Hello everyone!
So I am trying to control a powder dispenser that is controlled by a 4-20mA signal. Now, it would be more practical if I could control the dispenser by a mass per time controls rather than a 4-20mA signal. I figured that one of the obvious ways to do this is to put the entire dispenser on a balance with a RS232 output and make a mass per time control using PID controls. The balance that we are using is an Ohaus I-20W and is ancient. The RS232 output has an 8-pin DIN connection (NOT MINIDIN). So I bought a DB9 cable and a 8-PIN DIN connector and wired accordingly to standard diagrams. Upon receiving the manual from Ohaus, it turns out that their scale (for some reason) is not standard and the pins must be wired differently. Attached is a pic of how the wiring should be done on the 8-pin DIN connector. Now my problem is that I am unsure of how to hold pin 3 (CTS) in an ON state (+3 - +15VDC). From what I understand, I'm supposed to have an external 3-15VDC signal going through the CTS wire but how would the wiring work with an external power supply? And as it states, I need to do this if I want the balance to send any data at all. If anyone could clear things up, it would be absolutely awesome!
Thanks,
Justin
Noob LabVIEW User
