Sierra Wireless Compass 597 User manual

Compass 597 USB modem
with
User Guide
2130972
Rev 1.0

Compass 597 USB modem - User Guide
22130972
Important Notice Duetothenatureofwirelesscommunications,transmission
andreceptionofdatacanneverbeguaranteed.Datamaybe
delayed,corrupted(i.e.,haveerrors)orbetotallylost.
Althoughsignificantdelaysorlossesofdataarerarewhen
wirelessdevicessuchastheSierraWirelessmodemareusedin
anormalmannerwithawell‐constructednetwork,theSierra
Wirelessmodemshouldnotbeusedinsituationswherefailure
totransmitorreceivedatacouldresultindamageofanykind
totheuseroranyotherparty,includingbutnotlimitedto
personalinjury,death,orlossofproperty.SierraWireless
acceptsnoresponsibilityfordamagesofanykindresulting
fromdelaysorerrorsindatatransmittedorreceivedusingthe
SierraWirelessmodem,orforfailureoftheSierraWireless
modemtotransmitorreceivesuchdata.
Safety and Hazards DonotoperatetheSierraWirelessmodem:
•Inareaswhereblastingisinprogress
•Whereexplosiveatmospheresmaybepresent
•Nearmedicalequipment
•Nearlifesupportequipment,oranyequipmentthatmay
besusceptibletoanyformofradiointerference.Insuch
areas,theSierraWirelessmodemMUSTBEPOWERED
OFF.TheSierraWirelessmodemcantransmitsignalsthat
couldinterferewiththisequipment.
DonotoperatetheSierraWirelessmodeminanyaircraft,
whethertheaircraftisonthegroundorinflight.Inaircraft,the
SierraWirelessmodemMUSTBEPOWEREDOFF.When
operating,theSierraWirelessmodemcantransmitsignalsthat
couldinterferewithvariousonboardsystems.
Note: Some airlines may permit the use of cellular phones while the
aircraft is on the ground and the door is open. The Sierra Wireless
modem may be used at this time.
Thedriveroroperatorofanyvehicleshouldnotoperatethe
SierraWirelessmodemwhileincontrolofavehicle.Doingso
willdetractfromthedriveroroperatorʹscontrolandoperation
ofthatvehicle.Insomestatesandprovinces,operatingsuch
communicationsdeviceswhileincontrolofavehicleisan
offence.

Preface
Document 2130972. Rev 1.0 Apr.08 3
Limitation of
Liability
Theinformationinthismanualissubjecttochangewithout
noticeanddoesnotrepresentacommitmentonthepartof
SierraWireless.SIERRAWIRELESSANDITSAFFILIATES
SPECIFICALLYDISCLAIMLIABILITYFORANYANDALL
DIRECT,INDIRECT,SPECIAL,GENERAL,INCIDENTAL,
CONSEQUENTIAL,PUNITIVEOREXEMPLARYDAMAGES
INCLUDING,BUTNOTLIMITEDTO,LOSSOFPROFITSOR
REVENUEORANTICIPATEDPROFITSORREVENUE
ARISINGOUTOFTHEUSEORINABILITYTOUSEANY
SIERRAWIRELESSPRODUCT,EVENIFSIERRAWIRELESS
AND/ORITSAFFILIATESHASBEENADVISEDOFTHE
POSSIBILITYOFSUCHDAMAGESORTHEYARE
FORESEEABLEORFORCLAIMSBYANYTHIRDPARTY.
Notwithstandingtheforegoing,innoeventshallSierra
Wirelessand/oritsaffiliatesaggregateliabilityarisingunderor
inconnectionwiththeSierraWirelessproduct,regardlessof
thenumberofevents,occurrences,orclaimsgivingriseto
liability,beinexcessofthepricepaidbythepurchaserforthe
SierraWirelessproduct.
Patents Portionsofthisproductmaybecoveredbysomeorallofthe
followingUSpatents:
5,515,013 5,629,960 5,845,216 5,847,553 5,878,234
5,890,057 5,929,815 6,169,884 6,191,741 6,199,168
6,339,405 6,359,591 6,400,336 6,516,204 6,561,851
6,643,501 6,653,979 6,697,030 6,785,830 6,845,249
6,847,830 6,876,697 6,879,585 6,886,049 6,968,171
6,985,757 7,023,878, 7,053,843 7,106,569 7,145,267
7,200,512 7,287,162 7,295,171 D442,170 D459,303
D559,256 D560,911
andotherpatentspending.
Thisproductincludes
technologylicensedfrom:
LicensedbyQUALCOMMIncorporatedunderoneormoreofthe
followingUnitedStatespatentsand/ortheircounterpartsinother
nations:
4,901,307 5,056,109 5,101,501 5,109,390 5,228,054
5,267,261 5,267,262 5,337,338 5,414,796 5,416,797
5,490,165 5,504,773 5,506,865 5,511,073 5,535,239
5,544,196 5,568,483 5,600,754 5,657,420 5,659,569
5,710,784 5,778,338
ManufacturedorsoldbySierraWirelessInc.oritsLicensees
underoneormorepatentslicensedfromInterDigitalGroup.
Copyright ©2008SierraWireless.Allrightsreserved.

Compass 597 USB modem - User Guide
42130972
Trademarks AirCardand“HeartoftheWirelessMachine”areregistered
trademarksofSierraWireless.WatcherisatrademarkofSierra
Wireless,registeredintheEuropeanCommunity.
SierraWireless,theSierraWirelesslogo,TRU‐Install,
TRU‐Locate,andtheredwavedesignaretrademarksofSierra
Wireless.
Windows®isaregisteredtrademarkofMicrosoftCorporation.
MacOSisatrademarkofAppleInc.,registeredintheU.S.and
othercountries.
PCCardandExpressCardaretrademarksofPCMCIA.
QUALCOMM®isaregisteredtrademarkofQUALCOMM
Incorporated.gpsOneisatrademarkofQUALCOMM
Incorporated.
InstallShield®isaregisteredtrademarkofMacrovisionCorpo‐
rationintheUnitedStatesofAmericaand/orothercountries.
Othertrademarksarethepropertyoftherespectiveowners.
Contact
Information
Additional
information and
updates
Forup‐to‐dateproductdescriptions,documentation,appli‐
cationnotes,firmwareupgrades,troubleshootingtips,and
pressreleases,visitwww.sierrawireless.com.
Sales Desk: Phone: [phone]
Hours: 8:00 AM to 5:00 PM Pacific Time
E-mail: [email protected]
Post: Sierra Wireless
13811 Wireless Way
Richmond, BC
Canada V6V 3A4
Fax: [phone]
Web: www.sierrawireless.com

Document 2130972. Rev 1.0 Apr.08 5
Table of Contents
Introducing the Compass 597 USB modem . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .9
Welcome. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9
Feature summary . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10
Wireless modem . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10
Windows . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10
Mac . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10
TRU-Install . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10
TRU-Locate . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11
CDMA 3G services . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11
Additional Compass USB modem features . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12
Package contents . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13
System components . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13
Your host computing device . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13
The Compass 597 USB modem . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13
The modem drivers and enabling software . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14
CDMA service provider account . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14
The CDMA wireless network . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 15
Care and maintenance of your modem . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 15
Getting Started . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .17
The Compass 597 software . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 17
Account activation and configuration . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 17
Installation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .19
System requirements . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19
Mac requirements . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20
Installing on a Windows computer. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20
Installing on a Mac computer . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 22

Compass 597 USB modem - User Guide
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USB modem insertion and removal . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 22
Inserting the modem . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 22
Removing the modem . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 23
Windows . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 23
Mac . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 24
Using the USB extension cable . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 24
Using a microSD card . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 24
Inserting the microSD card . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 25
Removing the microSD card . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 25
Using an external antenna. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 26
Activation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .27
Account configuration procedures. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 27
Activating on a Windows computer . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 27
Activation Wizard . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 27
Manual activation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 28
Activating on a Mac computer . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 28
Activation Assistant . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 30
Watcher Basics (Windows) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .31
Starting and closing Watcher . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 31
Components of the Watcher window. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 32
Window controls . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 33
Docking . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 33
Always On Top . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 33
Interpreting icons . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 34
Connection Status Area . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 34
Call Status Area . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 35
Indicator area . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 36
Minimized icons . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 36
GPS Monitor window . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 37
Online Help . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 38

Contents
Document 2130972. Rev 1.0 Apr.08 7
Warranty . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 38
Troubleshooting . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 39
Watcher Lite Basics (Mac) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .41
Starting and closing Watcher Lite . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 41
Watcher Lite window . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 42
Connection states . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 43
No device detected . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 43
Not activated . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 43
Updating User Profile . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 43
Disconnected . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 43
Connecting . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 43
Connected . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 44
Device is Locked . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 44
Determining the type of coverage . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 44
Watcher Lite menu options . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 44
Connecting to the network . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 45
Viewing the amount of data transferred . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 45
Ending a connection . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 45
Displaying your phone number and ESN . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 45
Security. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 45
Initial lock code . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 46
Warning regarding the lock code . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 46
When the modem is locked . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 46
Locking the modem . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 46
Unlocking the modem . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 47
Powering the modem off . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 47
Warranty . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 48
Troubleshooting . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 48
Uninstalling the Watcher Lite software . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 48

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Technical Specifications . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .49
LED operation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 49
Radio frequency and electrical specifications . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 50
Environmental specifications . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 51
Regulatory Information . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .53
Important safety/compliance information . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 53
Glossary . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .57
Index . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .61

Document 2130972. Rev 1.0 Apr.08 9
1
1: Introducing the Compass 597
USB modem
Note: This document applies to you, only if your wireless device is the
Compass™ 597 USB modem from Sierra Wireless. This document
does not apply, if you are using an AirCard®595 PC Card,
AirCard 595U USB modem, AirCard 597E ExpressCard, or a wireless
device that is built into your computer.
•Welcome
•Feature summary
•Package contents
•System components
•Care and maintenance
of your modem
Welcome
TheSierraWirelessCompass597USBmodemisadual‐band
wirelessUSBmodemforcellularandPCSnetworks,andthe
GPSfrequencyband.Itenhancesthefunctionalityofyour
mobilecomputingdevicebyadding2‐waymessagingand
high‐speedmobiledatainextendedareas,comparedto
wirelesslocalareanetworks.
Thismodemallowsyoutodothefollowing(subjecttofeature
availability),withoutusingawirelinephoneornetwork:
•ConnecttotheInternet,VPNandcorporatenetworks
•Sendandreceivelargee‐mailmessages
•SendandreceiveSMSmessages(Windowsonly)
•Uselocation‐basedservices(Windowsonly)
•Conductvideo‐conferencing
•Accessstreaming,real‐timemedia
•Playgamesonline
Note: You can view this guide online or print it to keep on hand. If
you're viewing it online, simply click a topic in the Table of Contents, or
a page number in the Index, or any page reference or section
reference. (Most text that is blue is a clickable link.) The PDF
automatically displays the appropriate page.

Compass 597 USB modem - User Guide
10 2130972
Feature summary
Note: For step-by-step instruc-
tions to access features of the
modem, consult the online help
available with the Watcher®
software for Windows (page 38).
TheCompassUSBmodemisdesignedtoprovideawiderange
ofcapabilitiesusingCDMAnetworktechnology.Implemen‐
tationofthesefeaturesdependsontheparticularservice
providerandaccountfeaturesyouhavechosen.
Somefeaturesdescribedinthismanualmaynotbesupported
byyourserviceproviderormaynotbeavailablewithyour
networkaccount.Fordetailsoftheservicesandaccounts
available,contactyourserviceprovider.
Wireless modem
Windows
Onceinstalledandconfigured,themodemcanconnecttothe
CDMAnetworkautomatically.Youjustinsertthemodem,
allowWatchertoautolaunchandauthenticateyouraccounton
thenetwork,thenlaunchyourInternetbrowser(whichyou
canalsoconfigureinWatchertolaunchautomatically)—you’re
online!
Alternatively,youcanmakeahigh‐speeddataconnection
withoutrunningWatcher—simplybylaunchingwhatever
applicationyouwanttouse(suchasyourwebbrowseror
e‐mailapplication).Fordetails,seetheonlinehelptopic
“Autoconnectbehaviour”.
Themodemalsoallowsyoutodialupamodem(suchasa
corporateserver).
Mac
Oncethemodemisinstalledandconfigured,youcanuseitto
connecttotheCDMAnetwork.Youjustinsertthemodem,
startWatcherLiteandallowittoauthenticateyouraccounton
thenetwork,thenlaunchyourInternetbrowser—you’re
online!
TRU-Install
TRU‐Install™isaSierraWirelessfeaturethatinstallsthe
necessarysoftwareanddriversthefirsttimeyouinsertthe
modemintoyourWindowsorMaccomputer.Aninstallation
CDisnotrequired.