What
is the Intel Data Card Analyzer?
The Data Card Analyzer is a tool that was
internally developed by Intel Corporation for testing, configuring and
querying data cards using pre-written AT command scripts.
AT commands are used by your notebook computer
to communicate with your data modem. The use of pre-defined scripts
allows users to quickly test, configure or query their data cards without
having to manually enter the AT commands or be familiar with the syntax
and meaning of each command.
The tool can be used to test
the capabilities of your data card by sending AT commands to the card,
thereby checking which AT commands are supported. For example, there
are a series of AT commands that are used to control SMS messaging on
a GSM system, but not all GSM cards support SMS messaging. You can determine
whether your card supports SMS by sending a series of SMS AT commands
to the card and checking to see if the card recognizes the commands.
AT commands can also be used to configure
data cards. For example, a card vendor may offer an AT command to determine
whether the phone beeps when an SMS message is received. The analyzer
tool can be used to send such configuration AT commands to the card
and then can test the effects of the configuration changes.
In addition, many vendors support AT commands
that can be used to query for information about the data card or even
about the phone that is connected to the card. For example, a vendor
may support a command to query for the serial number of the data card,
or the battery charge level of the cellular phone attached to the card.
Examples of each of these uses are present
in the scripts that are included with the Analyzer program.
System
Requirements
This software is designed to run on the
Microsoft Windows* 95 operating system.
Writing
a Script File of AT Commands
Script files for the tool can be in text
or Rich Text Format (RTF), and have a straight-forward implementation.
To have an AT command sent to the data card when the script is run,
simply enter the specific AT command on a line by itself in the script
file. The syntax of the command should be the same as that usually used
for AT commands on your device. Comments can also be entered in the
script and are indicated by a line that begins with a period (".")
character.
For example, the following text would query
for manufacturer identification information, datacard capabilities,
and facsimile capabilities:
.Query for manufacturer information
AT+GMI
.Query for datacard capabilities
AT+GCAP
.Query for fax capabilities
AT+FCLASS=?
See the included sample scripts for more
examples of the use of AT commands.
Running
a Script File of AT Commands
To run a script file in the Data Analyzer,
follow these steps:
- Click the Open Script button.
In the open script dialog box, choose the script that you wish to
run.
- Click the Properties
button. In the Properties dialog box, choose the preferred options
for the data card that you wish to check. In particular, make sure
that you specify the correct port for your data card.
- Click the Open Port button.
The dot in the upper-right corner of the window will turn green once
the port is open.
- Click the Run
Script button to run the
loaded script on the open port.
The text of the script will be displayed
as it runs. Everytime an AT command appears in the script, that command
is sent to the data card and the return value from the data card is
displayed on the screen below the command that was sent. A running script
may be interrupted by clicking the Close
Port button.
Using
a Log File
The Data Card Analyzer allows you to save
the output of a script for later reference. Log files will save everything
that is printed to the screen after the log file is opened. To use a
log file to save the output of a script, follow these steps:
- Click the "Open Log" button.
In the open log dialog box, choose the log file that you wish to open,
or type the name of a log file that you want to create.
- Load a script and run it as described
in the above section. All output from the script is recorded in the
log file.
- When you no longer want output to the
main analyzer window to be logged in the open log file, click the
"Close Log" button to close the log file.
The log file may be viewed and printed
from any text editor, and may also be viewed later in the Card Analyzer
program.
