Worth Data RF Terminal 7000 Owner's manual

Table of Contents
How The System Works
Before You Begin
Properties
Methods
Events

How The System Works
The RF Termina has a 6x24 LCD screen and up to 99 voice messages which can be activated by the host user
program. Messages from the host user program are written to the seria port to which the app icab e Base Station is
attached. Up to 64 RF Termina s can be contro ed by one base station, so the host user program must address the
app icab e RF Termina by its ID character. When the host receives a message from the Base Station, it wi receive
data with the Termina ID a so inc uded (not true for one-way mode).
There is no programming on the RF Termina itse f. A programming is on the host computer. Any anguage and/or
p atform that can read/write to a seria port can easi y contro a network of RF Termina s.
Some users wi prefer sending the formatting sequences direct y over the seria port using the Low Leve
Commands. Others wi prefer the Windows ActiveX and TCP/IP contro s.
This is How The RF Terminal Operates
Messages from the host user program are sent to the Base Station (via the seria port), then from the Base Station to
the RF Termina . The Termina responds back to the Base with data and its Termina ID. The data is then
transmitted from the Base to the host computer where it is processed and the next command is sent out. Each RF
Termina has a unique Termina ID, a owing a sing e Base Station to hand e up to 64 Termina s.
Dia og is estab ished when a Termina SIGNS ON to the RF network. The host computer app ication waits unti a
Termina SIGNS ON, then begins its processing by sending the first prompt out to the Termina via the Base
Station. If the Termina does not receive a prompt from the host, it goes into "s eep" mode, "waking up" and
checking with the Base periodica y to see if it has any messages waiting. This conserves battery power and reduces
radio traffic.
We have tried to make it easy for the programmer to communicate with the Base Station; no protoco or hand-
shaking is required. This type of communication is fine when the Base is ocated on y a few feet from the seria port
it is connected to. If you are ocating your Base Station farther away, use shie ded, grounded (bare wire Pin 1
touching shie d) cab e, ower baud rates and possib y, ine drivers for very noisy environments.
Before You Begin
Before you begin programming, there are some factors you shou d take into consideration during the p anning
process.
•P an for system fai ures. This inc udes hardware fai ures, software fai ures and operator fai ures. In order
to create an efficient app ication, you must put some thought into what you wi do when different parts
of the system fai .
•Look for A Errors. Be sure your program is trapping a possib e error conditions that the Base Station
may return to you. The ist inc udes:
Sequen e Errors dete ted
Illegal Command dete ted
Base Station Initialized
Addressing a Terminal Not Signed In

•Forgetting to program for these error conditions is a common mistake. Even though you think your code
wi never make a mistake, take advantage of the feedback that the Base Station provides.
•Parse the Returned Strings thoroughly. Don't assume anything about the next response from the Base
to your program and ook on y for the partia string such as the ID on y; parse the returned string
comp ete y and be sure you are examining every possibi ity. Fai ure to do so is a common mistake.
•Plan for expansion. You may start sma (1 Base/1 Termina ) but try to create an app ication that wi
a ow for easy expansion and addition - especia y of Termina s.
•Site Evaluation. Site Testing does not require that you have an app ication up and running and can save
you time when you do sit down to create your program if you a ready know what you wi be dea ing
with in terms of Base Stations and Re ays.
•Use the Demo Programs. The demo programs can at east a ow you to see how the system functions
and whether you can anticipate any system-wide prob ems. The demo programs shou d a so be used as a
response-time benchmark.
Planning For Failures
Hardware Failures
Let's assume that each part of the system has fai ed. How are you going to know what has happened and how are
you going to recover?
•The most frequent fai ures are at the Termina eve . If a Termina has a hardware fai ure, it wi not be
ab e to SIGN OUT. It is possib e for the Termina operator to press the ON/OFF key or the F1 key by
accident, forcing the Termina to SIGN OUT - sometimes in the midd e of a transaction. This happens at
battery-changing time a so. You need to p an for partia transactions – do you trash the data you do have
and start over, or pick up where you eft off?
•Keep in mind that if a Termina has SIGNed OUT in mid-transaction, the Base Station c ears any pending
message for that Termina before it wi a ow it to SIGN ON again. Make a owances to re-send
messages or prompts that were c eared upon SIGN ON if necessary.
•Re ay Station fai ures are often cab e-re ated. If a Termina puts out a "Who Can Hear Me?" message
and a Re ay that is for some reason not connected to the Base Station (bad cab e, cut cab e, broken
connectors) hears it, it answers with the message:
Relay n Cannot Be
Heard by the Base
Notify Supervisor
Press Any ey
At this point, it is up to the operator to notify someone that the Re ay is not communicating with the Base and to
check the cab ing first. There is no message sent to the host, so it is very important that the operator that receives
this message notify someone immediate y.
Operator Errors
•P an on your operator wa king out of range and going to unch in the midd e of a transaction. What do
you do with the data you do have, and where are you going to start up again?

•Let's say your operator is SIGNED ON and decides it's time to take a break. Instead of pressing the F1
key to SIGN OUT, he presses the OFF key. Pressing the OFF key is OK (it wi SIGN him OUT) but there
is a de ay unti the SIGN OUT is acknow edged. Because of the de ay, the operator might think he didn't
press the key hard enough and press it again - this time actua y powering down the Termina before the
SIGN OUT was comp ete. If this happens, you need to p an to resend the ast prompt to the Termina
when he SIGNs ON again.
PromptCOM: The WDterm A tiveX Control
Drop-in components are too s that are added to your programming environment "too kit". There are a variety of
different techno ogies around for imp ementing a drop-in component such as VBX (for Visua Basic) and VCL (for
De phi and C Bui der) and COM (ActiveX). On y the ActiveX variety are wide y compatib e with a most a
deve opment environments.
PromptCOM/ActiveX is a drop in COM component that a ow programmers to easi y add the abi ity to send
prompts to and receive data from their R/F Termina via an RF Base Station. It is compatib e with Visua Basic,
Visua C++, De phi, and most other 32-bit deve opment p atforms. See the he p fi e for insta ation instructions.
Programming Considerations
Before making any method ca s, make sure to:
•Set the COM port properties (device name, baud, parity, bits, etc.) as desired. Make sure the port is
c osed (ca CloseDevice) before making changes to any of the port settings.
•Ca the OpenDevice method. This activates the COM port used by this instance of the WDterm
contro .
•Set the ActiveTerminal property to identify the termina on which you desire to operate. You can change
the ActiveTerminal at any time in order to direct commands to appropriate termina s.
Test For Good Communication
•Imp ement an event handler for OnTermBaseRegister that causes a beep or disp ays a message when
ca ed. If communication between the host PC and the base station is good, your event handler wi fire
when your program is running and you power up an attached base station.
Multiple Base Stations
•For insta ations using mu tip e base stations attached to a sing e host PC (these were ca ed "channe s"
in PromptCOM/DLL) simp y add a Wdterm contro to your app ication for each base station.
Terminal Tracking
•Since you get one set of event hand ers for each base station, you wi need some scheme for keeping
track of where each termina (up to 64 per base station) is in its transaction sequence. One possib e
so ution is to use a "state"variab e for each termina (perhaps stored in an array). Test the state variab e to
determine the next prompt for any given termina .
•It is very important to keep track of " ogin status" for each termina . Every SignOut event shou d have an

associated SignIn event and a given termina shou d not be a owed to SignIn twice without an
intervening SignOut. Mu tip e SignIns from one termina without appropriate SignOuts indicate either:
1. A termina going out of range and having its power cyc ed before returning within range
OR
2. Two (or more) termina s using the same ID (termina ID conf ict).
Con epts
When you use drop-in components in your program you wi fo ow the standard object-oriented programming
paradigm that uses properties, methods, and events to imp ement the functiona ity of the drop-in component.
•Properties are the various configuration variab es used by the drop-in component. An examp e of a
property is the ComDeviceName setting.
•Methods are function ca s used to issue commands and access features of the drop-in component. An
examp e of a method is sending an Input command to the termina .
•Events are function definitions p aced in your app ication’s source code. The function definitions in your
source code are ca ed Event Hand ers. The ske eton structure of the event hand er’s source code is
automatica y generated. The code in the Event Hand er is ca ed ("fired") by the drop-in component
when a specific event occurs. An examp e of an event is when a termina returns data and the
OnTermData event is fired.
The detai s of how to access Properties/Methods/Events varies between deve opment p atforms. Detai s of how it
works in some of the most popu ar p atforms is i ustrated in the samp es inc uded with the RF Uti ities CD or
avai ab e for down oad from our website at:
http://www.barcodehq.com/utilities/WDterminal.exe
Properties
Properties are the various configuration variab es used by the WDterm contro . They are direct y assignab e in your
app ication (e.g. "WDterm.ActiveTerminal = 5") and can be set in your deve opment environment’s object
browser.
Important: Except for ActiveTerminal and Quiet, a properties require the seria port to be "c osed" before they
can be changed. Use the CloseDevice method before setting properties and then ca OpenDevice to re-open the
seria port.
Note that your development environment may show more properties for the WDterm control than are listed here.
This is normal. You may ignore properties you see that are not listed here.
ActiveTerminal
Valid values: 0 through 6 .
Definition: This is the terminal ID (0-63) to which method ca instructions are directed .

ComDeviceName
Valid values: COM1-COM16
Definition: This is the serial port that this instance of the contro wi use. If you have more than one base station,
drop in another Wdterm contro and set its ComDeviceName for your other COM port(s).
ComBaudValue
Valid values: 00, 600, 1200, 2400, 4800, 9600, 19200, 8400, 57600, 115200.
Definition: This is the serial port speed setting and must match the base station setting.
ComParit
Valid values: None, Even, Odd.
Definition: This is a seria port setting and must match the base station setting. WDterm may a ow other settings
but those isted here are the on y ones compatib e with current version base stations.
ComDataBits
Valid values: 7, 8
Definition: This is a seria port setting and must match the base station setting. WDterm may a ow other settings
but those isted here are the on y ones compatib e with current version base stations.
ComStopBits
Valid values: 1, 2.
Definition: This is a seria port setting and must match the base station setting. WDterm may a ow other settings
but those isted here are the on y ones compatib e with current version base stations.
Quiet
Valid values: True, False.
Definition: If Quiet is set to True then any status and error message generated by WDterm wi be suppressed.

Methods
Methods are commands that you issue to the WDterm contro . A of the "Inputxxx" commands cause the termina
to wait for operator input.
Note that your development environment may show more available methods for the WDterm control than are listed
here. This is normal. You may ignore methods you see that are not listed here.
Important: When your app ication starts up, the seria port is "c osed". You must ca
OpenDevice before other
method ca s wi work.
Except for the ReInitAll method, a methods use the ActiveTerminal property to identify the termina to use.
OpenDevice (All Terminal Versions)
Function: Opens the communications (seria ) port. This must be ca ed
before any of the methods described be ow. Make sure to set a
Properties as desired before ca ing this method (except
ActiveTerminal or Quiet).
CloseDevice (All Terminal Versions)
Function: C oses the communications (seria ) port. This must be ca ed
before changing any of the Property settings (except ActiveTerminal or
Quiet). When your app ication starts up, the seria port is "c osed". You
must ca OpenDevice before other method ca s wi work.
DefineFormat ( 5-Line Terminal Only)
Parameters: font, linecount
Function: This adds a ine formatting definition. This command is ca ed
mu tip e times to bui d a disp ay formatting definition for mu tip e ines
which is then sent to the ActiveTerminal by the SendFormat command.
Font is an integer code: 0="sma ", 1="medium", 2=" arge"
Linecount is a number 1-15 indicating the number of ines to app y the font se ection to.
If on y one ine is defined (that is DefineFormat is ca ed on y once with a inecount of "1"), then after
SendFormat is ca ed, on y one ine wi be avai ab e for disp ay on the ActiveTerminal.
There are a imited number of ines avai ab e depending on the font size(s) chosen. Each font has a defined
height:
•sma : 16
•medium: 24
•arge: 32
The tota height of the defined ines cannot exceed 240. If it does, an error code is generated (see CheckError)
and the SendFormat command is ignored.
There is imited disp ay width avai ab e for text. Depending on the font you se ect for a ine:
•sma : 26 characters
•medium: 20 characters
•arge: 13 characters
Color Codes for 001 (15-line)
Terminal
0 - aqua
1 - b ack
2 - b ue
3 - fuchsia
4 - gray
5 - green
6 - ime
7 - maroon
8 - navy
9 - o ive
10 - purp e
11 - red
12 - si ver
13 - tea
14 - white
15 - ye ow

If you try to send prompt or disp ay text onger than this, it wi be truncated and an error code is generated (see
CheckError).
Must be fo owed by a "SendFormat" method ca and then an "Inputxxx" method ca to take effect.
SendFormat ( 5-Line Terminal Only)
Parameters: FG, BG
Function: Sends to the ActiveTerminal the current Format Definition as created by one or more ca s to the
DefineFormat method. It a so sets the user-defau t disp ay foreground and background co ors. FG and BG are
ForeGround and BackGround co ors for the 7001 (15- ine) termina (See Color Codes).
Must be fo owed by an "Inputxxx" method ca to take effect.
InputAn (All Terminal Versions)
Parameters: line, position, prompt, shifted, timestamped
InputAn Color ( 5-Line Terminal Only)
Parameters: line, position, prompt, shifted, timestamped, FG, BG
Function: This instructs the ActiveTerminal to disp ay the prompt at line and position and wait for data to be entered
from either termina keypad or scanner. If shifted is set to "true", the termina wi start in shifted mode.
Timestamped appends a (hhmmss) prefix to the returned data. FG and BG are ForeGround and BackGround
co ors for the 7001 (15- ine) termina (See Color Codes).
InputKe Bd (All Terminal Versions)
Parameters: ine, position, prompt, shifted, timestamped
InputKe BdColor ( 5-Line Terminal Only)
Parameters: ine, position, prompt, shifted, timestamped, FG, BG
Function: This instructs the ActiveTerminal to disp ay the prompt at line and position and wait for data to be entered
from the termina keypad on y. If shifted is set to “true”, the termina wi start in shifted mode. Timestamped
appends a (hhmmss) prefix to the returned data. FG and BG are ForeGround and BackGround co ors for the 7001
(15- ine) termina (See Color Codes).
InputExtKe Bd (All Terminal Versions)
Parameters: ine, position, prompt
InputExtKe BdColor ( 5-Line Terminal Only)
Parameters: ine, position, prompt, FG, BG
Function: This instructs the ActiveTerminal to disp ay the prompt at line and position and wait for data to be
received from the PS/2 keyboard attached using an adaptor to the termina seria port. Waiting for externa
keyboard input can be bypassed by pressing the enter key on the termina which wi send an empty data string to
the host (fires the OnTermData event hand er). Externa keyboards are supported by termina s using firmware
version RFU1010 or ater. FG and BG are ForeGround and BackGround co ors for the 7001 (15- ine) termina
(See Color Codes).
InputScanner (All Terminal Versions)
Parameters: ine, position, prompt, a owbreakout, timestamped
InputScannerColor ( 5-Line Terminal Only)
Parameters: ine, position, prompt, a owbreakout, timestamped, FG, BG
Function: This instructs the ActiveTerminal to disp ay the prompt at line and position and wait for data to be entered
from the termina scanner on y. Setting allowbreakout to true a ow user to "break out" of scanner on y mode by

pressing the end key on the termina . A termID+CR wi be sent to the host. FG and BG are ForeGround and
BackGround co ors for the 7001 (15- ine) termina (See Color Codes).
InputYesNo (All Terminal Versions)
Parameters: ine, position, prompt
InputYesNoColor ( 5-Line Terminal Only)
Parameters: ine, position, prompt, FG, BG
Function: This instructs the ActiveTerminal to disp ay the prompt at line and position and wait for a Yes (Enter key
or C key) or a No (0 key or B key) from the termina keypad.
Note: C and B keys are used to facilitate keypad entry while scanning with the integrated laser.
FG and BG are ForeGround and BackGround co ors for the 7001 (15- ine) termina (See Color Codes).
InputPassword (All Terminal Versions)
Parameters: ine, position, prompt, shifted
InputPasswordColor ( 5-Line Terminal Only)
Parameters: ine, position, prompt, shifted, FG, BG
Function: This instructs the ActiveTerminal to disp ay the prompt at line and position and wait for data to be entered
from the termina keypad on y. The entered data is not disp ayed on the termina . FG and BG are ForeGround
and BackGround co ors for the 7001 (15- ine) termina (See Color Codes).
InputSerial (All Terminal Versions)
Parameters: ine, position, prompt
InputSerialColor ( 5-Line Terminal Only)
Parameters: ine, position, prompt, FG, BG
Function: This instructs the ActiveTerminal to disp ay the prompt at line and position and wait for data to be
received through the termina seria port. Waiting for seria input can be bypassed by pressing the enter key on
the termina which wi send an empty data string to the host (fires the OnTermData event hand er). FG and BG
are ForeGround and BackGround co ors for the 7001 (15- ine) termina (See Color Codes).
OutputSerial (All Terminal Versions)
Parameters: data
Function: This instructs the ActiveTerminal to send data to the termina ’s seria port. Data must be ess than 232
characters in ength for each ca to OutputSerial. If you are sending data to a printer attached to the termina ,
make sure to set the Protoco parameter in the RF Termina to XON/XOFF. See the RF Termina Manua for
detai s.
Specia Considerations:
•After an OutputSerial ca is successfu y comp eted, the Base Station wi return (as data) a CR (ASCII
#13 Carriage Return) for the termina . This wi fire the OnTermData event. If there is a prob em with
the seria data you wi see an error message at the c ient and in the og (if enab ed). If the data string is
too ong, the OnTermIllegalCommand event wi be fired.
•Do not ca OutputSerial for the same Base Station and Termina again unti a return code is received.
•Do not ca an Inputxxx method for the same Base Station and Termina unti a return code is received.
•If you need to send more than 232 characters, send the first part, wait for the acknow edge (#13) and
then send the next part.
•Ca s to OutputSerial cannot be combined with other method ca s
•See the RF Termina Manua for detai s.