[time-nuts] Lucent KS-24361 GPSDO arrived today several questions

GandalfG8 at aol.com GandalfG8 at aol.com
Fri Nov 7 12:39:21 EST 2014


Hi Anthony,
 
Are you sure you've got the COM port set up correctly?
 
Should be 9600 baud, 8 data bits, 1 stop bit, No parity, No flow  control
 
In SatStat, for example, you should get a message on startup that  says....
To Start: Select port Open on the CommPort Menu...
 
If you do this, assuming the correct settings, it should bring up a  
message....
Communication Established, Please Wait
 
Then the SatStat Info page should open.
 
This is with the Symmetricom Windows version of SatStat, version 5, do you  
see any of this when you try to start it?
 
Regards
 
Nigel
GM8PZR
 
 
In a message dated 07/11/2014 17:14:54 GMT Standard Time, aroby at antamy.com  
writes:

My  frustration with getting anything out of the Diag port onto a PC  
continues.  I received an RS422 to USB cable and also an RS422 to RS232  
convertor but neither of them has given me any success, on either box.  I  can see 
data coming out of the port on my scope, on top of a noisy 1.2V line,  but 
cannot get a terminal program, SatStat or Z38XX to display anything.   It's 
crazy.

Anthony

-----Original Message-----
From:  time-nuts [mailto:time-nuts-bounces at febo.com] On Behalf Of Bob Camp
Sent:  Friday, November 07, 2014 6:42 AM
To: GandalfG8 at aol.com; Discussion of  precise time and frequency measurement
Subject: Re: [time-nuts] Lucent  KS-24361 GPSDO arrived today several 
questions

Hi

Well, it took  me a *long* time to get around to the command line on these 
boxes. For what  ever reason (yes one could guess  ? ) I stayed focused on 
finding a  3810/11/12 manual rather than dropping back to the 3801 manual. 

Now  the question becomes that magic 10 pin header on the board. If it ??s 
jumpers  (might not be) one of them could enable bi-directional  
communication.

Thanks for checking this to see that it works on at  least one other box.

Bob

> On Nov 7, 2014, at 4:03 AM,  GandalfG8--- via time-nuts 
<time-nuts at febo.com> wrote:
> 
>  Hi Bob
> 
> Very many thanks for the prod re the Diagnostic  port.
> 
> Considering the other GPS kit I talk to using  Hyperterminal and the  
> like, often because there's no other  option, I don't know why it's  
> never occurred to me to do the  same with the Z3801As and now  these......
> and any rude  suggestions as to why will just be politely  ignored:-)
> 
>  It's not that I don't have access to the command set, but  I suspect  
> that twelve years or so ago, totally green when it came to   GPSDOs and 
> with my first Z3801A to play with, I was just grateful to  find  
> SatStat, and eventually some nice commercial options, and  never gave 
> it a  thought after that, silly me.
> 
>  Anyway, I've just switched my Z3811A comms over to Hyperterminal  and  
> tried the :SYST:STAT? command for starters.
> That's obviously  what SatStat uses to generate it's front page, 
> although it is  continuously updated with SatStat, and we do have 
> contact, and  something  else to play with:-)
> 
> Regards
> 
>  Nigel
> GM8PZR
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
>  
> 
> 
> 
> 
> In a message dated 07/11/2014  00:07:56 GMT Standard Time, 
> kb8tq at n1k.org
> writes:
>  
> Hi
> 
> Ok, I got to spend a little quality time with my  pair  today. I mostly 
> poked at the Diag port with a terminal  program.
> 
> Both  of the units seem talk over the Diag port  regardless of the mode 
> they are in  (master / slave / fault ).  Both respond to a sub-set of 
> the Z3801 SCPI  commands (= not all  commands work). There are a few 
> enhancements where a query  to  a  ??node ?? gives a reply (which it 
should not if it ??s  ??node  only ??
> ). All of it  works ok at 9600 baud 8N1. All of it comes  back with an 
> error message (E-xxx)  after a valid command  response. It may not like 
> the terminal program sending  cr/lf or  something like that.
> 
> By far the most useful thing to type  is  :SYST:STAT? 
> That executes the system:status request and  gives you a nice  full 
> screen of information. It shows you about  95% of the useful 
> information  all on one page. About the only  major thing missing is 
> the DAC value. That ??s  available with  another command out of the 
> Z3801 list. It does take a while to  compose and transmit the screen, 
> so it ??s not the best way to to  this forever  and ever.
> 
> The data from the request is the  same on both boxes. Same  everything 
> except one shows as standby  etc. The interesting details are things  
> like elevation mask and  cable delay. Why interesting? You can set them 
> with  discrete  commands. You can also query the data with the same 
> commands to  make  sure the box  ??took ?? what you sent.
> 
> This  allows experimentation with  changing the elevation mask on each 
>  box (or just simply doing a discrete query  for the mask on each box).  
> The Ref-0 / slave will happily change things around  with  discrete 
> commands. None of them are reflected in the :SYST:STAT?  listing  on 
> the Ref-0 or Ref-1. When you look at the Ref-1 / gps  box, it ??s 
> discrete  query information matches the :SYST:STAT?  screen on both 
> boxes. When you  change things on the Ref-1 box  both screens follow that 
data.
> 
>  ?? ?? ?? ?? ??
>  
> When you pull the antenna on the gps box, it immediately   (almost) 
> goes into gps fault led flashing mode. The slave box happily  sits  
> there for a while (say a minute) with it ??s gps led  saying all is 
> well. When  you plug the antenna back in, the  process is reversed. The 
> gps box goes out of  flash mode right  away. The led goes out in a bit. 
> The led on the slave box  does  not follow for a minute or so.
> 
>  ?? ?? ?? ?? ??
>  
> All of this suggests  to me that the Ref-0 / slave does not talk  back 
> to the other box via serial.  It also suggests to me that  all it 
>  ??sees ?? from the Ref-1/gps box are the   duplicates of the serial 
> string out of the Motorola gps module. The  Ref-0 just  figures out 
> what ??s happening by watching those  strings as they roll  by.
> 
> Hope that makes sense ?  .
> 
>  ?? ?? ?? ?? ?? ??
> 
> If that ??s all  true, it  should be  ??easy ?? to put dummy gps 
> sentences  into the Ref-0 interface port and  a pps from something 
> else.  Once it sees stuff that it likes, it will start  locking up to 
>  that pps. Cheap micro and just about any modern gps = fancy new  
>  GPSDO. Quick / easy / not much work. A little more complex if you 
>  decide to  translate sawtooth data. That of course assumes these boxes 
do  anything with  sawtooth ...
> 
> Bob
> 
>  
> 
> 
>> On Nov 6, 2014, at 7:52 AM,  GandalfG8---  via time-nuts
> <time-nuts at febo.com> wrote:
>>  
>> Hi Bob
>> 
>> I view the master/slave situation  the same way you do,  but only
> commented
>> because  Lucent effectively sets things up  the other way round so 
>>  just wanted to be sure which way Paul  was considering it.
>>  
>> As regards, the "faking", yes, a single  15 way plug  containing just  
>> a
> link
>> and a resistor  is exactly  what I use now.
>> 
>> I realise the RS422  fudge isn't ideal but  certainly very handy for 
>> some quick  tests.
>> 
>> I've got two or three RS422 PCI interfaces but  hadn't previously had 
>> any
> 
>> spare slots, now  I've got a couple of lovely Magma 13 way PCI  
>>  expansion
> units
>> but need to hack them about so the ports  are at the  front.
>> Whoever decided rack mount PC kit should  be built with all  the
> connections
>> at the rear must  have been really nuts, and it  was too long ago  to 
>> use  "corridors" of racks as a viable  excuse, someone somewhere just  
>> fitted
> ears to
>> desk top style  cases and  left the rest of us to get on with  it..
>> 
>>  One  of the best things I ever did was to buy a pair of "back to  
front"   
>> rackmount PC cases with all ports and cards  available at the front,
> trouble is
>> now I want everything  else to match, and most test  gear has just the
> same
>>  issues!
>> 
>> All good fun,  and certainly never a  dull moment:-)
>> 
>> Regards
>> 
>>  Nigel
>> GM8PZR
>> 
>> 
>> 
>  
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