IFWTool - Interactive Optec IFW Filter Wheel Command Application

Version 0.1

Author:

R. Pogge, OSU Astronomy Dept. (pogge@astronomy.ohio-state.edu)

Date:

2004 July 5

Usage

Usage: ifwtool [rcfile]

Where: rcfile is an optional runtime config file to load.

By default, ifwtool uses the runtime config file defined by DEFAULT_RCFILE in the ifwtool.h header.

Introduction

Simple interactive control program for an Optec IFW Intelligent Filter Wheel, implemented as an interactive ISIS client application.

The application connects to an IFW via a serial port (either a direct connection on the host computer or via a network serial port, in our case a Comtrol DeviceMaster RTS). Provides simple low-level commands for controlling an IFW system.

ifwtool can be run as either a standalone interactive program with a command-line interface and backdoor socket interface, or as a client in an ISIS system.

Commands

These are the interactive commands for ifwtool:

  High-Level User Commands:
     status      - filter wheel client status
     filter      - set/query the filter position
  Engineering Commands:
     send cmd    - send raw filter wheel command
     timeout s   - set/query comm timeout in seconds
     ports       - show filter wheel comm port info
  Client Commands:
     info        - report ISIS client information
     version     - report ifwtool version & compile-time info
     reset       - reset runtime & controller parameters
     verbose     - toggle verbose output mode
     debug       - toggle debugging output
     quit        - quit ifwtool
     history     - show command history
     !!          - repeat last command
     !cmd        - repeat last command matching 'cmd'
     help or ?   - view the help list
  

Note that commands and their arguments are case-insensitive.

Runtime Configuration File

This is a typical runtime config file for ifwtool:

#
# IFWtool runtime config file
#
# This is for the RETROCam Optec IFW Intelligent Filter Wheel
# test program.
#
# R. Pogge, OSU Astronomy Dept.
# pogge@astronomy.ohio-state.edu
# 2004 July 5
#
###########################################################################

# ifwtool's ISIS client info (Host=localhost is implicit)

ID   IFW
Port 10701

# Application Mode: either STANDALONE or ISISclient

Mode Standalone
#Mode ISISclient

# ISIS Server Info - only releveant if Mode=ISISclient

ISISID   None
ISISHost localhost
ISISPort 6600

# Filter Wheel Parameters: CommPort, Timeout interval in seconds
# Parameter Name (Filter)

IFWPORT /dev/ttyS0
#IFWPORT 172.16.1.56:8003
TIMEOUT 20
NAME Filter

# ifwtool application runtime flags

VERBOSE
#nolog
#debug

Relevant parameters are:

  Client Paramaters:
     ID       - ISIS node name of this application
     Port     - Port number to use on localhost for socket I/O
     Mode     - Client mode, Standalone or ISISclient
     ISISID   - name of an ISIS server (None if running Standalone)
     ISISHost - hostname where the ISIS server is running
     ISISPort - port number of the ISIS server on ISISHost
     VERBOSE  - enable verbose runtime info
     DEBUG    - enable super-verbose engineering debug info

  Filter Wheel Parameters:
     IFWPORT  - comm port with the filter wheel 
                (/dev/ttyxx for direct serial, or
                 IP:port for network serial ports)
     TIMEOUT  - comm timeout interval in seconds
     NAME     - parameter name for the filter position datum (e.g., Filter)
  

Note that all parameter names are case-insensitive.

Notes

This application uses the ISISclient library (link).

Modification History

  2004 July 5 - based on the barcode application
  

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