Echelon OpenLDV - Manual (Page 3)

OpenLDV Programmer’s Guide iii
Welcome
This document describes Echelon’s OpenLDV™ Release 4.0 Network Driver and
Software Development Kit (SDK). The OpenLDV driver is an open driver for
Microsoft ® Windows ® operating systems that enables Windows applications to
send and receive low-level ISO/IEC 14908-1 messages through compatible
Echelon and third-party network interfaces. The OpenLDV SDK provides
example source code that demonstrates how to use the OpenLDV driver.
Supported network interfaces include local network interfaces (such as the
Echelon U10 or U20 USB Network Interface, PCC-10 PC Card, PCLTA-21 PC
LonTalk ® Adapter), and Internet-enabled network interfaces (such as the
Echelon SmartServer and i.LON ® 600 IP-852 Router).
The OpenLDV driver includes an extensible remote network interface (RNI)
component, called xDriver. The OpenLDV driver uses xDriver to connect an
OpenLDV application, such as an LNS ® Server, to remote L ON W ORKS ® networks.
This document describes how to configure and extend xDriver, including
descriptions of the software tools that you use to configure and extend xDriver,
and provides programming samples.
The OpenLDV SDK provides a low-level application programming interface (API)
for network applications. For most L ON W ORKS application developers, using
Echelon’s LNS Network Operating System software provides an interface to the
OpenLDV driver that is easier to use and that significantly reduces the time
required to develop L ON
W
ORKS
applications and tools for Windows environments.
Network tools that use LNS software generally have much higher performance
than those that use only the OpenLDV API. You can find out more about LNS
software on Echelon’s Web site at www.echelon.com/lns . Contact Echelon Sales
at www.echelon.com/sales if you would like assistance in determining whether
you should develop your network tools with LNS software or with the OpenLDV
API.
Programming with the OpenLDV API requires knowledge of the ISO/IEC 14908-
1 Control Network Protocol. Echelon’s implementation of the ISO/IEC 14908
Control Network Protocol is called the LonTalk protocol. Echelon has
implementations of the LonTalk protocol in several product offerings, including
the Neuron firmware, LNS Server, i.LON 600 IP-852 Router, and SmartServer
Energy Managers. This document refers to the ISO/IEC 14908 Control Network
Protocol as the “LonTalk protocol”, although other interoperable implementations
exist.
Audience
This guide is intended for software developers creating OpenLDV applications for
use with OpenLDV compatible network interface products. Readers of this guide
should be familiar with L ON W ORKS technology.
This guide is also intended for software developers creating xDriver extensions.
Programming samples in this document are written in C++ and Microsoft ® Visual
Basic ® .NET. However, extensions for xDriver can be written in any language
that supports Component Object Model (COM) components or ActiveX ® controls.
Developers of xDriver extensions should have programming experience in such a
language, as well as familiarity with L ON W ORKS technology and COM concepts.