Field guide for monitoring, capturing, reviewing, and exporting pig passages.
PigStick-XXXX. The last four characters identify the unit.pigstick.http://pigstick-XXXX.local. If that address does not open, use http://10.0.0.1.The layout stacks vertically on smaller screens. Up to two viewers can use the live sensor streams at the same time. Close old or duplicate tabs if a new viewer cannot start a stream.
Settings such as magnetic mode, sensitivity, capture controls, and audio amplification are shared device settings. A change made by one viewer can appear in the other. Listening volume, theme, and some display preferences stay with the individual browser.
Open Settings > Startup Behavior to choose:
Use Arm on Boot only when the unit will be installed and left ready to record without an operator present.
Use Settings > Time Settings to choose the displayed date format and whether GPS time is shown as local time or UTC. These options change how times are displayed; they do not alter saved passage data.
The magnetic trace starts automatically after connection.
| Control | What it does |
|---|---|
| ARM / DISARM | Starts or stops automatic passage capture. |
| Mode | Mag Only shows the magnetic passage signal, ELF Only shows the transmitter signal, and ELF + Mag shows both. |
| Sensitivity | Selects Low, Medium, High, or Max magnetic sensitivity. Start with the normal job setting and increase only when more sensitivity is needed. |
| Window | Changes how much recent time is visible without changing the recorded data. |
| Grab Window as Passage | Immediately saves the magnetic window visible on screen under the active job, then opens the new passage. |
Recording Space shows how much passage storage is in use. A full PigStick will not arm and displays a message asking you to export and delete finished jobs. A PigStick stores roughly 100 passages in total across all of its jobs. If an armed PigStick reaches a storage limit in the field, it makes room by removing the oldest finished job; when only the active job remains, it removes that job's oldest passage.
The Auto job under the device serial number is temporary default storage. Create and use a named job for passages you need to retain. If the PigStick starts with unusably full storage, it may empty Auto first while keeping the Auto job and serial-number client available, then remove the oldest finished jobs only if more space is needed. A warning appears once when automatic cleanup has occurred.
Expand Mag Capture Settings to choose how automatic passage capture starts:
When the threshold is visible on the chart, use it as the practical setup guide: normal background should remain inside the guide and a wanted signal should cross it.
During a capture, a highlighted passage card and progress indicator appear. The completed passage is saved on the PigStick and becomes available to every connected viewer.
Grab Window as Passage is useful for testing, saving something that already happened while disarmed, or retaining a signal that did not trigger automatically. It saves only the history currently visible in the Mag Stream; it does not record another ten seconds. Aligned geophone audio is included when Record Audio with Passage is on and that complete audio history is available. When saving finishes, the new passage opens automatically.
| Control | What it does |
|---|---|
| START / STOP | Starts or stops live geophone listening and waveform display. |
| Mode | Chooses the live visual. Waveform shows signal shape; Spectrum shows how low and high geophone frequencies change over time. |
| Window | Changes the amount of recent audio shown. |
| Amp | Changes geophone amplification for the live signal and future recordings. It is shared by all viewers. |
| Volume | Changes listening loudness in this browser only. It does not change saved recordings. |
| Mute | Silences or restores browser playback without stopping the stream. |
Raise Amp until useful signals are clear, but lower it if the waveform repeatedly flattens at the top or bottom. Adjust Volume separately for comfortable listening.
Select Mode > Spectrum to see how the geophone signal's frequency content changes over time. Lower frequencies appear near the bottom and higher frequencies near the top; brighter colors indicate a stronger signal. Use the one-second tick marks to compare when a frequency change occurred with the magnetic trace or passage cursor.
Spectrum covers 0 to 1 kHz and is a visual aid for recognizing changes in signal texture, not a calibrated sound-level measurement. Passages containing recorded geophone audio can also switch between Waveform and Spectrum during review and synchronized playback without using additional recording space. Passages without audio remain in Waveform view.
The capture low-pass filter still determines which frequencies reach the display and recordings. LP 500 Hz removes the upper half of the Spectrum view. LP 2 kHz preserves the useful 0 to 1 kHz geophone band while limiting higher-frequency noise. Use LP off only when the job requires the unfiltered capture path.
Advanced Mode can show speed controls. Speed estimation requires Waveform view and is turned off while Spectrum is selected. In Waveform view, enable speed tracking, enter the distance represented by the segment, choose units, and set the threshold above background noise. A low-confidence result is hidden rather than shown as a dependable speed.
Authorized service users may also see capture filters. Filter changes affect both the live geophone signal and future recordings, so leave them at the approved job settings unless support directs otherwise.
The browser keeps a small reserve of incoming data so both traces move smoothly when WiFi delivery varies. The magnetic and audio views may differ by a fraction of a second. This does not change recorded passage timing.
After a short WiFi pause, a backgrounded tab, or an interrupted delivery, each display automatically moves forward and settles back near live data. Use RECONNECT only if a stream remains disconnected.
The Passages card lists recordings for the active job. Use the sort control to show newest or oldest first. A card may include:
Select a passage card to replace the live view with the saved recording. Use Back or press L to return to live monitoring.
Passages with geophone audio can play the saved waveform and sound together. Use play, pause, resume, the scrubber, or stop. Passages without audio can still be reviewed visually.
View → Job Trail draws the active job's recording positions on a map: numbered points in passage order, a connecting line, a distance scale, and a north arrow. When the browser has internet access a map background appears automatically, with Map and Satellite buttons to switch the background style; without internet the trail still works with the same positions on a plain background. Passages recorded without a GPS fix are listed below the map instead of being drawn.
The map can be moved and zoomed: drag to move, scroll or pinch to zoom, and double click to zoom in. Zooming in on the Satellite background shows detail down to individual facilities. The map background sharpens a moment after you stop moving. If you lose your place, select Recenter to return to the view of the whole trail.
Job exports are available from the Job menu and work over the direct connection.
| Export | Best use |
|---|---|
| Export Package | Complete backup of the active job, passages, recordings, and job information, including the PDF report and the run summary numbers in a form spreadsheets and other tools can read. |
| Merge Leapfrog Jobs | Combines exported packages from two or more PigSticks into one time-ordered report. |
| Export as PDF | Printable field report with a trail map, passage summary table, pig speed estimates, and one page per passage. |
| Export as CSV | Passage list and job details for spreadsheets or other office tools. |
While a passage is open for review, the Export PNG button above the waveform saves an image of that passage.
When trackers are leapfrogged along a line, each PigStick records its own share of the passages. To build one combined report:
In the merged report each passage keeps its original site name and shows which PigStick recorded it. If two trackers recorded passages close together in time, both passages appear. Review them manually if one looks duplicated.
Open Settings > WiFi Mode to choose how the PigStick connects. Tap a mode to read about it: the panel below the list shows what it does, a picture of who connects to what, and exactly how to open the app in that mode. Reading around does not change anything.
The mode that is running now is marked Current. Picking a different mode changes the button at the bottom to Apply; nothing changes until you press it. Switching between the two router modes applies immediately. Switching to or from Hotspot only asks for a restart.
Join PigStick-XXXX and open http://pigstick-XXXX.local or http://10.0.0.1. This connection works without internet service. In Router only mode the hotspot is off while the router connection is healthy. Open the app from that network instead.
Open Settings > WiFi Networks to let the PigStick join a Starlink, office, shop, or home network:
Once connected, other devices on that network can normally open http://pigstick-XXXX.local. To change how the PigStick connects, use Settings > WiFi Mode; each mode there also shows exactly how to open the app.
Each saved network appears as a card showing its name, status, and priority. The PigStick tries saved networks in priority order (1 first). Use the arrow buttons on a card to change the order, and put the network at your current site first so the PigStick reconnects to it quickest. Remove old entries from other sites with the Forget button.
Turn on Settings > Light Mode for better visibility in bright outdoor conditions. Waveform colors adjust with the theme.
Turn on Settings > Advanced Mode when support information or advanced job controls are needed. It adds system, GPS, WiFi, and log panels plus selected advanced controls. Normal monitoring and capture do not require it.
Turn on Settings > Passage Chime to hear a short chime in this browser the moment a passage recording starts. While the chime is on, a small green bell appears beside the DEVICE indicator in the menu bar. The chime plays at a fixed volume even when the geophone stream is muted or turned down, and the choice is remembered per browser. The C key also toggles it. Browsers only allow sound after you have interacted with the page, so if nothing has been clicked since the page loaded the first chime can be silent; turning the chime on or pressing ARM in this browser is enough. Only browsers receiving live waveforms (up to two viewers) play the chime.
Settings > Language changes the display language of the PigStick screen for this browser only. Nine languages are available: English, Traditional Chinese, Simplified Chinese, Korean, Japanese, Spanish, Brazilian Portuguese, German, and French. Reports and exports stay in English, and the setting never changes the device itself. If a translation reads wrong, send it through Help > Report Bug.
When reporting a problem, include what you were doing, the time it happened, the device serial number, and the copied debug information. Do not edit the copied report before sending it; it helps support see connection and stream health.
Press ? or choose Help > Keyboard Shortcuts for the on-screen reference.
| Key | Action |
|---|---|
Space | Arm or disarm while in live view. |
A | Start or stop the geophone stream. |
M | Mute or unmute browser audio. |
C | Turn the passage chime on or off. |
G | Grab the current window as a passage. |
E | Expand or collapse the Passages card. |
L | Return to live view. |
1-6 | Select the displayed time window from 2 to 60 seconds. |
Esc | Close the open dialog. |
? | Show shortcuts. |
← / → | Move the cursor in passage view. |
↑ / ↓ | Zoom in or out in passage view. |
Shift + ← / → | Move a zoomed passage left or right. |
Shortcuts are disabled while you type in a field or while a dialog is open.
PigStick-XXXX WiFi.http://10.0.0.1 instead of the name address.Select RECONNECT and wait a few seconds. If it remains red, confirm WiFi is still connected to the PigStick, close duplicate tabs, and reload the page.
Move the unit where it has a clear view of the sky and allow time to acquire. A passage can still be recorded without GPS, but its map button and location may be unavailable.
Confirm the WiFi mode is Hotspot + Router or Router only and the router network has internet access, then choose Check for Updates. No notice appears when the installed version is already current or no update has been assigned.
Turn on Advanced Mode, choose Help > Copy Debug Info, and send the copied report with the device serial number, the time of the issue, and a short description of what was visible on screen.
Every function of this screen is also available to your own software. The PigStick serves a local web API on the same WiFi connection, covering live streams, passages, jobs, exports, and device settings. No internet access is required.
See the PigStick API Reference for the full list of endpoints, request and response formats, and examples.
The version history now has its own page listing every release, with only changes that field operators can see or use.
Open the PigStick Version History. It is also available from Help > About, beneath the version numbers.