PRINT VIA COMPUTER

INSTALLATION AND USER MANUAL

Biochrom Ltd Tel: +44 (0)1223 423723

22 Cambridge Science Park Fax: +44 (0)1223 420164
Cambridge [email protected]
CB4 0FJ England www.biochrom.co.uk
 Software License Agreement
1 DEFINITION: This is BIOCHROM LTD.’s (BIOCHROM) Software License Agreement (the “Agreement”) which will govern
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2 LICENSE: BIOCHROM hereby grants you, and you accept, a limited software licence subject to the terms and conditions
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13 ENTIRE AGREEMENT: This Agreement constitutes the entire Agreement between you and BIOCHROM relating to the
licensing of the Software, and applies to you if purchased for your own use, or to you, your company and the company’s
employees if purchased for company use. No variation or amendment of or addition to the terms and conditions of the
Agreement shall be effective unless BIOCHROM’s prior agreement is obtained in writing.

Biochrom Ltd
22 Cambridge Science Park
Milton Road
Cambridge CB4 0FJ
England
Telephone +44 (0)1223 423723
Telefax +44 (0)1223 420164
E mail: [email protected]
Website: www.biochrom.co.uk
Registered in England No: 3526954

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TABLE OF CONTENTS

INSTALLATION........................................................................................................................................................... 5
USB driver and PVC installation.................................................................................................................. 5
Introduction.............................................................................................................................................. 5
Connecting the instrument to the PC using the USB cable ..................................................................... 6
Introduction.............................................................................................................................................. 6
Manual Installation Procedure................................................................................................................. 6
Defining COM ports for instruments connected by USB......................................................................... 8
Connecting the instrument to a PC using Bluetooth .............................................................................. 10
Introduction............................................................................................................................................ 10
Creating a connection using the Bluetooth setup Wizard ..................................................................... 11

PRINT VIA COMPUTER............................................................................................................................................ 15

Introduction ................................................................................................................................................. 15
Installation ................................................................................................................................................... 15
Starting PVC ................................................................................................................................................ 15
Set up ........................................................................................................................................................... 16
COM Ports set up ........................................................................................................................................ 16
Printer set up ............................................................................................................................................... 17
Instrument configuration ........................................................................................................................... 18
Data Directories..................................................................................................................................... 19
Report related properties ...................................................................................................................... 19
When report received............................................................................................................................ 19
Data sets ...................................................................................................................................................... 20
PVC Viewer .................................................................................................................................................. 20

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INSTALLATION

USB driver and PVC installation

Introduction
The instrument can be connected to the PC using a USB cable or ab optional Bluetooth adapter.

DO NOT CONNECT THE INSTRUMENT TO THE PC UNTIL THE SOFTWARE IS INSTALLED.

The CD-ROM supplied will install the Print via Computer (PVC) software and copy the USB driver files to the PC. At
present the system is compatible with Windows 2000™ and Windows XP™.

Procedure

1. Insert the CD-ROM into your PC’s CD-ROM

drive.

2. Navigate to the PVC folder on the CDROM and

double click on the setup.exe file.

3. At the next screen you can enter the location

you wish the software to be installed to and
whether the PVC software will be accessible to
all user accounts on the PC. Click “Next” to
continue.

4. After installing some temporary files the

installer will ask if you wish to start the
installation. Pressing “Next” will load and
register the files into the system

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 5. The final screen confirms installation is
complete.

Connecting the instrument to the PC using the USB cable

Introduction

Once the USB drivers for the instrument are installed it is safe to connect the instrument to the PC using the USB
cable.

At this point, the USB driver folder will be located in the same folder specified for the PVC application.

If the drivers have already been installed, Windows™ will not need to be run through the New Hardware wizard.
This will happen if you have already installed an electrical device that uses a similar USB interface to this
instrument.

If this is a first time installation Windows™ will need to load in the appropriate drivers into the operating system

Manual Installation Procedure

1. If the driver is not installed automatically the

New Hardware wizard will open.

The drivers should already be on your PC so you do

not need to use the Windows™ Update service.
Select “No” and click “Next”.

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 2. The drivers cannot be installed directly from
the CD-ROM. Select “Search for the best
driver in these locations” and then “Include
this location in the search”

3. It may be necessary to browse to the PVC folder.

The default location is “C:\Program
Files\PVC\USB drivers”, but this may have been
modified during the initial installation. Click “OK”
when the driver folder is highlighted.

4. Windows™ will now install the drivers. When

finished you will see the screen to the left. Click
“Finish”.

5. You will now see the ‘Found New Hardware’

message bubble again to show that the high
speed serial converter driver is now installed.

6. The Instrument also requires a USB to Serial

interface driver to be installed. Note this will
happen the first time the instrument is plugged
into each different USB port (including those on
hubs). The ‘Add new Hardware’ process starts
again for the second part of the driver. Follow the
above instructions again.

7. Once competed you should see the “Found New

Hardware” message as shown

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Defining COM ports for instruments connected by USB

Depending on your hardware you may have to re-assign the COM ports used to connect your instrument(s). COM
ports are used by a variety of different devices and can be seen in the Device Manager.

To access the Device Manager go to the Control panel and click on System. Then go to the Hardware Tab and
click on “Device Manager”.

NB: Some allocated COM ports may not

appear in this list but may be used by other
devices such as modems. When a new
device is connected it is usually assigned
the lowest free COM port

1. Double click on the USB serial port you

want to re-assign. (In this example it will be
USB Serial Port COM4). A new window
appears.

Go to the “Port Settings “ tab and click

“Advanced”. Another window appears.

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 2. Select a new COM port from the drop down
list. Do not assign to a COM port which is ‘in
use’. It is recommended that you use the
next available COM port above the ones that
are ‘in use’ (COM10 in the figure to the left).
Click on “OK” when finished.

3. You should be taken back to the previous

window. Click “OK”.

4. You may have to close the Device Manager

and re-open it before the changes are
shown.

NOTES
• To determine which COM port each
instrument is assigned to, watch the device
manager as you insert each USB cable.
• The USB port of the instrument will be active
if the power is connected, even if the
instrument is turned off.

Notes
• You can remove the USB cable from either the instrument or the PC when it is switched on without
damaging the hardware but it is recommended that any software using the link is de-activated or
shut-down.
• Next time the instrument is connected using the USB cable a message bubble may appear but the
drivers should not require installation.
• If the PC has a speaker then an audible notification may be heard when the USB cable is inserted or
removed from the PC.
• More Instruments can now be connected to the PC. It should not be necessary to go through the
‘Add New Hardware’ wizard again for additional instruments but the message bubbles may appear
again.
• The COM used by the instrument will also change if the USB cable is inserted in a different USB
socket. Use device manager to determine which COM port is used when the USB cable is inserted.

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Connecting the instrument to a PC using Bluetooth

Introduction
• The Bluetooth module is an optional accessory for the instrument.
• It cannot be installed with the thermal printer simultaneously
• Once installed, data can be sent to a PC either by Bluetooth or USB but these options cannot be used
simultaneously.
• The host PC will also need a Bluetooth adapter. A USB to Bluetooth adapter is available separately. Make
sure you install the Bluetooth Hardware in accordance with the manufacturer’s instructions.

Various Bluetooth adaptors will provide associated software, often specific to that vendor. It has been our
experience that not all of these work successfully with the Biowave/Lightwave II Bluetooth accessory. Best
results have been found using the generic Microsoft™ drivers that Windows will attempt to load when the
device is first plugged into the PC. If the device is not compatible with these drivers it may not work well
with this accessory.

Your Bluetooth hardware may have its own software for creating Bluetooth connections. Please note that we
cannot support third party software. The following script details the set up using the Microsoft™ generic driver

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Creating a connection using the Bluetooth setup Wizard

1. Go to My Bluetooth Places under My Computer

and start the Bluetooth setup Wizard.

2. Select the option to find a specific device and

click “Next”. Make sure the instrument is
switched on

3. The Instrument should appear in the list

showing the model name and the last 6 digits of
the Bluetooth adapter number (shown below
the long bar code sticker supplied with the
adapter). Select the correct device and click
“Next”.

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 4. At the next screen you will be prompted to
initiate pairing between the PC and the device.
If you intend to use the instrument with only 1
PC it is recommended that you pair the two
devices. The PIN code will be the serial number
of the instrument (shown on the label on the
back or bottom of the instrument).

NB: The Bluetooth device requires pairing to

operate. If the skip pairing button is pressed
the PC forces you to enter the PIN code in a
different window!

5. Check the service you want to use, “Spectro”.

Another window should appear. If not, press
“Configure”.

6. Select the COM port you want to use (You can

add more Bluetooth COM ports if required, see
later) and click “OK”.

7. When you click “OK” on this window you should

go back to the previous window. Click “Finish”.
Your PC may now be busy for a few minutes as
it re-configures itself.

8. Go back to My Bluetooth Places.

You should now see an icon for each
spectrophotometer which has been setup.
Double-clicking on one of these icons will open
the connection (Here, the lower icon shows that
the instrument is connected to COM8)
Notes
• Make sure the program you are using is
also configured to use the same COM port
(e.g. PVC).
• Some programs may be capable of opening
to COM port automatically, making the last
step above unnecessary.

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Creating additional Bluetooth serial COM ports

Depending on your hardware you may have to create additional COM ports to connect your instrument(s). COM
ports are used by a variety of different devices and can be seen in the Device Manager.

1. To access the Device Manager go to the

Control panel and click on System. Then go
to the Hardware Tab and click on “Device
Manager”.

NB: Some allocated COM ports may not

appear in this list but may be used by
other devices such as modems. Your
Bluetooth configuration software should
prevent you from re-allocating a
Bluetooth serial port.

2. Go to My Bluetooth Places and click “View

or modify configuration”,

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 3. Go to the Client applications tab and click
“Add COM port”

4. A new window appears. Here you can

change the name of the serial port if
needed. Click “OK”.

5. You should then go back to the previous

window. Click “OK” to finish. The COM port
should now appear in the Device Manager.

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PRINT VIA COMPUTER

Introduction
• PVC (Print Via Computer) is a small application running under Windows 2000™ or Windows XP™ to
enable one or more Biowave II or Lightwave II to transfer data into a PC environment. From there the user
has a selection of choices; the data can be both printed and saved (in a variety of formats). PVC is capable
of supporting several instruments simultaneously, limited only by hardware and the speed of the host
system.
• PVC can operate via USB and Bluetooth simultaneously
• PVC can store data either to a common directory or be configured to save to independent directories by
both file format and instrument.
• PVC can save data in graphics format, text format or as an Excel™ file

Installation

PVC is installed via the USB and PVC installation process as discussed previously. See the instructions for that
operation in the previous chapter. This manual assumes both USB and Bluetooth COM ports have been already
set up and the instruments connected via either method.

Starting PVC

Double click the Print Via Computer icon either on the desktop or in the Programs/PVC Folder. A small icon will
appear in the Tray area of the Windows™ tool bar and the main window will open.

Double clicking on the icon will re-open the utility if previously closed. Right clicking on the icon allows a user to
short cut into the options Display, Set up and About PVC. The Exit command closes the application down.

The main PVC window is shown below:

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Set up

Set up is found under the File label at the top of the window

Two items need to be set up, the first is the Ports, which selects the COM Ports that PVC searches through for
connected instruments, the second is the Printer to which PVC will send output

COM Ports set up

The Setup window is shown below. This window displays all installed COM ports on the PC so the user can select
which ports are polled to detect instruments. Note for USB data transfer the instrument must be connected for the
COM port to be listed. Bluetooth ports are retained even if an instrument isn’t currently paired with that port

The left hand column contains all COM ports the software has found on the PC.

The right hand column lists the COM ports that PVC will search for connected instruments at program start up or
when a “Find Instrument” request is sent.

The user selects which ports they wish PVC to search by clicking on the chosen port in the left hand column, then
on the centre transfer arrow for each port in turn.

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To remove ports from the right hand column click on all unwanted ports and then click on the “”Clear” button.

This allows certain COM ports that may be in use by other instruments to remain undisturbed by PVC commands
that may cause them to enter an unknown state.

The right hand column retains the COM port numbers when the program is shut down, so that they are preserved
when the program re-starts, even if they are no longer found on the PC. This is useful for USB connections when it
is uncertain which USB port the instrument will be connected to.

Printer set up

The printer box shows a list of all printers set up on the PC by clicking on the down arrow. The Current printer is
that presently being used by PVC, whilst the default is that printer set up as the Windows™ default printer.

Clicking the OK button saves the chosen printer.

Also under the File selection menu are the Hide command, that closes the main window but leaves the application
running in the toolbar, and Exit, which closes the application.

If PVC is running in the tool bar, clicking the icon will open the main window again.

The Tools menu item contains two entries, a STOP command that disconnects all instruments from PVC. It is
recommended that this is used before disconnecting or connecting instruments whilst PVC is running. Windows™
does not handle disconnection of USB serial ports well, so if a unit is disconnected and then re-connected the data
link could be lost without PVC being aware of the problem, thus leading to loss of data. The Find Instrument
command can then be used to refresh the list of available COM ports and search the selected COM ports for new
and re-connected instruments

The Help command gives the version number of PVC. Note that the close button in the top right hand corner hides
the application rather than closes it. Shutdown should be done via the tray icon or through the File Exit menu item.

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Instrument configuration

Once an instrument is connected it will be displayed in the main screen as shown:

The product type and serial number is displayed in the first two columns

Once an instrument has been detected its details are stored by PVC and thereafter each time PVC detects whether
it is connected or not. This is reported in the third column. The traffic indicator and text colour give some indication
of activity; red is not connected, yellow is waiting for data whilst green is data being received.

The final column is a button that when clicked, displays the options for data handling for that instrument, shown
below.

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There are three main sections, the first dictates the folders where different types of data are stored, the second
allows additional information to be added to each data set received, and the third selects what types of report can
be gathered and saved. These are discussed in more detail in the next sections.
At the top of screen is the instrument type, the instrument serial number and the COM port it is connected to.

Data Directories

These default to the data folder in the chosen location for the PVC but can be set to any folder accessible by the
computer.

The path can be entered manually in the right hand column, or the browse button can be used to navigate to or
create a new data folder

Report related properties

Report Description: This allows a header box containing up to 255 characters to be added to the top of each
received data set

Report Title: This adds a standard title bar to the top of each received data set

Root file name: This adds a user defined prefix to the stored file name. File names are constructed as
follows:

<Prefix>- <Test type>-<PC date>- <PC time>.<File type>

When report received

This defines the actions taken once a data set is received from the instrument.

Display Report: This selects whether the viewer opens and displays the data on receipt. Two display
options are available, either complete or graph only.
Print report: Sends the report to the chosen printer
Save Report: Saves the file in a native PVC format. This can be viewed at a later time using the PVC
viewer application and then saved from there in a variety of formats

Save Report Graph to EMF Format:

This saves the graph output as an EMF file (EMF: Extended metafile. An editable graphics
format.)

Save Report to XXX format

This saves the report in a variety of formats for future use. These are defined below:

CSV: Comma separated variables. A data format suitable for transfer to a variety of data handling systems
EMF: Extended metafile. An editable graphics format.
XLS: Excel™ spreadsheet format. Data is presented in three sheets, a report sheet containing the results,
a Data sheet(s) holding the base data that graphs are defined from, and a graph sheet(s) that hold the
graphical output from the data sheets.
RTF: Rich text format. An editable text format for use in Word™ and other word processor software
packages
TSV: Tab separated variables. A data format suitable for transfer to a variety of data handling systems

If the instrument is not connected to PVC, a remove button appears that allows the user to delete the instrument
from the PVC list of instruments. Note that this will also delete any user defined settings

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Data sets

To prevent loss of data it is important to ensure that instruments are connected before any tests are
undertaken.

In some applications (e.g. Single Wavelength) documents are not closed until the user exits the application
or switches the instrument off. This is because PVC tabulates the data under headings and does not
display any results until all measurements have been made to conserve paper.

PVC Viewer

This allows the user to either open previously saved PVC files or to see data as it comes in from the instrument. It
does not enable editing of the data. It simulates the output that will be printed from PVC (but is not an exact
replica).

It is opened either by selecting the icon or by setting the Display parameter to On in the Instrumental Configuration
options

The first three buttons (First Page, Previous page, Next page) allow the user to browse through the received data.
Note that the page here does not relate to the printed page, just the displayed page.

The Complete/Graph selection determines whether the full report or just the graphs are shown

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The Save As button allows the file to be saved as a native PVC file with a user defined name into a chosen
location.

The Export button allows the user to save the report in any of the formats already discussed.

The Print button prints to a selectable printer

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