I have a Nikon NPL-522 Total Station and need to use the onboard data collection but can’t get the instrument to communicate with the pc. I bought a serial to usb plug but cannot seem to get it to communicate with my laptop using windows 7. My desktop is vista, I could settle for either but obviously would prefer both. First of all, can the onboard data collection communicate with a windows 7 platform through a cable with a serial plug? Are there other options? Would a com port emulator work? Thanks, Seth
Seth,
I can't answer that specifically. However, I have a Nikon NPL-362 and I communicate to and from it to either my desktop and my laptop. I bought a "converter" type plug from Fry's Electronics. I experienced similar difficulty in transferring files. I was told by some "experts" that I couldn't do this, becasue the files were corrupted.
Log story short, I had to change ports and slow the baud rate down so that the data didn't choke as it was going through the converter. I use Windows XP on both computers. I would think that Windows 7 would NOT be an issue.
Geezer
I used an Imogia converter for my HiPer on the XP platform. It worked great. Upgraded computers to Win7 64 bit, and it is a no-go, even with win7 drivers. Gonna try Virtual XP mode, but I have to upgrade to WIn pro first.
Check the drivers on your converter, see if there is special win7 (32 or 64 bit) drivers.
I've been on Windows XP pro for nearly a decade, but I've had 3 different desktop computers over that same time period. With each upgrade I've noticed that the serial communications are weaker. Sometimes slowing down the baud rates helps, but with my latest computer even that did not get the job done.
A trick that I have discovered involves going into the device manager and disabling and then re-enabling the com port in question before trying to establish a connection. I suspect in my case that some software or windows process is monitoring the com port and that blocks serial comms to data collectors, gps, etc. Disabling and re-enabling the port resolves the issue, and it stays fixed until I reboot the computer again.
Seth,
You're saying that the serial to usb cable connected to the Nikon works fine with Windows Vista but it doesn't work with Windows 7?
Seth
I had a Nikon 362 npl and I bought a serial to usb kit at Radio Shack($20). It came with software you had to load, but it worked real well.
Maybe you missing the software?
