SOLA & RCA, no PC
August 2011
SOLA&RCAPRODUCTS
SOLA light engine
SOLA Toggle
ON/OFF
SOLA power
supply
USBmini
RCASOLA
RCA Toggle
ON/OFF
RS 232 cable
RCA power
supply
SOLA light engine accessory
lumencor
white light excitation subsystem remote control
®
State of the Art Solid Sate Lighting for Microscopists and Instrument Manufacturers
SOLA and RCA setup (no PC)
In this configuration, the RCA is stand-alone and communicates with the light engine via the RS-232 serial
cable to send commands for on/off control of the light output and for adjustment of the output power level
(0-100%).
Power for the RCA comes from the AC-to-DC power supply (country-specific) that plugs into the USB-mini
connector on the back of the RCA. The yellow toggle switch on the RCA is used to turn on/off power to the RCA.
In addition to the on/off control of the source via the RCA keypad, the SOLA light engine may also be turned
on/off manually with an external switch (e.g. foot switch, optional purchase) or by the expose out signal from a
camera connected to the RCA. A DIN-to-BNC(dual) adapter is included with the RCA for this purpose. The switch
or camera is connected to one of the two BNC connectors and then must be configured in the RCA SOLA menu.
Setup Instructions
1. Connect the RCA power supply to the USB mini connector on the rear of the RCA. Leave the power switch
in the off (down) position.
2. Connect the RS-232 cable between the RCA and the SOLA.
3. For external switching, connect the DIN-to-BNC(dual) adapter to the rear of the RCA. The red wire
connects to a foot switch (optional purchase, not pictured) and the black wire connects to a camera (not pictured).
1
SOLA light engine & RCA option
SOLA&RCASETUPNOPC
Operation
Turn the SOLA power switch on, then turn the RCA power switch on. As the RCA powers up it should detect that
it is connected to a SOLA and automatically invoke the SOLA menu system, display a splash screen for about one
second and then display the first control screen. To transition to the next control screen press the MODE button. The
RCA control functions are described below.
Screen 1
Output - Pressing the ON/OFF button once will turn the light engine output on. Pressing it again will turn the light
engine output off. Intensity - Press the UP/DN arrow keys to increase or decrease the output intensity.
Screen 2
Timer - The timer is used to automatically turn the SOLA off if left unattended by the user. Option - In stand-alone mode (no PC) OFF is the only relevant option. The Uniblitz and PC Cmd options are only
valid when connected to a PC.
Camera - The user must specify whether the TRIGGER output signal from the camera is HIGH or LOW true and
set it appropriately by toggling the ENTER button. The input can be enabled or disabled with the UP/DN buttons.
Switch - The user must configure the SWITCH input.
If the switch is a "normally open momentary" switch, then select LOW using the ENTER button and MOMENT
using the UP/DN buttons.
If the switch is a "normally closed momentary" switch, then select HI using the ENTER button and MOMENT
using the UP/DN buttons.
If the switch is a "toggle" switch, then select either HI or LOW using the ENTER button and MOMENT using the
UP/DN buttons.
If the user wants the momentary switch to behave as a toggle switch, then select TOGGLE using the UP/DN
buttons. The Switch input can be enabled or disabled with the UP/DN buttons.
Lumencor, Inc.
14964 NW Greenbrier Parkway
Beaverton, OR 97006 USA
T 503-530-1008
E info@lumencor.com
W www.lumencor.com
2
SOLA light engine & RCA option
SOLA & RCA with PC
August 2011
SOLA&RCAPRODUCTS
SOLA Toggle
ON/OFF
SOLA light engine
SOLA
power supply
Personal Computer
RS 232
cable
RCASOLA
USBmini
RCA Toggle
ON/OFF
USB
SOLA light engine accessory
lumencor
white light excitation subsystem remote control
®
State of the Art Solid Sate Lighting for Microscopists and Instrument Manufacturers
SOLA and RCA setup (with PC)
In this configuration, both the PC and the RCA can communicate with the light engine via the RS-232 serial
cable to send commands for on/off control of the light output and for adjustment of the output power level (0-100%).
Power for the RCA comes from the USB-to-USBmini cable connected between the PC and the RCA. This cable
also provides communications between the PC and the RCA and/or the SOLA. The yellow toggle switch on the RCA
is used to turn on/off power to the RCA.
In addition to the on/off control of the source via the RCA keypad, the SOLA light engine may also be turned on/
off manually with an external switch (e.g. foot switch, optional purchase, not pictured) or by the expose out signal
from a camera (not pictured) connected to the RCA. A DIN-to-BNC(dual) adapter is included with the RCA for this
purpose. The switch or camera may be connected to one of the two BNC connectors and then must be configured
in the RCA SOLA menu.
Setup Instructions
1. Connect the USB-to-USBmini cable between the PC and the RCA. Leave the power switch in the off (down)
position.
2. Connect the RS-232 cable between the RCA and the SOLA.
3. For external switching, connect the DIN-to-BNC(dual) adapter to the rear of the RCA. The red wire connects
to a foot switch (optional purchase) and the black wire connects to a camera (not shown).
1
SOLA light engine & RCA option
SOLA&RCASETUPWPC
Operation
Turn the SOLA power switch on, then turn the RCA power switch on. As the RCA powers up it should detect that
it is connected to a SOLA and automatically invoke the SOLA menu system, display a splash screen for about one
second and then display the first control screen. To transition to the next control screen press the MODE button. The
RCA control functions are described below.
Screen 1
Output - Pressing the ON/OFF button once will turn the light engine output on. Pressing it again will turn the light
engine output off.
Intensity - Press the UP/DN arrow keys to increase or decrease the output intensity.
Screen 2
Timer - The timer is used to automatically turn the SOLA off if left unattended by the user. Option - In stand-alone mode (no PC) OFF is the only relevant option. The Uniblitz and PC Cmd options are only
valid when connected to a PC. The Uniblitz option is a Uniblitz ON/OFF command emulation mode. If a SOLA driver is
not available yet for the software package of interest then the SOLA can instead interpret Uniblitz ON and OFF
commands as Output ON and Output OFF commands to control the output. The PC Cmd option is a command
pass-thru mode. This provides a means to control the source enables and intensity from the PC with the Lumencorsupplied GUI or from a 3rd party lab software program.
Camera - The user must specify whether the TRIGGER output signal from the camera is HIGH or LOW true and
set it appropriately by toggling the ENTER button. The input can be enabled or disabled with the UP/DN buttons.
Switch - The user must configure the SWITCH input.
If the switch is a "normally open momentary" switch, then select LOW using the ENTER button and MOMENT
using the UP/DN buttons.
If the switch is a "normally closed momentary" switch, then select HI using the ENTER button and MOMENT
using the UP/DN buttons.
If the switch is a "toggle" switch, then select either HI or LOW using the ENTER button and MOMENT using the
UP/DN buttons.
If the user wants their momentary switch to behave as a toggle switch, then select TOGGLE using the UP/DN
buttons. The Switch input can be enabled or disabled with the UP/DN buttons.
Lumencor, Inc.
14964 NW Greenbrier Parkway
Beaverton, OR 97006 USA
T 503-530-1008
E info@lumencor.com
W www.lumencor.com
2
SOLA light engine & RCA option