Communications 3-2
When a module receives a valid command, it must interpret the command,
perform the desired function, and then communicate the response back to
the host. Each command has an associated delay time in which the module
is busy calculating the response. If the host does not receive a response
in an appropriate amount of time specified in Table 3.1, a communications
time-out error has occurred. After the communications time-out it is
assumed that no response data is forthcoming. This error usually results
when an improper command prompt or address is transmitted. The table
below lists the timeout specification for each command:
Mnemonic Timeout
ACK, CB, CE, CP, DI, DO, RA, RAB, RAP, RB, ≤ 5.0 ms
RD,RP, RS, RSU, SB, SP, RIA, RCM, RR, WE
EC, RE, RWT, RID, RIV, RCT, AIB, AIP, AOB, ≤ 15.0 ms
AOP, CIA, CMC, CMD, CME, CMT
WT, CT, SU, AIO, ID, IV ≤
100 ms
Table 3.1 Response Timeout Specifications.
The timeout specification is the turn-around time from the receipt of a
command to when the module starts to transmit a response.
Data Format
All modules communicate in standard NRZ asynchronous data format.
This format provides one start bit, seven data bits, one parity bit and one
stop bit for each character.
RS-232C
RS-232C is the most widely used communications standard for information
transfer between computing equipment. RS-232C versions of the 1700
series will interface to virtually all popular computers without any additional
hardware. Although the RS-232C standard is designed to connect a single
piece of equipment to a computer, this system allows for several modules
to be connected in a daisy-chain network structure.The advantages offered
by the RS-232C standard are:
1) widely used by all computing equipment
2) no additional interface hardware in most cases
3) separate transmit and receive lines ease debugging
4) compatible with dumb terminals