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Sense check your data

A device can be online and still not be telling you what you think. This check asks five questions: is the data arriving, does it make sense, is the device in good condition, is it measuring what you want it to, and is the story of the day written down.

What a normal day looks like

  • SiteHive Hexanode devices report at least every 15 minutes, so the graphs run without breaks.

  • The Media Timeline fills with images, audio or vibration waveforms when a media trigger fires. Weather devices capture timelapse images every 15 minutes.

  • Mini graphs in the side panel show the day's shape for each metric. Click one to open the detailed graph.

Spot a gap

Open a detailed graph from the side panel and drag across a window to zoom. A flat gap means the device was offline or couldn't connect for that period.

A device with a blue light keeps recording locally and backfills the gap once the signal returns, so check again later before you worry. A gap that doesn't fill is a power or signal problem:

Does the data make sense?

  • Direction looks wrong. If Direction of Arrival points the wrong way, the device orientation is probably not set correctly: Check and adjust your device's orientation.

  • Weather explains it. Weather-affected periods are highlighted on noise and dust graphs, and the weather for the day sits at the bottom of the Graphs page.

  • Something else is being measured. A device can pick up more than your works: traffic noise, sea spray or coastal dust, or vibration from a nearby road or rail line. Open the media at that time; a photo and the audio usually tell you what happened.

  • Mounting makes a difference. Poor mounting can drastically alter results. If the data looks wrong, make sure each device is mounted properly in the best practical location. The installation guides start at Start here: set up your devices.

Is the device in good condition?

A device in poor condition reads badly while looking perfectly healthy on the Dashboard. Worth a look on your next site walk if the numbers seem off:

  • Noise: the microphone windshield intact, dry, and free of mud or cobwebs. A damaged or soaked windshield changes the readings.

  • Dust: the inlet clear of debris and insects, and the small temperature and humidity vent unobstructed.

  • Cameras: lenses clean. The images confirm orientation and explain events, and a dirty lens gives you neither.

  • Weather: sensors clear of leaves and debris, and the device still level.

Is the device measuring the right thing?

The most common data quality problems aren't faults. They're placement, and placement that was right at install goes wrong as the site changes around it.

Have the works moved? A device well sited during early earthworks can be measuring the wrong end of the site by the time the frame goes up. Each time the project changes stage, ask whether your Monitoring Points still sit between the works and the people affected by them.

Is something in the way? Hoarding, a container or a stockpile between the device and the works can mask exactly what you're trying to measure.

Is something else louder or dustier than your site? Noise devices near a busy road, a neighbouring project or a plant room will tell you about that instead. Either move the device, or be explicit in your reporting about what it's capturing.

Dust readings high without an obvious cause? Check for standing water, irrigation or heavy vegetation near the device. Humidity drives false highs.

If a device needs to move, see Move or end the device so the data record stays accurate.

Write it down

Anything that explains the data (a delivery, a demolition, a device moved or swapped) belongs in a Daily note tagged to the Monitoring Point. Notes can be included in PDF reports, so the explanation travels with the numbers.

What's next

Graph your data (trends over a date range, by parameter, Monitoring Point or device)

Maintaining your site (the weekly and monthly routine this check belongs to)

Data stopped? If a device goes offline