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Controlling the Evaluation Board from a PC
The evaluation board includes Windows
-based control soft-
ware and a custom cable that connects the board’s digital inter-
face to the printer port of the PC. The wiring of this cable is
shown in Figure 52. The software requires Windows 3.1 or later
to operate. To install the software, insert the disk labeled “Disk
#1 of 2” in the PC and run the file called SETUP.EXE. Addi-
tional installation instructions will be given on-screen. Before
beginning installation, it is important to terminate any other
Windows applications that are running.
When you launch the crosspoint control software, you will be
asked to select the printer port you are using. Most modern PCs
have only one printer port, usually called LPT1. However some
laptop computers use the PRN port.
Figure 53 shows the main screen of the control software in its
initial reset state (all outputs off). Using the mouse, any input
can be connected with one or more outputs by simply clicking
on the appropriate radio buttons in the 16
×
16 on-screen array.
Each time a button is clicked on, the software automatically
sends and latches the required 80-bit data stream to the evalua-
tion board. An output can be turned off by clicking the appro-
priate button in the Off column. To turn off all outputs, click on
RESET
.
While the computer software only supports serial programming
via a PC’s parallel port and the provided cable, the evaluation
board has a connector that can be used for parallel program-
ming. The
SER
/PAR signal should be at a logic high to use
parallel programming. There is no cable nor software provided
with the evaluation board for parallel programming. These are
left to the user to provide.
The software offers volatile and nonvolatile storage of configura-
tions. For volatile storage, up to two configurations can be stored
and recalled using the Memory 1 and Memory 2 Buffers. These
function in a fashion identical to the memory on a pocket calcu-
lator. For nonvolatile storage of a configuration, the Save Setup
and Load Setup functions can be used. This stores the configu-
ration as a data file on disk.
Overshoot on PC Printer Ports’ Data Lines
The data lines on some printer ports have excessive overshoot.
Overshoot on the pin that is used as the serial clock (Pin 6 on
the D-Sub-25 connector) can cause communication problems.
This overshoot can be eliminated by connecting a capacitor
from the CLK line on the evaluation board to ground. A pad
has been provided on the circuit-side (C33) of the evaluation
board to allow this capacitor to be soldered into place. Depend-
ing upon the overshoot from the printer port, this capacitor may
need to be as large as 0.01
μ
F.
Windows is a registered trademark of Microsoft Corporation.
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Parallel Port Selection
Figure 53. Screen Display and Control Software