CommAPI

CommAPI translates the communications functions of Windows API to AutoIt functions.

Overview

Features

• No need to install DLL's
• Using Windows API calls (kernel32.dll)
• Possibility of serial communication (serial port, COM port, RS-232)
• Possibility of parallel communication (parallel port, LPT port)
• No use of global variables
• Uniform namespace _CommAPI_XXX
• Modular organization into files
• A lot of additional utility and helper functions

Scripts

• CommAPIConstants.au3
• CommAPI.au3
• CommAPIHelper.au3
• CommUtilities.au3
• CommInterface.au3
• CommObsolete.au3 (only needed for backward compatibility)

Examples

CommAPI Examples shows you some examples. Maybe you could find more examples in forum.

Background

History

• 2008-09-12 Creation of cfx.au3 (V1.0)
• 2011-02-18 Conversation of cfx.au3 into cfxUDF.au3 (V2.0)
• 2011-02-28 Update V2.0 to V2.1
• 2011-04-27 Update V2.1 to V2.2 (german forum)
• 2013-07-10 Modify V2.1 to V2.1mod
• 2013-10-24 Creation of CommAPI.au3

Changelog

2014-01-23

Small update of method _CommAPI_CreateModeString

2014-02-03

Change timeout handling (Attention: not backward compatible)

Small update of method _CommAPI_PurgeComm

2014-03-07

Rename CommAPIStructures.au3 to CommAPIConstants.au3

Replace hex values with Constants

2014-03-27

Update of call _WinAPI_CreateFile

Updated @error handling

New parameter MaxLen for function _CommAPI_ReceiveData

New function _CommAPI_ReceiveLine

Update existing examples and add new examples

2014-03-31

Add constants

Fix _CommAPI_WaitCommEvent

2014-04-03

Fix reading error Chr(128) to Chr(255)

Fix error in _CommAPI_TransmitData

2014-04-04

Replace ReceiveData & ReceiveLine with ReceiveBinary & ReceiveString

2014-04-07

replace _CommAPI_TransmitData with _CommAPI_TransmitBinary & _CommAPI_TransmitString

Create CommObsolete.au3 for backward compatibility

2014-04-08

Fix error in _CommAPI_ReceiveBinary

Roadmap

There is no roadmap in the moment. Feel free to implement the last five remaining API calls, enhance the scripts or to fix bugs.

Support

There is no official support. Try to get help from community in the official forum. Here you can find the main thread.

Resources

• MSDN Library of communications functions
• WIN32API.TXT
• cfxUDF.au3
• GetCOMPorts (german forum)
• ParseCommState

Functions

Implemented API functions

• BuildCommDCB
• BuildCommDCBAndTimeouts
• ClearCommBreak
• ClearCommError
• EscapeCommFunction
• GetCommMask
• GetCommModemStatus
• GetCommProperties
• GetCommState
• GetCommTimeouts
• PurgeComm
• SetCommBreak
• SetCommMask
• SetCommState
• SetCommTimeouts
• SetupComm
• TransmitCommChar
• WaitCommEvent

Unimplemented API functions

• CommConfigDialog
• GetCommConfig
• GetDefaultCommConfig
• SetCommConfig
• SetDefaultCommConfig

API helper functions

• ChangeCommStateElement
• ChangeCommTimeoutsElement
• GetCommStateElement
• GetCommTimeoutsElement
• IsOnCTS
• IsOnDCD
• IsOnDSR
• IsOnRI
• SetCommStateElement
• SetCommTimeoutsElement
• SetOnDTR
• SetOnRTS

Utility functions

• CommStateToString
• CommTimeoutsToString
• CreateModeString
• GetCOMPorts

Interface functions

• ClosePort
• OpenCOMPort
• OpenPort
• ReceiveBinary
• ReceiveString
• TransmitBinary
• TransmitString