CHAPTER 4
REMOTE OPERATION
4.0 GENERAL
The Model 211 is equipped with an RS-232C serial computer interface.
The interface allows computer automation of instrument setup and
temperature measurement data collection. Nearly every feature of the
instrument can be accessed through the computer interface. Interface
capabilities including setup information and example programs are provided
in Paragraph 4.1. Interface commands including a command summary are
described in Paragraph 4.2.
4.1 SERIAL INTERFACE OVERVIEW
The serial interface used in the Model 211 is commonly referred to as an
RS-232C interface. RS-232C is a standard of the Electronics Industries
Association (EIA) that describes one of the most common interfaces
between computers and electronic equipment. The RS-232C standard is
quite flexible and allows many different configurations. However, any two
devices claiming RS-232C compatibility cannot necessarily be plugged
together without interface setup. The remainder of this paragraph briefly
describes the key features of a serial interface that are supported by the
instrument. A customer supplied computer with similarly configured
interface port is required to enable communication.
4.1.1 Physical Connection
The Model 211 has a 9-pin D-Subminiature plug on the rear panel for serial
communication. The original RS-232C standard specifies 25 pins but both
9- and 25-pin connectors are commonly used in the computer industry.
Many third party cables exist for connecting the instrument to computers
with either 9- or 25-pin connectors. Section 5.3 gives the most common pin
assignments for 9- and 25-pin connectors. Please note that not all pins or
functions are supported by the Model 211.
The instrument serial connector is the plug half of a mating pair and must
be matched with a socket on the cable. If a cable has the correct wiring
configuration but also has a plug end, a ―gender changer‖ can be used to
mate two plug ends together.
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