is there a way to hook up the ems with a usb connection bc my small laptop doesnt have the screws for the serial connection, so what i wanted to know is if theres a serial(aem ems side) to usb(laptop side) cable that would make this work?

 

Radio Shack used to sell a USB to serial adapter cable plus software. Not sure if they still do or not. If not, check...PC Connection on the web or just do a search in Google or whatever you use for USB to serial adapter. You'll find some choices there.

eBay probably even has some listed.

You're not only one faced with this issue. Many industrial automation systems use serial inputs but most of our laptops now have USB only.

 

yea i know they exist but wasnt sure if it was gonna work or not, thanks bro

 

As far as your EMS knows it is a serial connection. As long as you set the com port and baud rate correctly for the EMS you will be just fine.

See ya....

 

im kinda a computer noob, what does baud rate mean?

 

Data is sent back and forth through the cable at a certain rate (speed). Baud rate is the terminology for this. Your EMS manual should mention this somewhere and give the baud rate it requires or how to change it.

Typical baud rates would be 300bps, 600bps, 1200bps, 2400bps, 4800bps, 9600bps, 19200bps...bps is bits per second and the higher the number the faster the communication possibilities but also more chance for errors through induced electrical interference.

The computer and the EMS must have matching "baud rates" or there will be errors on both ends while the computer is trying to communicate with the EMS.

 

oh thanks i never knew about this, how do i find out the baud rates on my comp, and what are they for the ems, i have too many questions

 

You may also have to set the COM port in the EMS software - typically they will default to COM1, but your USB-Serial will likely be something more along the lines of COM4 to COM8

In some cases the software is not able to recognize "virtual" serial ports. In this case, Windows may report the serial port as COM2 thru COM8 but your legacy software will may need to be set for another COM port number (have seen some software read a USB-Serial adapter reported as COM4 as COM14 on the application side). I believe Windows included a virtual port fix in later service pack updates.

 

ok nice i have a cable ill try it once the cars done next week, thanks guys

 

Don't over complicate things.

Get yourself a USB-Serial converter and load the drivers for it. I use a Belkin.

Then when you start the AEM Pro software it asks what port you wish to use and whether it is serial or USB (obviously they are planning a USB interface for future EMSs). Choose serial and you will get a list of available serial ports. You should have one. In my case it is 'Belkin Serial Port' or similar.

Then off you go!

Don't trouble yourself with baud rates, parity, data and stop bits. It's AEM software talking to an AEM device. The default parameters are correct.