Com Port problems

scottscott Medina, Ohio Icrontian
edited January 2007 in Hardware
Hi Guys

I will first describe the equipment involved and then get to the problem.
My friend has a 3axis vertical machining center ( CNC Mill ) It has a Fanuc 6M control ( Circa 1985 ) It is connected to a PC in the office via a serial cable. It is connected for the purpose of transferring G-Code back and forth. G-Code is simply a text document but is what is used to program the mill. The PC is a fairly new Gateway with a A64 3500+ .

Up until a few weeks ago everything worked fine. Then one day it would no longer send or receive data from the Mill. The PC has 2 different programs on it that will edit the G-Code and Send/Receive , neither will work. The first thing I thought of was that the cable may have been damaged out in the shop, so we got out the VOM and checked continuity on all pins of the cable, all good. Next we replaced the female connector at the machine. ( 20 years old ,thought some of the pins may not be making good contact. ) Still no go.
So back to the PC.
The device manager reports that Com Port 1 " Is working Properly" But I uninstalled it anyway and rebooted and let windows find it and reinstall it. Now we got some connectivity. But it scrambled the data to a bunch of gibberish. The Software needs to set the Baud rate , stop bits and Parity. It had never been set in the device mangers "Port Settings " in the past and worked fine. But just for fun we set all the above in "Device Manager "... Still have scrambled data .
Checked in the Bios for Serial port settings Choices were " Auto , IRQ 4 , IRQ 7 " It was on 4 and I changed it to auto. Back in Windows it is now assigned to IRQ 7. Now we have no connectivity. I uninstalled the port again and "Scanned for Hardware changes " Windows re installed the port and now have scrambled data again.


So we hooked up another computer with the software and everything works fine. So it is definitely the "Gateway" that has the problem.

Did we "Blow the port" ? ( It only has 1 )

Can you guys think of anything else to try ?

I was looking at Serial cards on Newegg and they range from $20.00 to $200.00. I am not sure how much card we need. The fanuc control will only do 2400 Baud rate and file sizes are never any bigger than 16K.
They are HERE A suggestion would be great if you think this is the "FIX"

I hope I have given enough info, let me know if I left anything out.



Thanks



Scott

Comments

  • PterocarpousPterocarpous Rosie the Riveter Lives On in CA, USA! New
    edited January 2007
    Hi Scott. Your description of your problem and of the action you've taken thus far is very good - nice details. Thankyou.

    IRQ 7 is typically your parallel (LPT1) printer port IRQ. Your COM port IRQs are typically set at COM1-IRQ4 & COM2-IRQ3. (I'm remembering from the old days - the rules may have changed...Haven't futzed w/ COM ports in ages...)

    Your COM port may well have gone out on you. One thing to try is to, while in Windows, uninstall the COM port in Device manager. When the system reboots, get into the BIOS setup and disable the COM port. Now, let the sytem boot into the OS. Once that's done, reboot again back into the BIOS and re-enable the COM port. I've seen mysterious problems disappear using this method of essentially forcing the system to toggle (switch) "off" then "on" again the (in this case) COM port on both a low level and in the OS. I'm not too hopeful about this in your case, however. It "feels" like a more significant hardware problem. But it's a last ditch effort to try.

    Having said that, if the COM port doesn't start working properly again, as you indicated, you'll need to purchase a serial communications (I/O) controller card. My recommendation is that you purchase one w/ two or more COM ports (something to fall back on if one stops working). What card is appropriate for you will depend upon the baud rate to bit rate conversion that is used. IOW, The baud rate doesn't necessarily translate directly to bps (bits per second). That is determined by your equipment. Since it was working w/ your Gateway's COM port, however, I don't think you'll need anything high end.

    I've used SIIG's I/O controllers in the past and don't recall having any problems w/ them. They were pretty straight forward to set up if I remember correctly. Just configure the jumpers, install the drivers and you're off. THIS is the one I was looking at for you. It isn't the cheapest but then, this is for your business. You need reliability w/out breaking the bank. HERE you'll find more details on the card on SIIG's website.

    BTW, for this SIIG I/O card, IRQs are configured automatically. The jumpers are just to enable power to the ports if your serial device(s) need it.
  • scottscott Medina, Ohio Icrontian
    edited January 2007
    Pterocarpous

    Thank you for your reply !

    I was pretty sure the port was toast, but I have never used a COM port for anything and know little to nothing about them. We will try the "disable in Bios" option and report back.

    The Port needs no voltage and my buddy would like to get this fixed asap so he may run to Best Buy and see if they have anything onhand. If not then ordering is the next option. I was looking at THIS one. Unless you see some reason we shouldn't. But you are correct it is business and this is no place to be cheap.


    Thanks again


    Scott
  • profdlpprofdlp The Holy City Of Westlake, Ohio
    edited January 2007
    For the demands of your situation, I think an el-cheapo ought to do the trick just fine. I probably have one here I would be willing to give you, but it might be Saturday before I could drive down there. :)
  • PterocarpousPterocarpous Rosie the Riveter Lives On in CA, USA! New
    edited January 2007
    Hi Scott. First, you're certainly welcome. That's what we're here for at Short Media.

    For others watching/participating in this thread, here are the manufacturer's specs on the two I/O controllers.
    The SIIG Controller HERE
    The Syba Controller HERE

    I took a look at the controller you indicated you were looking at in your last post. As for specs, the Syba serial I/O controller supports a higher bitrate of "up to" 1MB/s (bytes per second) as opposed to the SIIG's 230kbps (bits per second). This is a significant difference between the two controllers in terms of the data rate capacity. Having said that (even though I don't know your exact data rate), because you were using the Gateway's onboard serial port w/ no problems, I don't think you need the speed.

    They both provide high speed UART 16550 standard ports.
    Both support IRQ sharing & auto assigning.
    The SIIG has two external ports + an option to supply power to one or both of the ports.
    The Syba has connections for two additional ports internally (they may provide a mounting bracket so that you could have a total of 4 external serial ports.)

    I read through some more of the specs. provided by SIIG on their board, and came to the conclusion, if given a choice between the two, I'd go w/ the SIIG as it appears to be a better quality product. (My decision is driven by three things. (1) More detailed specs for the Syba board are scant compared to that of the SIIG board. (2) I've used SIIG I/O controllers and have had no problems w/ them. (3) Reliability of the device will be very important.)

    This may all be moot anyway as, I'm sure, your choices will be severly limited at any local stores.
  • scottscott Medina, Ohio Icrontian
    edited January 2007
    Thanks again guys !!

    Prof
    If he can't find one at the store I will give you a shout , maybe we could meet in Middleburg for coffee or something. Unless you wan't to come out . You are always welcome here !

    Pterocarpous
    Wow....talk about doing my homework for me !! Thanks !

    Just the fact that the SIIG is more forthcoming with specs is somewhat reassuring. If we buy one...That sounds like the ticket.


    Thanks !!


    Scott
  • PterocarpousPterocarpous Rosie the Riveter Lives On in CA, USA! New
    edited January 2007
    scott wrote:
    Thanks again guys !!...Prof...If he can't find one at the store I will give you a shout , maybe we could meet in Middleburg for coffee or something. Unless you wan't to come out . You are always welcome here !

    Pterocarpous
    Wow....talk about doing my homework for me !! Thanks !...Just the fact that the SIIG is more forthcoming with specs is somewhat reassuring. If we buy one...That sounds like the ticket....Thanks !!...Scott
    You're certainly welcome. Check back here w/ us and let us know how it all turns out. Good luck! :thumbsup:
  • scottscott Medina, Ohio Icrontian
    edited January 2007
    Pterocarpous and Prof

    Well we tried killing the port in the Bios after uninstalling it in Windows.
    Rebooted.....No Com Port

    Back to Bios...enabled again
    Back to Windows.....Com port on IRQ 4 " The Device is working Properly "

    Try to send or receive....Gibberish and scrambled Data.


    We ordered the SIIG card.

    I will let you know what happens next week when it comes in.

    Thanks again for your help and support



    Scott
  • profdlpprofdlp The Holy City Of Westlake, Ohio
    edited January 2007
    Good luck, old buddy. :cheers:
  • PterocarpousPterocarpous Rosie the Riveter Lives On in CA, USA! New
    edited January 2007
    scott wrote:
    Pterocarpous and Prof...Well we tried killing the port in the Bios after uninstalling it in Windows...Rebooted.....No Com Port...Back to Bios...enabled again...Back to Windows.....Com port on IRQ 4 " The Device is working Properly "...Try to send or receive....Gibberish and scrambled Data.
    We ordered the SIIG card...I will let you know what happens next week when it comes in...Thanks again for your help and support...Scott
    First of all, you are certainly welcome. :)

    Well it was a bit of voodoo, I know. If we're lucky, on occassion an old voodoo trick works and we're off an' running again. Unfortunately in your case... no worky as we expected... :sad2:

    Well! Do keep us apprised. Let us know if the knew critter does the trick for you.

    Come on back here like "Stump The Chumps" on NPR's "Car Talk w/ Click & Clack". Let us know if we were out to lunch or on the mark. :bigggrin:
  • scottscott Medina, Ohio Icrontian
    edited January 2007
    The SIIG card came in today. I was unable to go down to my buddys so I talked him through the install. Piece of cake.....software installed without a hitch recognized imediatly...all good. Fired up the program that sends and receives the g-code with the milling machine...works great !!! He is a happy guy.

    So, once again I would like to thank you guys for helping me through this. I think we all knew from the start what we needed to do , but I just wanted to bounce it off somebody else. Thanks for your support !!

    I have been hanging out here for about 3 1/2 years know and still beleive that Short-Media is the best forum on the net hands down !!!

    SM ROCKS !!!:thumbup


    Scott
  • PterocarpousPterocarpous Rosie the Riveter Lives On in CA, USA! New
    edited January 2007
    :celebrate :celebrate Congratulations!! That's a decent card so you shouldn't have any trouble for a long time to come.

    Glad you got it sorted out! :thumbsup:
  • profdlpprofdlp The Holy City Of Westlake, Ohio
    edited January 2007
    Good to hear that things went well, Scott. :cheers:

    PS: Any snow down that way? :wave:
  • scottscott Medina, Ohio Icrontian
    edited January 2007
    Not much snow just an inch or so, they are calling for a bunch tonight though . yuk
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