Cooper Electronics BusAlyzer User manual

BusAlyzer
9Pin Communications Protocol Analyzer
Users Manual

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BusAlyzer and eBox are trademarks of JLCooper Electronics. All other brand
names are the property of their respective owners.
BusAlyzer User’s Manual, First Edition (December 14, 2005)
Part Number 932104
2005 JLCooper Electronics, 142 Arena Street, El Segundo, CA 90245 USA
(310) 322-9990 ¬(310) 335-0110 www.jlcooper.com

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Table of Contents
Introduction................................................................................... 4
Installation..................................................................................... 5
Unpacking................................................................................... 5
Setup............................................................................................ 5
Connecting the BusAlyzer........................................................... 6
Configuring the BusAlyzer.......................................................... 7
Installing the BusAlyzer analysis software ............................... 14
Using the BusAlyzer.................................................................... 15
LED indicators.......................................................................... 15
Setting up the BusAlyzer analysis software .............................. 16
Using the BusAlyzer analysis software..................................... 18
Technical Reference.................................................................... 29
Troubleshooting ........................................................................ 32
Care and Service....................................................................... 35

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Introduction
The BusAlyzer is a serial communications analyzer designed
specifically for the P2 protocol commonly used by Sony,
Panasonic and other professional decks. It works with a host
computer running Windows and connects over Ethernet. The
BusAlyzer has two serial ports to monitor the exchange of
commands and responses between a controller and a deck. The
supplied Windows software displays the time stamped raw data.
Additionally, the supplied software allows you to filter and decode
the raw commands to display it in an easy to interpret manner. The
data can also be saved for later analysis.
Additionally, it can be configured to act as a two port serial to
Ethernet converter much like the JLCooper eBox. Pairing it up
with a second BusAlyzer allows you create two, bidirectional serial
links over any Ethernet connection. Since the BusAlyzer uses
TCP/IP, traffic can be routed over internal LANs, wireless LANs,
MANs, WANs and even over the public Internet. The serial ports
can be configured to either connect to a controller or deck on each
port independently.
Most configurations can be accomplished through a web page
server built into the BusAlyzer. Items such as port speed, parity,
IP address, remote IP address and TCP port are set using a
standard web browser. Settings are stored in nonvolatile memory.
Typically, the eBox functions as a server, passively waiting for
client devices to connect to it. The device can be a computer or
another BusAlyzer configured as a client. When the BusAlyzer is
configured as a client, it will actively attempt to connect to the
server BusAlyzer. Once this is accomplished, the either BusAlyzer
will pass data received from the serial ports to the remote
BusAlyzer. If there is no data received in the BusAlyzer, the
BusAlyzer will not send any TCP packets.
The unit features a 10/100 RJ-45 Ethernet connector, 2 9 pin D-
Sub connectors that can be configured for RS-422 (deck or

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controller) and a DC power jack. The unit can be power from the
supplied power adaptor or powered from 9-12 volts DC. LED
indicators show status of Ethernet activity and serial port activity.
Installation
Unpacking
When you receive your BusAlyzer, you should receive the
following items:
• BusAlyzer
• This Users Manual
• 9 volt DC power supply
• Installation CD
Please take a moment to register your product at:
http://www.jlcooper.com
This will allow us to notify you of important updates and changes
to software or features.
Setup
The BusAlyzers compact design makes it easy to locate wherever
you need it. The BusAlyzer must be setup up in a location that
does not experience vibration, excessive humidity, dust or
temperature extremes.
The BusAlyzer can be mounted in any orientation.

Connecting the BusAlyzer
Connecting the BusAlyzer is quite straightforward. The
BusAlyzer typically connects between a deck and a controller as
shown in the following diagram.
1. Connect the controller to Port A on the BusAlyzer.
2. Connect the deck to Port B on the BusAlyzer.
3. Connect the BusAlyzer to the Ethernet network
4. Connect the included power supply to the BusAlyzer.
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Configuring the BusAlyzer
Before using the BusAlyzer, it must be configured properly. There
are two ways to use the BusAlyzer:
• Remote data capture
• Serial to Ethernet converter
Remote data capture
In Remote data capture mode, the BusAlyzer connects to an RS-
422 controller (such as an editing controller) on Port A and an RS-
422 device (such as a VTR or video server) on Port B.
In this mode, the BusAlyzer receives the serial data or commands
from the receive pins (3 and 8) on Port A and passes it to the
transmit pins (3 and 8) of Port B. Additionally, the BusAlyzer
receives the serial data or responses from the receive pins (2 and 7)
on Port B and passes it to the transmit pins (2 and 7) of Port A.
The serial data is only buffered and amplified, there is no
reclocking, or other processing being applied to the serial stream.
These two serial streams are read by the BusAlyzer, time stamped
and transmitted via Ethernet to a host computer running the
BusAlyzer analysis software.
To configure the BusAlyzer for Remote data capture mode, the
following internal jumpers must be configured:
• JB4 – jumper must be in the Server position
• JB1 – jumper must be in the Analyzer position
• JB2 – jumper must be in the Analyzer position
• JB3 – jumper must be in the Analyzer position
• U6 – IC must be in the Mach position
• U10 – IC must be in the Ctrlr position

The following diagram illustrates the correct jumper configuration
for Remote data capture mode.
Reset
JB4
Client
Server
JB3
JB2
JB1
A
nalyzer
2Port
U10A U10B
Mach
Ctrlr
Mach
U6A U6B
Ctrlr
BusAlyzer Jumper Configuration for Remote data capture mode
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Serial to Ethernet converter
In Serial to Ethernet converter mode, a pair of BusAlyzers can
connect two RS-422 devices together over an Ethernet connection.
This can be done on both Port A and Port B simultaneously.
Additionally, Port A and Port B can be configured to accommodate
a controller or deck independently of each other.
In this mode, two BusAlyzers are required. One BusAlyzer must
be configured to be a Server and the other must be configured to be
a Client.
To configure the BusAlyzer for Remote data capture mode, the
following internal jumpers must be configured:
• JB4 – jumper must be in the Server position
• JB1 – jumper must be in the Analyzer position
• JB2 – jumper must be in the Analyzer position
• JB3 – jumper must be in the Analyzer position
• U6 – IC must be in the Mach position
• U10 – IC must be in the Ctrlr position

The following diagram illustrates the correct jumper configuration
for Remote data capture mode.
JB4
Client
Server
JB3
JB2
JB1
A
nalyzer
2Port
U10A U10B
Mach
Ctrlr
U6A U6B
Ctrlr
Mach
Reset
BusAlyzer Jumper Configuration for Remote data capture mode
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Web Page Configuration
In addition to the jumpers settings, there are internal settings that
must be configured if the BusAlyzer is to function correctly in
your application. This is done by accessing the configuration web
page.
Note: You must use Internet Explorer 6 or Safari to access the
BusAlyzers configuration web page. Other browsers such as Firefox,
Mozilla and Konqueror are not supported.
The BusAlyzers configuration web page can be accessed by:
1. Pressing the Reset button
2. Entering the BusAlyzers IP address in your web browser.
The factory default is http://192.168.254.112/.
Note: The Configuration Web Page is ALWAYS at 192.168.254.112
regardless of the Configuration Web Page setting.
Note: Since the default subnet mask of the BusAlyzer is 255.255.255.0,
you must set the IP address of your computer to match the subnet of the
BusAlyzer. You will need to set your computers IP address to
192.168.254.nnn where nnn can be any address except 112 or 114.
If you do not know what IP address the BusAlyzer is set to, the
BusAlyzer can be set to the factory defaults. This is done by
performing the following steps:
1. Holding the Reset button.
2. Switching the Power switch on.
3. Releasing the Reset button.
The factory defaults are:
IP Address 192.168.254.114
Subnet Mask 255.255.255.0
Gateway 192.168.254.198
If you cannot access the BusAlyzer, please refer to the
troubleshooting section.

BusAlyzer configuration web page
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Setup Information
Device IP Address
This is the IP address of the BusAlyzer. The factory default is
192.168.254.114.
Subnet Mask
This is the Subnet Mask of the BusAlyzer. The BusAlyzer will
only respond to devices in its subnet. Any devices that are not in
the BusAlyzers subnet will be ignored. The factory default is
255.255.255.0.
Gateway Address
This is the address of the router on your network. This is used
when the BusAlyzer is in serial to Ethernet converter mode as a
client. The factory default is 192.168.254.198.
Port Number
This is the TCP port number of the BusAlyzer. The factory default
is 23.
Serial Port Setup Parameters
Baud Rate
This defines the port speed of the serial ports. Normally, this does
not need to be modified. The standard P2 port speed that
controllers use to communicate with VTRs is 38400 bits/sec. The
factory default is 38400 bits/sec.
Parity and Parity Type
This defines the parity of the serial ports. Normally, this does not
need to be modified. The standard P2 parity that controllers use to
communicate with VTRs is odd parity. The factory default is odd
parity.
SUBMIT
Click on this button to save the settings in the BusAlyzer.
CLEAR
Click on this button to reset the settings in the web page.

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Installing the BusAlyzer analysis software
The BusAlyzer analysis software must be installed to make use of
the analysis features of the BusAlyzer. The software requires a
computer with the minimum requirements:
• Pentium III or greater
• 128MB RAM
• Windows 2000 or Windows XP
• 10baseT or 100baseTX Ethernet interface
To install the BusAlyzer analysis software, insert the BusAlyzer
installation CD into your CD or DVD drive. Open the CD or DVD
driver and click on “setup.exe”. Alternately, you can find the latest
software on the JLCooper support site, download it to your
computer, and install it.

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Using the BusAlyzer
LED indicators
The BusAlyzer has seven LEDs on the top panel to indicate
various operating conditions of the BusAlyzer.
Ethernet
Starting with the Ethernet indicators, there are three LEDs.
Link
The Link LED indicates that the BusAlyzer is properly connected
to another Ethernet device such as an Ethernet hub or a host
computer.
100
The 100 LED indicates that the BusAlyzer has negotiated a 100
megabit or 100baseTX link to the other Ethernet device.
10
The 10 LED indicates that the BusAlyzer has negotiated a 10
megabit or 10baseT link to the other Ethernet device.
Serial
There are three LEDs dedicated to serial signals.
IN
The IN LED is off when the BusAlyzer is not connected to the
BusAlyzer analysis software. Conversely, the IN LED is on when
the BusAlyzer is connected to the BusAlyzer analysis software.
The IN LED flashes when the serial port is receiving data.
OUT
The Out LED is off when the BusAlyzer is not connected to the
BusAlyzer analysis software. Conversely, the Out LED is on when
the BusAlyzer is connected to the BusAlyzer analysis software.
The OUT LED flashes when the serial port is transmitting data in
Serial to Ethernet converter mode.

Setting up the BusAlyzer analysis software
To use the BusAlyzer, power up the BusAlyzer, controller and
deck. Next, launch the BusAlyzer analysis software. If you used
the default installation settings, it will be located in:
Start | All Programs | JLCooper Electronics | BusAlyzer |
BusAlyzer.exe
After you launch the program, the following window will appear:
BusAlyzer Analysis Software
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After launching the BusAlyzer analysis software, it is a good idea
to configure the software to correctly communicate with the
BusAlyzer. That can be accomplished by clicking the “Settings”
button. The following window will pop up:
Specify the BusAlyzer IP address and port in the IP and Port
boxes. Leave all other settings unchanged.
You can also specify a URL for the IP address. Just check the
“Use URL” box and enter the URL in the box.
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Using the BusAlyzer analysis software
Now that you have configured the BusAlyzer analysis software,
click on the “Connect” button.
The bottom right corner will show the state of the connection to the
BusAlyzer. In the above screen shot, you can see that the
BusAlyzer analysis software has successfully established a
connection to the BusAlyzer.
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After connecting to the BusAlyzer, a typical screen shot will look
like this:
In the main window, you will notice the exchange of data between
the controller and the deck. The far left column is the Timestamp
followed by the controller data, deck data and lastly the decoded
command.
Time
This column lists the actual relative time that a byte was received
on either the controller or deck port. The time listed is relative to
establishing a connection to the BusAlyzer and is displayed in
microseconds. Currently, the BusAlyzer timestamps received
bytes with a resolution of 100 microseconds.
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Cont and Deck
These two columns display the actual bytes that are received on
either the controller or deck port. These bytes are displayed in
hexadecimal format.
Comment
This column shows the decoded command if it is valid. Currently,
only the Sony P2 protocol as defined in the Protocol of Remote (9-
pin) Connector 2nd Edition Revision 7 is decoded. The decoder in
the BusAlyzer analysis software will attempt to decode commands
even if there are incomplete packets, errors or a checksum
mismatch.
Status Bar
Along the bottom of the window is the status bar. On the left side,
timecode returned from the deck is decoded and displayed here. In
addition to the timecode, source of the timecode, any timecode
flags and the frame rate are displayed here. The BusAlyzer
analysis software currently detects as the color and drop flags.
On the right side of the status bar, the state of the connection to the
BusAlyzer is shown. If the BusAlyzer analysis software is
successfully connected to the BusAlyzer, you will see:
Connected to <BusAlyzer IP address> : <BusAlyzer port>
In the preceding screen shot, you will see:
Connected to 192.168.254.114:23
In the middle of the status bar, you can see whether the ACK
messages from the deck are displayed or hidden. NAKs are always
shown. You can choose to hide or show ACK messages by
clicking on the ACK button on the top of the window.
Table of contents