To open the Scale Properties dialog from the Administer menu
Scale Properties Dialog |
Use the Scale Properties dialog to modify a scale's connection settings, to configure how a scale obtains the weight of an item, or to add a comment to an installed scale. You can access the Scale Properties dialog by using one of the following methods.
To open the Scale Properties dialog from the Administer menu
On the Administer menu, click Weighing Scale Setup to open the Weighing Scale Setup dialog.
In the Installed Scales list, select the scale that you want, and then click Properties.
To open the Scale Properties dialog from the Scale property page
On the data entry form, double-click the scale control to open the Scale Display Properties dialog, and then click Properties. Alternatively, use the secondary mouse button to click the scale control, and then click Properties.
The following tabs are available.
General Tab
Use the General tab to view general information about the selected scale, including the model of the scale as reported by the manufacturer, and to modify the following scale properties:
Name: Specifies a name that identifies the selected scale throughout the BarTender interface.
Comment: Contains optional text that describes the selected scale.
Connection Tab
The Connection tab specifies how BarTender initiates and maintains communication with the selected scale. The following options are available.
Connection Options
Connection Type: Specifies how BarTender communicates with the scale. The available options include Serial Port, where a scale is physically connected to your computer, or TCP/IP Network Port, where a remote or local scale communicates with BarTender via the network.
When Connection Type is set to Serial Port, you can configure the following settings:
Port: Specifies the COM port that connects the scale to your computer.
Baud: Also known as "bits per second," sets the speed at which data flows from the device to the port. Common values are 2400, 4800, 9600, 19200, 38400, and 57600, with 9600 being the most common default setting.
Data Bits: Specifies the number of bits that are used to encode each character that is sent via the serial port. The most common value is 8.
Parity: Sends an extra bit after the data bits of a character for the purpose of error checking. Common settings are "odd," "even," and "none."
Stop Bits: Specifies the length of the pause at the end of a transmitted character. The most common value is 1.
Flow Control: Controls the stopping and restarting of data transmission. Options include "hardware" (also known as RTS/CTS) or "Xon/Xoff" (also known as "software" flow control).
When Connection Type is set to TCP/IP Network Port, you can configure the following settings:
Address: Specifies the network location of the scale. You can specify a network location by entering a computer name (such as "MyServer") or an IP address (such as 192.168.1.101).
Port Number: Specifies the TCP/IP port that BarTender monitors for a connection to the selected scale.
Test Connection: Verifies whether BarTender can communicate with the scale by using the defined connection settings.
Advanced Tab
The Advanced tab includes configurable options for the selected scale that are not available on other tabs of the Scale Properties dialog. Typically, these settings are complex and should be changed only as instructed by the scale's user manual or by a technical support representative.
Stable Weight Options
Control Method: Describes which device is used to control how the scale returns the weight to BarTender. The following options are available:
Auto: If the scale has built-in support for stable weight capture, the Auto setting behaves like the Use Scale setting. Otherwise, the Auto setting behaves like the Use PC setting.
Use PC: Uses the computer to capture the stable weight based on the settings that you configure for Minimum Weight, Stable Weight Period, and Maximum Variance.
Use Scale: Uses the scale's built-in settings to determine a stable weight. To configure these settings, refer to your scale's user manual. This option is available only when you have connected to a scale that has built-in support for stable weight capture.
Minimum Weight: Specifies the smallest amount of weight that can be applied to the scale while still recognizing a stable weight.
Stable Weight Period: Specifies the length of time during which BarTender computes the Maximum Variance to determine whether the weight is stable. This option is available only when you select Use PC as the Control Method.
Maximum Variance: Specifies the percentage change between the lowest sampled value and the highest sampled value within the Stable Weight Period. When the percentage change is less than the specified value, the weight is considered stable. This option is available only when you select Use PC as the Control Method.
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The settings for Stable Weight Period and Maximum Variance are available when the Control Method is set to Use PC or when it is set to Auto and the scale does not have built-in support for stable weight capture. |
Other Options
Polling Interval: Specifies how often BarTender checks the scale for weight values.
Tare Control Method: Specifies how the tare command is controlled. The following options are available:
Auto: Uses the scale's built-in support for setting and clearing the tare weight on the scale. If the selected protocol does not support a tare command, it uses the PC to simulate the tare and clear tare weight commands.
Use PC: Uses the computer's settings to simulate the tare and clear tare weight functions. You can specify the tare weight by using the Input Tare Weight option on the Linked Data Sources property page.
Use Scale: Uses the scale's built-in settings for determining the tare weight. To configure these settings, refer to your scale's user manual. This option is available only when you connect to a scale that has built-in support for stable weight capture.
Protocol: BarTender uses the specified protocol commands to request the weight values from the scale. Unless you have defined custom protocols, the protocol that is displayed is the standard protocol for the selected scale. For more information about custom protocols, refer to User Defined Protocol Properties Dialog.
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When you configure the properties of a user-defined scale for which you have added more than one protocol, you can use the Protocol list to select the protocol that you want to use for the scale. For more information about how to add protocols to a user-defined scale, refer to the General tab of the User-Defined Model Properties dialog. |
Units: Specifies the units of measurement of weight that BarTender uses. The type of units that are available vary depending on the type of scale that you are using.
Setting the units of measurement in the Scale Properties dialog does not affect the way that the weight is ultimately printed. You configure the print-time settings in the Scale Appearance dialog.
