Appendix J – Scope Interface Specifications
This appendix is included for those who want to develop their own paging control software or add an interface for the
InterPage
Z-500 Series
Paging Encoders
to their existing software applications. You can choose to use the
Scope
Paging Protocol
defined in this appendix, the
TAP Paging Protocol
, defined in
Appendix A – TAP Interface
Specifications
,
COMP1,
or
COMP2
, or
WaveWare Paging Protocols
defined elsewhere in this manual.
A simple definition of the difference between the
Scope and TAP Protocols
is that the
Scope Protocol
is a dedicated
connection that doesn’t require a login process and it assumes that the
Host Device
, e.g. nurse call system, maintains a
database of all paging parameters associated with a pager, including Cap Code, Encoding Method, and RF Data Rate. The
TAP Protocol
requires a connect and disconnect process and assumes that the
Host Device
only needs to maintain a
database of pager reference numbers called
PIN’s
, and that the paging system maintains a database of all paging
parameters associated with each
PIN.
The Scope Interface
supports paging messages up to 512 characters in length while the
TAP
interface supports paging
messages up to 256 characters in length, group paging, and contact monitoring, and timed messaging. Each protocol has
its advantages and disadvantages, but both accomplish the process of causing
POCSAG
encoded paging messages to be
delivered to local area pagers.
To configure your
InterPage
Z-500 Series
Paging Encoders
to use the
Scope
Paging Protocol
, you may be required to
configure the Com Port on the encoder board using the
Z-500 Pro
Encoder Setup Software
. Please refer to
Appendix B
– Com Port Settings
, for details on configuring communication protocols.
Your
InterPage
Z-500 Series
Paging Systems
typically communicates with a
Host Device
via RS-232 at 9600 Baud, 8
data bits and 1 stop bit. The eighth data bit is ignored (no parity). You can configure the paging encoder for other serial
communication parameters. Please refer to
Appendix B – Com Port Settings
, for details on serial communication
parameters.
The paging system maintains an input buffer which can receive commands from the
Host Device
while a page is being
transmitted. The input buffer should be able to contain approximately ten paging messages before getting full. When a
command is received from the
Host Device
, the paging encoder responds with a message that includes error messages if
the command was not understood or not properly transmitted. The normal response will echo the paging request command
along with a status message.
The paging system can use hardware handshaking
(CTS)
to control the flow of paging message commands from the
Host
Device
. Alternatively, the paging control software could use the response messages as a means of handshaking between
the paging encoder and the paging control software.
The paging encoder encodes paging messages into
POCSAG
paging format and passes the encoded paging message to
the attached radio transmitter. If the
Carrier Detect
function is enabled, transmissions will be delayed while interfering
signals are detected.
Scope Interface Continued on next page…
