National Instruments Corporation
6504 Bridge Point Parkway
Austin, TX 78730-5039
(512) 794-0100
(800) IEEE-488 (toll-free U.S. and Canada)
Technical support fax: (512) 794-5678
Limited Warranty
The GPIB-COM is warranted against defects in materials and workmanship for a period of two
years from date of shipment. National Instruments will repair or replace equipment which proves
to be defective during the warranty period. This warranty includes parts and labor. A Return
Material Authorization (RMA) number must be obtained from National Instruments before any
equipment is returned for repair. Faults caused by misuse are not covered under the warranty.
During the warranty period, the owner may return failed parts to National Instruments for repair.
National Instruments will pay the shipping costs of returning the part to the owner. All items
returned to National Instruments for repair must be clearly marked on the outside of the package
with an RMA number.
No other warranty is expressed or implied. National Instruments shall not be liable for
consequential damages. Contact National Instruments for more information.
Important Notice
The material in this manual is subject to change without notice. National Instruments assumes no
responsibility for errors which may appear in this manual. National Instruments makes no
commitment to update, nor to keep current, the information contained in this document.
Copyright
Under the copyright laws, this manual may not be copied, photocopied, reproduced, translated, in
whole or in part, without the prior written consent of National Instruments Corporation.
Trademark
IBM is a registered trademark of International Business Machines Corporation.
FCC/DOC Radio Frequency Interference Compliance
This equipment generates and uses radio frequency energy and, if not installed and used in strict
accordance with the instructions in this manual, may cause interference to radio and television
reception. This equipment has been tested and found to comply with (1) the limits for a Class B
computing device, in accordance with the specifications in Part 15 of U.S. Federal
Communications Commission (FCC) Rules, and (2) the limits for radio noise emissions from
digital apparatus set out in the Radio Interference Regulations of the Canadian Department of
Communications (DOC). These regulations are designed to provide reasonable protection
against interference from the equipment to radio and television reception in residential areas.
There is no guarantee that interference will not occur in a particular installation. However, the
chances of interference are much less if the equipment is used according to this instruction
manual.
If the equipment does cause interference to radio or television reception, which can be
determined by turning the equipment on and off, one or more of the following suggestions may
reduce or eliminate the problem.
•Operate the equipment and the receiver on different branches of your AC electrical system.
•Move the equipment away from the receiver with which it is interfering.
•Relocate the equipment with respect to the receiver.
•Reorient the receiver's antenna.
•Be sure that the equipment is plugged into a grounded outlet and that the grounding has not
been defeated with a cheater plug.
If necessary, consult National Instruments or an experienced radio/television technician for
additional suggestions. The following booklet prepared by the FCC may also be helpful: How toIdentify and Resolve Radio-TV Interference Problems. This booklet is available from the U.S.
Government Printing Office, Washington, DC 20402, Stock Number 004-000-00345-4.
Preface
Introduction to the GPIB-COM
The GPIB-COM is a high-performance talk/listen interface board that makes communication
possible between IEEE-488 devices and IBM personal computers and compatibles (hereafter
referred to as PCs) equipped with software that uses the serial ports.
Organization of This Manual
This manual is divided into the following sections:
Section One, Introduction, contains a brief description of the GPIB-COM including a listing of its
features, accessories, and components.
Section Two, Configuration and Installation, describes how to configure and install the GPIB-
COM into your system.
Section Three, Function Description, shows a block diagram of the GPIB-COM and describes the
functional components of the GPIB-COM.
Section Four, Running Diagnostic Tests, describes how to run the diagnostic tests that are shipped
with the GPIB-COM.
Section Five, Programming the GPIB-COM, presents a description of the GPIB-COM Serial Port
Emulator registers and information on programming the IBM serial adapter.
Appendix A, Specifications, lists the specifications of the GPIB-COM board.
Appendix B, Multiline Interface Command Messages, contains an ASCII chart and a list of the
corresponding GPIB messages.
Appendix C, Operation of the GPIB, describes GPIB terminology and protocol for users
unfamiliar with the GPIB.
Related Documents
The following documents contain information that may be helpful as you read this manual:
•ANSI/IEEE Std 488-1978, IEEE Standard Digital Interface for Programmable
This section contains a brief description of the GPIB-COM interface and a list of its characteristics
and components.
GPIB-COM Characteristics
The National Instruments GPIB-COM is a high-performance talk/listen interface that converts data
between a standard serial port format and IEEE-488 General Purpose Interface Bus (GPIB)
format for use with IEEE-488 printers and plotters. It can be used with any serial port software
on the PC. The GPIB-COM looks like a standard serial port to the IBM PC operating system and
software. It can be used to interface IEEE-488 devices to any PC software that uses the serial
ports.
The GPIB-COM has the following hardware features:
•emulates the standard PC serial adapter interface so that no additional software is needed
•can be configured as either COM1, COM2, COM3, or COM4
•compatible with any software using the serial ports on the IBM PC and its compatibles
•transparent addressing of unaddressed Talkers and Listeners
•choice of talk-only mode for use with listen-only printers and plotters
•choice of REN mode, which operates an instrument in the remote mode
•choice of SRQ enable, which allows monitoring of asynchronous service requests
•choice of IFC mode, which sends an interface clear when the computer is powered on
When installing the GPIB-COM you must determine which serial port the GPIB-COM board will
respond to and select the appropriate base address and interrupt level. The GPIB-COM can be
configured to one of four base addresses:
•3F8 for Serial Port 1
•2F8 for Serial Port 2
•3E8 for Serial Port 3
•2E8 for Serial Port 4
Note: DOS and BIOS only recognize base addresses 3F8 and 2F8.
The GPIB-COM is shipped from the factory set to 3F8. It must be reconfigured to another base
address if another device (such as a printer adapter card or a built-in serial port) is already at that
address.
DOS has reserved device names for the serial ports it finds in the system: COM1 and COM2.
The serial port adapters are named in the order in which they are found. When the computer is
powered on, DOS searches the serial port addresses for installed adapters. It first searches 3F8,
then 2F8. If only one device is installed, that device is named COM1 regardless of what its I/O
address is. If there is more than one serial device installed, the first one found is assigned COM1
and the second one found is assigned COM2.
Some communications software also recognizes COM3 (base address 3E8) and COM4 (base
address 2E8). If you wish to use COM3 or COM4, set the jumpers to the desired base address as
shown in Figure 2-2. DOS and BIOS do not recognize COM3 or COM4. Consult your software
documentation to see which interrupt level, if any, is required. If interrupts are not used, the
jumper can be removed or stored with only one side on a pin.
The GPIB-COM may need to be reconfigured if its interrupt level conflicts with another device. If
the base I/O address of the GPIB-COM does not conflict with any other device in your computer
and the GPIB-COM still does not work with your software package, reconfigure the GPIB-COM
to a different interrupt level.
Table 2-1 shows the standard base I/O address and interrupt level for each serial port.
Table 2-1. IBM PC Serial Port Adapters
Name of PortBase I/O Address (hex) Interrupt Level
Serial Port 13F8 4
Serial Port 2 2F83
Serial Port 3 3E8Not Used
Serial Port 42E8Not Used
Switch and Jumper Settings
Table 2-2 shows the factory settings and optional configurations for the switches and jumpers on
the GPIB-COM.
Table 2-2. Factory Default Settings and Optional Configurations
GPIB-COMDefaultOptional
Base I/O Address3F82F8, 3E8, 2E8
Interrupt Level43
If you need to change the factory settings, continue on. If you do not need to change the factory
settings, skip to Installation later in this section.
Base I/O Address and Interrupt Selection
The base I/O address and interrupt line used by the GPIB-COM are determined by the jumpers
located at positions W2 and W5. The jumpers are set at the factory for base I/O address 3F8 hex
and interrupt level 4.
Figure 2-2 shows the four possible combinations of jumper settings.
W5
XF8
3X8
IRQ4
W2
a. COM1: Jumpers Set to Base I/O Address
3F8 hex and Interrupt Level 4 (Default)
XF8
•
3X8
IRQ4
W2
c. COM3: Jumpers Set to Base I/O Address
3E8 hex (Interrupts Not Used)
•
•
W5
•
• •
XE8
2X8
•
IRQ3
XE8
2X8
•
IRQ3
W5
XF8
3X8
IRQ4
•
W2
b. COM2: Jumpers Set to Base I/O Address
2F8 hex and Interrupt Level 3
XF8
•
3X8
IRQ4
W2
d. COM4: Jumpers Set to Base I/O Addres
2E8 hex (Interrupts Not Used)
•
•
W5
•
•
XE8
2X8
IRQ3
XE8
2X8
IRQ3
Figure 2-2. Possible Settings for GPIB-COM Jumpers
Talk/Listen Modes
If you are using your GPIB-COM with a listen-only printer or plotter, you can configure the
GPIB-COM for a talk-only mode. In this mode, the GPIB-COM is always a Talker and never
sends any interface commands. To set the talk-only mode, change jumper W1 from T/L to T as
shown in Figure 2-3:
Talk/Listen Address and Special Function Selection
The GPIB-COM interface board has eight onboard DIP switches you can use to configure the
GPIB controller responsibilities. In the talk/listen mode, the first five switches set the talk or listen
address of the external device(s) that will be attached to the GPIB-COM. In the talk-only mode,
the GPIB-COM does not send a talk or listen address.
The three remaining switches (REN, IFC, and SRQ) have the following special functions:
Note: An asterisk (*) after a signal name indicates that the signal is inverted (negative logic).
REN*Asserts/unasserts the Remote Enable (REN) line that places an instrument in remote
mode. The ON position enables REN. The OFF position disables REN.
IFC*Enables/disables the Interface Clear (IFC) option on the GPIB-COM. If enabled, the
GPIB-COM issues an IFC when it is initialized. The ON position enables IFC on
initialization. The OFF position holds IFC unasserted.
SRQ*Enables/disables the Service Request (SRQ) option. If enabled, the GPIB-COM
monitors the SRQ line through the Parity Error Bit (PE) in the Line Status Register.
When the switch is ON, the PE bit reflects the status of the SRQ line. When the
switch is OFF, the PE bit is always clear.
The GPIB-COM factory default switch configuration is for device listen address 5, REN* not
asserted, IFC* enabled, and SRQ* enabled. Figure 2-4 shows the factory default switch settings
for the GPIB-COM.
Key
= side you must press down for default setting; Off = 1; On =
12345678
This side down for logic 0This side down for logic 1
1
2
4
8
16
REN
IFC
SRQ
U13
OFF
Figure 2-4. Switch Setting for REN* OFF, IFC* ON, SRQ* ON, and Listen Address 5