Advantech”seAutomation Group released the PCI-1625U, an eight-port intelligentRS-232 universal PCI communication card. The card is designed forindustrial applications where a PC needsto communicate with terminals, modems, or other instruments. Users caninstall up to four cards for a total of 32 ports in any PCIbus-based PC. The card is virtually a self-contained computer that hasan onboard DSP processor that will take over the processing load fromthe host PC. The card has one MB of SRAM, which can store serial dataand reduce host CPU loading effectively. When the PCI-1625Uinitializes, it will download the driver software into its onboard DSP.There’s a universal PCI connector that is compatible with both the 3.3V PCI bus and the traditional five V PCI bus. Included is a utilityprogram called ICOM Tools that will test the PCI card performance byanalyzing the port status. The menu commands and toolbar buttons ofICOM Tools act as a PC-based data scope that lets users set a triggercondition, capture the communications data, and monitor the signalstatus.
