MagTek MINIWEDGE SWIPE READER - Manual (Page 19)

Section 3. Operation
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To conform to the keyboard protocol, 0xFA code is sent as an acknowledge for each byte that is
correctly received by the Reader. With Windows NT, it may be desirable to disable the acknowledge for
each character since the error log tends to fill up due to unexpected keyboard responses. Optional driver
modes are offered for the two WinDriver modes. The acknowledge characters can be suppressed for non-
keyboard commands by sending 0xA8 0x43 in place of the 0xA8 0x41 command or 0xA8 0x44 in place
of the 0xA8 0x42.
The maximum time between characters in a command should not exceed about 125 milliseconds or the
device may assume that the command has been terminated.
RESPONSE CODES AND TIMING
K= Acknowledge
O= No PINPad attached
After receiving a valid command from the PC, the scan code "K" will be sent to the PC. There will be no
response if the command is not valid. If the Reader receives the enable PINPad command (0xA1), the
scan code "O" will be sent to the PC since the MiniWedge does not support a PINPad. There is no
carriage return following the response. The response time varies depending on the command. The
maximum response time is 50 milliseconds in cases where a parameter is modified.
MINIWEDGE COMMANDS AND RESPONSES
The basic structure of commands and messages (or responses) consists of a message prefix (<stx> or M),
a device identifier (“W”), the message, and the terminator (<etx> or <cr>). The following are examples
of request status and response:
Mode Request Response
WinDriver <stx>WST<etx> <stx>WSEE<etx>
MagWedge MWST<cr> WSEE<cr>