A-24 MINI Hawk High Performance Imager User’s Manual
Interface Standards
Appendix F — Interface Standards
Interface Standards, established by the Electronic Industries Association (EIA), specify
such things as the signaling voltage levels, maximum cable lengths, and number of drivers.
In the MINI Hawk, selection of interface is made by pin assignment and, in the case of host
communications, by software switching between RS-232 and RS-422/RS-485.
RS-232
RS-232 defines an interface between two devices such as, for example, the reader and
host. It differs from the other interfaces by dedicating individual pins to specific functions
and by requiring both devices to share a common ground line. Since both device chassis
are connected to a common ground, a ground loop potential and the possibility of noise
interference exists. Therefore cable lengths are limited to a maximum of 50 feet (19.7m).
Despite being the most limited, this interface is used frequently because of the large
installed base of RS-232 equipment.
RS-422/RS-485
RS-422, unlike RS-232, measures signals deferentially; that is, the receiver looks at the
potentials between the two receive (or transmit) wires rather than the potential between
signal and ground. As a result, cables, if shielded, can be up to 4000 feet (1219m) in
length. Like RS-232, RS-422 communication is designed for only two devices on a single
line and must have a common ground. It can be used wherever RS-232 is used.
USB
The Universal Serial Bus can connect up to 127 devices to a host at a maximum of 6
megabytes per second (Mbps) of bandwidth.
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