1.123 Comstream-ABR200

This page describes the device driver and the device window for the Comstream ABR200 Audio Broadcast Receiver.

Device window pages

The following table shows which device window pages are available with this individual device type. Tool-bar functions not mentioned here are described at the general description of device windows .

• --- Contains the demodulator / decoder settings
• --- Contains the parameters concerning user data / in-band signaling
• --- Shows the actual relay / TTL input status and defines the relay contact sense.
• --- Lets you define the channel and format tables stored in the the receiver. Shows one of the 32 channels and one of the 64 formats at a time. Below find a introduction how to operate this page.
• --- Shows the actual receive state, meter readings like the signal quality and some statistical values recorded by the receiver.
• --- The faults page.
• --- The device info page.
• --- The maintenance page. The configuration parameters described below are set at this page.

Configuration parameters

At the maintenance page of the device window there are a couple of configuration parameters which must be set to make the software talk to the ABR200.

• parameter --- description
• address --- If you are using the packet protocol / RS485 you must set this to the packet address set in the ABR200. Valid addresses are 1..31, 31 is the factory default. If you have multiple receivers connected to one RS485 bus, each device must have it's unique address. With the RS232 interface, the packet address doesn't care, you can leave this field empty.
• login --- If controlled via the RS232, the ABR200 requires a login password to be entered before the receiver can be controlled. Enter this password here, the software sends it to the receiver each time it looses communication to the device. The factory preset for the login password at the ABR200 is "HOMEYD". When communicating in packet mode through the RS485, the ABR200 doesn't request (and also doesn't accept) a password. Set this field to "RS485" in this case. This prevents the software from trying to log in at the ABR200.
• Serial --- Remember to set the line parameters for the serial interface connected to the ABR200. While the ABR200's factory preset setting is 2400,O,7,1 , the recommended line setting for the use with the sat-nms software is 9600,O,7,1 . See below how to change this setting at the ABR200.

Defining channels / formats

The channel / format screen of the device window shows one channel and one format definition definition at a time. To enter a new channel definition or to edit an existing one, do the following steps:

1. Select the channel to add / edit at the "channel" field.
2. Ensure that the "enabled" field is set "ON".
3. Enter the parameters for this channel If you enter channel parameters while the "enabled" parameter is off, the ABR will not recognize the changes you make, so be sure to enable the channel before you set the frequency, data rate etc.

To delete a channel definition, simply set the "enable" parameter to "OFF".

Format definitions are added/edited/deleted accordingly by means of the fields shown in the lower part in this screen.

Communication protocol / Interface type

The recommended communication protocol for the ABR200 is the Comstream-Packet-Protocol . You must connect at the receiver's RS485 M&C port to use this protocol type. If you want to control the ABR200 by RS232 for some reason, choose the Comstream-ASCII-Protocol when you configure the device setup.

Installation

The ABR200 does not have any front panel control. In order to prepare the ABR200 for use with the satnms software, connect an ASCII terminal (or a PC running a terminal program) to the ABR200. If you have a 9 pin RS232 connector at your terminal, you need a straight through 9-pin cable (male/female) for this. The ABR200's factory line settings are 2400,O,7,1, first try this setting at your terminal. The login password is "HOMEYD" if the receiver comes out of the box. Now command the following settings:

Variables defined by this device driver