CHAPTER

Serial and Parallel

Communication
Chapter Objectives
Explain serial communication
Standards, ports, resources etc.
Show a few examples of serial
communication connections used in
practice
Describe the features of parallel
communication
Standards, use etc.
Chapter Modules
Serial communication
Newer serial communication
technologies
Serial communication connections
Parallel communication
Module
Serial Communication
Chapter Objectives
Explain serial communication
Standards, ports, resources etc.
Show a few examples of serial
communication connections and ports
used in practice
Definition of Serial
Communication
Bit by bit transmission of information in series
A B
Travels in series
Serial Communication
Implementation
Popular implementation found in older
and some newer computers is known as
the RS-232 serial connection found in
microcomputers
Newer type of serial connections
Universal Serial Bus (USB)
IEEE 1394 serial connection that is also
known as the FireWire connection
Other Serial Communication
Technologies
eSATA
Fiber channel
RS-232C Serial Standard
The most popular standard
Conforming serial ports are found in the
following
Micro
Minis and mainframes
Sometimes these ports are also known as the
asynchronous ports or asnch ports in short
It is also possible to conduct synchronous
transmission through these ports as well
Purpose of the Serial Ports
Parallel
Digital
Data
Serial Digital Data
Out
In
Expansion
Bus
S
e
r
i
a
l

I
n
t
e
r
f
a
c
e

Standard Serial Port on a
Computer (DB 9)
Serial Port Identification
Source: Black Box
Male and Female Connectors
Pins
Holes
Typical
serial port
Typical
parallel port
Source Black Box
Differentiating Between Serial
and Parallel Ports
Serial Male
Port
Parallel
Female
Port
Serial Cable
DB25 Connector
DB9 Connector
Source Black Box
End of Module
Module
Resources for Serial Ports
Support for Serial Ports
Both hardware and software support
are required for the functioning of serial
ports
A microcomputer is supplied with two
standard serial ports
Additional ports can be installed
Operating System Support
Earlier operating systems
Supported four serial ports
Todays operating systems
Support a larger number of serial ports
For most practical purposes, four serial
ports are considered sufficient in a
microcomputer
Only two, namely com1 and com2, are in
widespread use
Port Properties
Com 1
Com2
Com3
Com4
IRQ

I/O Address

Base Memory
Address

Direct Memory
Address (DMA)
Channel
Assignment of Values
The assignment of the respective values
for each port must be unique
An IRQ, I/O address or DMA conflict
can lead to a disruption in the execution
of an application
This is no more a problem with newer OS
and hardware
IRQ and Address Assignment
PORT IRQ ADDRESS
------------------------------------------------------------

1 4 3F8-3FF

2 3 2F8-2FF

3

4
These values should
not normally be
changed.
End of Module
Module
Faster RS-232 Serial Ports and
Summary
Older and Newer Serial Ports
Older serial ports operated at a slower
speed
The newer serial ports operate at a
faster speed
The newer serial ports are equipped
with a new processor
The hardware in question is known as
the UART processor
Enhanced Serial Ports
UART
16550/
16650
Com.
Port
The newer processor is required for
communication at speeds of 115,200 bps
Universal Asynchronous Receiver Transmitter (UART)
ISDN Line Requirement
In theory, the maximum speed over a
single ISDN line is approximately 128K
bps
If necessary, enhanced serial ports can
be installed by installing a board
containing the enhanced ports
UART-based Ports
In Summary
Two standard serial ports are present
on a microcomputer
Resources
IRQ, I/O Address and DMA
Port settings
Communication speed, length of the data
bits etc.
Later versions of the UART chip are
required to support high speed
communication through the serial port
End of Module
Module
Newer Serial Communication
Technologies:
Universal Serial Bus (USB)
Universal Serial Bus
Being introduced as a high-speed
replacement for the traditional RS-232
port
USB has higher bandwidth
1.5 Mbps, 12 Mbps and 480 Mbps
Faster than the RS-232 port that operates in
the region of 115+ K bps
Devices can be daisy-chained
Daisy Chaining of USB Devices
Computer
Device 1
Device 2
Device 3
USB Connection
Out
In
USB
Port
Connecting USB Devices Using a
Hub
Computer
Hub
Device 2
Device 3
USB Connection
Out
In
USB
Port
Sample USB Devices
Keyboards
Monitors
Digital Cameras
Digital Vide Recorders
etc.
USB Standards
USB 1.1
USB 2.0
USB On-The-Go (OTG)
A newer standard being designed for
portable and small devices
U3 Standard

USB Connectors
Type A
Upstream connectors
From the system
Type B
Downstream connectors
To the device
Mini A
Mini B
Smaller connector for PDAs, mobile phones and digital
cameras
mini-A and mini-B and mini-AB
Small for factor connectors for USB OTG
Support for the Deployment of
USB in Microcomputers
There are two requirements for USB
implementation
One is the presence of USB hubs to support
USB ports on the microcomputer
The other is the support required from the
operating system to operate the USB
Most motherboards now have built-in
support for USB
Not all versions of the Windows OS support
for USB
Operating System Support for
USB
The newer operating systems such as
Windows XP or the later versions of some of
the older operating systems support USB
Windows 98
Windows 95 OSR2
In accordance with USB standards, these
operating systems support hot plug-and-play
for USB devices
Hot Plug-and-Play
The ability to connect a device to the
computer while a computer is in
operation
As the device is connected, the OS
would:
Recognize the device
Configure the device
There is no manual intervention in the
above process
Advantages of USB Over the RS-
232 Port
Higher speed
Ability to daisy chain different devices
Support for hot plug-and-play

End of Module
Module
IEEE 1394 FireWire Connection
IEEE 1394 Standard (FireWire)
In some ways, it competes with USB
Bandwidth is 400M bps or 50M Bps
In theory therefore, it can replace older SCSI
and IDE used for connecting hard disks
FireWires impact is most likely to be felt in
multimedia applications involving audio and
video
Some basic networking can be done through
the Firewire ports as well
Data Transmission
100 Mbps, 200 Mbps and 400 Mbps
Newer ports are being developed to
support 800 Mbps and 1600 Mbps
Data is transmitted in packets and it is
available to all the devices on the bus

Networking with Firewire
1394 supports peer-to-peer networks
based on point-to-point connections
Computers can be networked in a peer-
to-peer architecture using the Firewire
port

Type of Transmission
Asynchronous (bulk) transfer -
guarantees correct transmission;
suitable for control data and where
error-free transmission takes
precedence over speed.
Isochronous transfer - guarantees
bandwidth (ideal for transmitting time
critical data, e.g. video, audio)
Courtesy: www.thesycon.de

The maximum distance between nodes
is 4.5 m (revisions to the standard will
support distances of
100 m between nodes
Up to 27 devices can be connected to
each node.
Courtesy: www.thesycon.de


Hot-swapping allows users to attach and detach
devices while the network is running; the network is
reconfigured automatically.
Each bus supports up to 64 nodes and the
specification supports up to 1024 buses.
A 1394 bus appears as a flat space in memory, with
each node occupying a 48 bit address range.
Integrated power supply - devices receive power
through the bus.
Courtesy: www.thesycon.de


End of Module
Module
Fiber Channel
End of Module
Module
Serial Communication
Connections
Unix Computer Connection
ASCII
Terminal
Micro-
computer
ASCII
Terminal
RS-232C
Connection
Multi-user Micro (Unix)
Multiple
serial ports
Multiple Port Support
Interface Card
Multiple Ports
Popular Unix Configuration
Microcomputers as terminals
TCP/IP
Central
Unix server
Remote Access Server
Server with Multi-serial Ports
Modem Modem
RS-232C
Connection
Modem
Dial-in access
LAN
LapLink Connection
Desktop
Computer
Laptop/
Notebook/
Computer
RS-232C Serial Lap-link
Connection
Note: Lap Link serial cable is specially wired
to make the connection
X.25 Standard
Used in WAN connections
X.25 is used in the U.S.
Its equivalent X.21 is used in Europe
Today, the above older technologies are
being replaced with newer digital
technologies
ATM
Frame Relay etc.
End of Module
Module
Parallel Communication
Definition of Parallel
Communication
Transmission of information over
multiple links between two points
Multiple electronic links
Parallel Transmission
Multiple
links
IEEE 488 Parallel Standard
Established by IEEE
Used extensively in parallel Communication
Examples:
Computer to printer connection
Lap Link connection
Does not play as important a role as the
serial standard
Hardly any parallel long distance links in
practice
Parallel Port and Serial Ports in
a Microcomputer
DB25F
DB9M
DB25M
Serial Com1:
Serial Com2:
Parallel LPT1:
Parallel Port Resources
Resources must also be assigned to the
parallel port as well
IRQ and I/O address range
Sample values assigned for LPT1
IRQ 7
I/O address range 378 - 37f
These values should not be changed in
general
Summary
A microcomputer is equipped with one
standard parallel port
Additional parallel ports can be
installed
Used extensively for connecting a
printer
Used for connecting other devices as well
Needs to be assigned resources
Identified by the DB25 female connector
Parallel Port Resource
Assignment Demonstration
End of Module
Module
Newer and Faster Parallel Port
Standards
Popular Introductions
Standard Parallel Port (SPP)
Enhanced Parallel Port (EPP)
Extended Capability Port (ECP)
EPP and ECP
Enhanced Parallel Port (EPP)
Introduced in 1991 to increase the parallel
port communication speed to 500K Bps
Extended Capability Port (ECP)
Introduced further refinement to the EPP
For better performance under a
multitasking environment
Introduced through a joint effort between
Microsoft and HP
Support for EPP and ECP
Must be built into the hardware namely
into the motherboard
Activated at the system level by
enabling the support for EPP and ECP
in the system BIOS
For example, the System BIOS can be
accessed during boot-up by pressing
the delete key immediately after
switching on the power to the computer
Other Features Supported
Wake-up signal sent to the printer
Consider the case of a newer laser
printer that is attached to a
microcomputer through an ECP port
Printer must also be connected to the
microcomputer using a cable conforming
to the IEEE specification
Wake Up Feature
No printing activity for a
predetermined period of time
Printer enters into a sleep mode
Printer does not consume power
When a print job is ready for printing
Computer sends a signal to wake up the
printer
The printing then proceeds thereafter
Salient Features of EPP and ECP
EPP was introduced to increase the
speed of the parallel port
ECP was introduced to add further
enhancements to EPP
Improve the performance under
multitasking
End of Module
Module
ECP Computer Entry
ECP Entry Check
End of Module
END OF MODULE

END OF CHAPTER