Tags:

How to install Speedway Connect from Start to Finish June 02, 2015

Document Overview

Step 1 – Set a static IP address on the reader
Step 2 – Update reader firmware to latest version
Step 3 – Install and Configure Speedway Connect for USB Keyboard Emulation

Step 1 – Set up a static IP address on the reader

Equipment Needed:

1 – Impinj Speedway Revolution Reader
1 – Power supply and US power cable
1 – Console cable
1 – USB to Serial adapter (if your computer does not have a serial port)

Process Flow

Connect and install a serial to USB adaptor of your choice to your host PC. Install the software as per the manufacturer’s specifications. (only if your host PC does not have a serial port)
Connect the USB end of the adaptor into the host PC. Allow the computer to perform the auto plug and play configuration.
Enter the control panel of the host PC and open up the device manager. For Win 7 the path is Control Panel/Hardware and Sound/Device Manager. Look under Ports (Com and LPT) there you should see your USB adaptor listed with a COM port associated with it. Take note of this COM port setting as we will use it later. (Example. COM5).
Connect the RJ45 end of the Impinj Console Cable into the “Console” port on the reader and connect the other end to the USB to serial adapter.
Download PuTTy SSH onto the host PC. Download PuTTy from the Argo Wireless Downloads page under Software Tools. Make sure you have registered with our website and are logged in before you attempt to download any files, or the page will be blank.
Open up PuTTy and set up a serial connection to the reader. Do the following to set up PuTTy. See Figure 1.

Select Serial as the connection type
Set the COM port that was discovered in step 3 in the serial line
Use 115,200 for the speed

Press the Open button to open the connection.
Connect the power to the reader by connecting the power supply.
Watch the reader boot up. When the reader is done booting up log into the reader using the following login information: See Figure 2.

Username: root
Password: impinj

You should now see a prompt waiting for you enter in a command. “>”
To view current network settings enter the following command:

Show network summary

To set a static IP address use the following command:

config network ip static
An example command would be “config network ip static 192.168.1.100 255.255.255.0 192.168.1.1 192.168.255.255”

A successful command will result in the following message:

Status=’0,Success’

The reader is now set with a static IP address of your choice. I would mark the outside of the reader with this IP address with a sticky note so you don’t forget what it is.

Step 2 – Update the reader firmware

Equipment Needed

1 – Impinj Speedway Revolution Reader
1 – RJ45 network patch cable
1 – Power supply and US power cable
1 – Latest version of Octane firmware available at the Argo Wireless website, under the downloads menu. Unzip the archive to locate the XXX.UPG file. (firmware file)

Process Flow

First start by checking what version of firmware is currently installed on the reader. Connect the network patch cable to the reader’s Ethernet port. Connect the other end to an open network jack on your host PC.
Power up the reader by connecting the power supply and let the reader to boot up.
Make sure your reader and your host PC are on the same sub network so they can communicate with a direct Ethernet connection.
Check network connectivity by opening a command prompt (enter cmd in your Windows application search window)
Enter the following command:

ping
Example: ping 192.168.1.100
You should get a response showing connectivity

Enter this IP address into a web browser such as Internet Explorer to enter the web GUI. Log in by entering in the following connection information:

Username: root
Password: Impinj

You are now at the reader web interface. See Figure 3. Check the version of firmware that is installed by looking at the left menu called Detailed Information. Look for the Software Version line and look at the number there. If it says 4.8.0.XXX you have the latest firmware installed. If not, move on to the next step.
Download the latest version of Octane reader firmware from the Argo Wireless website. You must be a registered user to access this part of the website. Click on the Downloads page at the top of the screen. Access the reader firmware section by going to:

Downloads/Hardware firmware files/Impinj firmware/
Download Octane 4.8.0 onto your host PC and unzip the archive to find the XXX.UPG file

To install the firmware click on the Select Upgrade File “Choose File” button. Navigate to the xxx.UPG file. Select the file and then press the Upgrade button.
NOTE: DO NOT DISCONNECT THE POWER FROM THE READER UNTIL THE PROCESS IS COMPLETE…!!!
Locate and click on the Reboot button on the web GUI and the reader will reboot.
The reader will reboot and the firmware will now be updated and activated.

Step 3 – Install and Configure Speedway Connect for USB Keyboard Emulation

Equipment Needed

1 – Speedway Revolution Reader
1 – RJ45 network patch cable
1 – Power supply and US power cable
1 – Copy of Speedway Connect
1 – License Key for Speedway Connect
1 – USB-B to USB-A Cable
1 – RFID Antenna

Process Flow

Enter the web console for the Impinj reader by entering the static IP address into a web browser such as Internet Explorer
Log in by entering in the following information

Username: root
Password: Impinj

You are now at the reader web interface. See Figure 3.
To install Speedway Connect first unzip the archive you downloaded and locate the XXX.UPG file. This is Speedway Connect firmware file. Click on the Select Upgrade File “Choose File” button. Navigate to where you have saved a copy of the Speedway Connect firmware file. Select the file and then press the Upgrade button. This will start the installation process
Wait for the installation to complete
Locate and click on the Reboot button on the web GUI and the reader will reboot.
In your web browser enter the IP address along with :8080

Example: http://192.168.1.100:8080
This will take you to the Speedway Connect web interface. See Figure 4.

The main screen will have a tab called “Reader Settings”. Here you can set the power output level, tag signal receive sensitivity, active antenna ports, and reader modes and sessions. This is a basic configuration that will work for most situations:

For reader mode select: Autoset Dense Reader
For search mode select: Single Target with Suppression
For session select: 1
Check the boxes that correspond to the ports that have antennas connected
For Tx Power try: 30 for full power

Values from: 0 -30. 30 being max power and 0 being no power

For Rx Sensitivity try: -70 for full tag sensitivity

Values from: -70 – 0. -70 being max sensitivity and 0 will not pick up any tags

Triggers will be covered in a separate document and is for use with a separate GPIO box.

NOTE: Dense reader mode is a reader mode that will allow multiple readers to operate in close approximation to each other. Suppression will report a tag only once. The full power and sensitivity will read the most amount of tags. Work with these power settings till you find the optimal read zone for your application.
The next tab “Output” defines what tag data is returned. See Figure 5.

Under data select the additional data elements you want returned.
If you want a delimiter between data elements make a choice under the delimiter drop down box.
Select the type of character return you want under Line Ending or Carriage Return.
If you want to truncate the EPC value enter your parameters under Truncate EPC. This is helpful if you only want the last 10 numbers.
Under Output select “Key Board Emulation” to send data over a USB connection.
Under Filtering “Read Window (sec)” enter: 5 seconds which is default. So the tag must leave the read zone for 5 seconds and then return to be read again. Works great in conjunction with suppression.

Click on the “License” Tab to enter your Speedway Connect registered license key. This will keep your version of Speedway connect activated. If a valid key is not entered after 500 tag reads Speedway Connect will uninstall itself from the reader.
Click Save at the bottom of the screen to activate your changes and settings. Once saved the changes are activated no need to reboot the reader.
Connect the USB cable from the USB device port on the reader to your host PC.
Connect at least one antenna to the reader. Make sure Speedway Connect is configured corresponding with the antennas used along with the correct power settings.
Open up a simple application such as Notepad and place the cursor on the screen. Place some tags next to the reader antenna.
You should see the reader data populating the application screen.
Change your settings till you get the results needed for your RFID solution. You will need to test the transmit and receive settings to make sure you create the proper read zone for your application.
To uninstall Speedway Connect simply click on the “Uninstall” button at the bottom of the screen

NOTE: All Speedway Revolution readers have only 1 logical session available for applications. This means that only one program at a time can access and control the reader. To use MultiReader or any other custom developed application Speedway Connect must be uninstalled to use these applications. If a large amount of testing is needed to define a read zone it is recommended that you start your testing with MultiReader to define your reader settings. Then install Speedway Connect and test with the settings you discovered through your testing. Speedway Connect can be installed and uninstalled as many times as you would like.