Software
Crestron
e-Control
®
16-bit color graphics, video and RGB video, sound files, and more. They are called
multi-mode because objects in the project can have up to 100 different appearances, or
modes, in both their active and inactive states.
In addition to graphics and other static design elements such as borders and lines, VT-
Pro-e provides a number of
programmable objects
, including buttons, sliders and
gauges. Pages and subpage references are also programmable.
Programmable objects are assigned join numbers that identify digital, analog, and
serial inputs and outputs to the touchpanel. When the page design is finished and all
join numbers have been assigned to programmable objects, the VT Pro-e project is
compiled into a HEX file and uploaded to the touchpanel. All the join numbers in the
VT Pro-e project then have to be mapped to inputs and outputs on the touchpanel
symbol detail in SIMPL Windows.
Third-Party Interfaces and the Crestron Gateway
In addition to Crestron user interfaces, users can access the control system with PC-
based interfaces such as Web browsers or custom software applications.
Since Internet and PC communication is based on TCP, and Crestron control systems
communicate over CIP, these applications require a mechanism called an e-Control
gateway
to translate TCP packets into CIP datagrams, and vice-versa. For example,
Web browser commands would be sent over TCP to the e-Control gateway, which
would translate the packets into CIP datagrams and forward the data to the control
system. The gateway would also translate feedback from the control system and send
it back to the browser.
To accommodate the broad range of possible configurations and third-party interfaces,
Crestron provides two types of e-Control gateways: an internal “hardware” gateway
that is built into the 2-Series processors and the card; and a licensed
software gateway, called the CNX-EGWY, that can be downloaded from the Crestron
Web site. In X-Series control systems, the hardware gateway supports up to five
simultaneous connections; the 2-Series gateway supports up to 30 connections. The
CNX-EGWY can be licensed for any number of simultaneous connections.
The gateway is assigned the IP address of the machine where it resides. This means
that if the gateway resides in the control system, its IP address is the same as the
control system; if the gateway is located on a PC, then its IP address is the same as the
PC.
The term gateway as it is used here should not be confused with the default gateway
described before, although both gateways perform a similar function. A default
gateway is a router that transfers data from the internal LAN to outside subnets. The
Crestron e-Control gateway is software that converts TCP to CIP, and vice versa.
e-Control Web Pages and e-Control 2
Web pages provide a flexible and inexpensive interface to e-Control, allowing users to
control devices on the LAN simply by launching a Web browser on their PC. You can
design e-Control Web pages in a number of ways. For software programmers,
Crestron includes an SDK (
s
oftware
d
eveloper’s
k
it) as part of the CNX-EGWY
installation package. The SDK contains Java components and ActiveX controls,
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Crestron e-Control®
Reference Guide – DOC. 6052
