PRODUCT REFERENCE GUIDE
343
CHAPTER 5
MESSAGE FORMATTING
MESSAGE FORMATTING
A message from the Host to the base must follow these rules:
• If Address stamping options or address delimiter are enabled on the base, the
Host reply must have address field and delimiter too. Otherwise the message will
be ignored. Address delimiter is present only when address stamping is enabled.
• Address stamping is necessary to correctly route the message to the PowerScan
PM9600, especially when more than one handheld is linked to the same base.
Address stamping could be disabled if the system is in point-to-point configura
-
tion. If address stamping is not enabled, the messages are addressed to the first
handheld linked to the base.
• 35 is the limit for a broadcast message. The maximum message length to a specific
gun is 255.
• Messages end with “CR” 0x0D ASCII character. The CR character cannot be con
-
tained in the middle.
• Messages cannot start with '$' or '#' because these are reserved for Service mode
commands.
• Base station can receive host message only if Host Commands Obey/Ignore is set
to Ignore (see
).
• Messages in response to a label read can be sent to the handheld only when
Transmit Mode = ACK from Host (see transmit mode parameter). Messages not in
response to a label read can be sent at any time in any Transmit Mode. These must
start with the DC2 0x12 ASCII character.
• Messages can be sent to all handhelds linked to base by using a Multicast message:
“00 00 00 00 2A AA”
• In order to receive a message, handhelds must not be in Battery Profile = Maxi
-
mum Autonomy.
• If you want to control the reader's beeper from the host, you will also probably
want to disable the good transmission beep that is emitted when the code is
received from the base station. (See "
Wireless Features" on page 280
).
• The message field can store plain text and escape sequences. Escape sequences
are interpreted as commands.
NOTE: Message Formatting is available for PM9600 models only.
