Set Up the Scanner

This step uses the following programming elements:

ScanningManager.FindAndConfigureScannerAsynch method

ScanningManagerEvents.ScannerSearch event

ScanningManagerEvents.ScannerFound event

Your solution program needs to call FindAndConfigureScannerAsynch to cycle through all the ports on a machine looking for a connected scanner. On modern PCs with no serial ports, this runs quickly. In general, this method could take several minutes to complete, depending upon the number of serial ports on the PC.

Handling ScannerSearch is optional but highly recommended. This is the time to give feedback to your users. You can also skip probing the current port, if you know there are other non-Scantron devices connected or to avoid searching for slow-to-detect serial scanners.

You can skip probing the current port by setting ScanEventArgs.SkipPortOrScanner to true when you handle the ScannerSearch event. If your solution works only with imaging scanners, you can skip all serial ports (L_PORT_COM1 through L_PORT_COM9, L_PORT_OP_21_10) using this technique.

This process uses the following programming elements:

ScanningManager.ScannerFound event

ScanningManager.HardwareConfig_Property

OpScan 2i/4i/2/3/4U/5/6 scanner models do not report the presence of a select stacker, or transport printer. This is especially true for select stackers.

For Select Stackers on OpScan 3 & 4/4U: In the absence of any information from the scanner, ActiveScanner.HardwareConfig assumes that a select stacker is always present and sets the read-only property HardwareConfig.HasSelectStacker to TRUE. It is important to determine whether or not the scanner really has a select stacker, and configure the software accordingly. This is discussed below.

Ask the user to inform you of the presence or absence of these devices on the scanner, this is especially important for the select stacker

Within ScanEventArgs.ActiveScanner.HardwareConfig, update the properties like DisableTransportPrinter and DisableSelectStacker to reflect the user input

ScanTools Plus Link software has a built-in safety feature that will cause it to ignore your application definition's setting for "Stop On System Error" and always halt on an unknown form whenever the scanner does not have a select stacker. If ScanTools Plus Link’s knowledge of your scanner configuration is incorrect and it is told to expect a select stacker when there is not one, this safety measure in ScanTools Plus Link is turned off and may result in unrecognized sheets being ignored.

This step uses the following programming elements:

• ScanEventArgs.ActiveScanner.Configuration property

The configuration information is not saved by ScanTools Plus Link. Each time ScanningManager is instantiated, this information is not available. To avoid repeating steps 1 and 2 every time an instance of ScanningManager is created, the solution program should save the scanner configuration string in a solution specific manner - a file, database or registry entry.

 

This step uses the following programming elements:

• ScanEventArgs.ActiveScanner.Configuration property

In preparation for scanning, the solution program must create an instance of ScanningManager and tell ScanningManager how to communicate with the scanner. To achieve this, the solution program must reuse the information saved in Step 3. You must set the ScanningManager.ActiveScanner.Configuration property with the string saved from step 3.

If scanner info was not previously saved:

Call FindAndConfigureScannerAsync

Within the ScannerSearch event handler:

Provide “please wait” feedback to user in a status label

Skip serial port if non-Scantron device connected

Within the ScannerFound event handler:

Query user for hardware options

Set ScanEventArgs.ActiveScanner.HardwareConfig.DisableXXX

Save ScanEventArgs.ActiveScanner.Configuration property to file or other store

Set ScanningManager.ActiveScanner.Configuration property from saved value.

Call Scan, passing L_PORT_USE_CURRENT for the Port parameter.