Other functions of the logic board
Data-logger of events
The board avails of an automatic register of events. The events are memorized in the form of lines of
text in the internal of which there is different useful information on the event itself. Connecting a
Personal Computer to the CN1 connector for programming the board using a standard serial cable it
is possible to read this information and save it to a text file.
Normally, each event is a line of text in the file.
An example of 4 events follows:
1 22/04/2006 15:29:56 SERVICE: Enter
2 22/04/2006 15:29:58 SERVICE: Exit
3 22/04/2006 15:30:24 VEND: Product=11 Vends=1 Stock=13 Abs_Takings=10 Abs_Vends=1 Temp=12.5°C
4 22/04/2006 15:30:42 VEND: Product=12 Vends=1 Stock=13 Abs_Takings=20 Abs_Vends=2 Temp=12.4°C
Each record begins with a progressive number of identification of the event followed by the time and
date of registration of said event.
The next column represents the type of event. In this example the event number 1 indicates a service
entry of the board whilst event number 2 relates to the exiting from the service menu.
Successively, the machine has sold with success product number 11. After this sale, the partial sales
counter of the specific product is raised by 1 whilst the product availability counter descends from the
full load of 14 to 13. The absolute counter of takings has totalized 10 base coins, whilst the absolute
sales counter has totalized 1. Also, during that particular sale the temperature of the refrigerator was
12.5°C.
It results obvious also the description of the following sale effected on product number 12.
The sale of a product is definitely the most recurrent event in the machine. However, many other
events are registered, such as the turning on of the machine and all possible verifiable anomalies.
Registration of events is autonomous and automatic and the board is capable of memorizing more
than 1700 events (lines) in its permanent memory. The mechanism of registration is equivalent to that
of a continuous tape so that, reaching the registration of the maximum number of events, new
records will successively take the place of the older ones.
To keep track of all events for the entire life of the machine it is necessary to download periodically
with a PC the contents of the memory of the data-logger. The software on the PC will save the
current contents of the register on a text file, automatically assigning a name composed of an
arbitrary text added to the machine number and the time/date of acquisition. In this way, every
acquisition file will be unique, as will be the identity number of each event of the machine. In this way,
it is possible to archive on a PC the data-logger files and keep track of each single sale of each
machine installed for the duration of said machine.
Programming by Personal Computer
The CN1 programming connector constitutes a serial portal RS232 of access to the board (and thus
to the machine) with enormous potential.
This communication portal consents principally to read and write all the circa 800 work parameters of
the machine. In this way, it is possible to set-up the functioning of the machine contemporaneously or
alternatively to the use of the keypad and display. Having read the parameters of the machine it is
possible to modify them and re-transfer to same. Also, the parameters taken can be saved to file and
vice versa it is possible to recall from a file a certain batch of values of the parameters to then
transfer to the machine. In this way the optimum parameters can be archived to a PC by file (for
example using a different name for each machine) to be re-used to configure other machines.
