TIRT Application
From Tallus LLC Wiki
Contents |
About
Tallus's new USBIR1T is the easiest means to have media control software control virtually any Infrared device. You can now inexpensively control a VCR, an IR DVD changer, DirecTivo units, Receivers, a LCD screen, etc.
More info HERE
System Requirements
Motherboard with available internal USB header (double check motherboard wiring pinout before installing hardware!)
If no motherboard header jack is available, use the available USB "B" adapter that can be purchased from Tallus.
MLUSBIR1T is compatible with :
Windows XP x64
Windows Server 2003 x64
Windows Vista
Windows XP
Windows Server 2003
Windows 2000
Windows ME
Windows 98
Not tested on Win 7 yet.
Installation and Setup
1. Download the latest TIRT installer [HERE] to the PC that has the USBIR1T hardware installed (but not yet plugged into the motherboard or any USB port).
This installation file also includes the drivers for the USBIR1T hardware. Run the installer on the PC that will house the USBIR1T device.
Shutdown and unplug the PC. Install the USBIR1T hardware into an unused PC expansion bay. It does not plug into a PC motherboard slot, so don't worry what type (if any) is underneath the USBIR1T. Make sure there is mechanical clearance above all motherboard electronics. Secure the USBIR1T with a retaining screw.
Plug the USBIR1T cable into an unused motherboard USB header jack. Make sure that the red USBIR1T cable plugs into the positive (+) pin on the motherboard. Check your motherboard manual to be sure. Don't trust the colors. Not every motherboard follows convention. Neatly bundle the cable so it doesn't roam anywhere that might get into a cooling fan, etc. If you don't have a USB header jack, Tallus sells a USB B connector adapter to plug into a standard USB external connector.
Start the PC. When Windows loads, the Hardware Manager should detect the new hardware. The device should be automatically installed as a "Human Interface Device".
You can now plug in an infrared emitter into the USBIR1T output jack. The emitter is typically mounted directly to the front face of the controlled device, over the IR receive window. As an alternative, an IR Blaster can be used to send a higher power IR that can be seen by multiple IR devices within it's range. Some emitters can blast up to 3 feet away if positioned correctly.
Once the PC is fully booted, launch the TIRT application and configure the settings.
Application Configuration
This section will guide you through the basic installation and setup of TIRT Application. Please READ the installation instructions!!!
To install and configure TIRT application:
1. Launch TIRT application.
2. Click on the Settings tab.
3. Type a name for your IR controlled device (example: NX800). Note that multiple IR controlled devices can be supported. Choose a unique name for each.
4. Select a default Manufacturer of the IR code set to use. Example would be "Sony"
5. Select a default Component type. Example would be "TV"
6. Set the number of Repeats that the IR command should be set. Many IR devices will not respond if the proper command is only sent once. Start with zero repeats (command is sent once) and increment until your device consistently responds. Check that all commands work with the repeat setting.
7. Enter a TCP port that TIRT application will listen to for your external control application. Note Port 9900 is the default port. If this port is being used by another application on that PC, select another port number. Your control application will use the TIRT PC's IP address and this port to send IR commands to TIRT application. You must open all firewall and antivirus permissions to allow access to this port.
8. Click Add. This will add a device configuration into the "TIRT.xml" file in the Config directory.
9. You can now test your IR system. Simply click on the Components tab and select the Manufacturer, the Model, the IR command to send and the IRT device. Click the Send button. If you are properly wired and if the setup was done well, your IR device just did what your PC asked it to do!
10. You can click on the General Tab and select Launch Minimized. This will force the application to launch minimized and in the System Tray. You can put a startup shortcut to the TIRT.exe file in your Startup directory to automatically launch the application once the User has logged onto the PC.
11. The Debug selection provides more detailed logging to the TIRT.log file in the Log directory. Use this to submit issues to Tallus's forum for assistance.
12. (not available yet) The External checkbox will show the External Port. This is the port that TIRT application is available to send messages. If this PC IP address and port is available on the Internet, the application can be controlled via the Internet.
Commands
In order to control the IR device, connect to the TCP socket configured previously and send a text command using the format:
<STX> <Command> <ETX>
where
<STX> = 0x02 (start of text) <ETX> = 0x03 (end of text) <Command> = command to send
The <Command> can take 3 forms.
1) To send the Power On command using the default Manufacturer and Component, you would simply use:
<STX>Power On<ETX>
2) To send the Power On command using the Manufacturer SONY and Component TV, you would simply use:
<STX>SendTo~SONY~TV~Video 1<ETX>
3) To send a command using the CCF string, you would simply use:
<STX>SendCCF~0000 0069 0001 0002 0015 0030 0030 0030 0045 0015<ETX>
Updating components
While the list of supported Manufacturers and Components is originally limited, it is easy to add more if you have access to the CCF string. Requests can be posted on the [forum], by including the protocol or a link to it. It it possible to make manual modifications (which should be posted on the forum too) by following the steps below, though typically they will not be available to the existing devices until a restart of TIRT.
Adding components
For a known Manufacturer, it is also possible to use the Import button from the Components tab. The filename should match the new component's name (i.e. Plasma TV.txt), the extension (i.e. .txt, .ccf, etc.) being ignored. The content of the file should be a series of lines of the form:
<IR command>, <CCF string> Power On, 0000 0069 0001 0002 0015 0030 0030 0030 0045 0015
To have the same CCF string assigned with different command name, use:
<IR command>, <IR command2>, <CCF string> Power On, On, 0000 0069 0001 0002 0015 0030 0030 0030 0045 0015
Adding manufacturers
To add a new Manufacturer, you will need to make sure TIRT.exe is not running, then edit the file Tallus\Data\IR-Manufacturers.xml and add the corresponding <Manufacturer>New manufacturer</Manufacturer>. After restarting TIRT, you will be able to import Components for it.
Updating commands
To modify an existing Command, just press the Save button or press the Add button to add a new Command to the selected Component.
WARNING When manually modifying an XML file, remember that special characters like '<">& need to be escaped, see this site for examples...
Bugs
Feature Requests
Version History
0.2.2 Added support for Human Interface Device - note: no Com Port settings anymore. Added single instance support to prevent launching the application twice.