INFICON MDC-360C Thin Film Deposition Controller - Manual (Page 143)

MDC-360C DEPOSITION CONTROLLER
COMPUTER INTERFACE 11-1
11. COMPUTER INTERFACE
11.1 GENERAL
The various computer interfaces of the INFICON MDC-360C Deposition
Controllers permit complete remote control using a personal computer. There are
three types of computer interfaces offered. The MDC-360C comes standard with
an RS-232 serial interface. Both RS-485 and IEEE-488 interfaces are available as
options.
11.2 RS-232 SERIAL INTERFACE
The standard RS-232 serial interface of the MDC-360C allows one 360C to be
connected to any other device with as RS-232 serial interface. There are two
connections for the RS-232 interface port. A D9P connector is provided on the
rear panel for permanent connection to the host computer. The pin layout is
shown in Figure 8-6 and Table 8-3 lists pin signal assignments, including a
definition of whether the signal is an output from the MDC-360C or an input to
the MDC-360C.
A DJ11 jack located on the front panel is provided for temporary connection to
the host computer. Pin layout and pin signal assignments are shown in Figure
8-8
and Table 8-5.
The MDC-360C acts as DTE, and accordingly the 9-pin connector has ‘plug’
pins. It should be connected to the host computer via a straight 9-pin female to 9-
pin female cable. Straight means pin 1 is connected to pin 1, pin 2 to pin 2, etc.
In the case where a special cable is required, remember to observe the sense of the
RxD/TxD data lines and the control lines. Pin 2 ‘TxD’ transmits data from the
MDC-360C to the host; pin 3 ‘RxD’ receives data from the host. Pin 7 ‘CTS’ is a
control input signal, and pin 8 ‘RTS’ is a control output signal.
In this implementation, pin 7 ‘CTS’ means what is says, namely, this is an input
control line to the MDC-360C which must be asserted ‘true’ before the MDC-
360C is clear to send data to the host. Pin 8 ‘RTS’ is an output from the MDC-
360C indicating to the host that the MDC-360C is ready to receive data from the
host. The MDC-360C will always assert RTS 'true' unless its input buffer is full
from too much incoming data.
The MDC-360C’s RS-232 port is automatically set up to operate with the
following specifications:
9600 Baud, 8 Bit data, No Parity, 1 Stop bit
11.3 RS-485 SERIAL INTERFACE
The optional RS-485 serial interface of the MDC-360C allows connection to up to
32 separate devices equipped with RS-485. The RS-485 serial interface is also
ideal in electrically noisy environments and in applications where long cables are
required. The RS-485 port of the MDC-360C is the same D9P connector on the