PCI-3 I/O Card
The PCI-3 I/O Card is a very high speed replacement for our DS-12 input/output card. It contains one 8 bit parallel port, and plugs into any PCI slot in the motherboard of a computer. All California Software System 7 products will work with either the PCI-3 or the DS-12. The difference is the PCI-3 will run in today’s ultra high speed computers (a 2Ghz Pentium 4 system and above).
The PCI-3 is manufactured for us by Axxom Computer Corporation in Canada. They are good people who design and build excellent products. Check them out at www.softio.com.
DS-12 I/O Card
The DS-12 I/O Card is a proprietary printed circuit board, designed and manufactured by California Software Systems. The card contains two, 8 bit, parallel ports and plugs into any standard ISA slot in the mother board of a computer. The basic purpose for this card is to make the computer act like a paper tape reader when transferring programs to and from a printed circuit board drill or router. In addition to 8 data lines there are 4 control lines often referred to as “hand shake” lines.
The data and control lines for both the DS-12 and PCI-3 can be configured by software which makes it possible to communicate with any machine having a paper tape reader with a parallel interface. We use the same card for Excellon, TruDrill, PDA, ATI, Hitachi, Sieb & Meyers, and all other controllers when communicating through the paper tape reader connector port. This ability to program the I/O card to match the machine is one of the advantages offered by California Software Systems. You only need to stock one spare card for all of your machines.
The timing between the receiving of the pulses from the machine and the output of each byte of data is critical. If the timing is not exactly right the machine will make mistakes and scrap panels! This is where most people run into serious problems in trying to connect a computer to a drill or router. Regardless of what else the computer may be doing, the correct data must always be available to the machine at precisely the right instant.
California Software Systems uses software, not hardware, to generate the precise delays required by the different machines used in our industry. Unlike our competition, our products will work in any modern computer regardless of how fast it may be or the type of microprocessor it uses. The computer CPU can be anything from a 486 to Pentium IV and above.
Most of our competitors require a “hardware key” to be plugged into the printer port on the back of the computer. In fact, it is common to see two more keys, plugged into each other, sticking out the rear. In a production environment this not only looks bad, it makes the computer much more susceptible of damage.
California Software Systems does not require any external key nor do we copy protect our software. Our products are distributed on floppy disks, CD-ROMS, and over the internet and may be easily copied from one medium to another. However, most will not run unless PCI-3 or DS-12 I/O card is installed in the motherboard.
RS-7 Key Card
The RS-7 Key Card performs the same logical functions as the DS-12 I/O card except it does not have external ports. Therefore, if a parallel port is not required, a RS-7 key card may be substituted for the PCI-3 or DS-12.
Please contact California Software Systems for more information.
