SYSTEM INSTALLATION
Note: If upgrading from ADGUI 1.01 to Excalibur 2.0, refer
to “Upgrading Excalibur” in the Appendix of this manual.
Because the features of Excalibur and the Matrix Switching
System are so versatile, it is important to plan the installation
carefully to gain full advantage of these features. It is
recommended that the user become thoroughly familiar with
the capabilities and operating modes of the Matrix Switcher,
determine the needs of the facility, and set up the Excalibur
system only after thorough planning.
The weakest links in any security/CCTV system using
Excalibur will be the computer hardware and the quality of the
CCTV system installation. It is strongly recommended that a
computer of the highest quality and reliability is used. An
uninterruptible power supply is required (UPS), as opposed to
a standby power supply (SPS) which is sometimes billed as a
true UPS. The software is designed to reload critical data at
regular intervals to help avoid memory corruption problems
from power surges, glitches, and momentary outages.
However, it is still essential to use computer hardware of the
highest quality, to use a UPS to control and condition the
power, and to provide a stable power circuit to insure reliable
control and monitoring.
PC Configuration Requirements
The minimum computer configuration required to operate the
Excalibur program system is a true IBM PC compatible
computer, with the following:
1. At least a 386DX 33 Mhz or 486SX 25 Mhz processor.
2. A minimum of 4 Mbytes of RAM extended memory. The
number of maps and icons available is directly related to the
amount of RAM; a minimum of 4 Mb is recommended. If
the system is to use over 100 maps or 2000 icons, it is
recommended that at least 8 Mb of RAM is available.
3. A minimum hard disc capacity of 100 Mbytes.
4. A two-button mouse or mouse emulating input. It is not
possible to use the Excalibur program without a mouse or
mouse emulating input device.
5. A MicroTouch touch screen monitor is an optional input
device. Other touch screen monitors or input devices,
including light pens, that can emulate the mouse under
Windows 3.1 can be used.
6. A multiple RS-232 serial port board (see next paragraph).
7. A line-feed printer, preferably dot-matrix type.
8. Windows 3.1 Operating Software; DOS 5.0 or greater.
9. A Windows MCI compatible video capture card for on-
screen video display (see page 1-3).
10. A Windows compatible sound card to annunciate alarms
and operator actions.
PC RS-232 Communications Ports
If both a mouse and a touch screen are used with just a single
Matrix Switching System Controller, the computer system
needs more than the standard two RS-232 ports provided by
most PC's. Also, if more than one Matrix Switcher, or if a
Matrix Switcher and an Alarm Interface Unit such as the
AD2096, are used, extra RS-232 ports are required.
For these reasons, it is recommended that the Excalibur
workstation PC have a multiple-port RS-232 board. The
DigiBoard PC-4e or PC-8e RS-232 boards are recommended
as they have been tested and used successfully with the
Excalibur software system. The PC-4e has four ports and the
PC-8e has eight ports. The total number of ports allowed using
the Windows communications interfaces is nine. Therefore,
with one internal serial port, and eight extra ports on the
DigiBoard PC-8e serial board, it is possible to control nine
Matrix Switchers (or eight switchers and one Alarm Interface
Unit) from one Excalibur workstation.
Note: If a DigiBoard serial module is used, a DigiBoard port
adapter module must be acquired with the DigiBoard
module. Several adapters are available, providing either
four or eight individual 25-pin D-type connectors, 9-pin D-
type connectors or 10-pin RJ45 type connectors.
For proper RS-232 communication with the Excalibur
workstation PC, the pin definition and the DTE (Data Terminal
Equipment) or DCE (Data Control Equipment) configuration
of each connected device must be observed. All American
Dynamics equipment, including Matrix Switching System
Controllers, are configured as DTE devices.
For DTE-to-DTE communications between a Matrix Switching
System Controller and the Excalibur workstation PC, connect a
three-wire, shielded, 18-AWG RS-232 cable from the
Excalibur workstation PC RS-232 port to a Matrix Switching
System Controller RS-232 port, as follows:
a. Connect GND from the Excalibur PC port to GND on the
controller's RS-232 port.
b. Connect RCD from the Excalibur PC port to XMIT on
the controller's RS-232 port.
c. Connect XMIT from the Excalibur PC port to RCD on
the controller's RS-232 port.
Each Excalibur workstation RS-232 port is connected to a
single Switching System Controller RS-232 port using a
separate cable. Refer to the RS-232 port connector pin
definitions and setup instructions in the appropriate Switching
System Controller Installation Manual.
INSTALLATION
AD5500
1-2
