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PCI Card

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    PCI Card

    Does anyone have experience with PCI cards?

    I have a customer who has installed a turnstile system for entering their facility. This system connects to a computer via a PCI card. When someone tries to enter the facility by scanning their membership card, I need to send a signal to the PCI card to open the turnstile if their membership is active.

    Here is the information I received regarding what needs to be done programmatically:
    "The turnstile has a normally opened contact, and when a valid card is scanned your software will need to provide a dry contact closure, a momentary contact closure, no voltage just completing a circuit. We have worked with many access control and club management software packages, and most of them have used a PCI card which can provide the contact closure when a valid card is scanned."

    Does anyone know if there is a way to do this in xbasic?

    Thanks,
    Bob A.
    Robert Adler
    Alpha Anywhere Programmer/Developer
    Eagle Dbase Solutions, LLC
    http://www.eagledbasesolutions.com/

    sigpic

    #2
    Re: PCI Card

    If you google "pci card" you will find that a pci card can perform any of many functions according to its design. There are pci video cards, network card, etc.

    What you a likely dealing with is a pci serial port card. To communicate with such a card you will probably need sendstr.exe from the code archive.

    This presumes the pci card doesn't have its own software to be triggered with the proper commands.
    There can be only one.

    Comment


      #3
      Re: PCI Card

      Hi Stan,

      Thanks for your reply.

      Originally posted by Stan Mathews View Post
      To communicate with such a card you will probably need sendstr.exe from the code archive.
      Would you mind sending me the link for this exe?

      Originally posted by Stan Mathews View Post
      This presumes the pci card doesn't have its own software to be triggered with the proper commands.
      If it does come with software, would I run the commands using SYS_SHELL()?

      Thanks.
      Robert Adler
      Alpha Anywhere Programmer/Developer
      Eagle Dbase Solutions, LLC
      http://www.eagledbasesolutions.com/

      sigpic

      Comment


        #4
        Re: PCI Card

        The link to sendstr.exe appears to be broken. You might message Jim to see if he can repost it.


        If it does come with software you'll have to find out what commands in what form the software wants.
        There can be only one.

        Comment


          #5
          Re: PCI Card

          Stan,

          My customer has purchased a relay controller which will connect to a serial port. This controller comes with an API. You communicate with this controller through ascii control characters. Is it possible to send ascii control characters to a serial port through xbasic code?

          Their sample code shows how to do this with Visual Basic. If I can't send the control characters using xbasic, I was thinking of creating a Visual Basic exe that will do this and run that exe from my xbasic code.

          Thanks for any guidance you can provide.

          Bob A.
          Robert Adler
          Alpha Anywhere Programmer/Developer
          Eagle Dbase Solutions, LLC
          http://www.eagledbasesolutions.com/

          sigpic

          Comment


            #6
            Re: PCI Card

            sendstr.exe was designed to do that, I imagine, because xbasic doesn't support it. Your idea to do it in vb seems sound.
            There can be only one.

            Comment


              #7
              Re: PCI Card

              I sent an email to Jim requesting the link for sendstr.exe.

              If anyone knows where it is please let me know.

              Thanks,
              Bob A.
              Robert Adler
              Alpha Anywhere Programmer/Developer
              Eagle Dbase Solutions, LLC
              http://www.eagledbasesolutions.com/

              sigpic

              Comment


                #8
                Re: PCI Card

                I'm watching this thread with great interest... I'm about to have to do the same thing for a fitness club.

                Comment


                  #9
                  Re: PCI Card

                  Jim has not replied to my message regarding sendstr.exe; therefore, it appears I have to go the route of using Visual Basic.

                  The company we purchased the pci card from has a library of Visual Basic examples for controlling the card. Here is the link to their web page to download the examples.

                  http://www.controlanything.com/Merch...PONENT_LIBRARY

                  The examples will work with Visual Studio 2005 and 2008. If anyone would like to assist in doing some vb development on this please let me know.

                  Bob A.
                  Robert Adler
                  Alpha Anywhere Programmer/Developer
                  Eagle Dbase Solutions, LLC
                  http://www.eagledbasesolutions.com/

                  sigpic

                  Comment


                    #10
                    Re: PCI Card

                    The link to sendstr.exe appears to be broken.
                    Appears to be fine for me--all the links in the two threads regarding sendstr.exe .

                    http://msgboard.alphasoftware.com/al...earchid=744344

                    I have the 18kb sendstr.exe file as well.
                    Mike
                    __________________________________________
                    It is only when we forget all our learning that we begin to know.
                    It's not what you look at that matters, it's what you see.
                    Henry David Thoreau
                    __________________________________________



                    Comment


                      #11
                      Re: PCI Card

                      Hi Mike,

                      The link you provided returns "No matches". Would you mind posting it or sending it to me? Do you have any documentation for it?

                      Thanks,
                      Bob A.
                      Robert Adler
                      Alpha Anywhere Programmer/Developer
                      Eagle Dbase Solutions, LLC
                      http://www.eagledbasesolutions.com/

                      sigpic

                      Comment


                        #12
                        Re: PCI Card

                        I think I got it right this time

                        Here is Jim Chapman's original posting

                        http://msgboard.alphasoftware.com/al...ht=sendstr.exe



                        Tom Baker

                        Comment


                          #13
                          Re: PCI Card

                          Would you mind posting it or sending it to me?
                          nope--won't do it!! :p I would rather have you learn how easy it is to find something in the messageboard!

                          Below this thread is a drop down box called "Forum Jump"...as Stan already stated that it can be found in the Code Archive forum, choose that. In the upper right of any specific forum, choose "Search this forum" and enter in sendstr.exe . Two threads will show up...choose the most recent. Jim tells a bit about the file as well in the thread.


                          In case you really cannot find it.... here! An exe cannot be uploaded to the messageboard so I added a .zip that has to be removed before using (simply take it off the name so the file becomes sendstr.exe!).
                          Mike
                          __________________________________________
                          It is only when we forget all our learning that we begin to know.
                          It's not what you look at that matters, it's what you see.
                          Henry David Thoreau
                          __________________________________________



                          Comment

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