 
The selected template will be displayed. 
The arrow on the right side of the display 
indicates there is more information than can 
be displayed on the screen (scroll down by 
pressing the down arrow [SK]).
Step 4. Press the up/down arrows [SK] to highlight 
the information to change.
Step 5. Press Modify [SK]. The percentage 
displayed in the upper right portion of the 
display indicates the remaining memory 
available on the marker.
Step 6. The operator may select User Edit in order 
to ‘type’ the modification, or Delete Row to 
remove the entire row from the template, or 
select Show All to display a list of common 
compressed terms. 
Note: Using a common compressed term requires 
less memory in the marker.
Step 7. Select an option from the list by pressing the 
up/down arrows [SK]. Press Locate/OK [5]. 
						

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Step 8. If User Edit is selected, the following screen 
will appear.
Step 9. Move the boxed cursor to the ‘back arrow’ 
and press Select [SK] to delete the entry to 
be modified.
Step 10. Move the boxed cursor by pressing the left/
right arrows [SK] or the Up/ Down Arrow 
[SK] to move the cursor to the next row.
Step 11. Press Select [SK] to enter the alphanumeric 
character.
 −Entry will appear at the top of the 
display.
Step 12. Press Locate/OK [5] when entry is complete.
Step 13. If Show All is selected, the following screen 
will appear.
Step 14. Select a common compressed term from the 
list by pressing the up/down arrows [SK].
Step 15. Press Locate/OK [5]. The modification will 
automatically populate the marker template.