PCMCIA Kits

The PCMCIA serial hardware gives you a variety of solutions for serial communication. The PCMCIA-232 interfaces work with the RS-232 protocol, and the PCMCIA-485 interfaces work with the RS-422 and RS-485 protocols. You can use the RS-232 ports for serial communication up to distances of 50 ft. You can connect the RS-485 ports to up to 31 devices using serial cable lengths up to 4,000 ft.

The PCMCIA-232 is available in one-port, two-port, and four-port versions. The PCMCIA-485 is available in one-port or two-port versions. All PCMCIA cards come with cables for each port that terminates in a standard DB-9 connector. Throughout this help file, PCMCIA serial interfaces refers to all versions of the interfaces.

The RS-232 ports are DTE. In the RS-232 specification, Data Terminal Equipment (DTE) and Data Communications Equipment (DCE) refer to the types of equipment on either end of a serial connection. In general, DTE and DCE refer to computer equipment and modems, respectively. For more information about cabling a RS-232 port to other devices, refer to RS-232 DTE vs. DCE.

The RS-485 ports support four hardware transceiver control modes for reliable communication with two and four-wire devices. For more information about transceiver control modes, refer to RS-485 Transceiver Control.

All PCMCIA serial hardware uses standard 16550-compatible UARTs (Universal Asynchronous Receiver/Transmitters) for complete compatibility with standard PC COM ports. The serial hardware contains FIFO (First-In-First-Out) buffers to reduce susceptibility to interrupt latency for faster transmission rates. Full Plug and Play compatibility allows switchless configuration and installation. For more information about the serial hardware specifications and operating conditions, refer to the NI Serial Hardware Guide.