Useful sites and resources
The starting point for information about Infra Red communication is the IrDA website, http://www.IrDA.org . On that site, there are some instructions for setting up Infra Red on Windows.
A lot of useful Infra Red hardware information can be found on a page aimed mostly at Linux users, http://IrDA.sourceforge.net/resources.html . I have found this page to be very useful because there are many links on this site to, for example, detailed pages for each manufacturer’s Infra Red hardware. Using this convenient list of manufacturers has helped me decide what equipment to use, and what to avoid. I tend to avoid equipment that is not actively supported by the manufacturer with, for example, driver updates, and on-line manuals, etc.
For non-PC users, there's a Linux resources page, and a page for handheld/PDAs etc. The rest of this document does not specifically address non-PC solutions, although some of the information about phones, IrDA devices, etc, might be applicable for non-PC users.
Finally, of course, the Microsoft support web site, http://www.microsoft.com has a lot of detailed information about various revisions to the Windows Infra Red drivers. Searching with ‘IrDA’ or ‘Infra Red’ will throw up some useful articles for Windows 95, 98, NT, 2000 and XP.
The various Infra Red systems
There are two different Infra Red systems, SIR and FIR. The software needed differs. The details of the different systems are on the IrDA website, but essentially, the differences are:
| IrDA 1.0 | Serial Infra-red (SIR) | I believe that SIR defines infrared asynchronous serial transmission mode with one start bit, eight data bits and one stop bit, a maximum data rate of 115.2Kbps (half duplex), intending that existing serial hardware can be used. |
| IrDA 1.1 | Fast Infra Red (FIR) | I believe that FIR defines operation at 4Mpbs (half duplex), and FIR devices must also support SIR operation. |
| IrDA 2.0 | Microsoft's name for the revised W95 drivers for Infra Red. These contain 'IrCOMM' (probably both 3-wire raw and 9-wire), and may also contain IrLAN which is not used for mobile phone connection. These drivers only work with Serial Infra Red (SIR). | |
| IrDA 3.0 | referred to in Microsoft’s software, but I can find no reference to it on the IrDA website. I conclude that it is Microsoft’s name for their fast Infra Red Protocol software which I believe supports TinyTP, IrXfer, IrCOMM (3-wire raw and 9-wire), of which only IrComm (3 wire) is employed for connection to most mobile phones. |
It is important to know which Infra Red system you are using, so that you load the correct drivers from the selection you may have. If you’re lucky, the supplier of your Infra Red hardware will have provided the necessary drivers for your system, in which case it is best to start with those.