Quatech SSP-300, SSP-200 User Manual

SSP-200/300

Single Channel RS-422/485 PCMCIA

Asynchronous Adapter

for PCMCIA Card Standard compatible machines

User's Manual

INTERFACE CARDS FOR IBM PC/AT AND PS/2

QUATECH, INC. TEL: [phone]
662 Wolf Ledges Parkway FAX: [phone]
Akron, Ohio 44311 www.quatech.com

Warranty Information

Quatech Inc. warrants the SSP-200/300 to be free of defects for one (5) year from the date of purchase.
Quatech Inc. will repair or replace any adapter that fails to perform under normal operating conditions and
in accordance with the procedures outlined in this document during the warranty period. Any damage that
results from improper installation, operation, or general misuse voids all warranty rights.

The authors have taken due care in the preparation of this document and any associated software
program(s). In no event will Quatech Inc. be liable for damages of any kind, incidental or consequential, in
regard to or arising out of the performance or form of the materials presented herein and in the program(s)
accompanying this document. No representation is made regarding the suitability of this product for any
particular purpose.

Quatech Inc. reserves the right to edit or append to this document or the product(s) to which it refers at any
time and without notice.

Please complete the following information and retain for your records. Have this information available
when requesting warranty service.

Date of purchase:

Model Number: SSP-200/300

Product Description: Single Channel Asynchronous RS-422/485

Communications PCMCIA Adapter

Serial Number:

i Quatech, Inc.

Declaration of Conformity

Manufacturer's Name: Quatech, Inc.

Manufacturer's Address: 662 Wolf Ledges Parkway

Akron, OH 44311 (USA)

Application of Council Directive: 89/336/EEC

Standards to which

Conformity is Declared: * EN50081-1

(EN55022)

* EN50082-1

(IEC 801-2, IEC 801-3, & IEC 801-4)

Type of Equipment: Information Technology Equipment

Equipment Class: Commercial, Residential, & Light

Industrial

Product Name: PCMCIA Card

Model Number : SSP-200/300

SSP-200/300 (Rev. I and later) User's Manual ii

Table of Contents

Introduction
DOS/Windows 3.x

............................................................

.....................................................

Windows 95/98/Millennium (ME)

Windows 2000

Windows NT
Hardware Information

External Connections
Specifications

.........................................................

...........................................................

.................................................

..................................................

..........................................................

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1-1
2-2

2-3SSP-200/300 Client Driver for DOS ........................................

2-3Client Driver Installation .............................................

2-4Command Line Options ..............................................

2-7Common Problems ..................................................

2-8SSP-200/300 Enabler for DOS ............................................

2-9Command Line Options ..............................................

2-12Common Problems .................................................

3-2

3-2Installing a SSP-200/300 Under Windows 95/98/ME ........................

3-2SSP-200/300 Resource Settings in Windows 95/98/ME ......................

3-3Viewing Resource Settings with Device Manager ........................

3-3Changing Resource Settings with Device Manager .......................

3-6Frequently Asked Questions .............................................

4-2

4-2Installing a SSP-200/300 Under Windows 2000 .............................

4-5SSP-200/300 Resource Settings in Windows 2000 ...........................

4-6Viewing Resource Settings with Device Manager ........................

4-7Changing Resource Settings with Device Manager .......................

5-2

5-2Installing SSP-200/300 ...................................................

6-1

6-1Auxiliary Channel Configuration .........................................

6-1Auxiliary Channel: RTS-CTS Handshaking .............................

6-2Auxiliary Channel: Handshaking Disabled .............................

6-3Half Duplex Operation ..................................................

6-5Termination Resistors ...................................................

7-2
8-2

iii Quatech, Inc.

1. Introduction

The SSP-200/300 is a single channel RS-422/RS-485 asynchronous serial adapter for
systems equipped with PCMCIA Type II and/or Type III expansion sockets. The
SSP-200/300 is a PCMCIA Type II (5 mm) card and is PCMCIA PC Card Standard
Specification 2.1 compliant.

The SSP-200/300's serial port is implemented using a 16C750 Universal Asynchronous
Receiver/Transmitter (UART), which is the recommended communications interface
for multitasking environments and with applications involving high data transfer rates.

PCMCIA Card Cable Assembly

Standard D-9 Female

Figure 1. SSP-200/300 Card and Cable Assembly

The SSP-200/300provides four differential signal pairs (two input and two output):
TxD, RxD, AUXOUT, and AUXIN. TxD and RxD are always present at the connector.
The AUXOUT and AUXIN signals can be used to support RTS/CTS handshaking,
external clocking, or external signal loopback. The default configuration is RTS/CTS
handshaking, with RTS transmitted through AUXOUT and CTS received through
AUXIN. The role of AUXOUT and AUXIN can be set when the SSP-200/300 is
configured.

The SSP-200/300 may be configured to operate in either the Full Duplex or Half Duplex
mode; the SSP-200/300 may be configured so that the output drivers are always
enabled, RTS or DTR enable the output drivers, or the output drivers are automatically
enabled only when data is being transmitted. See the Hardware Information section
for details on these topics.

Introduction 1-1

This page intentionally left blank.

2-1 SSP-200/300 (Rev. I and later) User's Manual

2. DOS/Windows 3.x

Does not support automatic

Allows automatic

Interfaces directly to Intel

Interfaces to PCMCIA Card and

Enabler

Client Driver (recommended)

Two configuration software programs are provided with the SSP-200/300: a Client
Driver, and a card Enabler. Both of these programs are executed from DOS (before
entering Windows) and allow operation of the SSP-200/300 in both the DOS and
Windows 3.x environments. For optimal operation, however, the Client Driver is the
preferred method of installation and configuration. The table below highlights the
differences between these programs.

File type: DOS executableFile type: DOS device driver

Socket Services software
(PCMCIA host adapter
independent)

configuration of SSP-200/300
adapters upon insertion (Hot

82365SL and other PCIC
compatible PCMCIA host
adapters

configuration of adapters upon
insertion (Hot Swapping)

Swapping)
Requires PCMCIA Card and

Socket Services software

Does not require PCMCIA
Card and Socket Services
software

Figure 0. Client Driver versus Enabler for DOS/Windows 3.x.

Card and Socket Services software is commercially available from several vendors for
most desktop and laptop PCs. If you are unsure whether Card and Socket Services
software is currently installed on your system, install the SSP-200/300 Client Driver as
discussed in following section. When loaded, the Client Driver will display an error
message if Card and Socket Services software is not detected.

DOS/Windows 3.x 2-2

2.1 SSP-200/300 Client Driver for DOS

In order to use the SSP-200/300 Client Driver, the system must be configured with Card
and Socket Services software. Card and Socket Services software is not provided with
the SSP-200/300 but is available from Quatech.

IMPORTANT:

Some versions of Card and Socket Services dated before
1993 do not support general purpose I/O cards. If after
careful installation of the Client Driver the adapter does
not configure or operate properly, an updated version of
Card and Socket Services may be required.

2.1.1 Client Driver Installation

The following procedure is used to install the SSP-200/300Client Driver:

1. Copy the Client Driver from the SSP-200/300 distribution diskette onto the
system's hard drive.

2. Using an ASCII text editor, open the system's CONFIG.SYS file located in the
root directory of the boot drive.

3. Locate the line(s) in the CONFIG.SYS file where the Card and Socket Services
software is installed.

4. AFTER the line(s) installing the Card and Socket Services software, add the
following line to the CONFIG.SYS file: DEVICE = drive:\path\
SSP231CL.SYS options where options are the SSP-200/300 Client
Driver command line options discussed on the following pages.

5. Save the CONFIG.SYS file and exit the text editor.

6. Insert the SSP-200/300 into one of the system's PCMCIA slots.
NOTE: Since the SSP-200/300 Client Driver supports "Hot Swapping", it is not

necessary to have the SSP-200/300 installed when booting the system. By
inserting the card before booting, however, the Client Driver will report the
adapter configuration during the boot process thereby verifying the changes
made to the CONFIG.SYS.

7. Reboot the system and note the message displayed when the SSP-200/300
Client Driver is loaded. If the Client Driver reports an "invalid command line
option", correct the entry in the CONFIG.SYS file and reboot the system
again. If the Client Driver reports "Card and Socket Services not found", a

2-3 SSP-200/300 (Rev. I and later) User's Manual

version of Card and Socket Services must be installed on the system or the
SSP-200/300 Enabler program must be used to configure the adapter. If the
Client Driver reports the desired adapter configuration, the installation
process is complete and the SSP-200/300 may be removed and/ or inserted
from the system as desired. On each insertion into the PCMCIA socket, the
SSP-200/300 will be automatically reconfigured according to the command
line options.

2.1.2 Command Line Options

The SSP-200/300 Client Driver accepts up to eight command line arguments from the
user to determine the configuration of the SSP-200/300. If any arguments are provided,
the Client Driver will attempt to configure any SSP-200/300s with the options specified
in the order they are entered on the command line. Each argument must be enclosed in
parenthesis and must be separated from other arguments by a space on the command
line. Within each argument, any or all of the following parameters may be specified
using a comma (no spaces) to separate each parameter:

Baddress specifies a the base I/O address of the SSP-200/300in hexadecimal. This

address must reside on an even 8-byte boundary. If this option is omitted, a
base address will be assigned by Card and Socket Services.

Iirq specifies the interrupt level (IRQ) of the SSP-200/300in decimal. irq must be

one of the following values: 3, 4, 5, 7, 9, 10, 11, 12, 14, 15, or 0 if no IRQ is
desired. If this option is omitted, an interrupt level will be assigned by Card
and Socket Services.

Ssocket specifies which PCMCIA socket the SSP-200/300must be inserted into for

this configuration argument to be used. socket must be in the range 0 - 15. If
this option is omitted, the configuration argument will apply to SSP-200/300
s inserted into any socket.

Odriver specifies RS-422/485 output driver enable option for the SSP-200/300 port.

The SSP-200/300’s port may be configured for either full duplex or half
duplex operation with this option. If this option is omitted, the default
setting is the RS-422/485 port is configured for full duplex operation with
the RS-422/485 output drivers always enabled. In half duplex mode, the
RS-422/485 transmitter may be enabled and disabled via the RTS (request to
send) or DTR (data terminal ready) signals. Both RTS and DTR are
controlled through the Modem Control Register of the 16750. See the
Hardware Information section for more information.

DOS/Windows 3.x 2-4

RTS Controlled

o2

Always Enabledo0

Port Output Driver

Option

DTR Controlledo1

Auto-Toggleo3

Figure 0. DOS Client Output Enable Options.

H instructs the client driver to enable the RTS-CTS modem control handshake

on the RS-422/485 port. When modem control handshaking in enabled, the
16C750 UART’s RTS and CTS signals are connected to the RS-422/485
auxiliary channel. The auxiliary channel may then be used for handshaking
between the SSP-200/300’s port and a peripheral device. When modem
control handshaking is disabled, the RTS and CTS signals from the 16C750
UART are looped back to each other. If this option is omitted, the default
setting is RTS-CTS modem control handshake disabled. See the Hardware
Information section for more information.

2.1.2.1 Example 1
DEVICE = C:\SSP-200\ SSP231CL.SYS

In example 1, no command line arguments are specified. The Client Driver will
configure a SSP-200/300 inserted into any socket with a base address and IRQ assigned
by Card and Socket Services. The SSP-200/300 RS-422/485 output drivers will always
be enabled, and RTS-CTS modem control handshaking will be disabled.

2.1.2.2 Example 2
DEVICE = C:\SSP-200\SSP231CL.SYS (b290,i11)

In example 2, a single command line argument is provided. The Client Driver will
attempt to configure a SSP-200/300 inserted into any socket with a base address of
290H and IRQ 11. If address 290H or IRQ 11 is unavailable, the SSP-200/300 will not be
configured. If the Client Driver can successfully configure the SSP-200/300unit, the
RS-422/485 output drivers will always be enabled, and RTS-CTS modem control
handshaking will be disabled.

2-5 SSP-200/300 (Rev. I and later) User's Manual

2.1.2.3 Example 3
DEVICE = C:\SSP-200\SSP231CL.SYS(s0,b300,i5,o2)

In example 3, a single command line argument is provided. The Client Driver will
attempt to configure a SSP-200/300 inserted into socket 0 with a base address of 300H
and IRQ 5. If address 300H or IRQ 5 is unavailable, the SSP-200/300 will not be
configured. In addition, if aSSP-200/300 is inserted into any other socket, it will not be
configured. If the Client Driver can successfully configure the SSP-200/300, the
RS-422/485 output drivers will be enabled and disabled via the RTS signal, and
RTS-CTS modem control handshaking will be disabled.

2.1.2.4 Example 4
DEVICE = C:\SSP-200\SSP231CL.SYS(i5,h,b300)

In example 4, a single command line argument is provided. Because the parameter
order is not significant, the Client Driver will attempt to configure a SSP-200/300
inserted into any socket with a base address of 300H and IRQ 5. If address 300H or IRQ
5 is unavailable, the SSP-200/300 will not be configured. If the Client Driver can
successfully configure the SSP-200/300, the RS-422/485 output drivers will always be
enabled, and RTS-CTS modem control handshaking will be enabled on the RS-422/485
port’s auxiliary channel.

2.1.2.5 Example 5
DEVICE = C:\SSP-200\SSP231CL.SYS (b300,i5) (i10) ( )

In example 5, three command line arguments are provided. The Client Driver will first
attempt to configure a SSP-200/300 inserted into any socket with a base address of
300H and IRQ 5. If address 300H or IRQ 5 is unavailable, the Client Driver will
proceed to the second command line argument and attempt to configure the card with a
base address assigned by Card and Socket Services and IRQ 10. If IRQ 10 is also
unavailable, the Client Driver will proceed to the third command line argument and
attempt to configure the SSP-200/300 with a base address and an IRQ assigned by Card
and Socket Services. If the Client Driver can successfully configure the SSP-200/300, the
RS-422/485 output drivers for will always be enabled, and RTS-CTS modem control
handshaking will be disabled.

DOS/Windows 3.x 2-6

2.1.2.6 Example 6

DEVICE = C:\SSP-200\SSP231CL.SYS (b300,i5) ( ) (i10)

In example 6, the three command line arguments of example 5 have been rearranged.
The Client Driver will first attempt to configure a SSP-200/300 inserted into any socket
with a base address of 300H and IRQ 5. If address 300H or IRQ 5 is unavailable, the
Client Driver will proceed to the second command line argument and attempt to
configure the card with a base address and IRQ assigned by Card and Socket Services.
Since the second command line argument includes all available address and IRQ
resources, the third command line argument will never be reached by the Client Driver.
It is the user's responsibility to place the command line arguments in a logical order.

2.1.2.7 Example 7

DEVICE = C:\SSP-200\SSP231CL.SYS (s0,b300,i5) (s1,b340,i10)

The type of configuration shown in example 7 may be desirable in systems where more
than one SSP-200/300 is to be installed. In this example, the Client Driver will attempt
to configure a SSP-200/300 inserted into socket 0 with a base address of 300H and IRQ

5. If the SSP-200/300 is inserted into socket 1, the Client Driver will attempt to

configure it with base address 340H and IRQ 10. This allows the user to force the
SSP-200/300's address and IRQ settings to be socket specific which may simplify cable
connections and software development. As in the previous examples, however, if the
requested address or interrupt resources are not available, the SSP-200/300 will not be
configured.

2.1.3 Common Problems

Generic Client Drivers:

Many Card and Socket Services packages include a generic client driver (or
SuperClient) which configures standard I/O devices. If one of these generic client
drivers is installed, it may configure the SSP-200/300 causing the SSP-200/300 client
driver to fail installation. In these cases, the user should do one of the following:

1. Modify the operation of the generic client driver to disable the configuration
of modem/serial port cards. Consult the Card and Socket Services
documentation for availability and details of this feature.

2. Place the SSP-200/300 client driver before the generic client driver in the
CONFIG.SYS.

2-7 SSP-200/300 (Rev. I and later) User's Manual

Available Resources:

One function of the Card and Socket Services software is to track which system
resources (memory addresses, I/O addresses, IRQs, etc.) are available for assignment
to inserted PCMCIA cards. Sometimes, however, the Card Services software assumes
or incorrectly determines that a particular resource is used when it is actually available.
Most Card and Socket Services generate a resource table in a file (typically in the form
of an .INI file) which the user can modify to adjust the available system resources.
Consult the Card and Socket Services documentation for availability and details of this
feature.

Multiple Configuration Attempts:

Some Card and Socket Services have a setting which aborts the configuration process
after a single configuration failure (such as a request for an unavailable resource). The
user should change this setting to allow for multiple configuration attempts. Consult
the Card and Socket Services documentation for availability and details of this feature.

Older Versions of Card and Socket Services:

Some versions of Card and Socket Services dated before 1993 do not support general
purpose I/O cards. If after careful installation of the Client Driver the SSP-200/300
does not configure or operate properly, an updated version of Card and Socket Services
may be required. Card and Socket Services software is available from Quatech.

2.2 SSP-200/300 Enabler for DOS

For systems that are not operating PCMCIA Card and Socket Services software, the
SSP-200/300 DOS Enabler may be used to enable and configure the adapter. This
Enabler, SSP231EN.EXE, will operate on any DOS system using an Intel 82365SL or
PCIC compatible PCMCIA host adapter including the Cirrus Logic CL-PD6710 /6720,
the VLSI VL82C146, and the Vadem VG-365 among others.

IMPORTANT:

In order to use the SSP-200/300 Enabler for DOS, the system
MUST NOT be configured with Card and Socket Services
software. If a Card and Socket Services software is installed,
the SSP-200/300 Enabler may interfere with its operation
and with the device(s) it controls.

DOS/Windows 3.x 2-8

The SSP-200/300 Enabler does not support automatic configuration of adapters upon
insertion, more commonly referred to as "Hot Swapping". This means the adapter must
be installed in one of the system's PCMCIA sockets before executing SSP231EN.EXE. If
more than one adapter is installed in a system, the Enabler must be executed separately
for each adapter. Furthermore, SSP231EN.EXE should be executed to release the
resources used by the adapter before it is removed from the PCMCIA socket. Since
PCMCIA adapters do not retain their configuration after removal, any adapter that is
removed from the system must be reconfigured with the Enabler after re-inserting it
into a PCMCIA socket.

IMPORTANT:

The Enabler requires a region of high DOS memory when
configuring a SSP-200/300. This region is 1000H bytes (4KB)
long and by default begins at address D0000H (the default
address may be changed using the "W" option). If a memory
manager such as EMM386, QEMM, or 386Max is installed on
the system, this region of DOS memory must be excluded from
the memory manager's control. Consult the documentation
provided with the memory manager software for instructions
on how to exclude this memory region.

2.2.1 Command Line Options

To configure a SSP-200/300 in the system, the Enabler requires one command line
argument from the user to determine the configuration of the card. This argument must
be enclosed in parenthesis and within the argument, any or all of the following
parameters may be specified using a comma (no spaces) to separate each parameter:

Ssocket specifies which PCMCIA socket the SSP-200/300 must be inserted into for

this configuration argument to be used. socket must be in the range 0 - 15.
This option is required if the 'R' option is not used.

Baddress specifies the base I/O address of the SSP-200/300 in hexadecimal. This

address must reside on an even 8-byte boundary. This option is required if
the 'R' option is not used.

Iirq specifies the interrupt level (IRQ) of the SSP-200/300 in decimal. irq must be

one of the following values: 3, 4, 5, 7, 9, 10, 11, 12, 14, 15, or 0 if no IRQ is
desired. This option is required if the 'R' option is not used.

2-9 SSP-200/300 (Rev. I and later) User's Manual

Waddress specifies the base address of the memory window required to configure the

RTS Controlled

o2

Output Driver

Option

SSP-200/300. Set address = D0 for a memory window at segment D000,

address = D8 for a memory window at segment D800, etc. Valid settings for
address are C8, CC, D0, D4, D8, and DC. If this option is omitted, a memory

window at segment D000 will be used.

Odriver specifies RS-422/485 output driver enable option for the SSP-200/300. The

SSP-200/300’s port may be configured for either full duplex or half duplex
operation with this option. If this option is omitted, the default setting is the
RS-422/485 port is configured for full duplex operation with the RS-422/485
output drivers always enabled. In half duplex mode, the RS-422/485
transmitter may be enabled and disabled via the RTS (request to send) or
DTR (data terminal ready) signals. Both RTS and DTR are controlled
through the Modem Control Register of the 16750. See the Hardware
Information section for more information.

Always Enabledo0

DTR Controlledo1

Auto-toggleo3

Figure 0. DOS Enabler Output Enable Options.

H instructs the enabler to enable the RTS-CTS modem control handshake on

the RS-422/485 port. When modem control handshaking in enabled, the
16C750 UART’s RTS and CTS signals are connected to the RS-422/485
auxiliary channel. The auxiliary channel may then be used for handshaking
between the SSP-200/300’s RS-422/485 port and a peripheral device. When
modem control handshaking is disabled, the RTS and CTS signals from the
16C750 UART are looped back to each other. If this option is omitted, the
default setting is RTS-CTS modem control handshake disabled. See the
Hardware Information section for more information .

Before removing a SSP-200/300 from its PCMCIA socket, the Enabler should be
executed to free the system resources allocated when the card was installed. For this
operation the Enabler provides on additional command line option:

R instructs the enabler to release the resources previously allocated to the

SSP-200/300. When the 'R' option is used, any settings specified by the 'B',
'I', 'O', and 'H' options are ignored.

DOS/Windows 3.x 2-10

2.2.1.1 Example 1
SSP231EN.EXE

In example 1, no command line argument is specified. The Enabler will report an error
and display the proper usage of the command.

2.2.1.2 Example 2
SSP231EN.EXE (s0,b300,i5)

In example 2, the Enabler will configure the SSP-200/300 in socket 0 with a base
address of 300H and IRQ 5 using a configuration memory window at segment D000.
The SSP-200/300 unit's RS-422/485 output drivers will always be enabled, and
RTS-CTS modem control handshaking will be disabled.

2.2.1.3 Example 3
SSP231EN.EXE (i10,h,b340,s1)

In example 3, the Enabler will configure the SSP-200/300 in socket 1 with a base
address of 340H and IRQ 10 using a configuration memory window at segment D000.
The SSP-200/300's RS-422/485 output drivers will always be enabled, and RTS-CTS
modem control handshaking will be enabled on the RS-422/485 auxiliary channel.

2.2.1.4 Example 4
SSP231EN.EXE (s0,b300,i3,wd8)

In example 4, the Enabler will configure the SSP-200/300 in socket 0 with a base
address of 300H and IRQ 3 using a configuration memory window at segment D800.
The SSP-200/300's RS-422/485 output drivers will always be enabled, and RTS-CTS
modem control handshaking will be disabled.

2.2.1.5 Example 5
SSP231EN.EXE (o1,i5,b340,s1)

In example 2, the Enabler will configure the SSP-200/300 in socket 1 with a base
address of 340H and IRQ 5 using a configuration memory window at segment D000.
The SSP-200/300's RS-422/485 output drivers will be enabled and disabled via the DTR
signal, and RTS-CTS modem control handshaking will be disabled

2-11 SSP-200/300 (Rev. I and later) User's Manual