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HP Forum Archive 19

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IR Link to PC
Message #1 Posted by Eddie Goodridge on 23 Sept 2010, 12:08 a.m.

I figured it was worth a shot, so here it goes...

I make motors and such for Radio Control Cars. IN the Early 90s, Competition Electronics produced an item called the Turbo Dyno. This device allowed us to test our motors to see which was the most powerful, efficient, etc. There was an option with this dyno to print the results using the Hewlett Packard model 82240B IR Printer.

After doing some research, I found that HP produced this printer to print stuff directly from the HP series of calculators...while they also released its source code, so it could be used by other companies products (so far, I only found one other, a battery tester). I am assuming the Dyno outputs code similar to the calculators (kermit?)

I need to replace the printer, I've gone through 3 of them due to them getting dirty and I need the ability to present the dyno info in a much nicer manner than a small slip of paper.

I've researched up and down on the net, to find numerous programs of ways to simulate the printer on your computer and use a regular printer. The problem lies that they all assume I can use the rs232 interface. I can't. My dyno simply has the IR and that's it. I need a way to recieve the data on the computer, even if its just to a text file or something......once there, I can figure a way to print it, even if I have to copy and paste it in excel or something. Is there a way to make an IR reciever, that will receive the dyno data?

Any help would be great.

Thanks for your time

Eddie

      
Re: IR Link to PC
Message #2 Posted by Martin Pinckney on 23 Sept 2010, 12:33 a.m.,
in response to message #1 by Eddie Goodridge

Quote:
... it could be used by other companies products (so far, I only found one other, a battery tester).
Also a ballistic chronograph, and perhaps others.
Quote:
Is there a way to make an IR reciever, that will receive the dyno data?
Yes, I'm sure there is, although I'm not the one to tell you how, but there are folks on here that can.

Pretty sure the info can be found somewhere on http://www.hpcalc.org

Wait until tomorrow, you'll get some responses.

      
Re: IR Link to PC
Message #3 Posted by Katie Wasserman on 23 Sept 2010, 2:38 a.m.,
in response to message #1 by Eddie Goodridge

There are many portable devices that made to use this printer, here's one for example.

You'll find a ton of information on the protocol that this printer uses if you follow all the links starting here and here

HP's document on interfacing to the printer is here.

However, pretty much everything that you'll find on the 'net is not what you really want. Most people are interested in sending data to this printer not replacing it with a serial feed into a computer. I don't know of any commercial product that does this. But someone here may well have developed a system to do just that.

-Katie

p.s. Take a look at the 82240 emulators for the hp-48,49,50 series calculators. I think that this will give you want to need. In particular, use this program along with an HP-48 calculator acting as the IR receiver hooked up to a PC.

There's more info here.

Edited: 23 Sept 2010, 2:55 a.m.

            
Re: IR Link to PC
Message #4 Posted by M. Joury on 23 Sept 2010, 10:42 a.m.,
in response to message #3 by Katie Wasserman

Hi Katie,

Lots of good information there. Thanks for getting it all together in one post.

On a related topic, there was a program that was part of the 41C emulator card for the 48SX that captured output from the 41C IR module as a method for transferring programs to the 48SX emulator environment. Is there any such program for the newer calcs (48G/GX, 49g+, and 50g) that would allow the capture of IR printer output as a simple string?

Thanks,

MJ

      
Re: IR Link to PC
Message #5 Posted by Andrés C. Rodríguez (Argentina) on 23 Sept 2010, 7:21 a.m.,
in response to message #1 by Eddie Goodridge

Many years ago, Steve (Australia) posted a detailed article about receiving, decoding and printing the IR stream from HP calculators (i.e., HP42S, which has no RS-232). He hooked a phototransistor to the audio input of a PC sound board, IIRC. You may find it on the MoHPC archives.

BTW, the protocol is unidirectional, and it's different from Kermit.

      
Re: IR Link to PC
Message #6 Posted by Bill (Smithville, NJ) on 23 Sept 2010, 9:50 a.m.,
in response to message #1 by Eddie Goodridge

I remember that Educalc sold an adapter that converted the HP IR signal to a parallel signal for use with a standard parallel printer. I had one a long time ago and I seem to remember it working with the HP-95LX. Not sure if it would work with the calculator IR signal.

Just looked it up and it was called JetEye. See following link:

JetEye

Bill

Edited: 23 Sept 2010, 10:38 a.m.

      
Re: IR Link to PC
Message #7 Posted by db (martinez, ca.) on 23 Sept 2010, 8:19 p.m.,
in response to message #1 by Eddie Goodridge

OR: if you can stand to still use that slip of paper:
you could contact randy at fixthatcalc.com in Pennsylvania or don at internationalcalculator.com - the oldest computer store in the world, in florida. one of them may be able to fix your printer. if you have three carcasses to trade in - that will probably get you a bit of a deal.

if that HP-48 idea of Katie's sounds good and you don't already have one (or all seven of those); i have seen an ugly 48sx and the 48s & 48g go fairly cheap. it's the gx and nice sx models that are pricey. the 49 can have keyboard issues. the 50 is still going to be expensive for just a transfer device because it is also the best calculator ever made, or maybe the best goofy looking calculator ever made.

            
Re: IR Link to PC
Message #8 Posted by M. Joury on 24 Sept 2010, 11:44 a.m.,
in response to message #7 by db (martinez, ca.)

Actually I have been playing around with that idea (using the HP48 as an I/R receiver) and have not been able to get it to work. Either it is harder than it appears or (more probably) I am doing something wrong. But that is why I asked about the program that was made available with the HP41C Emulator card.

Edit:

Found it. INPRT (Goodies Disk #9)

Edited: 24 Sept 2010, 1:45 p.m.

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