Freescan - Connecting Scanner to PC

Setting PC Control on the Scanner

You must set the baud rate of the serial port on the scanner. Generally speaking, setting the scanner to the fastest rate will insure the fastest transfer. These instructions and notes come from the 'Easier to Read' manual series;

On the handhelds, the Menu button is the lower portion of a rubberized button on the left of the case
For the BCD996 and BCT15, the Menu button is below the GPS key and above L/O on the left of the keyboard

In all cases, access the Menu, then (on the handhelds) turn the knob on the top of the radio to scroll to Settings. The same operation occurs if you rotate the scroll control on the 996 and 15.

• SC230, BC246

1. Scroll to Xfer Information and press E/Yes.
2. Scroll to PC Control and press E/Yes.
3. Scroll to 9600, 19200, 38400, or 57600 and press E/Yes to save and exit.

• BR330T, BCD396T, UBC3500XLT

Same as above, but skip step 1. The fastest rate these scanners can handle is 115200

• BCD996T, BCT15

You typically set the front port to match the speed used to communicate with your PC (default 115200 bps)
and the back port to the speed used to communicate with an attached GPS device (default 4800 bps). Note that
the back port is male. You may need a gender changer and a null modem adapter to use a typical DB9 serial cable
from the rear port.

1. Scroll to Set Serial Port and press E/Yes.
2. At Set Baud Rate press E/Yes.
3. Scroll to Set Front Port and press E/Yes.
4. Scroll to Off, 4800, 9600, 19200, 38400, 57600, or 115200 and press E/Yes to save and exit.
5. Scroll to Set Rear Port and press E/Yes.
6. Scroll to Off, 4800, 9600, 19200, 38400, 57600, or 115200 and press E/Yes to save and exit.
7. Press Menu twice to return.

Connecting the Scanner to USB Ports

Most newer PCs have no serial ports, so you need to make the connection between the scanner and PC via an USB device.Please see our Connecting scanners via USB article for more information and tips on how to set this up properly.

FreeScan COM Errors

File:Freescan com screen.JPG

Freescan Com port screen

This is the screen that you would see if you had errors during downloading, uploading or in the virtual scanner mode, and had clicked on 'Setup Com Port'. There are a couple of things that can be attempted here;

1. Try to manually select the COM port and speed using the top pull downs. Return to the attempted function.
2. If this doesn't work, allow the AUTO routine to detect the port and speed. It starts from 115200K and steps downward. Note that this procedure is very slow, and may take some time to go through all combinations. If it is successful, return to the attempted function
3. To correct excessive errors during downloads, you can try unchecking the Turbo mode. If you are running through LINUX (using either uploading or downloading), be sure to check that box.
4. It may also be necessary to reduce the COM port speed on your scanner. Insure that the USB driver you are using can handle the reduced speed. 5. If your COM port doesn't show, try using a lower COM port number. FreeSCAN does not always work with COM port numbers above 11. If you are using a USB-Serial adapter, try plugging it into a different USB port to get a lower COM port number. 6. Starting with version .7E, you can turn off the Data Terminal Ready line. On some systems using USB-Serial adapters this will improve communications reliability, on others it seems to decrease. You may have to experiment to find the best setting for your system.

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