Black Box AC249A User manual

1000 Park Drive • Lawrence, PA 15055-1018 • 724-746-5500 • Fax [phone]
© Copyright 2000. Black Box Corporation. All rights reserved.

AUGUST 2000
AC249A
PS/2→USB Converter
CUSTOMER SUPPORT INFORMATION
Order toll-free in the U.S.: Call 877-877-BBOX (outside U.S. call 724-746-5500)
FREE technical support 24 hours a day, 7 days a week: Call 724-746-5500 or fax [phone]
Mailing address: Black Box Corporation, 1000 Park Drive, Lawrence, PA 15055-1018
Web site: www.blackbox.com • E-mail: [email protected]
PS/2→USB
Converter

1
FCC AND IC STATEMENTS
FEDERAL COMMUNICATIONS COMMISSION
AND
INDUSTRY CANADA
RADIO-FREQUENCY INTERFERENCE STATEMENTS
Class B Digital Device. This equipment has been tested and found to comply with
the limits for a Class B computing device pursuant to Part 15 of the FCC Rules.
These limits are designed to provide reasonable protection against harmful
interference in a residential installation. However, there is no guarantee that
interference will not occur in a particular installation. This equipment generates,
uses, and can radiate radio frequency energy, and, if not installed and used in
accordance with the instructions, may cause harmful interference to radio
communications. If this equipment does cause harmful interference to radio or
telephone reception, which can be determined by turning the equipment off
and on, the user is encouraged to try to correct the interference by one of the
following measures:
• Reorient or relocate the receiving antenna.
• Increase the separation between the equipment and receiver.
• Connect the equipment into an outlet on a circuit different from that to
which the receiver is connected.
• Consult an experienced radio/TV technician for help.
Caution:
Changes or modifications not expressly approved by the party
responsible for compliance could void the user’s authority to
operate the equipment.
This digital apparatus does not exceed the Class A limits for radio noise emission from
digital apparatus set out in the Radio Interference Regulation of Industry Canada.
Le présent appareil numérique n’émet pas de bruits radioélectriques dépassant les limites
applicables aux appareils numériques de classe A prescrites dans le Règlement sur le
brouillage radioélectrique publié par Industrie Canada.

2
EUROPEAN UNION DECLARATION OF CONFORMITY
The PS/2→USB Converter has been tested and found to comply with the
requirements of the EMC Directive 89/336/EEC.
TRADEMARKS USED IN THIS MANUAL
BLACK BOX and the logo are registered trademarks, and ServSwitch is
a trademark, of Black Box Corporation.
Apple, Mac, Macintosh, are registered trademarks, and iMac is a trademark,
of Apple Computer, Inc.
IBM and PS/2 are registered trademarks of IBM.
Microsoft, IntelliMouse, Windows, and Windows NT are trademarks or
registered trademarks of Microsoft Corporation in the United States
and/or other countries.
Any other trademarks mentioned in this manual are acknowledged to be the property of
the trademark owners.

3
TABLE OF CONTENTS
Contents
Chapter Page
1. Specifications ..................................................... 4
2. Introduction ....................................................... 6
2.1 Overview ...................................................... 6
2.2 System Requirements ................................. 8
2.3 Features ....................................................... 9
3. Installation ....................................................... 10
4. Operation ......................................................... 12
4.1 The LEDs ...................................................12
4.2 The Wakeup Button ................................. 12
5. Troubleshooting .............................................. 14
5.1 Calling Black Box ..................................... 14
5.2 Shipping and Packaging ......................... 15

4
1. Specifications
Operating System Required — Microsoft Windows 98 or
Windows 2000 or higher (not Windows NT) or
Mac OS 8.6 or higher
Compliance — CE; FCC Class B, IC Class/classe B
Standards — USB 1.0 and 1.1
Interfaces — USB, IBM PS/2 keyboard/mouse
User Controls — (1) Bottom-mounted pushbutton for
waking the computer from sleep mode
Indicators — (2) Top-mounted LEDs: (1) for keyboard
activity and (1) for mouse activity
Connectors — (1) USB Type A male at the end of an
11.8-inch (30-cm) cable and (2) 6-pin mini-DIN female
mounted on the end of the Converter body
Temperature Tolerance —
Operating: 41 to 104˚F (5 to 40˚C);
Storage: –4 to +176˚F (–20 to +80˚ C)
Humidity Tolerance — Up to 80% noncondensing
Enclosure — Plastic

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CHAPTER 1: Specifications
Power — Unit gets all its power from the USB bus
Size — 0.9"H x 2.2"W x 3.2"D (2.3 x 5.5 x 8.2 cm)
Weight — 2.6 oz. (50 g)

6
2. Introduction
2.1 Overview
Universal Serial Bus (USB) port technology has
emerged in response to the proliferation of external
peripheral devices that are increasingly being connected
to the latest generation of PCs: keyboards, mice,
scanners, digital cameras, removable-disk drives, etc.
USB behaves in a way similar to older buses such as the
RS-232 serial, IBM®PC parallel, and IBM PS/2®
keyboard/mouse buses, but it is much faster. Also,
because it doesn’t need to be assigned any of the
computer’s IRQ (interrupt request) lines, more devices
can be attached to it, and the perennial computer-
peripheral problem of IRQ conflict is eliminated.
You can use the PS/2→USB Converter (product code
AC249A) to attach a PS/2 type keyboard and mouse to a
desktop, laptop, or handheld computer that uses USB
instead of the PS/2 keyboard/mouse bus. This is
especially useful for laptops, because you can attach an
external mouse and keyboard to them at the same time
without causing conflicts.

7
CHAPTER 2: Introduction
On one end, the Converter has two 6-pin mini-DIN
connectors that you’ll plug the mouse and keyboard
into, marked with the appropriate icons. On the other
end, it has a 1-ft. (30.5-cm) cable with a USB Type A
plug that you can attach to the USB port of a computer.
If your computer, like many of today’s models, only
has one or two USB ports, you might want to attach the
Converter to the computer through a “USB hub” such as
our USB Director (product code IC165A). The hub will
provide additional USB ports so that you can connect
more devices to the computer at the same time.
The Converter can also be used to attach PS/2
keyboards and mice to the user ports of all-USB KVM
switches, or to attach iMac™ and other computers that
have only USB ports to the computer ports of PS/2 type
KVM switches.
The PS/2→USB Converter gets all its power from the
attached computer through the Universal Serial Bus, so
you don’t need an external power supply for it. And
because it’s fully USB compliant, the Converter also
supports energy-saving “suspend” and “resume”
operations.

8
2.2 System Requirements
To use the PS/2→USB Converter, your computer needs
to be either (a) an IBM PC compatible machine
running Microsoft®Windows®98 or Windows 2000 or
higher or (b) an Apple®Macintosh®compatible
machine running Mac®OS 8.6 or higher. The computer
must have a USB host controller installed and must have
at least one free USB port.
NOTE
Do not attach the Converter to a PC running Windows NT®.
Windows NT does not support USB properly.

9
CHAPTER 2: Introduction
2.3 Features
• Translates signals from a PS/2 type keyboard and
a PS/2 type mouse into USB format so that the
keyboard and mouse can be attached to a
computer through one of its USB ports.
• Supports both the regular PS/2 mouse and the
Microsoft IntelliMouse®.
• Supports both the PC and Mac USB
implementations.
• Fully USB 1.0 and 1.1 compliant.
• Easy to install.
• Requires no software.
• Bus-powered, so it doesn’t need a power cord or
power-supply transformer.
• Compatible with many ServSwitch™ family KVM
switches, as well as other KVM-switching devices.

10
3. Installation
Take these steps to install your PS/2→USB Converter,
referring to Figures 3-1 and 3-2 on the next page:
1. Attach your PS/2 type keyboard, or the PS/2 type
keyboard cable from your KVM switch, to the 6-pin
mini-DIN connector marked with a keyboard icon
on the end of the Converter.
2. Attach your PS/2 type mouse, or the PS/2 type
mouse cable from your KVM switch, to the 6-pin
mini-DIN connector marked with a mouse icon on
the end of the Converter.
3. Plug the Converter’s USB Type A connector into
one of the USB ports on your computer, or one of
the Type A ports on your USB hub, or one of the
Type A ports on your KVM switch or its user cable.
That’s all there is to it. Once you’ve finished these steps
and the attached computer, hub, or switch has
recognized and initialized the Converter, you should be
able to use your keyboard and mouse as you normally
would.

11
CHAPTER 3: Installation
Figure 3-1. The top of the Converter.
Figure 3-2. Attaching equipment to the Converter.
Activity LEDs USB Plug
PS/2 Mouse and Keyboard Ports

12
4. Operation
4.1 The LEDs
The PS/2→USB Converter has two activity LEDs
mounted on its top panel, as shown in Figure 3-1 on the
previous page. One flashes when the keyboard is
transmitting data; the other flashes when the mouse is
transmitting data.
4.2 The Wakeup Button
The Converter also has a “wakeup pushbutton”
mounted on its bottom panel, as shown in Figure 4-1 on
the next page. In order to conserve energy, many of
today’s computers can be manually or automatically
switched into “sleep mode,” in which the computer is
operating at minimum power, does not output video
signals, and does not respond to keyboard and mouse
signals. You can press this button on the Converter to
“wake up” the attached computer and prepare it for
active operation.

13
CHAPTER 4: Operation
Figure 4-1. The bottom of the Converter.
Wakeup
Button

14
5. Troubleshooting
5.1 Calling Black Box
If your PS/2→USB Converter seems to be
malfunctioning, do not attempt to alter or repair the unit. It
contains no user-serviceable parts. Call Black Box
Technical Support at 724-746-5500; the problem might
be solvable over the phone.
Before you call, make a record of the history of the
problem. We will be able to provide more efficient and
accurate assistance if you have a complete description,
including:
• the nature and duration of the problem;
• when the problem occurs;
• the components involved in the problem;
• any particular application that, when used,
appears to create the problem or make it worse;
and
• the results of any tests you might have already
performed.

15
CHAPTER 5: Troubleshooting
5.2 Shipping and Packaging
If you need to transport or ship your Converter:
• Package it carefully. We recommend that you
use the original container.
• If you are returning the Converter, please include
everything you received with it. Before you ship
the Converter back to us for any reason, contact
Black Box to get a Return Authorization (RA)
number.

16
DISCLAIMERS
The manufacturer and its agents make no warranty or
representation (express, implied, or statutory) with respect to the
contents or use of this documentation, and they especially disclaim
its quality, performance, merchantability, or fitness for any
particular purpose.
The manufacturer and its agents also reserve the right to change
the Converter and/or its documentation without obligation to
notify any individual or entity of such changes.

NOTES

NOTES