Print Date: 12.02.2010 Brainboxes Serial Solutions Range Manual Brainboxes Limited, Unit 3C, Wavertree Boulevard South, Wavertree Technology Park, Liverpool, L7 9PF, UK Tel: +44 (0)151 220 2500 Fax: +44 (0)151 252 0446 Web: www.brainboxes.com Email: sales@brainboxes.
Contents 1. Introduction .................................................................................................................................................... 5 1.1. The Serial Solutions Range .................................................................................................................... 5 1.1.1. UC, UP and EP Product Range ....................................................................................................... 5 1.1.2. PM Product Range ....................
5.2. Rolling back the Serial Solutions Driver................................................................................................ 31 6. Troubleshooting and Testing ....................................................................................................................... 32 6.1. Installation Problems............................................................................................................................. 32 6.2. Communication Problems...............................
9.4. Storage and Operating Environment Guidelines .................................................................................. 44 10. Regulatory Approvals / Compliance .......................................................................................................... 45 10.1. Company Accreditation ....................................................................................................................... 45 10.2. Europe – EU Declaration of Conformity..................................
1. Introduction 1.1. The Serial Solutions Range 1.1.1. UC, UP and EP Product Range The UC range includes 1, 2, 4, and 8 port devices which will provide an RS232 and/or RS422/485 9-pin COM port to any device with a PCI slot. The UC cards are compatible with 3.3V and 5V signalling. 1.1.2. PM Product Range The PM Product range includes 1 and 2 port devices which provide an RS232 or RS422/485 9-pin COM port to any device with a PCMCIA slot. 1.1.3.
1.1.4. PX-275/279 The Serial Solutions driver covers the PX-275/279 which provides 8 RS232 COM ports to any device with a PCI express slot. 1.2. The Serial Solutions Software Serial Solutions is the device driver for managing the UC, CC, PM range and the PX-279 in Windows. For a full list of supported Operating Systems, please see the list below. 1.3.
2. Installation Instructions 2.1. DOS Installation The DOS installation procedure consists of 2 steps after the PCI Quad RS232 card is inserted: 1. Determining the resources that the PCI Quad RS232 has claimed. 2. Informing the Serial Solutions DOS device driver of those resources. Determining PCI Multiport Resources • Insert card into PC, as described in Chapter 2. • Run BBCARDS.EXE, from the supplied CD by typing the following: A:\ >BBCARDS Where A:\ is the drive containing the supplied file.
/S buffer Set size of all buffers in bytes, buffer is rounded to the nearest power of 2 and must be a decimal number in the range 32 to 32768. For any serial port opened two buffers of size buffer are allocated, one for input and the other for output. /H hardware handshake selects which hardware handshake type to use on the specified ports. This is used in the following manner: /H range, hs where range specifies the COM port or ports and hs selects handshake type.
Hardware Handshaking /H,4 Type 4,3 Wire Handshake selected for all ports. Modifying Command Line Parameters. When “assembled” the NEWCOM.SYS command line looks like… DEVICE=NEWCON.SYS /A5-8,0140 /L 0140,11,5-8 /B8 /S 512 /H,4 …and should be entered into the CONFIG.SYS file. Once you are sure that these parameters have been entered correctly, restart your PC and your PCI Quad RS232 should be ready to use immediately.
2.3. Windows 98 Installation During the boot up process, Windows 98 will detect the Brainboxes card and you will briefly see a message box to this effect. Insert the Serial Solutions CD ROM into an appropriate drive and click Next. Select Search for the best driver for your device. Click Next then Click Specify a location In the location space type :\sswin9x where drive is the appropriate letter for your CDROM drive. Or select the location of the folder which contains the drivers.
Click Next Click Finish After copying the file, Windows 98 will then detect each of the serial ports in turn and install them as communication ports.
2.4. Windows XP/Server 2003 Installation 1. After your computer has booted up, a New Found Hardware Wizard will appear for the card that you inserted into the computer. 2. Insert the CD that came with your Brainboxes device and point the New Found Hardware Wizard to the CD.
3. The driver files will start to copy across to your computer. This example is for the PM-121 and may differ slightly for each product. 4. When the files have finished copying across the New Found Hardware Wizard will finish. Press ‘Finish’.
5. A second New Found Hardware Wizard will appear. (Advanced) Choose to Install from a specific location 6. Again select to search from the removable media to search the CD.
7. When the files have finished copying across the Found New Hardware Wizard will finish. Press ‘Finish’. 8. The New Found Hardware Wizard will appear again for other ports that are on the device. Follow the above instructions again to install the ports.
2.5. Windows Vista/Server 2008 32 & 64 bit Installation 1. Once you have booted up the computer the Found New Hardware wizard will appear and give you options to install the driver software for the Serial Solutions card. Click on the Locate and install driver software option and Windows update will be searched and install the drivers for the card and ports. 2.
3. If you don’t have a disc, or have downloaded the latest drivers from our website, click on the option at the bottom of the page to show other options. 4. You will then be presented with two options. Click on the second one to browse your computer for the driver software.
5. You will then be asked to browse your computer for the folders with the drivers in. Select the file that has the drivers you want to install and click OK. Click next and the drivers will be automatically installed for the card. 6. The drivers for the card will then have been successfully installed.
2.6. Windows 7/Server 2008 R2 Installation 1. When you boot into Windows 7, Windows update will automatically search for the latest drivers. If you have a connection to the internet, the drivers will be installed and the device will be ready to use. 2. If there is no connection to the internet available then a message will appear saying that the drivers were not installed successfully. 3. To install the drivers Device manager will need to be opened.
5. If your Brainboxes card came with a CD insert it now and select to search automatically and the driver software will be found and installed. If not and you have a folder with the drivers, select to browse your computer for the drivers. 6. Select the folder which contains the driver files and then the folder will be searched and the drivers found. The drivers will then be installed and then you will get a message saying that the drivers have been installed successfully.
3. Product Configuration 3.1. Windows XP, Server 2003 Vista, Server 2008 and Windows 7 3.1.1. Finding your Brainboxes COM port • Open device manager (Found by right clicking on My Computer and clicking Manage. Then select Device Manager from the left hand pane.) • Find the Brainboxes Serial Port entry in Device Manager. (Found under “Ports” section) • The Brainboxes Serial Port entry displays the current COM number in brackets after the name.
• All options can be selected from the dropdown menus. NB – Once the desired settings have been achieved, you must click OK to activate them. At any time click the ‘Restore Defaults’ button to return to the original set up. 3.1.3. Changing the COM labels • If you need to change the COM label, Double Click on the Brainboxes COM port entry under the ‘Ports’ Section.
• A new COM port number can then be selected from the drop down box. • If the COM port number is labelled ‘In Use’, it is either currently used by a COM port present on the system, or is reserved for a device which is not currently present. It is possible to select this COM number and force the change, if you are sure it is not required by another device. 3.1.4.
• The drop down list for Duplex operation allows users to choose the desired RS422/485 operations mode. • Select ‘RS422/485 full-duplex mode’ for full duplex communications • Select ‘RS485 half-duplex autogating mode’ for half duplex communications • Select ‘Transmit only’ to just transmit communications • Select ‘Receive only’ to just receive communications • Select ‘Transmitter and Receiver both disabled’ for no communications • For further details on wiring see Section 9.2: Device Pinout 3.
Some communications applications require the serial ports they access to be as named COM 4 or lower. The COM port assignment may be changed, simply by selecting a new COM port value from the pull down menu relevant to the port. However, COM port usage other than those for the selected card itself are not checked, so it is advisable to first check which COM ports are in use – port availability can be checked by viewing device manager. All COM ports present will be listed under the entry “Ports (COM & LPT).
3.3. Windows NT Go to control panel (Start Menu/Settings/Control) and double click on Serial Solutions PCI: You will be presented with a Serial Solutions PCI port configuration window: PCI Quad Port RS232 users: these entries under card will appear as PCI Quad Port RS232 card.
To view the settings of a port, select it and click on settings, and then click on the resources tab: 3.3.1. Advanced port settings. When the Advanced button of the Port Settings is selected the following dialogue is displayed. FIFO settings: • Use FIFO buffers – turns the selected ports FIFO buffer on or off. It is strongly recommended that the FIFO for both ports is left enabled. • Receive Buffer – These settings allow the selection of a receiver FIFO trigger setting.
4. Un-installation The un-installation steps below are applicable to all the cards in the UC, CC, PM and UP ranges. 4.1. Un-installation for Windows 98 and NT Open the CD location and run ssntUnist.exe contained in the SSNT folder and SsUn9x.exe in the SsWin9x folder to uninstall the drivers. 4.2. Un-installation on Windows XP, Server 2003, Vista, Server 2008, Windows 7 • Open Device Manager and right click on the Card entry in Device Manager, and click uninstall.
• When finished, you may turn off your PC and unplug your Serial Solutions card. To reinstall, simply plug in the card again and follow the installation instructions as in Section 2: Installation Instructions. Alternatively, restart your PC, or scan for hardware changes in device manager and the New Found Hardware Wizard will appear.
5. Serial Solutions Driver Upgrade / Rollback There are two parts to the Serial Solutions driver.
5.2. Rolling back the Serial Solutions Driver 1. Go to Device Manager and Double click on the Serial Card entry. Click on the Driver tab of the Card properties page. 2. Click on the Roll back Driver button. 3. Click Yes to roll back the driver to the previous version, and click No to keep the current driver version. 4. Click on the Close button to close the properties 5. You may have to restart your computer for the changes to take effect.
6. Troubleshooting and Testing 6.1. Installation Problems • Check the Brainboxes card is correctly installed, and the ports appear in Device Manager without any errors (Errors indicated by yellow ! icons) • If the installation did not complete or shows any error messages then restart the computer. • If Device Manager is still showing error messages, it is wise to uninstall and re-install. This should cure issues such as Resource Conflicts or failed installations.
6.4. Baud rate test application To test to see if a specific baud rate is supported by one of our cards, the Baud rate test application can be used. You simply put the Baud rate details into the program and then click calculate and the details will be output. This software is supplied on the Serial Solutions CD. The following settings need to be applied for specific Brainboxes products • If you have a PM-121 or CC-530/525 you will need to select the 950 UART type.
7. Optional RS422/485 Operation 7.1.1. The RS422 Standard The RS422 standard defines a serial communications standard. RS422 is a high speed and/or long distance data transmission. Each signal is carried by a pair of wires and is thus a differential data transmission system. Over distances up to 40 feet the maximum data rate is 10 Megabits per second, and for distances up to 4000 feet the maximum data rate is 100 Kilobytes per second.
terminating resistors for the RXD twisted pair line and the CTS twisted pair line fitted on the RS422/485 card for both the serial ports on the card. There is no need to add any more at the PC end. The terminating impedance’s shown later in the wiring diagrams are automatically provided by the on board resistors and do not have to be added by the user. 7.1.4. Fail Safe Open Circuit Detection Open circuit is when there are no drivers on the circuit.
7.1.7. RS422 Serial Port Cables Use screened twisted pair Belden cable 9729 and 9829, L type 2493 and 2919 or IBM Part No 4716748 cable to make the RS422 connection. Unscreened Belden type 8795 may also be used in less noisy environments. The on board resistor networks terminate the receiving end of the twisted pair cable in its characteristic impedance. 7.1.8. Serial Port 1 to Other PC Cable 7.1.9. RS485 Operation The RS485 standard is intended for up to 32 driver receiver pairs on the bus.
7.1.10. RS485 Cable For best noise immunity use twisted pair cables to make the RS485 connection. In Half Duplex wiring only 1 twisted cable pair is needed. Two twisted pair cables are needed for Full Duplex communications. Use screened twisted pair Belden cable 9729 and 9829, UL type 2493 and 2919 or IBM Part No 4716748 cable to make the RS485 connection. Terminate the twisted pair cable 7.1.11.
Note: BOTH ends of MAIN line terminated in characteristic impedance, stubs off main line not impedance, since both ends receive. The twisted pair ends are wired to both RXD+ & TXD+ and RXD- & TXD- at each RS485 device! 7.1.14. RS485 Many Talkers – Many Listeners, Full Duplex The RS485 many talkers, many listeners, Full Duplex system can be used when all the RS485 devices have separate Transmit and Receive channels. There is NO multiplexing of the TXD and RXD signals on the same device.
RS485 Full Duplex Note: The receiver end of MAIN line terminated in characteristic impedance, stubs off the main not terminated. 7.1.15. Optional Grounding Arrangements Proper operation of the cable circuit, according to TIA EIA: 485 A (1995) requires that the cable ground shield is not connected directly to the equipment ground shield. A current limiting resistor should be used in series with the shield to avoid possible large current flow due to differences in ground potential.
Configuration B) Configuration A) The circuit common of the equipment is connected to protective ground, at one point only by a 100 Ω, ±20% resistor with a power dissipation rating of 1/2W. An additional provision may be made for the resistor to be bypassed with a strap to connect signal common and protective ground directly together when specific installation conditions necessitate.
8. Lifetime Warranty and Support To receive the lifetime warranty, you need to register your product with us using our online form. NB: this must be done within 28 days of purchase. Lifetime Warranty Sign up *Terms and Conditions are available online. Standard warranty period is 3 years if a product is not registered. Since 1983, Brainboxes have designed, tested and manufactured our products all under one roof. One of our greatest strengths is after sales service.
9. Technical Specifications 9.1. Supported Serial Settings Serial Setting Baud Rate Data Bits Parity Stop Bits Handshaking Break Up to 921,600 5,6,7 or 8 None, Odd, Even, Mark & Space 1, 1.5 or 2 RTS/CTS DTR/DSR Xon/Xoff Supported 9.2. Device Pin-out 9.2.1.
9.2.2. 78 Way D pin connector 9.2.3. RS232 Devices 9.2.4. RS422/485 Devices PLEASE NOTE: • DTR/DSR Handshaking is not available on RS422/485 devices • For RS422 Full Duplex communications, please note outputs above.
• To achieve RS485 Half Duplex communications, using two wires for communication, Pins 1 and 6, 2 and 7 must be physically shorted. • Once your wiring is setup, you will also need to set the card to FULL or HALF Duplex mode in the software. For further details, see Section 3: Product Configuration. 9.3. Terminating Resistors RS422 and RS485 lines should be terminated at the end of the main branch of the RECEIVER, in the cables characteristic impendence.
10. Regulatory Approvals / Compliance For up to date details of global certifications, please check the product datasheet on the Brainboxes website. 10.1. Company Accreditation Brainboxes achieved accreditation to the ISO 14001 environmental standard early 2008. This globally recognised standard ensures Brainboxes can demonstrate effective management of all its environmental impacts, together with a process of continuous improvement. Brainboxes have also been an ISO9001 registered company since 1994.
For details of our WEEE recovery service options, please see our Website, or email us at: weeerecovery@brainboxes.com 10.4. RoHS Compliance All Brainboxes Serial and Bluetooth products are fully RoHS compliant. Brainboxes identified at an early stage the importance of rapid compliance to RoHS guidelines and established a project team to actively manage the transition.
11. Copyright Copyright © 1985-2010 Brainboxes Ltd All rights reserved.
