Chapter 4 Software Tools and
Communication
Introduction
The default configuration DMC-41x3 has one USB port, one RS-232 port and one Ethernet port. The auxiliary RS-
232 port is the data term and can be configured with the software command CC. This configuration can be saved
using the Burn (BN) instruction. The Ethernet port is a 10/100BASE-T connection that auto-negotiates the speed
and half or full duplex.
The GDK software package is available for PC computers running Microsoft Windows or Linux to communicate with
the DMC-41x3 controller. This software package has been developed to operate under Windows and Linux, and
include all the necessary drivers to communicate to the controller. In addition, gclib, a C based software
development communication library, is available which allows users to create their own application interfaces
using programming environments such as C/C++, Python, .NET, and Java.
The following sections in this chapter are a description of the communications protocol, and a brief introduction to
the software tools and communication techniques used by Galil. At the application level, GDK is the basic
development software that the majority of users will need to communicate with the controller, to perform basic
setup, and to develop application code (.dmc programs) that is downloaded to the controller. At the Galil API level,
gclib is available for users who wish to develop their own custom application programs to communicate to the
controller. Custom application programs can utilize API function calls directly to our DLL’s. At the driver level, we
provide fundamental hardware interface information for users who desire to create their own drivers.
Controller Response to Commands
Most DMC-41x3 instructions are represented by two characters followed by the appropriate parameters. Each
instruction must be terminated by a carriage return. Multiple commands may be concatenated by inserting a
semicolon between each command.
After the instruction is decoded, the DMC-41x3 returns a response to the port from which the command was
generated. If the instruction was valid, the controller returns a colon (:) or the controller will respond with a
question mark (?) if the instruction was not valid. For example, the controller will respond to commands which are
sent via the USB port back through the USB port, and to commands which are sent via the Ethernet port back
through the Ethernet port.
For instructions that return data, such as Tell Position (TP), the DMC-41x3 will return the data followed by a
carriage return, line feed and : .
Chapter 4 Software Tools and Communication ▫ 38 DMC-41x3 User Manual
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