NuVo NV-T2SIR/FAM & NV-T2DAB — Serial Control Protocol Reference

Serial control protocol reference for the NuVo NV-T2SIR/FAM (dual AM/FM/Sirius tuner) and NV-T2DAB (dual DAB/FM tuner) — the RS232 command/response protocol used to integrate these NuVo tuners with third-party control systems.

Objective

This document describes the RS232 serial control command and response protocol for the NuVo NV-T2SIR/FAM and NV-T2DAB tuners, letting an external control system query the tuner's current state or change operational parameters.

System Description

• The NV-T2SIR/FAM is a dual AM/FM tuner. If Sirius satellite radio is desired, Sirius receivers can be connected to one or both tuners. It provides RDS (Radio Data Service) for FM channels, displaying artist and song information.
• The NV-T2DAB is a dual DAB/FM tuner, providing RDS for both DAB and FM channels, plus station information.

Serial Port Connections

Both units connect to an external device via a DB9 connector labeled "RS 232" on the back of the unit. A pass-through cable (DB9 male to DB9 female) is required to connect to a PC or most external devices.

Serial Control Data Format

• Port setting: 57600 baud, no parity, 1 stop bit. No hardware/software handshaking required.
• All data is ASCII except the terminating character: carriage return <CR> (0x0D hex). Upper or lower case may be used.
• Numerical fields are ASCII digit characters. When sending strings, double quotes (") and asterisks (*) must be escaped with a backslash.
• All strings are enclosed in double quotes; arguments are delimited by commas; all arguments must be specified.
• Every command string starts with * and ends with <CR>. Every response starts with # and ends with <CR>.
• If a command has a syntax error, the tuner responds with #T'x'?<CR>. Unrecognized commands get no response at all.
• Most commands change tuner state and rely on the automatic unsolicited status messages to confirm the action — they have no dedicated acknowledge response.

Example — request version info:

CMD  *VER<CR>
RSP  #VER NV-T2SIR FWv1.00 HWv02"<CR>

Unsolicited Status Messages

Whenever the tuner's status changes — from front panel buttons, control pads, serial commands, or incoming radio data — a serial status string is sent automatically so an external controller stays in sync. Key messages include:

• Tuner OFF Status — #OFF, sent when the tuner is turned off.
• Tuner ON Status — #T'x'ON,FM103.5 / AM700 / SR14 / DAB12C, sent when the tuner turns on or the source/band/frequency changes. Special cases: DISABLED (band disabled from front panel/control pad), SR UNAVAILABLE (no Sirius receiver connected or still powering up), DAB??? (currently tuned DAB station unavailable).
• Supported Bands — #T'x'BANDS"AM","FM","SR", sent at startup and whenever a band becomes available/unavailable.
• Tuned to a Preset — #T'x'PRESETyyy,"z" (yyy = bank + preset number, z = up to 16-character preset description).
• Channel Name — #T'x'CHAN"y" (up to 80 characters; for FM, this is the RDS Program Service string).
• Category Name — #T'x'CAT"y" (up to 80 characters).
• DAB Component / Service Name — #T'x'COMPONENT"y" / #T'x'SERVICE"y" (up to 16 characters).
• Now Playing metadata — separate messages for Artist Name, Song/Program Title, Album Name, and Composer Name.

In all messages, x=A or x=B identifies which of the two tuners the message applies to.

Primary Commands

Other Commands

The protocol also supports simulated keypad button presses for direct interaction, including numeric buttons '0' through '9', 'Enter', Preset Entry Mode, and Direct Frequency Entry Mode — used to emulate the tuner's front-panel keypad for preset and frequency entry from a third-party controller or touchscreen.

Manufacturer: NuVo Technologies LLC (Attero Tech). Document revision 003, issued 7/8/2010.