Communication Testing
Chapter 3
There are three communication diagnostic tests available in the
Control Center
. These tests are designed to help determine if a
communication problem exists and to isolate where the problem is
occurring.
A diagnostic module is required to run two of these tests. It will
work on both the computer and cutter serial (COM) ports. It is avail-
able from Ioline or an authorized dealer.
Communication Test
This test will determine if communication is working between the
computer and the plotter on the parallel (LPT) or serial (COM) ports.
Run this test from the
Control Center
,
Test Menu
. The diagnostic
module is not required to run this test.
1.
Turn the plotter off. Connect the plotter to the computer with
either a serial or parallel port cable.
See the section
Connect
the Cutter to the Computer
in the
Installation
chapter for more
details.
2.
Start the Ioline
Control Center
. Select
Test, Communication
Test
from the menu bar at the top of the window.
3.
Turn on the cutter while holding down the
Test Cut
key on the
keypad. Hold down the
Test Cut key
until the cutter beeps and
the light flashes three times. The cutter is now in
Test Mode
.
4.
If testing the serial (COM) port, press the
START / STOP
key
on the cutter and verify that the handshake line (CTS) status
displayed on the computer screen toggles ON/OFF. Leave the
handshake line
ON
. This is not necessary for the parallel (LPT)
port.
5.
Press the
Repeat
key to switch the cutter into
Echo Mode
. The
Green
light will come on.
6.
Press a key on the computer and verify that the character trans-
mitted equals the character received. If the characters match
then the connection between the cutter and computer is work-
ing properly.
7.
Select
Exit
after the communication test is complete.
8.
Turn off the cutter at the end of the test to exit
Test Mode
.
9.
The next two tests are not necessary if serial (COM) port testing
is successful.
