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Property	Value
Sector	Factory-Floor Interfaces
Group	Field Devices
Connector	SIC Marking Laser (CCI)
Name	SIC

It is still under development, contact Tatsoft if you need this connector sooner.

Laser marking systems driven through the CCI ASCII interface

Name: SIC
Version: 1.0.0.0
Protocol: CCI (ASCII command/reply)
Interface: TCP/IP
Runtime: .NET Standard 2.0 (Multiplatform)
Configuration:
- Devices / Channels / Nodes / Points

Overview

The SIC connector controls laser marking systems through its CCI ASCII interface. Every exchange is a single text command terminated by a line feed, answered by a single line: 1 for accepted, 0 for rejected, or the value itself for a read.

The connector covers the full marking workflow — loading and saving jobs, pen and laser parameters, entity geometry, text and barcode content, counters and date/time objects, hatching and wobble, and firing the mark — so a marking station can be built entirely from device points, with no scripting required to reach the laser.

A rejected command is an application-level answer, not a transport fault: an unknown entity name, a job path that does not exist, or a barcode setting that is invalid for the current symbology all return 0 while the connection stays healthy. Those surface as Bad quality on the point.

Communication Driver Information
Driver name	SIC
Assembly Name	T.ProtocolDriver.SIC
Assembly Version	1.0.0.0
Multiplatform	True
Devices supported	Laser marking systems controlled with the CCI ASCII interface enabled
Manufacturer	SIC Marking
Protocol	CCI (ASCII command/reply)
Interface	TCP/IP

Channel Configuration

Protocol Options

A single option, IsMarkingSource, selects which value answers the STS:IsMarking point.

Value	Meaning
`Disabled`	Default. The point is left unanswered.
`ExecutionStatus`	Use the execution status value as the marking state.
`MarkResult`	Use the mark result value as the marking state.

The default is Disabled because the interface's own marking-state query returns a command acknowledgement rather than the state. Select one of the other two only after validating it against the equipment.

TCP/IP Settings

The CCI interface listens on TCP port 350 by default. The connection is opened once and reused — the connector does not reconnect per command.

Node Configuration

Station Configuration

The station string is semicolon-separated: IP;Port

IP: address of the machine running the CCI interface. Use 127.0.0.1 when it runs on the same machine as the runtime.
Port: TCP port of the interface. Default 350. Additional lasers run on different ports.

For example, 127.0.0.1;350 for a local laser, or 127.0.0.1;351 for a second one.

The pen is not a station field. It is a point — see Required Points below.

Point Configuration

Address Format

Every address is exactly two tokens: Family:Item

Family: selects both the wire call and the value type — see Address Families below.
Item: a friendly name, or a raw numeric id.

The target entity and the target pen are not part of the address. They come from two required points whose values the connector applies to every entity-scoped and pen-scoped operation. One address therefore serves every entity in the job, and switching the target is a single write rather than a reconfiguration.

Required Points

Every node must configure these two. Without them the node acts on the whole job and on pen 1 for its entire lifetime.

Address	Access	Purpose
`SEL:Entity`	Read/Write	Name of the entity every entity-scoped point acts on. Write `All` (or an empty string) to target the whole job. Read it back to confirm what the connector adopted.
`SEL:Pen`	Read/Write	Pen every pen-scoped point acts on. `0` selects AUTO, which uses the pen the job itself assigned to the selected entity. `1`–`255` pins a specific pen.

Write SEL:Entity before the points that depend on it, and not in the same scan. In a typical screen this happens naturally: the entity selector writes on change, and the action buttons write later.

Address Families

Family	Scope	Type	Access	Description
`SEL`	Connector	—	R / R+W	Selection state. Answered by the connector rather than by the laser.
`DV`	Global	Double	R+W	Global floating-point value.
`LV`	Global	Long	R+W	Global integer value.
`SV`	Global	String	R+W	Global string value.
`ED`	Entity	Double	R+W	Floating-point data on the selected entity.
`EL`	Entity	Long	R+W	Integer data on the selected entity.
`ES`	Entity	String	R+W	String data on the selected entity.
`BIT`	Varies	Boolean	R / R+W	One checkbox inside a flag word. The connector reads the word, changes the single bit and writes it back, so the neighbouring settings survive.
`CALC`	Varies	Varies	R / R+W	A value the connector derives from one or more reads. A derivation that cannot be completed reports Bad quality rather than a stale number.
`CMD`	—	—	W	An action. The point's value carries the argument.
`STS`	—	Integer	R	Connector status.

The same number means different things in different families — identifier 9 is one value as a global integer, another as global string, another as entity data. The family is what disambiguates it, which is why every address carries one.

Raw Identifier Addresses

On DV, LV, SV, ED, EL and ES, the Item may be a raw numeric identifier instead of a name — for example ED:71. This reaches identifiers that have no friendly name yet.

Unit conversion is keyed to the name, never to the identifier. DV:Frequency converts kHz to Hz; DV:6 does not. A raw address is passed through exactly as written.

Selection Points

Address	Type	Access	Description
`SEL:Entity`	String	R+W	Required. Target entity name; `All` means the whole job.
`SEL:Pen`	Integer	R+W	Required. Target pen; `0` = AUTO, `1`–`255` = fixed.
`SEL:EntityList`	String	R	Every named entity in the job, semicolon-separated and prefixed with `All`. Feeds an entity selector.
`SEL:EntityType`	String	R	Type of the selected entity — see Entity Types below. Empty when the whole job is selected.

Entity Types

SEL:EntityType reports the object class, which is what decides which editing screens apply.

Value	Object
`ScWinTextChars2D`	Text
`ScBarCode12Chars2D`	Barcode, any symbology
`ScSerialNumber2D`	Counter or date/time
`ScRectangle2D`, `ScEllipse2D`, `ScPolyLine2D`, `ScSpiral2D`	Geometry
`ScEntities2D`	Group
`ScMotionControl`, `ScExecutable`	Control objects
(empty)	Whole job selected, or the name is not in the job

Two distinctions the type does not make. It does not separate DataMatrix from QR from 1D — read ES:BarcodeType for that. And a counter and a date/time object are the same class; BIT:IsDateTime is what tells them apart. Treat the list as non-exhaustive and compare case-insensitively.

Global Values

DV — Global Double

Items marked pen act on SEL:Pen.

Item	Unit	Scope	Description
`LaserPower`	W	pen	Laser power of the selected pen.
`MarkSpeed`	mm/s	pen	Marking speed.
`JumpSpeed`	mm/s	pen	Jump speed between marked segments.
`Frequency`	kHz	pen	Pulse frequency. The interface works in Hz; the connector converts.
`MarkDelay`	µs	pen	Delay after a marked segment.
`JumpDelay`	µs	pen	Delay after a jump.
`LaserOnDelay`	µs	pen	Delay before the beam switches on.
`LaserOffDelay`	µs	pen	Delay before the beam switches off.
`PolygonDelay`	µs	pen	Delay at a corner between segments.
`WobbleFrequency`	Hz	pen	Wobble frequency.
`WobbleAmplitude`	mm	pen	Wobble amplitude.
`OverridePower`	%	global	A global multiplier applied on top of the pen power. Not the pen power itself.
`OpticOffsetX`	mm	optic	Horizontal offset of the marking field.
`OpticOffsetY`	mm	optic	Vertical offset of the marking field.
`OpticGainX`	factor	optic	Horizontal scale correction. Dimensionless: `1.0` marks at nominal size.
`OpticGainY`	factor	optic	Vertical scale correction.
`OpticRotation`	degrees	optic	Rotation of the whole marking field, absolute.

Optic values are machine settings, not job contents. They apply to every job this head marks, they leave every entity untouched, and CMD:SaveJob does not persist them.

LV — Global Long

Item	Description
`PointerMode`	Mode of the guide pointer.
`PenEnableFlags`	Raw pen enable flag word. Pen-scoped. Use `BIT:WobbleEnable` to change it.
`TransformAction`	`0` stores the transform baseline, `1` restores it, `2` restores with update.
`TotalEntityNum`	Entity count, all levels, including entities nested in groups.
`ToplevelEntityNum`	Entity count, top level only — a group counts once.

SV — Global String

Item	Description
`JobImagePath`	Writing a path captures an image of the job. `CMD:SaveJobImage` is the reliable form — a full-resolution capture needs the window visible, which that command handles.

Entity Data

All of these act on the entity named by SEL:Entity.

ED — Entity Double

Item	Unit	Description
`FontSize`	mm	Character height. Millimetres, not points. Ignored while a height limit is active.
`TextLengthLimit`	mm	Width the text is scaled to fit. `CALC:EntityWidth` is the preferred form.
`TextHeightLimit`	mm	Height the text is scaled to fit. `CALC:EntityHeight` is the preferred form.
`TextGap`	mm	Gap between a barcode and its human-readable text.
`HatchDistance`	mm	Distance between hatch lines. Valid range `0.0001`–`1000`.
`HatchAngle`	degrees	Hatch line angle. The interface works in radians; the connector converts.
`LineReduction`	%	Line reduction applied to barcode modules.
`CellSizeX`	ratio	Horizontal cell fill ratio, `0`–`1`. Honoured only while `BIT:CellMode` is on.
`CellSizeY`	ratio	Vertical cell fill ratio.
`QuietZoneX`	ratio or mm	Horizontal quiet zone. A scale factor by default; millimetres once `BIT:Invert` has set the absolute flag.
`QuietZoneY`	ratio or mm	Vertical quiet zone. Follows X unless the absolute flag is set.
`RotationRelative`	degrees	Rotates the entity by this amount. Accumulates on repeated writes — use `CALC:EntityRotation` for an absolute angle.
`RotationAbsolute`	degrees	Absolute angle. Not implemented on every build; `CALC:EntityRotation` handles the fallback.

EL — Entity Long

Item	Description
`HatchStyle`	`0` off, `1` wavy, `2` horizontal L→R, `3` horizontal R→L, `4` rotational, `5` wavy with jumps, `6` zigzag. Prefer `CMD:ApplyHatch`.
`Passes`	Mark loop count.
`TextCharFlags`	Raw text checkbox word. Use the `BIT:TextLimit*` points to change it.
`EntityPen`	Pen the job assigned to this entity, `1`–`255`. This is what `SEL:Pen = 0` reads.
`HumanReadable`	Human-readable text on or off.
`BarcodeEcc`	QR error correction: `0` = L, `1` = M, `2` = Q, `3` = H. DataMatrix is fixed and ignores it.
`BarcodeFlags`	General barcode flag word.
`BarcodeLimitFlags`	`0x1` limit length, `0x2` limit height, `0x4` keep aspect.
`DmSymbolMode`	DataMatrix symbol-mode word.
`DmSymbolSize`	Raw zero-based symbol-size index. `CALC:SymbolSize` is the readable form.
`QrCodeExVersion`	QR version — the QR counterpart of the DataMatrix symbol size.
`SerialStart`	Counter start value. Takes effect only after a reset.
`SerialStep`	Counter increment.
`SerialCurrent`	Raw current counter value. See the caveat on `CALC:SerialCurrent`.
`SerialBeatCount`	Advance the counter only every N marks.
`SerialResetCount`	Auto-reset after N. `0` never resets.
`SerialModeFlags`	Raw mode word: text `0x1`, barcode `0x2`, file `0x4`, date/time `0x8`, custom format `0x10`.

ES — Entity String

Item	Description
`Content`	The string a text object marks, or the payload a barcode encodes. Reads back as well as writes. On a counter or date/time object this is regenerated from the format at the next mark — change the format instead.
`BarcodeType`	Symbology, e.g. `DataMatrixEx`, `QR Code Ex`, `Code-128`, `EAN-13`, `Code-39`. Set it first — it decides which other barcode settings are valid.
`BarcodeFormat`	Format descriptor, e.g. `2,2,2,2`.
`SerialFormat`	Counter format string, e.g. `LOT-%06.0f-A`. The conversion must be `f`; an integer specifier is rejected. Shared with the date/time pattern.
`SerialAsciiFile`	Path to a serial source file. The file must already exist. Requires `BIT:SerialFromFile`.

Bit Points

Each of these is one checkbox inside a flag word that also carries unrelated settings. The connector reads the word, changes the single bit and writes it back, so nothing else is disturbed.

Item	Access	Description
`WobbleEnable`	R+W	Wobble on or off for the selected pen. The wobble shape is configured per pen in the laser software and is not reachable over the interface.
`Invert`	R+W	Barcode invert. Also switches the quiet zone to absolute millimetres and releases the vertical axis, because the two settings travel together.
`CellMode`	R+W	Cell mode, required for flash operation. Set it before the cell size.
`DmAutoSize`	R+W	DataMatrix automatic symbol size.
`DmRectangle`	R+W	DataMatrix rectangular sizes. Switches the symbol-size list to the rectangular set.
`TextLimitLength`	R+W	Force the text to a fixed width.
`TextLimitHeight`	R+W	Force the text to a fixed height.
`TextLimitAspect`	R+W	Keep the aspect ratio while forcing a limit.
`SerialCustomFormat`	R+W	Use the custom format string. This is the only route to zero-padding — turning it off disables prefix, suffix and padding together.
`SerialFromFile`	R+W	Take the serial from a file. Mutually exclusive with the custom format.
`IsDateTime`	R	Whether the selected object is a date/time rather than a counter. Read-only: it reports what the object is. This is the only reliable way to tell the two apart.

Derived Points

These present a value the interface does not expose directly. Each costs several exchanges, so they belong on a moderate scan rate rather than the fastest one.

Item	Type	Access	Description
`MarkWidth`	Real	R+W	Width of the whole mark in mm. Reading returns the job's extent scaled by the optic gain; writing derives the gain from the wanted size, so no entity is modified and read-then-write changes nothing.
`MarkHeight`	Real	R+W	Height of the whole mark in mm, by the same mechanism.
`EntityCenterX`	Real	R	Horizontal centre of the selected entity in mm, derived from its bounding box.
`EntityCenterY`	Real	R	Vertical centre in mm. Write both axes together with `CMD:ApplyEntityPosition`.
`EntityWidth`	Real	R+W	Entity width in mm. Reading prefers the configured size limit and falls back to the bounding box when there is none. Writing sets the limit and its checkbox together.
`EntityHeight`	Real	R+W	Entity height in mm, by the same rule. A non-zero height overrides `ED:FontSize`.
`EntityRotation`	Real	R+W	Entity angle in degrees, absolute, counterclockwise positive. Writing reads the current angle and sends the difference, so writing the same value twice does not rotate twice.
`SerialPrefix`	String	R	Text before the counter digits, extracted from the format string.
`SerialSuffix`	String	R	Text after the counter digits.
`SerialMinDigits`	Integer	R	Zero-padding width. Prefix, suffix and padding have no identifiers of their own — they exist only inside the format string. Write all three with `CMD:ApplyCounter`.
`SerialCurrent`	Integer	R	Current counter value, recovered from the rendered content. The direct value has been observed reporting `0` for a counter that was not at zero, and a read carries no status to distinguish the two.
`DateTimeFormat`	String	R+W	Date/time pattern in readable form, e.g. `DD/MM/YYYY` — the connector converts to and from the internal representation. Refuses a counter object in both directions, because they share the same format field.
`SymbolSize`	String	R+W	DataMatrix symbol size as text, e.g. `20x20` or `Auto`. Square sizes only; with rectangular sizes selected the read reports Bad quality rather than a wrong size.
`HatchOnOff`	Integer	R	Whether hatching is active. Turn it on and off with `CMD:ApplyHatch`.

Commands

A command point is written, not polled. Where a command takes an argument, it is the point's own value.

Marking and Job Control

Item	Value	Description
`Mark`	—	Marks the whole job. Returns immediately without blocking; poll `STS:IsMarking` for completion.
`MarkSelected`	—	Marks only the selected entity. Refused when the whole job is selected.
`StopMarking`	—	Aborts the current mark.
`LoadJob`	File path	Loads a job. Marking and the pointer are stopped first, then a clean transform baseline is stored.
`SaveJob`	—	Saves over the job currently open, carrying both entity and pen changes.
`SaveJobImage`	File path	Captures an image of the job. Reports the result of the capture itself.
`RenameEntity`	New name	Renames the selected entity and re-points the selection at the new name.
`PointerStart`	—	Starts the guide pointer.
`PointerStop`	—	Stops the guide pointer.
`ShowApp`	—	Shows the laser software window.
`HideApp`	—	Hides the window. The interface keeps working.
`TransformStore`	—	Stores the current transform of every entity so it can be restored later.
`TransformRestore`	—	Restores the stored transforms.

Applied Settings

These write several values in a fixed order. They exist as single commands precisely because the order matters — separate points give no ordering guarantee.

Item	Value format	Example	Description
`ApplyMarkSize`	`width,height`	`50,63.5`	Whole-mark size in mm, both axes in one exchange so the mark is never left scaled on one axis only.
`ApplyEntityPosition`	`x,y`	`12.5,-4`	Absolute centre in mm. With one entity selected it moves that entity; with the whole job selected it translates the job as a single block.
`ApplyHatch`	`on,distance,angle`	`1,0.05,45`	Distance and angle are written before the style. Enabling hatching while the stored distance is invalid produces a dialog on the equipment, so the range is checked before anything is sent.
`ApplyTextLimits`	`width,height`	`20,6`	Size limits in mm, written before the checkboxes that activate them. `0` means no limit on that axis.
`ApplyCounter`	`start,minDigits,prefix,suffix`	`1,6,LOT-,-A`	Sets the counter and resets it so the new values take effect. The reset is job-wide. Refuses a date/time object.
`ApplyBarcode`	`key=value;key=value`	`sym=DataMatrixEx;cell=0.8;invert=1;size=20x20;content=ABC123;rot=90`	Applies barcode settings in the required order. Keys not present are left alone. See below.

ApplyBarcode keys

Recognised keys, listed in the order they are applied: sym, cellmode, invert, cell, qz, lr, size, ecc, content, hr, gap, font, w, h, rot.

The order is not arbitrary. The symbology decides which other settings are valid, so it goes first. The cell mode must precede the cell size. The content goes late so the symbol is encoded against the final constraints. The rotation goes last, because any step that changes the symbol rebuilds its geometry and would discard an angle set earlier. The quiet zone is written only when invert=1, since it has no effect otherwise.

Counters

Item	Description
`ResetSerial`	Restarts every counter in the job, not only the selected one.
`IncSerial`	Increments every counter in the job.
`DecSerial`	Decrements every counter in the job.

Flash Memory

Job storage on the controller card, for standalone operation. Slots are addressed by number. Flash access is slow relative to the other commands.

Item	Value	Description
`FlashStoreCurrent`	Slot number	Current job to a flash slot. The job must already be saved on disk.
`FlashLoadToSICAdvanced`	Slot number	Flash slot back into the laser software. Card settings are not restored.
`FlashStoreFile`	`path,slot`	A file on disk to a flash slot.
`FlashSaveToFile`	`path,slot`	A flash slot out to a file on disk.

Status Points

Item	Description
`Connected`	Reads `1` while the interface answers. A lost connection appears as Bad quality on the point, not as a `0` — gate logic on the quality, not on the value.
`IsMarking`	Marking state. Requires the IsMarkingSource protocol option, which is `Disabled` by default.

Notes and Limitations

One point, one exchange

The interface is strictly one command and one reply, so points are never grouped into blocks. A DV, LV, SV, ED, EL or ES point is a single exchange; a BIT or CALC point is several; SEL:EntityList and SEL:EntityType cost one exchange per entity in the job. Set scan rates accordingly — the enumeration points in particular belong on demand rather than on a cyclic scan.

Selection ordering

Write SEL:Entity before the points that depend on it. Points are sorted so the selection is sent ahead of the rest within a batch, but that is a mitigation and not a guarantee: nothing forces both writes into the same batch. Driving the selection from an operator action, and the operations from a separate one, avoids the question entirely.

Changes live in memory until saved

Everything written to entity and pen values changes only the job held in memory. CMD:SaveJob writes it to disk. The optic values are the exception in the other direction — they are machine settings and CMD:SaveJob does not persist them.

Read-only by nature

Some values can be written but never read back, so the connector derives the readable form instead: barcode width and height, the counter's prefix and suffix, and the symbol size are all reported through CALC points rather than the raw identifiers.

Not covered

The wobble shape, the date/time offset value, and the interface language are configured in the laser software and have no command in this interface.

Driver Revision History

SIC Revision History
Version	Notes
1.0.0.0	Initial release. Job load and save, pen and laser parameters, optic transform, entity geometry, text and barcode content, counters and date/time objects, hatching and wobble, flash job storage. Entity and pen are selected through the `SEL:Entity` and `SEL:Pen` points.