RS232 over IP Hardware?

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KC1UA

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I expect I'm not using the right combination of search criteria to come up with this...

Is anyone here using a hardware RS232 (serial) to IP device to remote control a scanner over the internet. This device would replace a computer at a remote location and simply provide the TCP/IP to RS232 conversion. Obviously it would also have to pass audio. I am looking for a low power alternative to placing a PC at a remote location. I would likely use ProScan software.

I know there are devices for amateur radio use such as RemoteRig 1258MKIIS-SET | DUAL RCV CAPABLE REMOTE CONTROL SET W/ POWER SUPPLY! REMOTERIG , but at $479 it's probably just easier to buy a PC. I've found less expensive devices but they don't transmit/receive audio.

I know a low power device like a thin client running Windows or a Raspberry Pi could be used, but I'm looking just for the standalone Serial > IP hardware device.

If anyone has a solution could you please advise? Thanks in advance, and apologies if this has been covered elsewhere.
 

eorange

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Passing audio over RS-232...? Not sure that has ever been done, unless I'm misunderstanding something here.
 

budevans

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Passing audio over RS-232...? Not sure that has ever been done, unless I'm misunderstanding something here.

Depends on your definition of passing audio over RS232.

Example: If you use a dial up modem (which is connected to your PC via the RS232) and you go to You Tube, you can get video and audio. The audio is encoded in the data stream.

Along those lines, the device that Don posted would work more efficiently than a dial up modem.
 

eorange

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Wirelessly posted (Mozilla/5.0 (iPod; CPU iPhone OS 5_1_1 like Mac OS X) AppleWebKit/534.46 (KHTML, like Gecko) Version/5.1 Mobile/9B206 Safari/7534.48.3)

My definition is software that expressly supports streaming over RS-232, but the important definition is the one from scancapecod.
 

vma

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Hi,

You to do what you want, you would need to use a device that could digitize the sound and multiplex it with the RS-232 data, in order to send it over TCP/IP. Also, this device would have to recode incoming TCP/IP packets and convert them back to RS-232.

I think you either need a very good micro-controller (PIC or ATMEL) and know how to write the software, or you could consider using a Raspery Pi. This is probably the cheapest solution, but you will need to know how to program under Linux.

If you don't know how to program, get yourself a cheap Asus EeeBox PC. They run wit an Intel Atom or Intel Celeron and should cost 150-200 US$ (without Windows OS). They consume little power and can be remote controlled with RDP. This would allow you do to what you want without any programming requirement.

Good luck.

Cheers,
vma
 

KC1UA

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Something similar to the device shown via the link in my original post is what I'm talking about. That device is apparently able to - in addition to remote RS232 control - pass audio over IP from a transceiver to the controlling PC or at least the controlling location.

At $479 though I'd opt for a thin client or the above suggestion without hesitation. That said, I was simply curious if a standalone device akin to that of the link in the original post was available at a cheaper price.
 

techman210

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Perhaps, the OP is approaching the problem in the wrong direction.

I would look for a standalone audio codec box that would transport the audio via IP.

Then, use sometning like the Lantronix UDS 1100, which will handle the RS-232. You can use two of these for a point to point link, or use their "comm port redirector" which creates virtual com ports on the PC, and allows you to run your application like the scanner is connected directly... and then you only need one UDS unit.
 
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