SUPPORT : AIRcable Serial3

The AIRcable Serial3 is our cable replacement product. Pre-programmed in BASIC, it implements the simplest and most powerful Serial-to-Bluetooth device.

Support Documentation

• Technical Specifications
• Programming Handbook
  • Online Version
• Command Line Interface
• Quickstart Guide
• AIRcable FAQ

AIRcable Open Source Project

• Tutorial Wiki
• Download Source Code
• Development Blog

Quickstart Guide

1. Determine the baud rate of the device to which you will attach the AIRcable Serial3 and use the dip switches to match that baudrate. (Dip switch settings are indicated below or on the back of the AIRcable Serial3.)
2. If your device supports hardware handshake (RTS/CTS) keep the 4th switch on, if not, or if you are unsure, switch it off.
3. If your device provides power to the serial port the AIRcable Serial3 will boot when you switch on the device. Wait up to 8 seconds for the AIRcable Serial3 to boot. The middle LED will turn green. If your device does not supply power to the serial port, you will have to supply power to the AIRcable Serial3 via an external power supply.
4. The AIRcable Serial3 will allows incoming connections. When asked for the PIN code, use "1234".
5. Once the PIN is accepted, the AIRcable Serial3 is now a transparent pass through device from the Bluetooth link to the RS232 port.

Powerup Sequence

When you power on the AIRcable Serial3 the red LED will come on immediately. This signals the boot of the operating system. It will take about 2 seconds to boot. After the device has boot the AIRcable Serial3 switches into "service slave" mode. The green LED will come on and the blue LED will start blinking. At this time other Bluetooth devices can find the AIRcable and make connections to it.

The AIRcable Serial3 is going to be active for reconfiguration as long as it is not connected to another device. Access to the command line interface for configuration is always possible. Open a serial terminal (such as Hyperterminal on Windows) at 115000 bauds, 8 data bits and 1 stop bit write "+++" and an enter and follow the on screen instructions.

Zero Configuration

When you received the AIRcable Serial3 it is already configured to allow incoming connections with authentication enabled. The blue LED will double blink every 5 seconds to show that state. The PIN code is "1234" when you make serial connections to it. The FTP and OBEX services are disabled in this mode.

Switch the baud rate switches to the desired baud rate and the hardware handshake switch to either full flow control (up) or 3-wire connections (down).

Secure Cable Mode Configuration

To switch from slave mode into master mode press (or click) the pairing button again while the AIRcable Serial3 is in slave mode with the Blue LED blinking at 5 second interval. The AIRcable Serial3 will go into master mode.

In master mode, the Blue LED will be blinking 4 times each 5 seconds, and the AIRcable starts an inquiry process. It tries to find other Bluetooth devices with the friendly name starting with "AIR". The AIRcable Serial3 will only try to connect to these devices.

Once a partner is found, the AIRcable Serial3 will try to make a connection by providing the PIN code "1234". If the connection was successful, the AIRcable Serial3 will only make a connection to this paired device and will not talk to anybody else. It will reconnect automatically once a connection is lost.

The AIRcable Serial3 can be used in combination with all our AIRcable products (even non-OS devices) to make a "Serial Wireless Cable" or a "Serial-to-USB Wireless Cable".

Secure Cable Master Mode Configuration

To switch from slave mode into master mode press (or click) the pairing button again while the AIRcable Serial3 is in pairing-as-slave mode with the Blue LED blinking 3 times at 5 second interval. The AIRcable Serial3 will go into master mode.

In pairing-as-master, the AIRcable starts an inquiry process. The LEDs are now blinking in reverse, blue-on/green-off  and blue-off/green-on. It tries to find other Bluetooth devices with the friendly name starting with "AIRcable". The AIRcable Serial3 will only try to connect to these devices.

Once a partner is found, the AIRcable Serial3 will try to make a connection by providing the PIN code ""1234". If the connection was successful, the AIRcable Serial3 will only make a connection to this paired device and will not talk to anybody else. It will reconnect automatically once a connection is lost.

The AIRcable Serial3 can be used in combination with all our AIRcable products (even non-OS devices) to make a "Serial Wireless Cable" or a "Serial-to-USB Wireless Cable".

Baudrate & Hardware Handshake Configuration

The AIRcable Serial3 has external baud rate switches for 4800 - 115200 baud and a hardware handshake disable switch so it can be used in 3 wire serial connection applications.

LEDs Schema

The AIRcable Serial3 has two LEDs that are used to tell the users of the different states the device can be working on. One of the LEDs is Blue and it lets the user know the state of the Bluetooth Radio, and the other LED is green and lets the user know the state of the batteries.

Here is a table to show the LEDs schema:

Technical Specifications