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SerialSend command

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Dick Trump
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I'm experimenting with the serial port (9-pin) on an HD1010 and have it working fine with interactive playlist commands as you've described before. Now I'm trying to send commands (as I might to turn on/off a monitor) and haven't had any success yet. Does that default to the 5V serial port? Can it be rerouted to the 9-pin?

Also, can the SerialSend command be used in standard playlist scripts (.BSP)? Nothing is documented in that section of the Users Guide.

Finally, is it possible to send any arbitrary hex characters with SerialSend? I don't know yet if it is sending a CR or CRLF since I haven't gotten it to work at all yet, but sometimes it might be necessary to send other arbitrary hex characters through the serial port.

BTW, the monitor control issue comes up because I have not been able to get the PowerSaveMode to work with an HDMI or DVI connected monitor.

Dick
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  • 0
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    RokuLyndon


    The default is the standard serial port, not the TTL port. So, you don't need to reroute. Are you using BrightAuthor to send, or a script?



    What display is it?

    Is the serial port speed set properly?

    Are you sending bytes, strings? What's the syntax the monitor uses?



    The old csv format supported serialsend, and BrightAuthor does.



    The standard autorun doesn't send bytes, just strings. I would recommend using BrightAuthor, where you can use the sendbyte command to send hex values, one byte at a time. When using sendbyte, you send the decimal equivalent.



    So, if you wanted to send Enter, you would send 10. Or, if you wanted to send ETX or STX control characters, you would send 2 and 3. I've used the sendbyte to send 32 bytes of data to a display that only accepted hex.



    How are you using the powersavemode keyword?









    BrightAuthor Interactive tips



    Brightauthor - Sending Commands
  • 0
    Avatar
    Dick Trump


    The default is the standard serial port, not the TTL port. So, you don't need to reroute. Are you using BrightAuthor to send, or a script?

    What display is it?
    Is the serial port speed set properly?
    Are you sending bytes, strings? What's the syntax the monitor uses?

    I was not actually connecting to the monitor for initial testing.  I was using a terminal program that I use for diagnostics.  I was using a csv interactive script with the port initialized for control.  Perhaps that conflicts with attempting to send data, but nothing in the documentation warns against that.

    The old csv format supported serialsend, and BrightAuthor does.

     Hmmm! The "old csv format"?  Is there a "new csv format"?  Has it changed since the documentation was written?  Or has support for it been deprecated?  I figured as long as BrightAuthor is still only a beta product, I should expect the scripting to be a valid way of doing things.

    The standard autorun doesn't send bytes, just strings. I would recommend using BrightAuthor, where you can use the sendbyte command to send hex values, one byte at a time. When using sendbyte, you send the decimal equivalent.
    So, if you wanted to send Enter, you would send 10. Or, if you wanted to send ETX or STX control characters, you would send 2 and 3. I've used the sendbyte to send 32 bytes of data to a display that only accepted hex.

    Well, it certainly sounds like I need to move to BrightAuthor.  But I think something needs to be made more clear in the documentation that the old methods can't be trusted and the new "beta" isn't really beta anymore.  My first try with the beta several months ago led me to believe it really wasn't ready for any heavy lifting.

    How are you using the powersavemode keyword?

    I have a separate bsp that is executed by an entry in Autoschedule.txt (actually 2 entries to work around another bug I've reported).  The same technique worked on the system that I sent to Hawaii.  That was being used with an Elo touchscreen monitor.  I'm currently trying it both with a Samsung 460UX and an Eiki EFD-52.  I've proven that the same programming works on the Samsung if I use VGA instead of HDMI connection.  Does the BS send DPMS triggers when using HDMI?
  • 0
    Avatar
    RokuLyndon


    You can connect to a terminal program on your computer. I do that all the time. So, you don't see any output? Can you send me a sample csv?



    BrightAuthor is a much easier way to do things, and it's been tested heavily. The only reason the software on the web is beta is there's certain features we want in the "final" release so the one on the web has never been made final. But, the csv format still works, and is still supported. It's just easier to do it in BrightAuthor.



    I'm not familiar with the term DPMS. The powersave settings should work both on VGA and HDMI.
  • 0
    Avatar
    Dick Trump


    So, you don't see any output? Can you send me a sample csv?

    I'll forward that when I get to my office.  I'm at home right now and the only copy of that is on the card in the player.

    But, the csv format still works, and is still supported. It's just easier to do it in BrightAuthor.

    Not until I viewed the WMV links that you sent (Interactive tips & Sending Commands) was I aware that interactivity was fully supported in BrightAuthor.  I had downloaded the latest version (1.0.2.13) from the website last week and didn't notice the mode switch to take it interactive.  I probably dismissed it a little too quickly.

    I'm not familiar with the term DPMS. The powersave settings should work both on VGA and HDMI.

    Display Power Management System, from VESA.  I cited DPMS because another digital signage company claims that their system uses that method and it does work with the Samsung & Eiki monitors I mentioned.  I suspect they really meant DMPM, not DPMS.  I did a little research and found this document: <!-- m --><a class="postlink" href="http://www.ddwg.org/lib/dvi_10.pdf">http://www.ddwg.org/lib/dvi_10.pdf</a><!-- m -->  On pages 19-21 it discusses some of the differences between DPMS and DVI-DMPM.  Both monitors I have tried are current production and intended for the digital signage market, so I would think they would be fairly representative of what is out there.  The Eiki cites both standards in their specifications.  Of course the DMPM document is from 1999 and doesn't even mention HDMI, so I don't know if that is a factor.
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