Intuicom Communicator User manual

Intuicom, Inc.
1880 South Flatiron Court
Boulder, CO 80301
[phone]
www.intuicom.com
Intuicom®
CommunicatorTM
Wireless Data Transceiver
User Manual

Intuicom CommunicatorTM User Manual
Revision A © 2001 Intuicom, Inc. i September 2001
This manual is for use by purchasers and other authorized users of the Intuicom
CommunicatorTM Wireless Data Transceivers. No part of this document may be reproduced or
transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, or for any purpose without
the express written permission of Intuicom Inc.
© 2001 Intuicom Incorporated. All rights reserved.
Intuicom reserves the right to make changes to this manual without notice. Unless otherwise
agreed to in writing, Intuicom assumes no responsibility or liability for the use of this manual or
for the infringement of any copyright or other proprietary right and Intuicom shall deem nothing
contained in this manual a warranty or guarantee.
Intuicom, WiGate, Intuicom CommunicatorTM, and Intuicom SmartGPS TrackerTM/SurveyorTM
are Trademarks of Intuicom, Inc.
Other product names mentioned in this manual may be copyrights, trademarks, or registered
trademarks of their respective companies and are hereby acknowledged.
Parts of this manual have been reproduced with permission from Copyrighted material of
Freewave Technologies, Inc. or other system component suppliers.

Intuicom CommunicatorTM User Manual
Revision A © 2001 Intuicom, Inc. ii September 2001
This device complies with part 15 of the FCC
rules. Operation is subject to the following two
conditions: 1) This device many not cause
harmful interference and 2) this device must
accept any interference receiver, including
interference that may cause undesired
operation.
This device must be operated as supplied by
Intuicom, Inc. Any changes or modifications
made to the device without the express written
approval of Intuicom, Inc. may void the user’s
authority to operate the device.
This product is licensed by The United States.
Diversion contrary to U.S. law is prohibited.
Shipment or re-export of this product outside
The United States may require authorization by
the U.S. Bureau of Export Administration.
Please contact Intuicom Inc. for assistance and
further information.

Intuicom CommunicatorTM User Manual
Revision A © 2001 Intuicom, Inc. iii September 2001
Table of Contents
1Quick Start............................................................................................................................. 1
2Quick Start on a Multipoint System.................................................................................... 2
3Tuning Transceiver Performance........................................................................................ 3
4Operation Mode Selections................................................................................................... 6
4.1 (0) Point-to-Point Master................................................................................................ 6
4.2 (1) Point-to-Point Slave .................................................................................................. 6
4.3 (2) Point-to-Multipoint Master........................................................................................ 6
4.4 (3) Point-to-Multipoint Slave .......................................................................................... 6
4.5 (4) Point-to-Point Slave/Repeater................................................................................... 7
4.6 (5) Point-to-Point Repeater............................................................................................. 7
4.7 (6) Point-to-Point Slave/Master Switchable ................................................................... 7
4.7.1 Using Mode 6 to call a transceiver not listed in the Call Book............................... 9
4.8 (7) Point-to-Multipoint Repeater .................................................................................... 9
5Multipoint Operation.......................................................................................................... 10
5.1 Theory of Operation...................................................................................................... 10
5.2 Installing Multipoint Systems........................................................................................ 10
5.3 Overlapping Multipoint Systems ................................................................................... 11
5.4 Setting Multipoint Parameters ...................................................................................... 11
5.4.1 (0) Number Repeaters ........................................................................................... 11
5.4.2 (1) Master Packet Repeat ...................................................................................... 11
5.4.3 (2) Max Slave Retry .............................................................................................. 13
5.4.4 (3) Retry Odds....................................................................................................... 13
5.4.5 (4) DTR Connect................................................................................................... 14
5.4.6 (5) Repeater Frequency ......................................................................................... 14
5.4.7 (6) NetWork ID ..................................................................................................... 15
5.4.8 (8) MultiMaster Synch .......................................................................................... 15
5.4.9 (9) 1 PPS Enable/Delay......................................................................................... 15
5.4.10 (A) Slave/Repeater ................................................................................................ 16
5.4.11 (B) Diagnostics...................................................................................................... 16
5.4.12 (C) Subnet ID ........................................................................................................ 16
5.4.13 (D) Radio ID.......................................................................................................... 19
6Baud Rate Selections........................................................................................................... 20

Intuicom CommunicatorTM User Manual
Revision A © 2001 Intuicom, Inc. iv September 2001
6.1 Set Baud Rate ................................................................................................................ 20
6.2 Data Word Length and Parity....................................................................................... 21
6.3 ModBus RTU................................................................................................................. 21
7Call Book Selections............................................................................................................22
7.1 Edit Call Book ............................................................................................................... 22
7.2 Entering or Modifying numbers in the Call Book......................................................... 23
7.3 Programming The Call Book in Multipoint Systems..................................................... 24
8Radio Transmission Parameters........................................................................................ 25
8.1 (3) Edit Radio Transmission Characteristics................................................................ 25
8.2 FreqKey.........................................................................................................................26
8.2.1 900MHz................................................................................................................. 26
8.2.2 2.4GHz .................................................................................................................. 28
8.3 (1) Max Packet Size and (2) Min Packet Size ............................................................... 29
8.4 (3) Xmit Rate ................................................................................................................ 32
8.5 (4) RF Data Rate .......................................................................................................... 32
8.6 (5) RF Xmit Power ........................................................................................................ 33
8.7 (6) Slave Security ..........................................................................................................33
8.8 (7) RTS to CTS............................................................................................................... 33
8.9 (8) Retry Time Out......................................................................................................... 34
8.10 (9) Lowpower Mode ...................................................................................................... 35
9Radio Statistics .................................................................................................................... 37
9.1 Average Noise Level...................................................................................................... 37
9.2 Average Signal Level..................................................................................................... 37
9.3 Overall Rcv Rate (%) .................................................................................................... 38
9.4 Number of Disconnects ................................................................................................. 38
9.5 Radio Temperature........................................................................................................ 38
10 Transceiver Location ...................................................................................................... 39
11 Front Panel LEDs............................................................................................................ 40
12 Using an External Antenna ............................................................................................ 42
12.1 Antenna Alignment ........................................................................................................ 44

Intuicom CommunicatorTM User Manual
Revision A © 2001 Intuicom, Inc. v September 2001
12.2 Setup procedure............................................................................................................. 44
12.3 Point to multipoint procedure ....................................................................................... 44
13 RS232 Pin Assignments .................................................................................................. 45
14 DGRO Small Footprint Series Pinout ........................................................................... 47
15 DGR-115W Waterproof Enclosure Pinout................................................................... 48
16 Data Communications Settings...................................................................................... 49
17 Establishing Data Communication Links ..................................................................... 50
18 Other Settings ..................................................................................................................54
18.1 Baud Rate ...................................................................................................................... 54
18.2 Setup Timeout................................................................................................................ 54
19 Technical Specifications.................................................................................................. 55
20 Troubleshooting............................................................................................................... 57
21 Antenna Installation Drawing........................................................................................ 60
22 Warranty Statement ....................................................................................................... 61

Intuicom CommunicatorTM User Manual
Revision A © 2001 Intuicom, Inc. vi September 2001
List of Figures
Figure 3-1: Initial Menu .................................................................................................................. 4
Figure 3-2: Communicator Operation Mode Menu ........................................................................ 5
Figure 5-1: Multipoint Parameters ................................................................................................ 13
Figure 5-2: Multipoint Subnet Diagram........................................................................................ 18
Figure 6-1: Baud Rate, Word Length & Modbus ......................................................................... 20
Figure 7-1: Call Book Menu ......................................................................................................... 23
Figure 8-1: Radio Parameters Menu ............................................................................................. 25
Figure 8-2: Hop Table Parameters ................................................................................................ 26
Figure 8-3: Frequency Key and Hop Table Options, 2.4 Ghz ...................................................... 29
Figure 15-1: Waterproof Connector.............................................................................................. 48

Intuicom CommunicatorTM User Manual
Revision A © 2001 Intuicom, Inc. 1 September 2001
1 Quick Start
This manual covers the operation of both the 900 MHz and 2.4 GHz Intuicom CommunicatorTM
spread spectrum transceivers. For the most part operation of the products is identical, where
operating differences exist every effort has been made to clearly identify which product family is
being referred to.
When purchased as a pair the Intuicom Wireless Data Transceivers are shipped from the factory
pre-configured to operate together in point-to-point applications. The Transceivers are preset for
high-speed data communications and to communicate only with each other.
The Communicator will potentially operate in virtually any environment where RS232 data
communications occur. The transceivers function as a 9-pin null modem cable. If the
Communicator is to be used in an application where a null modem cable is used (such as
communication between two computers), then the communicator can be connected directly. If
the Communicator is to be used to replace a straight-through RS232 cable, then a null modem
cable must be placed between the transceiver and the DCE instrument to which it is connected.
To establish communications between a pair of Communicators just received from the factory:
1. Set the baud rate on each transceiver to match the baud rate of the instrument to
which it is attached. Please note that when you are setting the transceiver's baud rate
you are setting its RS232 data rate, which must match the rate for the instrument to
which it is attached. This in turn means that the baud rate does not have to be on the
same setting for the two transceivers.
2. Verify that the RS232 connector on the cable supplied will fit the RS232 interface on
the instrument to which it is being connected. The cable supplied will fit a 9 pin male
RS232 connector; any other format will need an adapter or different cable.
3. Screw the included whip antennas in the modem (DGR-115 model only), ensuring
they are snug and properly seated. Any Communicator may be operated without an
antenna for bench top testing without concern for damaging the product.
4. Connect the Transceiver to the instrument with the RS232 cable and attach the power
adapter to the Transceiver. Shortly after both modems are plugged in they should
establish a communications link with each other and your connection is complete!
Note: The terms Modem, Transceiver and Communicator are used interchangeably in this
manual and in the text of the setup menu. While the words have different meanings, the two
terms should be treated as one and the same for the purposes of use of the Intuicom product.

Intuicom CommunicatorTM User Manual
Revision A © 2001 Intuicom, Inc. 2 September 2001
2 Quick Start on a Multipoint System
0) Set Operation Mode
Program one of the units to be a multipoint Master (Operation Mode 2)
Program the Multipoint Slaves (Operation Mode 3)
1) Set Baud Rate
Set the Baud Rate to match the baud rate of the device to which the transceiver will be
connected.
3) Edit Radio Transmission Characteristics
Set FreqKey, Max Packet Size, Min Packet Size, and RF Data Rate to identical settings
on every radio to be used in the network. It is always a good idea to set the FreqKey,
Max Packet Size, Min Packet Size to values other than the factory defaults.
4) Edit Multipoint Parameters
Will there be a repeater in the network? If so set that value to 1.
Set the NetworkID to a value between 1 and 4095, other than 255.
The rest is just fine-tuning . . .

Intuicom CommunicatorTM User Manual
Revision A © 2001 Intuicom, Inc. 3 September 2001
3 Tuning Transceiver Performance
Communicator allows you to tune several parameters to optimize its performance for your
particular application. All adjustments are done through the Communicator setup program, a
user interface that eliminates the need for setup diskettes, DIP switch settings, or proprietary
software.
The setup program is invoked by connecting The Communicator to any terminal program, setting
the baud rate for that terminal to 19200 baud, and putting the transceiver into setup mode (on
most models this is done by pressing the Setup button). While any terminal that can be set to
19200 baud will work, examples for this manual were generated using Windows 98/2000-
HyperTerminal.
Parameter Setting
Baud Rate 19200
Data Bits 8
Parity None
Stop Bits 1
Parity Check None / Off
Carrier Detect None / Off
Table 3-1: Setup Menu Terminal Settings