In case of physically connecting devices to a connector box, we generally recommend attaching Mettler Toledo balances via serial connection (RS-232) due to its ease in setup and configuration. Alternatively, devices connected directly to the your local network can be accessed in Laboperator, ensuring that this local network also has access to the server in which Laboperator is hosted.

Connecting Balances via RS-232 ⇔ USB

Required equipment:

• RS-232 ⇔ USB-A adapter

Procedure

1. Ensure your Connector Box is enrolled and online in Laboperator.
2. Connect the device to the Connector Box and enroll it.
3. On the device itself, access the interface settings via:
   • System → Peripherals → Host → RS232 fix → Definieren
4. At this point, the device should go online. If not, check the following:
   1. Ensure the device settings are as follows:

      Setting	Value
      Baudrate	9600
      Bit / Parity	8/No
      Stop Bits	1 Stopbit
      Handshake	Xon/Xoff
      End of Line	<CR><LF>
      Char Set	IBM/DOS
      Continuous mode	Off

   2. Ensure the device setting in Laboperator are as follows:
      
   3. Ensure the Connector Box is online.

Connecting Balances via Ethernet ⇔ USB

Devices designed to be connected to a local network can also be connected to a physical Connector Box by creating a local server on the box itself to which the device can connect.

Required equipment:

• USB LAN Adapter 3.0 Ethernet Adapter
• Ethernet cable

Procedure

1. Ensure your Connector Box is enrolled and online in Laboperator.
2. Connect the deviceto the Connector Box and enroll it:
   • Device → Ethernet Cable → Ethernet ⇔ USB adapter → Connector Box
3. Ensure the USB Ethernet adapter you are using has been configured with a static IP address.
4. On the device itself, two settings must be defined:
   1. Access the Ethernet settings via:
      • Settings → Interfaces → Ethernet
      • Change the settings to match the definition used in the dhcpcd.config file when configured the Ethernet adapter, e.g.:
        
        

        Setting	Value
        Network configuration	Manual
        IP Address	10.0.0.2
        Subnet mask	255.255.255.0

        
        
   2. Access the Port settings via:
      • Settings → LabX / Services
      • Change the settings to match the definition used in the dhcpcd.config file when configured the Ethernet adapter, e.g.:
        
        

        Setting	Value
        MT-SICS Service	Network
        Port	8001

5. Update the device driver settings in Laboperator to match those specified on the device in the previous step:
6. At this point, the device should go online. If not, check the following:
   1. Ensure the device settings match between the device itself and the device driver parameter settings.
   2. Ensure the Connector Box is online.
   3. Try repeating the process, including reconfiguring the USB Ethernet adapter with a new IP address.

Connecting Balances via Ethernet

Required equipment:

• Ethernet cable

Procedure

Connecting balances via Ethernet cable can be accomplished in one of two ways:

1. If your Connector Box is connected to the local network via WiFi, you can connect the balance directly to the Connector Box using the available Ethernet port.
   • This requires setting static IP addresses on both the device and the connector box, similarly as done with the USB Ethernet adapter.
2. If you connector your device directly into the local network, simply follow the procedure for connecting a device to a Virtual Port.