Establishing Communication Between TCP/IP Protocol and a Serial Port: Things to Know
You must create a TCP serial port to build communication between serial devices and the TCP/IP protocol. The said communication is established to receive and send data over an Ethernet network instead of using direct physical connections for data transfer. You can complete the job by using a serial server, which works like a bridge to convert network packets into serial data and vice versa.
Advantages of TCP Serial Ports
The benefits of establishing communication between the TCP/IP protocol and serial ports are as follows:
- You will be able to enjoy access to serial devices and control them from anywhere within a given network or using the internet. It will ensure that distance is no longer a limitation.
- It will allow you to connect Ethernet networks with serial devices such as POS machines, industrial equipment, medical devices, and so on.
- Thanks to highly efficient TCP COM software like the one provided by AGG Software, devices featuring only serial interfaces will take just minutes to establish communication on IP networks.
- It will let you use various serial-based programs designed for network devices through virtual COM ports.
Working Procedure
For TCP and serial ports to work together, you’ll need a software or hardware device called the serial device converter or server. This device works like a bridge to establish communication between the two entities. The server manages data conversion between two communication standards and thereby helps serial devices communicate on a TCP/IP network. Find out how exactly the communication is established:
Step 1: The serial server receives data from a traditional serial device. It can be any device, like an industrial sensor, barcode scanner, etc. The device sends asynchronous, raw data through its serial port.
Step 2: This step involves data conversion. When the serial data reaches the serial server (which has a dedicated IP address), it packets the received data. To be more precise, the data is encapsulated to form TCP/IP packets.
Step 3: In this step, the freshly created data packets are sent over the existing Ethernet network (wireless or wired) to specified destinations, like a host PC.
Step 4: Once the data packets are received by the host computer, the conversion gets reversed. When the host computer or any other host application receiving the packet requires sending a response, the process repeats itself in reverse. First, the TCP/IP packets reach the serial server through the network. The server, then, strips away all network protocols and arranges the received data packets into the original serial format.
Step 5: The serial device gets back the converted data in its original format.
Final Words
You can see all the above steps completed seamlessly by opting for TCP COM Bridge, the advanced software solution offered by AGG Software.
The software will make creating a TCP serial port an uncomplicated job while saving you a significant amount of money. When you have TCP COM Bridge, you will not need to buy additional hardware serial device servers. The software will let you use your computer to do the same job.