Available Connectors
Chapter 2: Introducing the PA PowerStation
14
PA PowerStation User Guide
Available
Connectors
All PA PowerStations have two serial ports, two PS/2 keyboard/mouse
ports, an Ethernet port, and a Compact Flash connector. See the PA
PowerStation CD for dimensional drawings and a diagram to locate
the components.
Serial Ports
The PA PowerStation has two serial ports that you can use to
communicate with external devices at baud rates of up to 115 Kbaud.
The COM1 port supports RS-232, while COM2 supports RS-232, RS-
422, and RS-485 communication standards.
The communication standard you select for COM2 depends upon the
distance between the PA PowerStation and the controller, as well as
the communication standards that the controller supports. Use a
standard DB9 connector for communicating with this port.
Note
If you are using RS-232 communications, the length of the
serial cable should not exceed 50 feet (15 meters).
RS-422 and RS-485 communications offer greater noise immunity
than RS-232. These standards increase the maximum cable length to
4,000 feet (1,200 meters).
RS-422 communications are full-duplex (send and receive
simultaneously), while RS-485 communications are half-duplex (send
or receive).
For either configuration, be careful not to connect any wires to unused
connector pins. If you are using CTC’s MachineShop software,
information on the specific connection required for the Interact drivers
you will use is located in the Help file associated with the driver.
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