Overview

The columns visible in Messages view can be defined by the user.  Vehicle Spy displays the default column set on initial start up.  You can select other column sets from the dropdown at the bottom of Messages view.  You can create your own custom column sets by clicking the "Setup" button.  Custom column sets are saved with your Vehicle Spy setup file.  You do not need to recreate them each time you use Vehicle Spy.

Column sets do NOT affect the contents of saved buffers.  Saved buffers always contain a standard set of columns that can not be changed.

Column Actions

Figure 1 shows columns as seen in the Messages view.  Click and drag on column dividers to resize them (Figure 1:).

Columns can be sorted to quickly organize the display.  If sorting while in scrolling mode, make sure to Pause the view first.  To sort any column while online, just click on a column header to sort descending (A-Z), ascending (Z-A), or by order received on the bus.  To sort while offline, click on a column header then click in the main display area.  Only one column can be sorted at any given time.

Custom Column Sets

Custom column sets are a great tool for increasing efficiency.  For example, you can create different column sets that you can quickly scroll through to see different types of information about a message.  Use the Columns dropdown list (Figure 1:) to select predefined column sets.  Press the Setup button (Figure 1:) to build your own column set to add to the dropdown list.

Figure 1: Column setup in Messages view.

Setting Up The Columns

If you press the Setup button in Figure 1, the setup dialog in Figure 2 will open.  For more information on the "General" settings, please click here.

Click the "+" button (Figure 2:) to create a new Column Setup.  Click the Edit button (Figure 2:) and type a name to change the name of the new Column Setup.  All possible column selections to choose from are listed in the "Fields Available" area on the left and are described in Table 1 below.  To add columns to your setup, select an item in the list and click the "Add" button (Figure 2:) or just double click on the item.

All columns currently in your setup are displayed in the "Fields Selected" area on the right.  Use the Clear and Remove buttons (Figure 2:) to clear the entire list or remove selected items one at a time.  Individual items in this area can also be removed by just double clicking on them.

When you are finished building your Column Setup, click "Ok" (Figure 2:) to return to Messages view.  Make sure to save the vs3 or vs3zip file to save the new Column Setup.

Figure 2: Build a custom column set for the Messages view.


Table 1: Available Data Columns with Header Displayed and Descriptions

Column Name	Column Header	Description
Any Error	Er	If this message has an error a red dot appears in this column.
Arb ID/Header	ArbID/Header	The CAN Arb ID or the first three message bytes if the message is not CAN.  Can be displayed in hex, decimal, or binary data byte formats.
CAN Format (std/xtd)	Frmt	Shows if the CAN header format is 11 bit (standard) or 29 bit (extended).
CGI Checksum	CGI CheckSum	The checksum of CGI messages.
Change Count	ChangeCnt	Counts the number of times the Data Bytes changed in that message while in Static mode.
Class 2 C Bit	C	The state of the GM Class 2 C bit.
Class 2 Msg Type	Msg Type	The GM Class 2 message type: RACK, LOAD, RPT, etc.
Class 2 Q Bit	Q	The state of the GM Class 2 Q bit.
Data Bytes	DataBytes	The message data bytes in the selected data byte format.
Description	Description	The description of the message if it can be identified.
FlexRay Channel	Ch	The FlexRay channel (A or B) the frame is on.
FlexRay CRC	CRC	Checksum of the entire FlexRay frame.
FlexRay Cycle Count	Cyc Cnt	The cycle number the FlexRay frame is in.
FlexRay Header CRC	HCRC	Checksum of the FlexRay header only.
FlexRay Is Dynamic	Dyn	Indicates if the FlexRay frame is static or dynamic.  N = static frame.  Y = dynamic frame.
FlexRay NULL bit	NULL	FlexRay Null frame indicator.  0 = payload contains no valid data.  1 = payload contains data.
FlexRay PPI bit	PPI	FlexRay Payload Preamble Indicator bit indicates if further structure exists in the payload.  This structure is for network management in a static frame or a message ID in a dynamic frame.  0 = payload has no further structures defined.  1 = payload has network management or message ID information.
FlexRay Res bit	Res	Reserved bit for future use in FlexRay frames.
FlexRay Start bit	Strt	FlexRay Startup frame indicator.  0 = frame is not a startup frame.  1 = frame is a startup frame.
FlexRay Sync bit	Sync	FlexRay Synchronization frame indicator.  0 = frame is not a synchronization frame.  1 = frame is a synchronization frame.
FlexRay TSS Length	TssLen	Transmission Start Sequence length of the FlexRay frame (nanoseconds).
GMLAN Parameter ID	ParaID	The Parameter ID from a GMLAN message with a 29 bit header.
GMLAN Priority	Prior	The priority from a GMLAN message with a 29 bit header.
GMLAN Src Addr	Src	The Source Address from a GMLAN message with a 29 bit header.
J1850 IFR/SCP Ack Bytes	Ack Bytes	J1850 In-Frame Response or Ford SCP acknowledge bytes.
J1850 Priority	Priority	The priority of a J1850 message (first three bits).
J1939 DP	DP	Data Page section of the 29 bit CAN Arb ID according to SAE J1939.
J1939 Dst	Dst	Destination Address or Group Extension section of the 29 bit CAN Arb ID according to SAE J1939.
J1939 PDU	PDU	Protocol Data Unit of the 29 bit CAN Arb ID according to SAE J1939.
J1939 PGN	PGN	Parameter Group Number (decimal) of the 29 bit CAN Arb ID according to SAE J1939.  Remains decimal even if Hex Format is selected for the data byte format.
J1939 PGN (Hex)	PGN (Hex)	Parameter Group Number (hex) of the 29 bit CAN Arb ID according to SAE J1939.  Displays hex OR decimal depending upon the data byte format.
J1939 Priority	Prior	Priority section of the 29 bit CAN Arb ID according to SAE J1939.
J1939 R	R	Reserved bit of the 29 bit CAN Arb ID according to SAE J1939.
J1939 Src	Src	Source Address of the 29 bit CAN Arb ID according to SAE J1939.
J2602 Slave Error Status	SlvStatus	Reports errors found in the J2602 protocol.
Len	Len	Number of data bytes in the message.
LIN Checksum	ChkSum	The checksum for the LIN message.
LIN Header Tx	Txh	Marks LIN Messages that were transmitted.
LIN Slave Tx	TxS	Indicates that the Slave portion of a LIN message was sent.
LIN/FRAY TFrame Time	TFrame	Time from the start of frame until the end of frame in microseconds.  Valid for LIN or FlexRay networks.
Line / Count	Count	Gives the number of messages from that ID in Static mode and the message count in Scrolling mode.
Lost Arbitration	Lost Arb	Tells if a message has lost arbitration.
Network	Network	The name of the network the message is on.
Node	Node	The Node (ECU) name assigned to the message.
RTC Time	RTC Time	Real Time Clock stamp placed on the message if supported by connected ICS hardware.  Use Regional Settings to change its format.
SCP Msg Type	Msg Type	The Ford SCP message type: Node-To-Node, Functional, etc.
Status/Err Description	Status/Err Description	A text description of all the active bits in the Messages Status byte.
Time	Time	The time in either absolute or relative formats - dependant on the state of the timestamp button.
Time (abs)	Time (abs)	Absolute time since Vehicle Spy was started.
Time (rel)	Time (rel)	Elapsed time from the previous message.
Time PC	Time PC	Time of the message in PC time.
Transmitted	Tx	If this message was a Tx message a green dot appears in this column.
Column Name	Column Header	Description

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Vehicle Spy Documentation - (C) Copyright 1997-2011 Intrepid Control Systems, Inc.

Last Update: Sunday, August 15, 2010