FreeWave Spread Spectrum Wireless Data Transceiver User Manual
Contents
1. Carrier Detect CD Transmit Data TX Receive Data RX Used to show that there is an RF connection betw een modems This is used to transmit data bits serially from the modem to the system device connected to the modem This is used to receive data bits serially from the system device to the modem device connected to the modem Data Terminal Ready DTR The modem only uses this line in Point to Ground GND Data Set Ready DSR Request to Send RTS Clear to Send CTS Point Slave Master switchable mode refer to Operation Mode Selections or for DTR Connect refer to Multipoint Operation Signal return for all signal lines shared with Pin 9 Always high when the radio is powered from the 2 5mm power connector Indicated power is on to the radio Also this pin can be used for 12Volts when powering the modem directly through the RS 232 port Note This is not used on the OEM module The modem does not recognize RTS for flow control RTS is used as a control line in RTS CTS mode refer to Radio Transmission Parameters This signal is used to tell the system device connected to the modem that the modem is ready to receive data When 30 FreeWave Technologies Spread Spectrum Transceiver User Manual 900 MHz and 2 4 GHz V3 94 asserted the modem will accept data when deasserted the modem will not accept data This should always be used for data rates above 38 4KB or there will be a ris2. 21 FreeWave Technologies Spread Spectrum Transceiver User Manual 900 MHz and 2 4 GHz V3 94 3 Xmit Rate There are two settings for the Transmit Rate parameter For normal operation FreeWave should be set at Transmit Rate 1 Transmit Rate 0 is useful to qualitatively gauge signal strength When set to Transmit Rate 0 the Transceivers will transmit data back and forth continuously and the strength of the signal may be gauged by the Clear to Send LED A solid red Clear to Send LED indicates a strong signal the less the LED is on the weaker the signal Because the Transceivers transmit continuously when Transmit Rate is set to 0 whether or not they have data to send they use radio frequency spectrum unnecessarily Therefore Transmit Rate 0 should be used only as a diagnostic tool and not for normal operation 4 RF Data Rate FreeWave has two settings for the RF Data Rate not to be confused with the RS232 Baud Rate Setting 2 should be used when the transceivers are close together and data throughput is to be optimized Setting 2 must also be used when full throughput of 115 2 KBaud is necessary Setting 3 should be used when the transceivers are farther away and a solid data link is preferred over data throughput Note When using the transceivers in Multipoint mode the RF Data Rate setting must be identical for all units in the system transceiver with a different RF Data Rate than the master will not establish a communica
3. V3 94 Other Settings A number of parameters other those shown in the setup menu may be set on FreeWave transceivers The parameters below may be set with DOS based software available by contacting FreeWave Technologies Frequency Banks The transceiver may be modified to use different portions of the 902 928 MHz band The current frequency banks available are Table 16 Frequency Banks 900 MHz Name Band Australian 915 928 MHz International Hop Table 902 928 MHz 16 fewer frequencies than full US set Taiwan 916 920 MHz New Zealand 921 928 MHz Notch Uses 902 928 with center frequencies of 911 919 notched out Note Once a transceiver s hop table is changed from the full US version to any other table it cannot be set back unless the transceiver is returned to the factory This is to comply with the US Bureau of Export Administration regulations Baud Rate The transceiver s RS232 baud rate may be set to 300 600 or 900 baud Setup Timeout When enabled this mode invokes a timeout feature for the Setup Menu If the transceiver goes into setup and does not receive a legitimate menu selection within 3 to 5 seconds it will go back out of setup and into its previous mode 38 FreeWave Technologies Specification Spread Spectrum Transceiver User Manual 900 MHz and 2 4 GHz V3 94 Technical Specifications Frequency 902 to 928 MHz 2 400 to 2 4835 GHz Transmitter
4. you wish to edit You will be prompted for the new number formatting is automatic you do not need to enter the dash Once the number is entered unless it is 000 0000 you will be asked for the number for the repeaters to be used If no repeaters are to be used then enter the escape key your entry will be complete and you will be back in the Call Book menu screen If you enter a repeater number you will then be prompted for the number of the second repeater to use a second repeater is being used then enter the number at this time if not then enter the escape key Once again the modem will retain your entries as shown in the updated Call Book menu screen Important It is important that the Call Book slots 0 9 are filled sequentially beginning with 0 the first slot in the book Serial numbers do not need to be entered in numerical order however there must not be any 000 0000 numbers in the middle of the list of good serial numbers The reason for this is that when a 15 FreeWave Technologies Spread Spectrum Transceiver User Manual 900 MHz and 2 4 GHz V3 94 master is instructed to Call available slaves it will call all slaves listed until it reaches the first phone number of 000 0000 If a valid serial number is entered after the all zero number it will not be recognized as a valid number to call by the master Programming The Call Book in Multipoint Systems In a Multipoint system the slaves and repeaters are not listed in
5. 200 A Data Parity B MODBus RTU 0 Esc Exit to Main Menu Enter Choice 4 b Connected 0 02 55 ANSI 19200 8 N 1 SCROLL CAPS NUM Capture P The Baud Rate section of the user interface provides two other important parameters the ability to change the transceiver s word length and to put it into ModBus RTU mode 2 Data Word Length and Parity 12 FreeWave Technologies Spread Spectrum Transceiver User Manual 900 MHz and 2 4 GHz V3 94 There are six data word length and parity configurations available to be used with FreeWave transceivers The default setting is 0 8 N 1 and is the most commonly used serial communications protocol Data word length and parity selections available Table 3 Data Word Length and Parity Selections Menu Data Bits Parity Stop Bits Setting 0 8 None 1 1 7 Even 1 2 7 Odd 1 3 8 None 2 4 8 Even 1 5 8 Odd 1 3 ModBus RTU Support for ModBus RTU protocol is available The default setting for ModBus is 0 not enabled To enable the ModBus RTU mode 1 the Set Baud Rate menu enter B and then select 1 2 Inthe Set Multi Point Parameters menu set Master Packet Repeat to 3 Note When using the transceivers in ModBus RTU mode the Master Packet Repeat must be set to 3 regardless of whether the transceivers are being used in Point to Point or Multipoint mode 13 FreeWave Technologies Spread Spectrum Transceiver User M
6. 3 Edit Radio Transmission Characteristics When item 3 is selected in the main menu the screen in figure 6 appears which allows the user to modify the radio transmission characteristics of the Transceivers stated in the warning these parameters are for the sophisticated user who has a good understanding of the principles of radio data transmission They should be changed only after consulting this manual In a point to point mode the radio parameters set in the Master will override the settings for the slave and repeater s in the link for all but RF Xmit Power Slave Security and Retry Time Out Figure 6 Radio Parameters Menu FreeWave Hyperterminal erminal RADIO PARAMETERS WARNING Do not change parameters without reading manual 0 1 2 3 3 5 6 7 8 FreqKey 5 Max Packet Size 8 Min Packet Size 9 Xmit Rate i RF Data Rate 3 RF Xmit Power 9 Slave Security 0 to CTS 0 3 Retry Time Out 25 Bsc Exit to Main Menu Enter Choice 17 FreeWave Technologies Spread Spectrum Transceiver User Manual 900 MHz and 2 4 GHz V3 94 0 FreqKey 900MHz Selection 0 in the Radio Parameters menu allows the user to modify the hopping patterns of the Transceivers to minimize the interference with other FreeWave Transceivers in operation in the area For instance if there were 10 pairs of FreeWave transceivers in operation within a factory or refinery changing the Frequency Key
7. 75 frequency availability 39 40 C 65 C FreeWave Technologies Spread Spectrum Transceiver User Manual 900 MHz and 2 4 GHz V3 94 _ es DGMR 115R DGMR 115W Waterproof 205mmL Power Requirements 9 5 18 0 VDC Center Pin Positive AC Wall Adapter Provided May also be powered through Pin 6 of DB9 connector 9 5 18 0 VDC Center Pin Positive AC Wall Adapter Provided May also be powered through Pin 6 of DB9 connector 9 5 14 0 VDC Center Pin Positive AC Wall Adapter Provided May also be powered through Pin 6 of DB9 connector 9 5 14 0 VDC 6 0 14 0 VDC 15 0 32 0 VDC 6 0 14 0 VDC 15 0 32 0 VDC type female connector N External antenna required Reverse thread female SMA N connector External antenna required type female connector External antenna required Antenna 3 inch whip provided Reverse thread SMA connector for external antenna Voltages available in different models KNY 205 108213 900 KNY 209228624168 2 4 2329 102 336A 900 2329391 130A 2 4 KNY 205 108213 900 KNY 209228624168 2 4 2329 102 336A 900 2329391 130A 2 4 40 FreeWave Technologies Spread Spectrum Transceiver User Manual 900 MHz and 2 4 GHz V3 94 Troubleshooting using FreeWave to communicate between two PCs using pcANYWHERE which is set to direct connection Both pcANYWHERE and the modem are set to 115 2 KBaud yet thr
8. Output Power 1W 30 dBm at 9 5 to 14 0 V 400 mW 26 dBm at 7 5 to 9 5 V 500 mW 27 dBm at 9 5 to 14 0 V 400 mW 26 dBm at 7 5 to 9 5 V Range 20 miles 20 miles Modulation GFSK 120 kBs 170 kBs GFSK 120 kBs 170 kBs Occupied Bandwidth 230 kHz 230 kHz Receiver Sensitivity 108 dBm at 10 6 raw BER 108 dBm at 10 6 raw BER Selectivity 40 dB at fc 230 kHz 60 dB at fc 460 kHz 40 dB at fc 230 kHz 60 dB at fc 460 kHz Data Transmission Error Detection 32 Bit CRC resend on error 32 Bit CRC resend on error Data Encryption Substitution dynamic key Substitution dynamic key Link Throughput 115 KBaud 115 Kbaud Interface RS 232 1200 Baud to 115 2 KBaud asynch full duplex RS 232 1200 Baud to 115 2 KBaud asynch full duplex Power Requirements Transmit current 650 ma at 12V for 1W 600 ma at 8 5V for 400mW 650 ma at 12V for 500mW 600 ma at 8 5V for 400mW Receive current 100 ma at 12V 100 ma at 12V Idle current 65ma at 12 V 65ma at 12 V Operating Modes Point to Point Point to Multipoint Peer to Peer Store and Forward Repeater Point to Point Point to Multipoint Peer to Peer Store and Forward Repeater Operating Environment 40 C 75 C Line of sight distance with unity gain antenna at 900 MHz 5 dB omni at 2 4 GHz Throughput measured assuming
9. S law is prohibited Shipment or re export of this product outside of The United States may require authorization by the U S Bureau of Export Administration Please contact FreeWave Technologies for assistance and further information FreeWave Technologies Spread Spectrum Transceiver User Manual 900 MHz and 2 4 GHz V3 94 vi FreeWave Technologies Spread Spectrum Transceiver User Manual 900 MHz and 2 4 GHz V3 94 Table of Contents QUICK STA 1 TUNING TRANSCEIVER 2 OPERATION MODE 5 0 POINT TO POINT 5 5 1 POINT TO POINT SLAVE i 2 2 5 3 5 pez Re RIEN RS 5 2 POINT TO MULTIPOINT 5 3 POINT TO MULTIPOINT 5 4 POINT TO POINT SLAVE REPEATER 5 5 POINT TO POINT REPEATER iere anpara aae aeaa enean 5 6 POINT TO POINT SLAVE MASTER 6 7 POINT TO MULTIPOINT REPEATER 8 MULTIPOINT 9 0 NUMBER 9 1 MASTER PACKET nennen snnt nnns 9 2 SLAVE RETRY RE
10. features as explained below When a transceiver is designated as a Point to Point Slave Repeater it will allow any master to use it as a repeater 5 Point to Point Repeater FreeWave allows the use of up to two repeaters in a communications link significantly extending the operating range When designated as a repeater a FreeWave Technologies Spread Spectrum Transceiver User Manual 900 MHz and 2 4 GHz V3 94 Transceiver behaves as a pass through link All settings for the call book baud rate and radio transmission characteristics are disabled A repeater will connect with any master which calls it the repeater must still be set up in the master s call book The use of one repeater in a communications link will reduce the top data throughput available when compared to a direct master to slave link generally on the order of 50 This impact is generally noticed only when using the Transceivers at 115 2 KBaud The throughput does not decrease further if two repeaters are used 6 Point to Point Slave Master Switchable Mode 6 is a versatile option which allows the transceiver to be controlled entirely through software commands When in mode 6 a number of key parameters in FreeWave s user interface may be changed either directly as if using the Windows Terminal program or through the use of script files In addition when the transceiver is in mode 6 and not calling a slave it will be a slave itself and accept any appropriate calls
11. from other transceivers In mode 6 transceiver remains in slave mode until called by another Transceiver in its Call Book or instructed to call another transceiver through ATDT command The master will disconnect when DTR goes low user may change settings in the user interface without using the setup button this may be of particular value if the transceiver is not in an easily accessible location Predetermined script files may be used which allow any of the Transceiver s settings to be changed upon execution of that file This in turn allows the user to establish push button command sets which will instruct the Transceiver to call a predetermined slave Note All AT commands issued to the transceiver in Mode 6 must be in ALL CAPS Table 2 AT Script File Commands FreeWave Technologies Spread Spectrum Transceiver User Manual 900 MHz and 2 4 GHz V3 94 ATDT Position in Call Book to Call ATD Allows specific FreeWave Serial Number to be entered to call ATXC Used in conjunction with the ATD command instructs transceivers which repeater path to follow ATXS Instructs Transceiver to go into Setup Mode FreeWave Technologies Spread Spectrum Transceiver User Manual 900 MHz and 2 4 GHz V3 94 Using Mode 6 to call a transceiver not listed in the Call Book Mode 6 will accept the command where is any arbitrary modem serial number such as 5551234 Upon receipt of this command the m
12. the Multipoint Setup menu Because the Master transmit time is completely asynchronous to the occurrence of any change of the RTS line the latency time from RTS to CTS is variable The maximum time however is determined by the frequency of Master transmission times This frequency is determined by the Maximum Packet Size and Minimum Packet Size parameters in the Radio Parameter menu Setting both parameters to their maximum of 9 and 9 will produce a maximum latency time of approximately 25 mS At their minimum numbers the time will be approximately 10 mS Please note that this latency can go up significantly if packets are lost between the Master and Slave In point to multipoint mode there is no absolute guarantee that the state change will be communicated to all Slaves in the unlikely event that all repeated packets from the master do not get through to all Slaves 8 Retry Time Out The Retry Time Out parameter allows the user to determine when a slave will drop a connection to a master or repeater in multipoint mode The default setting is 255 meaning that if one packet in 255 from the master is sent successfully to the slave it will maintain a link The lowest setting is 8 at which a slave will drop a connection much more quickly The Retry Time Out parameter is useful when a multipoint system is used with a moving master or slaves As the link gets weaker a lower setting will allow a transceiver to drop a link and search for a strong
13. the master s Call Book When establishing such a system it is necessary only to have the master s serial number in each slave s and repeater s Call Book and to have each repeater s serial number in the Call Book of each slave which may potentially communicate through it The following example shows the Call Books of a multipoint system comprised of a master repeater and slave in which the slave can communicate either through the repeater or directly to the master Multipoint Master Call Book Unit Serial Number 555 0001 Entry Number Repeater1 Repeater2 0 000 0000 1 000 0000 No serial number entries are necessary in the master s Call Book The master s Call Book may be programmed to call any entry Multipoint Repeater Call Book Unit Serial Number 555 0002 Entry Number Repeater1 Repeater2 0 555 0001 1 000 0000 Multipoint Slave Call Book Unit Serial Number 555 0003 Entry Number Repeater1 Repeater2 0 555 0001 1 555 0002 2 000 0000 At times it may be desirable to force a slave to go through a specific multipoint repeater If this is the case that slave s Call Book should contain only the serial number for the repeater in the upper left hand corner Note the network ID option is used no entries are needed in the Call Book of any of the transceivers in a multipoint system 16 FreeWave Technologies Spread Spectrum Transceiver User Manual 900 MHz and 2 4 GHz V3 94 Radio Transmission Parameters
14. to Call feature in the Transceiver s call book Figure 5 is not operational The slave will communicate with any master on the list that calls 2 Point to Multipoint Master The FreeWave Transceiver may be set to run in Multipoint mode which allows one master to simultaneously be in communication with numerous slaves A Point to Multipoint Master will communicate only with other transceivers designated as Point to Multipoint Slaves or Point to Multipoint Repeaters Please refer to the next chapter Multipoint Operation for more information on running a Multipoint network 3 Point to Multipoint Slave Setting 3 allows the transceiver to operate as a slave in a Multipoint network Please refer to the next chapter Multipoint Operation for more information on running a Multipoint network 4 Point to Point Slave Repeater Option 4 allows you to designate the transceiver to act as either a slave or a repeater depending upon the instructions received from the master for the specific communications session When a transceiver is placed in an ideal location this setting offers the flexibility of using that transceiver as an end point in the communication link slave or to extend the link to a point further repeater These functions are not however available simultaneously the transceiver cannot act as both a slave and a repeater at the same time A word of caution A transceiver designated as a repeater has no security
15. would ensure that they would not jump onto the same frequencies at the same time for the same length of time There are 15 choices available for the Frequency Key 0 9 and A E representing 15 different pseudo random patterns 2 4GHz The Frequency Key for the FreeWave Technologies 2 4GHz transceivers offers the ability to select more than just a different pseudo random hop table but also the portion of the band which the transceiver will use Because this feature offers the ability to select which portion of the spectrum will be used it is critical that all radios in a link whether point to point or point to multipoint use the same selections Frequency Key Selections 0 provide 15 different pseudo random hop tables similar to the 900 MHz transceiver Selection F allows the user to set the Hop Table parameters The user is then presented with 3 additional choices Selection 0 allows the user to determine which portion of the band to use Table 4 2 4 GHz Frequency Band Selections Available Selection Band Use Entire band 2 400 2 4835 GHz Entire band but offset frequencies from selection 0 Lower 1 3 of band Middle of band Upper 1 3 of band 2 outer 1 3rds of band avoids the middle o Thus 2 networks could be set up side by side using the entire band without collisions by setting one network up with selection 0 and the second network with selection 1 18 FreeW
16. 10 10 4 D RR CONNECG 10 5 REPEATER FREQUENCY 4 4 10 6 A 10 8 MULTIMASTER 11 BAUD RATE 5 nnne n nnns nnns nnn 11 tet D toe Nu E cr DE CDU DULL 11 2 DATA WORD LENGTH AND 12 13 14 ENTERING OR MODIFYING NUMBERS IN THE CALL 15 PROGRAMMING THE CALL BOOK IN MULTIPOINT SYSTEMS 16 RADIO TRANSMISSION PARAMETERS eene nnne nnn 17 OR EEEE AAAA A LE N 18 1 MAX PACKET SIZE AND 2 MIN PACKET 12 20 Loc Eco SO DILDO De DOLO eo OU 22 4 SREDATARATE 0 0000 22 by RE AM POWER Os Doo Doo DOLO Ne o ON DoD OP D 23 6 SLAVE SECURITY E PL UM IOS SUD D 23 TOiG TiS ae n
17. FreeWave Spread Spectrum Wireless Data Transceiver User Manual FreeWave Technologies Inc 1880 South Flatiron Court Boulder CO 80301 USA 803 444 3862 803 786 9948 www freewave com FreeWave Spread Spectrum Wireless Data Transceiver User Manual FreeWave Technologies Inc 1880 South Flatiron Court Boulder CO 80301 USA 803 444 3862 803 786 9948 www freewave com FreeWave Technologies Spread Spectrum Transceiver User Manual 900 MHz and 2 4 GHz V3 94 This manual is for use by purchasers and other authorized users of the FreeWave Wireless Data Transceiver only No part of this document may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means electronic or mechanical or for any purpose without the express written permission of FreeWave Technologies Inc Warranty Your FreeWave Wireless Data Transceiver is warranted against defects in materials and manufacturing for a period of two years from the date of purchase In the event of a product failure due to materials or workmanship FreeWave Technologies will at its discretion repair or replace the product FreeWave Technologies its suppliers and its licensors shall in no event be liable for any damages arising from the use of or inability to use this product This includes business interruption loss of business information or other loss which may arise from the use of this product Information in this document is subject to change without noti
18. The DGR 115H must be mounted in a vertical position to be weather resistant An optional mounting bracket part number MBRK 115H is available to mount the transceiver to a tower or mast The DGR 115H requires the use of an external antenna 26 FreeWave Technologies Spread Spectrum Transceiver User Manual 900 MHz and 2 4 GHz V3 94 Front Panel LEDs The LEDs on FreeWave s front panel provide important information on the operation of the transceiver Compare the status of a Transceiver s LEDs with the table below to aid you in the troubleshooting process Table 3 LED Point to Point Communications Point Mode Master Slave Repeater Condition Powered disconnected R Connected no repeater sending sparse data Master calling slave through repeater Master connected to F repeater not to slave Mode 6 disconnected SR Ed o EE n n ES 4 4 9 98 o e 60 o Q Dd D D Legend Blinking Red Flashing Orange LED Intermittent Flash Red Carrier Detect LED Clear to Send LED Solid Red Dim Transmit LED Solid Green Solid Red Bright BR DESEE 27 FreeWave Technologies Spread Spectrum Transceiver User Manual 900 MHz and 2 4 GHz V3 94 Table 10 LED Status in Multipoint Mode MultiPoint Communications Master Slave Repeater Condition Repeater and sla
19. ad Spectrum Transceiver User Manual 900 MHz and 2 4 GHz V3 94 MAIN MENU Version 5 31 65 31 97 Standard Hop Table Modem Serial Number 571 1664 peration Mode aud Rate Call Book Radio Transmission Characteristics Radio Statistics HultiPoint Parameters Henu Setup e 15 6 to Point Haster to Point Slave to MultiPoint Master to MultiPoint Slave to Point Slave Repeater to Point Repeater to Point Slave Master Switchable to MultiPoint Repeater Esc Exit to Main Henu Enter Choice J FreeWave Technologies Spread Spectrum Transceiver User Manual 900 MHz and 2 4 GHz V3 94 Operation Mode Selections 0 Point to Point Master As mentioned previously FreeWave operates in a Master Slave configuration When designated as a master in point to point mode the Transceiver will call any or all slaves it is instructed to call in the call book The master determines the settings used for all Radio Transmission Characteristics regardless of the settings in the slaves and or repeaters A quick method of identifying a master is to power up the Transceiver Prior to establishing a communication link with a slave or repeater all three of the master s LEDs will be solid red 1 Point to Point Slave When set up as a slave a FreeWave Transceiver will communicate with any master in its call book either directly or through one or two repeaters When functioning as a slave the Entry
20. al 2 AT Script File Commands aa aant te eer e EE EE 6 Data Word Length and 5 sss 13 2 4 GHz Frequency Band Selections 18 Min Packet Size Settings Bytes sese 20 Max Packet Size Settings Bytes RF Data 2 21 Max Packet Size Settings Bytes RF Data 3 21 Power Transmit Settings 888 999 nnne nnn 23 LED Status in Point to Point 00000000 000485 27 LED Status in Multipoint 2 2 2 00000000000000550099 9 28 Output Power Settings at given Antenna Gain amp Cable Loss Combinations 900 11 14 14 Hp tno nu Mi HIM bore 29 RS232 Pin Assignments d d teta 29 DGRO Series 32 DGR T15W Pinout RR Rs 33 Data Communication 5 34 Frequency Banks 900 38 FreeWave Technologies Spread Spectrum Transceiver User Manual 900 MHz and 2 4 GHz 3 94 Table of Figures Figure 1 Initial 3 Figure 2 FreeWave Operation Mode nnns 4 Figure 3 Multipoint Parameters sisse nnne 11 Figu
21. and the DCE instrument to which it is connected To establish communications between a pair of FreeWave Wireless Data Transceivers just received from the factory 1 Set the baud rate on each transceiver to match the baud rate of the instrument to which it is attached Please note that when you are setting the transceiver s baud rate you are setting its RS232 data rate which must match the rate for the instrument to which it is attached This in turn means that the baud rate does not have to be on the same setting for the two transceivers 2 Verify that the RS232 connector on the cable supplied will fit the RS232 interface on the instrument to which it is being connected The cable supplied will fit a 9 pin male RS232 connector any other format will need an adapter or different cable 3 Screw the included whip antennas in the modem DGR 115 model only ensuring they are snug and properly seated Any FreeWave transceiver may be operated without an antenna for benchtop testing without concern for damaging the product 4 Connect the Transceiver to the instrument with the RS232 cable and attach the power adapter to the Transceiver Shortly after both modems are plugged in they should establish a communications link with each other and your connection is complete Note The terms Modem and Transceiver are used interchangeably in this manual and in the text of the setup menu While the words have different meanings the two terms should be treate
22. anual 900 MHz and 2 4 GHz V3 94 Call Book Selections 2 Edit Call Book The Call Book is an innovative feature in FreeWave which offers both security and flexibility in use The Call Book accomplishes this by allowing the user to determine with which other FreeWave Transceivers a given Transceiver will communicate based on the serial numbers for both the master and slave The transceiver s serial number is encoded in the microprocessor and identified on the bottom label of the unit The instructions provided in this section are for point to point mode only Use of the Call Book for Multipoint systems is explained later in this chapter For two FreeWave Transceivers to communicate in point to point mode three events must occur 1 The serial number for the master must be listed in the slave s Call Book 2 The serial number for the slave must be listed in the master s Call Book 3 The master must be programmed to call the slave As shown in figure 5 the Call Book allows users to set up a list of up to 10 FreeWave Transceivers with whom they can communicate designate up to 2 repeaters to be used in communicating with a given transceiver and tell the master which slave to call To direct the master to call a slave the user must be in the Call Book Menu A specific slave may be called by entering C at the prompt followed by the menu number corresponding to that slave To call any available slave in the list the user should enter C and th
23. ave Technologies Spread Spectrum Transceiver User Manual 900 MHz and 2 4 GHz V3 94 Selection 1 allows the user to set the size number of frequencies of the hop table to use The range available is from a minimum of 50 to a maximum of 80 Selection 2 allows the user to select a frequency offset whereby the frequencies used are offset by 115 2 KHz from other frequency selections in the same portion of the band For example if 2 networks are operating side by side in the lower 1 3 of the band using 50 frequencies with set to Frequency Offset of 0 and the other to Frequency Offset of 1 the frequencies used in the different hopping patterns will be offset by 115 2 KHz Figure 7 Frequency Key amp Hop Table Options 2 4 Ghz FreeWave HyperT erminal oa a WARNING Do not change parameters without reading manual 0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 Esc Enter Enter 0 1 2 Esc Enter FreqKey Max Packet Size Min Packet Size Xmit Rate RF Data Rate RF Xmit Power Slave Security RTS to CTS Retry Time Out 255 Exit to Main Menu 5 8 9 2 9 1 0 0 New Frequency Key 0 for Hop Table Parameters Hop Table Version 0 Hop Table Size 80 Freq Offset 2 Exit to Radio Menu Choice 19 FreeWave Technologies Spread Spectrum Transceiver User Manual 900 MHz and 2 4 GHz V3 94 1 Max Packet Size and 2 Min Packet Size Selections 1 and 2 allow
24. ce 1995 1996 1997 1998 FreeWave Technologies Inc All rights reserved Microsoft and Windows are registered trademarks of the Microsoft Corporation pcANYWHERE is a registered trademark of Symantec Corporation Other product names mentioned in this manual may be copyrights trademarks or registered trademarks of their respective companies and are hereby acknowledged The FreeWave Wireless Data Transceiver is made in the United States of America Printed in the United States of America FreeWave Technologies Spread Spectrum Transceiver User Manual 900 MHz and 2 4 GHz V3 94 FreeWave Technologies This device complies with part 15 of the FCC rules Operation is subject to the following two conditions 1 This device may not cause harmful interference and 2 this device must accept any interference received including interference that cause undesired operation This device must be operated as supplied by FreeWave Technologies Inc Any changes or modifications made to the device without the express written approval of FreeWave Technologies may void the user s authority to operate the device Spread Spectrum Transceiver User Manual 900 MHz and 2 4 GHz V3 94 FreeWave Technologies Spread Spectrum Transceiver User Manual 900 MHz and 2 4 GHz V3 94 iv FreeWave Technologies Spread Spectrum Transceiver User Manual 900 MHz and 2 4 GHz V3 94 This product is licensed by The United States Diversion contrary to U
25. ceded by a setting of 000 0000 able to link to a remote unit within line of sight when the Transceiver have is outside However as soon as walk inside with it lose the link even if place the Transceiver by the window which faces the remote unit Many modern buildings use energy efficient glass which wreaks havoc on RF signals This glass contains a metal film which is very effective in blocking all radio waves If your situation is as described above the preferable solution is to install an antenna outdoors have several transceivers set up to communicate with each other in a point to multipoint mode yet they are not establishing contact In a Multipoint system there are two critical parameters which must be set correctly to establish a communications link 1 The slave s Call Book must contain the serial number or Network ID of the master and or repeaters to which it will be communicating 41 FreeWave Technologies Spread Spectrum Transceiver User Manual 900 MHz and 2 4 GHz V3 94 2 All radios must be set to run at the same RF data rate Unlike point to point systems slaves in a Multipoint system do not change their RF data rate to match the master s rate In bench testing several units in a Multipoint system it appears that they are not communicating through the Multipoint repeater When all units are powered the slaves Carrier Detect lights are green indicating a connection yet when unplug the re
26. cknowledged all data transmissions from the master in a large Multipoint system then all system capacity would be spent having the master listen for acknowledgments from the slaves Because the transmission is not acknowledged by the slaves 100 confidence does not exist that every slave has received every message from the master To address this issue the user may modify option 1 Master Packet Repeat assigning a value between 0 the packet is transmitted once to 9 the packet is repeated 9 times For networks with solid RF links this parameter would be set at the lower end of the scale 0 1 If the FreeWave Technologies Spread Spectrum Transceiver User Manual 900 MHz and 2 4 GHz V3 94 network has some weak or marginal links it would be set toward the higher values If a slave receives a packet from a master more than once it will discard the repeated packets received 2 Max Slave Retry 3 Retry Odds While packets transmitted from the master to the slaves in a Multipoint network are not acknowledged packets transmitted from slaves to the master are However it is possible that more than one slave will attempt to transmit to the master at the same time and it is therefore important that a protocol exists to resolve contention for the master between slaves This is addressed through parameters 2 Max Slave Retry and 3 Retry Odds The Max Slave Retry setting defines how many times 0 to 9 the slave will attempt to retransmit a pac
27. d Hop Table Modem Serial Number 571 1664 8 Set Operation Mode 1 Set Baud Rate 2 Edit Call Book 3 Edit Radio Transmission Characteristics 4 Show Radio Statistics 5 Edit MultiPoint Parameters 6 TDMA Menu Esc Exit Setup Enter Choice The initial menu provides the Transceiver s unique serial number and the set of choices for editing the operational parameters and viewing the performance data 0 Set Operation Mode When item 0 is selected the Operation Mode Menu appears as shown in figure 2 The Operation Mode option is used to designate the method in which the particular FreeWave Transceiver will be used FreeWave operates a Master to Slave configuration therefore any Transceivers which are intended to operate together must be set up as such In a point to point setup either the master or slave may be used on either end of the communications link without any performance degradation One consideration when setting up the Transceivers is that a number of parameters are controlled by the settings in the master therefore you may wish to deploy the master on the communications end where you will have easier access to the transceiver FreeWave Technologies Figure 2 FreeWave Operation Mode Menu 8 1 2 3 4 5 6 Esc Enter 8 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 Set 0 Set B Edit Edit Show Edit TDMA Exit Choic Point Point Point Point Point Point Point Point Spre
28. d as one and the same for the purposes of use of the FreeWave product FreeWave Technologies Spread Spectrum Transceiver User Manual 900 MHz and 2 4 GHz V3 94 Tuning Transceiver Performance FreeWave allows you to tune several parameters to optimize its performance for your particular application All adjustments are done through the FreeWave setup program a user interface which eliminates the need for setup diskettes DIP switch settings or custom software The setup program is invoked by connecting FreeWave to any terminal program setting the baud rate for that terminal to 19200 baud and putting the transceiver into setup mode on most models this is done by pressing the Setup button While any terminal which can be set to 19200 baud will work examples for this manual were generated using the Terminal application from Microsoft Windows 3 1 or Hyperterminal Table 1 Setup Menu Parameter Setting Termina Rate 19200 DaaBits 8 1 FreeWave Technologies Spread Spectrum Transceiver User Manual 900 MHz and 2 4 GHz V3 94 When the setup program is invoked all three LEDs on the FreeWave front panel will turn green and will remain green for the entire time the Transceiver is in setup mode The main menu screen for the setup program is shown in Figure 1 Figure 1 Initial Menu t Terminal TERMINAL TRM File Edit Settings Phone Transfers Help MAIN MENU Version 5 31 65 31 97 Standar
29. e a 23 Amie 24 RADIO STATISTICS teste a 25 TRANSCEIVER 26 FRONT PANELE LEDS Lae 27 vii FreeWave Technologies Spread Spectrum Transceiver User Manual 900 MHz and 2 4 GHz V3 94 USING AN EXTERNAL 2 4 7 4 29 85232 PIN ASSIGNMENTS aaa a aan aua 30 DGRO SMALL FOOTPRINT SERIES 32 DGR 115W WATERPROOF ENCLOSURE PINOUT 33 DATA COMMUNICATIONS SETTINGS 2 1 34 ESTABLISHING DATA COMMUNICATION LINKS enne 35 OTHER SET TINGS 38 TECHNICAL 85 39 TROUBLESHOOT N 41 ANTENNA INSTALLATION 46 viii FreeWav Table 1 Table 2 Table 3 Table 4 Table 5 Table 6 Table 7 Table 8 Table 9 Table 10 Table 11 MHz Table 12 Table 13 Table 14 Table 15 Table 16 e Technologies Spread Spectrum Transceiver User Manual 900 MHz and 2 4 GHz V3 94 List of Tables Setup Menu Termin
30. eaters between the master and slave With two repeaters there is clearly more flexibility in getting around obstacles and greater total range is possible Once again it would be desirable to use external omnidirectional antennas with the repeaters and attaching a Yagi to the master and slave would increase the range of the link When two repeaters are used there is no further degradation in the RF speed of the link gt In example D a setup is shown where a master routinely calls a number of slaves at different times The master is communicating with a transceiver designated as a slave repeater which is connected to a remote instrument in the field Since this instrument is placed in an elevated location the transceiver may also be used as a repeater when it is not used as a slave At any time desirable the master may call any of the slaves establish a connection and retrieve and send data Master Slave Repeater 36 FreeWave Technologies Spread Spectrum Transceiver User Manual 900 MHz and 2 4 GHz V3 94 gt Master E Example E depicts a standard point to multipoint system In this example any data sent from the master is broadcast to all three slaves one of which receives it through a multipoint repeater The data is in turn sent out of the RS232 port of each of the three slaves 37 FreeWave Technologies Spread Spectrum Transceiver User Manual 900 MHz and 2 4 GHz
31. en A for All Note To call a slave through one or two repeaters you must call that slave directly as opposed to using the Call All option When Call All is selected the master is not able to connect with any slaves through repeaters This is because the master calls every slave in the list when instructed to call all and will connect with the first slave to respond When calling through a repeater the master must first call that repeater and establish a communications link with it prior to making contact with the slave 14 FreeWave Technologies Spread Spectrum Transceiver User Manual 900 MHz and 2 4 GHz V3 94 Figure 5 Call Book Menu Standard Hop Table Modem Serial Number 571 1664 8 Set Operation Mode 1 Set Baud Rate 2 Edit Call Book 3 Edit Radio Transmission Characteristics 4 Show Radio Statistics 5 Edit MultiPoint Parameters 6 TDMA Henu Esc Exit Setup Enter Choice MODEM CALL BOOK Entry to Call is 66 Entry Number Repeater1 Repeater2 6 576 6432 1 565 1258 564 1162 2 666 6666 3 666 6666 4 666 6666 5 666 6666 6 666 6666 7 666 6666 8 666 6666 9 666 6666 Change Entry to Use 8 9 or ACALL Esc Exit to Hain Henu Enter all zeros 888 8888 as your last number in list Entering or Modifying numbers in the Call Book Entering or modifying serial numbers in the Call Book is a straightforward process When in the Call Book menu enter the position number 0 9
32. er connection While intended primarily for multipoint systems the Retry Time Out parameter may also be modified in point to point systems In point to point mode the Retry Time Out should not be set to a value of less than 151 24 FreeWave Technologies Spread Spectrum Transceiver User Manual 900 MHz and 2 4 GHz V3 94 Radio Statistics Option 4 in the main menu allows the user to view data transmission statistics which have been gathered by the Transceiver during the most recent session This is of value when the user wishes to look at signal strength noise levels bytes transmitted bytes received and the distance of the link between transceivers Statistics are gathered during each data link and are reset when the next link begins Ideally noise levels should be below 30 and the difference between the average signal level and average noise level should be 15 or more High noise levels tend to indicate other sources of RF interference while low signal levels indicate a weak link The former might be addressed through antenna placement or the use of filters or amplifiers please call FreeWave Technologies for more information latter a weak signal might be addressed through better antenna placement on one or both ends use of higher gain antennas use of repeaters or use of amplifiers 25 FreeWave Technologies Spread Spectrum Transceiver User Manual 900 MHz and 2 4 GHz V3 94 Transceiver Location Placement of
33. k of lost data if an RF link is not very robust Pin 9 Ground GND Signal return for all signal lines shared with Pin 5 3l FreeWave Technologies Spread Spectrum Transceiver User Manual 900 MHz and 2 4 GHz V3 94 DGRO Small Footprint Series Pinout The DGRO Small Footprint Series transceivers are available in both TTL and RS232 versions The TTL versions use reverse polarity from standard RS 232 at to 5 Volt levels All pin descriptions are the same as the RS 232 pin descriptions above except for B Interrupt and different pin numbering The RS232 versions use standard RS232 polarity and voltage levels Pin 1 Power input Pin 2 Interrupt INT Input 0 volt level on this pin will switch the radio into setup mode Pin Assignment Interrupt Ground to invoke menu Ground Transmit Data Table 13 DGRO Series 7 Pinout Carrier Detect Clear to Send Note Pin 1 on the DGRO 115 board level transceiver is the pin farthest from the three LEDs and pin 10 is closest to the LEDs 32 FreeWave Technologies Spread Spectrum Transceiver User Manual 900 MHz and 2 4 GHz V3 94 DGR 115W Waterproof Enclosure Pinout Table 14 DGR 115W Pinout Color Funcio Output Red Transmit Data Output Input Input Signal Ground Output 7 Input Output Power Ground Power Input 11 Shield Ground Pin __6 Saw 8 __9 Figure 8 Waterproof Connector 33 FreeWave Technologie
34. ket to the master before beginning to use a back off algorithm the slave has unsuccessfully attempted to transmit the packet the number of times specified in Max Slave Retry it will attempt to transmit to the master on a random basis The Retry Odds parameter determines the probability that the slave will attempt to retransmit the packet to the master a low setting will assign low odds to the slave attempting to transmit and conversely a high setting will assign high odds example of how this parameter might be used would be when considering two different slaves in a Multipoint network one close in with a strong RF link and the other far from the master with a weak link It may be desirable to assign a higher Retry Odd to the slave with the weaker link to give it a better chance of competing with the closer slave for the master s attention 4 DTR Connect Another parameter in a Multipoint network is 4 DTR Connect When set at 1 the slave will connect to the master if it is free when the DTR line goes high on the 9 pin RS232 connector In setting 2 the transceiver will accumulate data in its buffer and transmit in a burst when the buffer is full This mode is valuable when a network has many low data rate devices and it is desirable to increase overall network capacity In setting O the transceiver will transmit when RS232 data is received 5 Repeater Frequency The repeater s hopping pattern must also be set in a Multipoint net
35. n there are more than 10 transceivers which may call into a slave and will allow any of the units in the system to call An entry exists in the Edit Radio Characteristics Menu so that this feature can be enabled or disabled 7 Point to Multipoint Repeater Setting 7 allows the transceiver to operate as a repeater in a Multipoint network Please refer to the next chapter Multipoint Operation for more information on running a Multipoint network FreeWave Technologies Spread Spectrum Transceiver User Manual 900 MHz and 2 4 GHz V3 94 Multipoint Operation In a Multipoint system a transceiver designated as a master is able to simultaneously be in communication with numerous slaves In its simplest form a Multipoint network functions with the master broadcasting its messages to all slaves and slaves responding to the master as appropriate Traditionally a Multipoint network is used in applications where data is collected from many instruments and reported back to one central site such the architecture of such a system is completely different from point to point applications The theoretical maximum number of slaves that can be configured into a Multipoint network is a function of the data throughput needed from each of the slaves For example if the network will be polling slaves once a day to retrieve sparse data several hundred slaves could be configured to a single master If on the other hand each slave will be transmitti
36. ng data at greater levels then fewer slaves may be connected to the master the overall system will be closer to capacity with fewer slaves The theoretical limit of a Multipoint system is influenced by the following parameters 1 Size of the blocks of data The longer the data blocks the smaller the system capacity 2 RS232 baud rate 3 The amount of contention between slaves 4 Use of repeaters A single repeater in a Multipoint network will decrease overall system capacity by 50 more than one repeater does not further decrease network capacity Setting Multipoint Parameters 0 Number Repeaters In a Multipoint network it is critical for timing purposes to know whether or not there are repeaters in the network Any transceiver that is used as a repeater essentially becomes a master to the slaves and other repeaters to which it is communicating Therefore the user must identify whether or not the network contains repeaters This is done by assigning a value in parameter 0 Number Repeaters The value should be 0 if there are no repeaters in the network and 1 if repeaters are present This parameter does not need to be set in the slaves in a Multipoint system 1 Master Packet Repeat In point to point operation the FreeWave transceivers acknowledge every data packet transmitted In a Multipoint network transmissions from a master to the slaves are not acknowledged by the slaves This is to prevent system overload If the slaves a
37. nsceivers set up between two computers and have been unsuccessful in my attempts to establish a link using LapLink At various times difficulty using FreeWave with LapLink has been documented by FreeWave Technologies cause while not confirmed is believed to be due to LapLink changing baud rates which FreeWave does not support If you encounter this problem it is recommended that you test the link with a terminal program such as Windows 3 1 Terminal Hyperterminal or Procomm If either of these applications is used and characters typed on one computer appear on the screen of the other computer in the link then the transceivers are functioning properly For up to date troubleshooting information check the FAQ page at www freewave com 43 FreeWave Technologies Spread Spectrum Transceiver User Manual 900 MHz and 2 4 GHz V3 94 Notes 44 FreeWave Technologies Spread Spectrum Transceiver User Manual 900 MHz and 2 4 GHz V3 94 Notes 45 Spread Spectrum Transceiver User Manual FreeWave Technologies V3 94 900 MHz and 2 4 GHz Antenna Installation Drawing Y HNH 134 Jae OMT E Ce Oe ee TIBI SFNNALNY STH INNO T GL E 46 FreeWave Technologies Spread Spectrum Transceiver User Manual 900 MHz and 2 4 GHz V3 94 47
38. odem will call that modem even though the number is not in the sending modem s Call Book The modem will use the repeater s specified in the Call Book This means it is now possible to call an unlimited number of slaves through script files in mode 6 and have up to 10 different repeater combinations To use the new features the following steps should be followed 1 If one or two repeaters are to be used they must first be set up in the Call Book This would be done by setting up a number to call this may be a dummy number through the repeater s which you wish to use 2 Issue the command ATXC where corresponds to the position in the Call Book where the repeater s is are located 3 Issue the command ATD where is the serial number of the transceiver with which you are attempting a link The transceiver will link first to the repeater s specified and then to the slave transceiver 4 f you wish to link to a different slave this time without using a repeater it is imperative that you reissue the command with being either a position in the Call Book that contains no repeaters or the letter A When the command ATXCA is issued the modem is instructed to Call All and no repeaters are used The Slave security may be disabled so that a modem operating as a slave Modes 1 4 and 6 will connect to any modem calling it regardless of whether the calling modem is in the slave s Call Book This feature is necessary whe
39. other FreeWave Transceiver and additional system security measures should be taken to prevent unauthorized access 7 RTS to CTS Menu selection 7 in the Radio Parameters provides the option of allowing the RTS line pin 7 on the Master modem to control the CTS line pin 8 of the Slave This pass through control can be enabled in point to point mode as well as point to multipoint In the latter the Master RTS line will control all Slaves CTS lines When this mode is enabled the CTS line ceases to function as flow control Therefore it is not recommended to enable this feature when operating at RS 232 speeds above 38 4 kB To enable this mode enter 7 in the Radio Parameters menu An entry of 1 will enable the RTS CTS control 0 will disable it Just before the time the Master is scheduled to transmit a packet it will sense the state of the RTS line If the state has changed the Master will then transmit a message to the Slave with the new status This transmission will occur regardless of data to be sent or not In the former case the RTS status message will be sent in addition to the data In point to point mode the Master will continue sending the new status message until it receives an acknowledgment from the 23 FreeWave Technologies Spread Spectrum Transceiver User Manual 900 MHz and 2 4 GHz V3 94 Slave n point to multipoint mode the Master will repeat the message the number of times equal to the Master Packet Repeat number in
40. oughput is considerably lower The communication link between two computers may be slowed considerably by the UART used in the serial port of one or both computers you suspect that the serial port on the computer will not support high speed communications then try reducing the baud rate for that end of the connection both on the computer and the Transceiver to see if throughput improves have two transceivers one configured as a master and the other as a slave When they are plugged in the LEDs indicate they are receiving power and yet they will not connect Why not There are several reasons why this may occur e The Transceivers are running at full power and are too close to each other If the Transceivers are within 5 10 feet of each other and will not link try either reducing the RF power to 1 on each or moving one unit to another room This problem occurred on the initial generation of product with the 555 serial number prefix It has been addressed in transceivers with serial numbers 556 and higher The Transceivers are not in each other s Call Books e The number of the slave is in the master s Call Book but the master s menu is not set to call that number e There are several phone numbers in the Call Book the master is set to Call All and is connecting with another transceiver in the list first e The master is set to Call All and the phone number of the Transceiver with which you are trying to communicate is pre
41. peater those slaves set up to communicate through that repeater remain connected In a Multipoint system a slave will attempt to communicate with any master or repeater which looks like a master in a Multipoint system that is in its Call Book Therefore it may be that the slaves are communicating with the repeater when it is powered and when it is unplugged they are establishing a link with the master To test whether or not this is what is occurring go into the Call Book of the slaves which are set up to communicate through the repeater and remove the master s serial number When all units are powered the slaves Carrier Detect lights should be green when the repeater is unplugged the slaves should lose contact and Carrier Detect should turn red My transceivers have established a solid connection as indicated by the LEDs yet the application am running is not transmitting and or receiving data correctly The quickest acid test in a situation like this is to try to get the application up and running using RS232 null modem cable before deploying FreeWave in the field FreeWave essentially functions as a null modem cable If the application will not work with a hard wire connection then it will not work with FreeWave and the problem lies within the application or other hardware such as the computer serial ports 42 FreeWave Technologies Spread Spectrum Transceiver User Manual 900 MHz and 2 4 GHz V3 94 have 2 DGR 115 tra
42. re 4 Baud Rate Word Length amp 12 Figure 5 Call Book 15 Figure 6 Radio Parameters sisse 17 Figure 7 Frequency Key amp Hop Table Options 2 4 Ghz sss 19 Figure 8 Waterproof 1 33 FreeWave Technologies Spread Spectrum Transceiver User Manual 900 MHz and 2 4 GHz V3 94 Quick Start This manual covers the operation of both the 900 MHz and 2 4 GHz spread spectrum transceivers manufactured by FreeWave Technologies For the most part operation of the products is identical where operating differences exist every effort has been made to clearly identify which product family is being referred to When purchased as a pair the FreeWave Wireless Data Transceivers are shipped from the factory pre configured to operate together in point to point applications The Transceivers are preset for high speed data communications and to communicate only with each other FreeWave will potentially operate in virtually any environment where RS232 data communications occur The transceiver functions as a 9 pin null modem cable If FreeWave is to be used in an application where a null modem cable is used such as communication between two computers then FreeWave can be connected directly If FreeWave is to be used to replace a straight through RS232 cable then a null modem cable must be placed between the transceiver
43. rs 1 Master Packet Repeat 2 Max Slave Retry 3 Retry Odds 4 DTR Connect 5 Repeater Frequency 6 NetWork ID 7 Reserved 8 MultiMasterSyne Esc Exit to Main Menu Enter Choice Baud Rate Selections 1 Set Baud Rate 11 FreeWave Technologies Spread Spectrum Transceiver User Manual 900 MHz and 2 4 GHz V3 94 When item 1 is selected you will be able to change the Transceiver s RS232 baud rate the communication rate between the Transceiver and the instrument to which it is connected It is important to note that this is independent of the baud rate for the other Transceiver s in the communication loop For example FreeWave may be used in an application to send data from remote process instrumentation to an engineer s computer In this application the baud rate for the Transceiver on the instrumentation might be set to 9600 and the Transceiver on the computer might be set to 57 600 or 115 200 In general it is desirable to set the baud rate to the highest level supported by the device to which it is connected However please note that this may actually result in slower data communications in certain circumstances see the Troubleshooting section Figure 4 Baud Rate Word Length amp Modbus FreeWave HyperT erminal OF xi File Edit View Call Transfer Help SET BAUD RATE Modem Baud is 038400 1 115 200 2 76 800 3 57 600 4 38 400 5 19 200 6 2 600 7 4 800 8 2 400 9 1
44. s Spread Spectrum Transceiver User Manual 900 MHz and 2 4 GHz V3 94 Data Communications Settings The device to which FreeWave is connected should be configured to match the settings shown in Table 15 Table 15 Data Communication Settings Parameter Setting DaaBits 8 O 1 34 FreeWave Technologies Spread Spectrum Transceiver User Manual 900 MHz and 2 4 GHz V3 94 Establishing Data Communication Links FreeWave s versatility allows data communication links to be established using a variety of different configurations This in turn makes it possible to extend the range of FreeWave and get around obstacles Diagram A shows the most common and straightforward link a master communicating to a slave in a dedicated link lt gt Diagram B depicts how link might be set up using a repeater repeater may be sitting on a hilltop or other elevated structure to link the master to the slave n this setup it may be desirable to use an external omnidirectional antenna on the repeater to extend the range Yagi antennas could be used on either or both of the master and slave When repeater is used the RF speed is cut in half making 115 KBaud uncompressed throughput unachievable The baud rate however may still be set at 115200 gt lt gt B 35 FreeWave Technologies Spread Spectrum Transceiver User Manual 900 MHz and 2 4 GHz V3 94 Diagram C shows a link with two rep
45. ternal directional antennas are used FCC regulations concerning effective radiated power limitations must be followed Table 11 provides the maximum output power settings for a 1 watt DGR 115 115H product given antenna gain and cable loss combinations Table 11 Output Power Settings at given Antenna Gain amp Cable Loss Combinations 900 MHz Cable Loss 1dB 2dB 3dB 4dB Antenna 10dB 6 7 8 9 Gain 8dB 8 9 9 9 6dB 9 9 9 9 WARNING Any antennas placed outdoors must be properly grounded Use extreme caution when installing antennas and follow all instructions included with the antennas The use of external antennas subjects the transceiver to greater exposure to direct lightning strikes Long RS232 cable runs should also be avoided in areas with increased lightning activity or static electricity unless they are properly isolated from the transceiver Nearby lightning strikes or elevated levels of static electricity may lead to voltage spikes on the line causing failure in the transceivers RS232 interface Table 12 RS232 Pin Assignments 29 FreeWave Technologies 5 Spread Spectrum Transceiver User Manual 900 MHz and 2 4 GHz V3 94 RS232 Pin Assignments Assignment Signal Carrier Detect Transmit Data LIH d DTR Data Set Read ae O RTS Clear to Send Output Grounds ooo e s 1 Definitions Pin 1 Pin 2 Pin 3 Pin 4 Pin 5 Pin 6 Pin 7 Pin 8
46. the user to designate the size of the packets in bytes used by the transceiver in its communication link This may be of particular value when using FreeWave with different communications software packages you may find that throughput is optimized when packet sizes are restricted by the transceiver It should be noted however that in Point to Point modes the Max and Min Packet Settings will not have any material impact on throughput unless 115 2 KBaud is desired The combination of Max and Min Packet Size Settings determines the allocation of the communication link from the Master to the Slave and vice versa With a given Max Packet Setting the master will transmit up to that number of bytes on every hop fewer than that number of bytes is transmitted the balance 15 allocated to the slave s transmission in addition to the quantity in the Min Packet Size Setting Packet size is determined by a combination of the setting entered by the user and the RF Data Rate Tables 5 6 and 7 provide the packet sizes for each different combination of settings Table 5 Min Packet Size Settings Bytes Setting Min Packet Size Min Packet Size RF Data Rate 2 RF Data Rate 3 20 V3 94 900 MHz and 2 4 GHz Spread Spectrum Transceiver User Manual FreeWave Technologies Table 6 Max Packet Size Settings Bytes 2 RF Data Rate Max Setting Table 7 Max Packet Size Settings Bytes 3 RF Data Rate Max Setting
47. tion link 22 FreeWave Technologies Spread Spectrum Transceiver User Manual 900 MHz and 2 4 GHz V3 94 5 RF Xmit Power FreeWave offers users the ability to modify the Transmission Power of the Transceiver By reducing the Transmission Power when appropriate users can ensure the Transceivers do not overwhelm each other when used in close proximity There are 9 power settings available 1 9 which are roughly linear therefore a setting of 9 is full power or 1 Watt and 1 is 10 power 100 mW The following guidelines should be followed when setting the RF Transmission Power Table 8 Power Transmit Settings Setting Power Level Used When Low Pair or pairs of transceivers operating within same or adjoining rooms Medium More than one pair of modems operating within same facility Normal operation extending beyond a facility 6 Slave Security With option 6 the user may disable the transceiver s security so it will accept a call from any other FreeWave unit The default setting is 0 where security is enforced the caller s serial number must be in the slave s Call Book with a setting of 1 security is disabled As mentioned in mode 6 Slave Security must be set to one when the unit is operating in a point to point system where it may need to accept calls from more than 10 different FreeWave Transceivers However it is important to note that when Slave Security is set to 1 the Transceiver will accept calls from any
48. ve SR SD SG SR SG SD SR connected to master no data Repeater and slave SR SD IF SG IF SR SG SD SR connected to master sending data Legend Blinking Red Flashing Orange LED Intermittent Flash Red Carrier Detect LED Clear to Send LED Oa Solid Red Dim Solid Green Solid Red Bright Transmit LED BR O Off 28 FreeWave Technologies Spread Spectrum Transceiver User Manual 900 MHz and 2 4 GHz V3 94 Using an External Antenna All FreeWave Technologies spread spectrum transceivers require the use of an external antenna other than the model DGR 115 The Transceivers are equipped with an external jack allowing the use of a directional Yagi or omnidirectional antenna When using an external antenna the whip antenna on the DGR 115 must be removed The use of an external antenna may radically improve the results obtained with FreeWave Transceivers It is highly desirable to obtain line of sight with the antennas and changes in placement height of as few as a couple of feet may make the difference between no link and one that is solid and reliable Per FCC regulations any antenna used with FreeWave must be provided by FreeWave Technologies FreeWave Technologies offers a variety of omnidirectional and directional external antennas with both bracket and magnetic mounts These antennas allow versatility in FreeWave s deployment extending its range and allowing it to get around obstructions If ex
49. work this is accomplished with parameter 5 Repeater Frequency Setting this parameter is in contrast with point to point mode where the repeater automatically uses the master s hopping pattern The repeater may be programmed to either use the master s hopping pattern selection 0 or its own selection 1 6 NetWork ID Option 6 NetWork ID allows multipoint networks to be established without the use of the Call Book If the NetWork ID is set to any value lower than the default 255 the slaves in the multipoint network will communicate with the first 10 FreeWave Technologies Spread Spectrum Transceiver User Manual 900 MHz and 2 4 GHz V3 94 multipoint master or repeater heard with the same NetWork ID When the NetWork ID is used multipoint masters and repeaters may be replaced without reprogramming all of the slaves in the network In addition this allows a slave to establish communications with different Masters though not at the same time without having the serial numbers in the Call Book This is very useful in mobile multipoint applications 8 MultiMaster Synch 8 MultiMaster Synch is reserved for applications either point to point or multipoint with concentrations of Master units where it is necessary to reduce interference between the Masters Please contact FreeWave Technologies for more information Figure 3 Multipoint Parameters FreeW ave Hyperterminal HyperT erminal MULTIPOINT PARAMETERS Number Repeate
50. your FreeWave unit is likely to have a significant impact on its performance In general the rule of thumb with FreeWave is that the higher the placement of the antenna the better the communication link height is everything In practice you should also place the transceiver away from computers telephones answering machines and other similar equipment The included 6 foot RS232 cable will usually provide ample room for placement away from other equipment To improve the data link FreeWave Technologies offers directional and omnidirectional antennas with cable lengths ranging from 10 to 100 feet When using an external antenna placement of that antenna is critical to a solid data link Other antennas in close proximity are a potential source of interference use the Radio Statistics to help identify potential problems It is also possible that slight adjustments in antenna placement as little as 2 feet will solve noise problems In extreme cases such as when the transceiver is located close to Pager or Cellular Telephone transmission towers FreeWave offers a band pass filter to reduce the out of band noise The standard enclosure for the DGR 115 does not provide protection against water or environmental hazards and will fade when placed in direct sunlight For outdoor applications the DGR 115H should be used The DGR 115H provides a weather resistant enclosure allowing placement of the Transceiver in more demanding environmental conditions
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