Serial Analyzer by Engineers for Engineers

EZ-Tap, Serial Analyzer by Engineers for Engineers

Got a problem with your RS-232 communications you can’t figure out?

We’ve been there.

We used to tap into the wires and connect them to a serial port on a computer to monitor what’s going on. In the 1980s our only real problem was our soldering of the wires would break. When computers started using multi-tasking operating systems, sometimes the exact timing of events could not be determined. And then it started to be hard to find a computer that had a RS-232 port!

The solution became the EZ-Tap Serial Port Analyzer. In a nice little box with DB-9 connectors, there are no more problems with wires breaking. The RS-232 signals are monitored, time tagged, and sent to the computer via a USB connection. The original EZ-Tap works at baud rates up to 230400, but sometimes exhibits data ordering and time-tagging issues at serial data rates above 9600 baud. Our EZ-Tap Pro and Versa-Tap products solved these serial port monitoring problems with a powerful dedicated processor that provides perfect microsecond time tagging and solves data ordering problems exhibit by our competitor’s serial port monitoring solutions. EZ-Tap Pro provides serial port monitoring at RS232 baud rates up to 1,000,000 bps and Versa-Tap provides RS4222/RS485 serial port monitoring at baud rates up to 2,500,000 bps.

The EZ-View Windows program is provided free for use with our EZ-Tap/VersaTap products to display serial port data and time tags. The data can be logged to a file.

EZ-Tap is ideal for development, testing and debugging of serial applications and devices. It monitors all data transmitted via serial ports by any serial software application or RS232/RS422/RS485 hardware devices. Thus, a serial port analyzer may prove to be exceedingly valuable for businesses of all sizes, both now and in the future.

For those who are looking to invest in a serial analyzer, however, there are several questions to consider, including:

1. How does our serial analyzer work?

Our EZ-Tap/Versa Tap serial analyzers captures, decodes, monitors and analyzes communication traffic generated by serial devices connected to the local or remote PC.

The data capture is done in the device itself, the electrical signal is converted to digital data and then transferred to the monitoring computer via USB.

The free EZ-View  program is provided for viewing or logging the data (hexadecimal, decimal, octal, etc.) and supports all major Windows operating systems to provide a user-friendly option for businesses.

2. What benefits does our serial analyzer offer?

Businesses often can reap numerous benefits from a serial analyzer, including:

• Eliminate bulky cabling commonly associated with other hardware-based RS232 monitoring schemes, which may help the serial analyzer pay for itself in reduced cabling costs alone.
• Enable users to monitor multiple serial ports at the same time.
• Provides real-time data capture capabilities.
• Offers data transmission monitoring and logging.

Because the data is captured our device itself and then transferred to the monitoring computer via USB our serial analyzers overcome the latency and time-tagging problems associated with traditional dual COM port monitoring solutions that rely on the monitoring computers operating system’s multi-tasking CPU. It delivers extended functionality in a small, convenient form, ensuring a business can implement a serial analyzer and enjoy its benefits without delay.

3. What problems does a serial analyzer solve?

A serial analyzer provides support in a variety of areas, including:

• Data capture.
• Debugging, testing, and troubleshooting equipment, circuits and software applications on serial data communication networks.
• Network installations.

Ultimately, a serial analyzer can serve as a cost-effective solution, empowering users to both save money and time.

4. What industries can leverage a serial analyzer?

Companies in myriad industries can use a serial analyzer, including:

• Consumer electronics
• Design services
• Industrial
• Instrumentation
• Semiconductor

A serial analyzer empowers businesses of all sizes, ensuring they can track and evaluate their serial applications and devices over an extended period of time.