Clacton-on-Sea, UK. Pickering Interfaces has introduced version 6 of its signal-routing software, Switch Path Manager (SPM), with a range of new capabilities as well as a new “lite” version. The software simplifies signal routing through complex switching systems and speeds up the development of switching system software.
Switch Path Manager Lite is a low-cost solution that is fully functional but with an operational limitation of two active switching modules in a configuration. Larger configurations with more than two modules can be created, loaded, and edited—but not executed. In contrast to the SPM full license, SPM Lite is not connected to a dedicated computer; once purchased it can be used as a site license.
In addition to the major updates above, there is also a range of new capabilities:
- An enhanced System Configurator Editor, which gives the user the ability to apply standard functionality like copy, paste, delete, find, replace and cell manipulation. It also offers better filtering technology to filter dedicated pins, and it now has added display options, so the user can decide what will be displayed in the configurator.
- Introduction of Multipoint Routes. In the past, if a user wanted to create fixed routes for multipoints (for instance, A connect to B and C), two single routes (A-B, B-C) had to be created and combined into groups—this is now possible in one step.
- A new and effective API function has been added: IsConnectedStatus (EndpointA, EndpointB). With only one simple function call, a user can find out whether given endpoints have been connected by SPM. This functionality is important when a route uses multiple relays, and on that route, there are more endpoints connected to each other than a user is thinking of. Example: A and B have been connected, but C is on the route and connected as well. It is not obvious the user would know about the route A-C-B unless you call IsConnectedStatus().
