INTELLIGENT CABLE AND FLEXIBLE MULTIPLEXER
First Claim
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1. A cable for connecting a gage device to a processing unit, the cable comprising:
- a housing;
an input connector mounted in a surface of the housing;
means for coupling the input connector to a gage output;
an output connector mounted in the surface of the housing;
means for coupling the output connector to a processing unit; and
a microprocessor arranged inside the housing and configured to receive input from the input connector and to provide output to the processing unit; and
operational settings and firmware of the cable configurable using software running on the processing unit.
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Abstract
Embodiments of an intelligent cable and flexible multiplexer are taught herein. The cables and multiplexers can receive any brand or electronic gages using a variety of asynchronous or synchronous communication protocols and provide outputs according to a desired communication protocol, including USB and RS232.
15 Citations
19 Claims
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1. A cable for connecting a gage device to a processing unit, the cable comprising:
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a housing; an input connector mounted in a surface of the housing; means for coupling the input connector to a gage output; an output connector mounted in the surface of the housing; means for coupling the output connector to a processing unit; and a microprocessor arranged inside the housing and configured to receive input from the input connector and to provide output to the processing unit; and
operational settings and firmware of the cable configurable using software running on the processing unit. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10)
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11. A multiplexer for monitoring a plurality of gage devices coupled to the multiplexer, the multiplexer comprising:
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a housing; a plurality of input connectors mounted in a surface of the housing, at least one of the plurality of input connectors coupled to a gage device; an output connector mounted in the surface of the housing and connectible to a processing unit; a RS232 buffer coupled to the output connector; a bi-directional USB-COM port coupled to the output connector; and a microprocessor arranged inside the housing and configured to; receive input data from one of the plurality of input connectors coupled to a gage device, the input data transmitted according to a synchronous protocol; and selectively convert the input data to one of RS232-compatible asynchronous data for transmission through the RS232 buffer to the output connector and USB-compatible data for transmission through the USB-COM port to the output connector. - View Dependent Claims (12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19)
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Specification