Communications

The Communications menu shows all the commands that control the reader's connectivity to the host and to your application's network. These commands also control Preamble and Postamble settings for decoded data output, Response Timeout, LRC Status, ACK NAK Options, and Polling Mode Options.

 

Command parameters can be changed directly from this menu.

 

Communications Menu

 

 

Daisy Chain

The Daisy Chain section, located beneath the Postamble section in the Communications Menu in Advanced Settings, allows you to enable or disable Daisy Chain ID functionality. Daisy Chain ID outputs the name of the reader that decoded the candidate symbol. It also allows you to determine the type of separator you want to appear between the reader ID and the barcode data output.

 

In the example below, Daisy Chain ID is Enabled and the Separator is set to : .

 

 

Those two settings cause the data output to look like the example below.

 

The reader ID is V430-F3AF8FF.

 

The : character is displayed between the reader ID and the symbol data output.

 

 

See Configure Daisy Chain for more information about general Daisy Chain functionality.

 

 

EtherNet/IP and PROFINET Byte Swapping

EtherNet/IP Byte Swapping and PROFINET Byte Swapping allow you to switch the order in which bytes are transmitted (big-endian or little-endian) between the camera and the PLC. If enabled, the bytes are swapped for 2-byte words.

 

 

 

Custom Ethernet Link

By default, the MicroHAWK reader operates as a server, and communicates with the host over TCP/IP for both commands and data.

 

Custom Ethernet Link gives you the ability to create an Ethernet interface that is bound to the command processor per your own requirements. You can set the Transport Layer to UDP or TCP, set the message Type to Server or Client, and set Capabilities to Send Only, Receive Only, or Send/Receive.

 

 

Custom Ethernet Link is intended for advanced users. This feature permits the establishment of a connection to the reader on any port, using the protocols UDP/IP, TCP, and Multicast on a specified port. A bi-directional communication configuration is available to send commands to the reader, obtain barcode output data, or form a single direction of communication, i.e. sending commands to the reader only, or receiving barcode data from reader only, without having both directions open.

 

In addition to the ability to move ports, you can also force the connection created by the Custom Ethernet Link to act as a client. Instead of "reaching out" to the reader, it is possible to configure the reader to “go out and connect to” a specified server. This increases flexibility when integrating readers into customer applications. Without this feature, users are limited to static communication into and out of the reader (UDP=80, TCP1=2001, TCP2=2003).

 

The following section will cover the implementation of how the custom Ethernet object is implemented in an Ethernet-based reader. This additional Ethernet-based transport layer allows you to:

 

 

With Custom Ethernet Link functionality, users can configure:

 

 

Custom Ethernet Link functionality is bound to the reader's command processor as shown in the figure below. This enables an outside endpoint to still send commands to the device as well as receive data (commands and barcode) to the receiver.

 

 

Server Implementation

 

In cases where the endpoint is configured as a server, the reader is only able to handle 10 simultaneous connections for any transport layer. For TCP, the reader will refuse the connection. UDP and Multicast will simply ignore the connection request due to the connectionless nature of the transport layer.

 

 

 

Client Implementation

 

In cases where the endpoint is configured as a client, the reader is only able to handle one connection to a server. This means the following restrictions apply:

 

TCP: The reader can only connect to one server when configured as a client.

UDP and Multicast: The reader can only send data out on to one UDP port.

 

 

UDP is limited to UDP/IP in order to avoid broadcasting data on the network.

 

 

Configuration

 

This section explains how to configure the custom Ethernet object in the reader. The Custom Ethernet Link K Command <K166> allows you to configure the custom Ethernet object in the reader.

 

Important: For information about Omron Microscan's proprietary K Command syntax, see Appendices C through N of the MicroHAWK V320-F / V330-F / V420-F / V430-F Barcode Reader User Manual, available in the Manuals section of the Downloads tab at this location on the Omron Automation website: https://automation.omron.com/en/us/products/family/V430.

 

The following section explains the command parameters that configure the custom Ethernet object. Note that each parameter described below corresponds with each parameter shown in the Custom Ethernet Link section of WebLink's Communications menu shown at the beginning of this topic.

 

K Command Format: <K166,status,transport layer,type,capabilities,IP address,multicast address,port,check connection,timeout (milliseconds),TTL>

 

Status

 

<K166,status,transport layer,type,capabilities,IP address,multicast address,port,check connection,timeout (milliseconds),TTL>

 

Status of the custom Ethernet object in the device.

 

0 = Disabled (Default) – The custom Ethernet object is not started.

1 = Enabled – The custom Ethernet object has started with the parameters configured.

 

 

Transport Layer

 

<K166,status,transport layer,type,capabilities,IP address,multicast address,port,check connection,timeout (milliseconds),TTL>

 

The transport layer used by the custom Ethernet object to send/receive data. This transport layer obeys the OSI Model (layer 4). The multicast implementation uses UDP (User Datagram Protocol) as the transport layer.

 

0 = TCP (Default)

1 = UDP

2 = Multicast

 

 

Type

 

<K166,status,transport layer,type,capabilities,IP address,multicast address,port,check connection,timeout (milliseconds),TTL>

 

This is the how the feature runs on the device and follows the server client model.

 

0 = Server (Default) – In server mode the device will be listening on the configured port number. The server can handle up to 10 different connections at one time independent of the transport layer selection. Once the limit has been reached the server will reject other connections.

For Multicast server configuration the user can either use a specified Multicast address or leave the Multicast address to the configured Multicast APIPA Address. This Multicast address is safe to use according to RFC 4607 stating that Multicast ranges from 232.0.0.0 – 232.255.255.255 are okay to use for source specific applications. By default, the unit creates a unique Multicast address in the range of 232.169.xxx.xxx so it does not conflict with other multicast addresses.

1 = Client – In client mode the device will send data to the specified server. The user must configure the IP Address (or Multicast Address) of the server and the port number that the specified server is listening on. Improper configuration will either yield an error on startup or result in no data being transmitted from the device to the outside world.

 

 

Capabilities

 

<K166,status,transport layer,type,capabilities,IP address,multicast address,port,check connection,timeout (milliseconds),TTL>

 

Capabilities is how the user configures the custom Ethernet object's read/write settings.  

 

1 = Receive – The device will only receive data from the connecting endpoint. The device will not send data out to any connecting endpoints.

2 = Send – The device will only send data to the connecting endpoint. Any data received is immediately disposed of and not processed.

3 = Send/Receive (Default) – The device will be able to send and receive data to the connecting endpoint.

 

 

IP Address

 

<K166,status,transport layer,type,capabilities,IP address,multicast address,port,check connection,timeout (milliseconds),TTL>

 

If the unit is configured as a client, the IP Address is determined by the Transport Layer.

 

TCP – This is the server's IP Address.

UDP – If the server uses UDP/IP, this is the IP Address of the server. Otherwise, it is ignored and the device will send data on the specified port.

Multicast – This parameter is the device's IP Address used to send out the Multicast message. You do not need to configure this parameter.

 

Default = Unit's IP Address

 

 

Multicast Address

 

<K166,status,transport layer,type,capabilities,IP address,multicast address,port,check connection,timeout (milliseconds),TTL>

 

In Server mode, this is the multicast address that clients can connect to in order to send/receive data. The port number is the port that the connecting endpoints will use.

In Client mode, this is the multicast address of the server that the device is sending data to.

The port number is the port the multicast server is listening on.

 

Default = 232.169.xxx.xxx (Multicast APIPA Address)

 

 

Port

 

<K166,status,transport layer,type,capabilities,IP address,multicast address,port,check connection,timeout (milliseconds),TTL>

 

In Server mode, this is the port number that the connecting endpoints will use to connect to the device.

In Client mode, this is the port number that the server is listening on.

 

5000 (Default)

 

 

Check Connection

 

<K166,status,transport layer,type,capabilities,IP address,multicast address,port,check connection,timeout (milliseconds),TTL>

 

This feature is only applicable for Transport Layer UDP in Client mode. The device will transmit 0 length UDP packets to the specified port that the server is listening on. If the device receives an ICMP (Port Destination Not Found) than it will continue to send 0 length packets in an exponential back-off delay until the device no longer receives ICMP packets. This feature is disabled by default.

 

0 = Disabled (Default)

1 = Enabled

 

 

Timeout (Milliseconds)

 

<K166,status,transport layer,type,capabilities,IP address,multicast address,port,check connection,timeout (milliseconds),TTL>

 

For TCP this is the timeout before the socket is forcibly closed. For UDP and Multicast this parameter has no effect.

 

Default = 10000

 

 

TTL

 

<K166,status,transport layer,type,capabilities,IP address,multicast address,port,check connection,timeout (milliseconds),TTL>

 

For Multicast this is the Time To Live counter, or how many hops before the message is discarded by the network. By default, the counter is set to 128 hops which is more than enough for a typical packet to reach its destination host but can be configured to last longer or shorter per network requirements.

 

Default = 128

 

 

Examples

 

The following section provides examples of how to configure the custom Ethernet object using the Custom Ethernet Link K Command <K166> described in the Configuration section earlier in this topic.

 

 

TCP

Server Mode

Send/Receive Capabilities

<K166,1,0,0,3>

Interpretation of K Command Settings: Custom Ethernet Link Enabled (Default), Transport Layer = TCP (Default), Type = Server (Default), Capabilities = Send/Receive (Default)

 

Send-Only Capabilities

<K166,1,0,0,2>

Interpretation of K Command Settings: Custom Ethernet Link Enabled (Default), Transport Layer = TCP (Default), Type = Server (Default), Capabilities = Send

 

Client Mode

The following client modes will connect to a TCP Server with IP Address 192.168.188.5 listening on port 5050.

 

 

Send/Receive Capabilities

<K166,1,0,1,3,192.168.188.5, ,5050>

Interpretation of K Command Settings: Custom Ethernet Link Enabled (Default), Transport Layer = TCP (Default), Type = Client, Capabilities = Send/Receive (Default), IP Address = 192.168.188.5, Port = 5050.

 

Send-Only Capabilities

<K166,1,0,1,2,192.168.188.5, ,5050>

Interpretation of K Command Settings: Custom Ethernet Link Enabled (Default), Transport Layer = TCP (Default), Type = Client, Capabilities = Send, IP Address = 192.168.188.5, Port = 5050.

 

 

UDP

Server Mode

Send/Receive Capabilities

<K166,1,1,0,3>

Interpretation of K Command Settings: Custom Ethernet Link Enabled (Default), Transport Layer = UDP, Type = Server (Default), Capabilities = Send/Receive (Default).

 

Send-Only Capabilities

<K166,1,1,0,2>

Interpretation of K Command Settings: Custom Ethernet Link Enabled (Default), Transport Layer = UDP, Type = Server (Default), Capabilities = Send.

 

Client Mode

The following client modes will connect to a UDP Server with IP Address 192.168.188.5 listening on port 5050.

 

 

Send/Receive Capabilities

<K166,1,1,1,3,192.168.188.5, ,5050>

Interpretation of K Command Settings: Custom Ethernet Link Enabled (Default), Transport Layer = UDP, Type = Client, Capabilities = Send/Receive (Default), IP Address = 192.168.188.5, Port = 5050.

 

Send-Only Capabilities

<K166,1,1,1,2,192.168.188.5, ,5050>

Interpretation of K Command Settings: Custom Ethernet Link Enabled (Default), Transport Layer = UDP, Type = Client, Capabilities = Send, IP Address = 192.168.188.5, Port = 5050.

 

 

Multicast

Server Mode

The following uses the default Multicast IP Address generated in the device.

 

Send/Receive Capabilities

<K166,1,2,0,3>

Interpretation of K Command Settings: Custom Ethernet Link Enabled (Default), Transport Layer = Multicast, Type = Server (Default), Capabilities = Send/Receive (Default).

 

Send-Only Capabilities

<K166,1,2,0,2>

Interpretation of K Command Settings: Custom Ethernet Link Enabled (Default), Transport Layer = Multicast, Type = Server (Default), Capabilities = Send.

 

Client Mode

The following client modes will connect to a Multicast server with IP Address 224.0.1.90 listening on port 5050.

 

 

Send/Receive Capabilities

<K166,1,2,1,3, ,224.0.1.90,5050>

Interpretation of K Command Settings: Custom Ethernet Link Enabled (Default), Transport Layer = Multicast, Type = Client, Capabilities = Send/Receive (Default), IP Address = 224.0.1.90, Port = 5050.

 

Send-Only Capabilities

<K166,1,2,1,2, ,224.0.1.90, ,5050>

Interpretation of K Command Settings: Custom Ethernet Link Enabled (Default), Transport Layer = Multicast, Type = Client, Capabilities = Send, IP Address = 224.0.1.90, Port = 5050.