An IR implementation is recommended for all system types, but especially for Entertainment PCs. If IR capabilities are included, the system must meet the basic design features for IR components, devices, and systems specified in this section.
Manufacturers who are implementing designs that include Control IR devices are strongly encouraged to join IrDA and to obtain the latest copies of the Control IR specification plus information on the availability of parts and driver software.
26. IR device uses NDIS 5.0 miniport driver
Required
This requirement applies for IrDA devices. An NDIS 5.0, IrDA miniport driver is required for all IR devices. Full documentation and sample source code for building such a miniport driver can be found in the Windows NT 5.0 DDK.
27. IR device meets IrDA specifications
Required
Recommended: Support specifications for both IrDA and Control IR devices.
An IR device must be designed to comply with approved IrDA specifications, including IR data devices, bi-directional IR peripherals (Control IR), and unidirectional IR remotes (Control IR).
If the system is intended to run data transfer applications with other IrDA devices, support of the IrDA specification is required. The emergence of digital still-image cameras with IrDA capability increases the importance of IrDA support in home systems. If the system is intended for the home market, support for Control IR and IrDA is recommended to ensure that the consumer will have the expected IR device interoperability.
28. IR device meets IrDA Control IR specification
Required
The IrDA-approved Control IR specification is expected in 1997, with the first products expected to ship in 1998. If a Control IR implementation is used in a PC 98 system, it must be in compliance with this specification.
29. IR device meets PC 98 bus and port specifications
Required
The requirements for all bus classes are defined in Part 3 of this guide. The Windows operating system includes built-in support for devices that use a serial I/O interface; in this case, a wireless device must also comply with the requirements specified in the “Serial Port Requirements” section earlier in this chapter. A device that uses a parallel port must comply with the requirements specified in the “Parallel Port Requirements” section earlier in this chapter. A USB device must comply with the requirements specified in the “USB” chapter in Part 3 of this guide.
30. IR device meets USB guidelines for interfacing with IrDA and Control IR devices
Required
A USB working group is developing guidelines for how USB is to interface with both IrDA and Control IR devices. When these guidelines are finalized, they will be PC 98 requirements for USB IR implementations.
31. IR device supports flexible resource configuration and dynamic disable capabilities
Required
Resource configuration support is specified for IR adapters. The adapter must provide flexible resource configuration and complete dynamic disable capabilities following the specifications for the bus or legacy port used. Resource configuration requirements are defined in the Plug and Play specification for the bus that the device uses for its connection.
32. System supports standard input speeds of 4 Mb/s
Recommended
Device support for input speeds of 4 Mb/s is strongly recommended for all IrDA devices.
33. System differentiates command streams if transceiver includes legacy consumer IR support
Required
This requirement ensures correct implementation for a system that includes IR support for IrDA and consumer IR devices that use different device signals. A system that uses only a specific IR device protocol will restrict the ability to use multiple input devices and might also restrict other capabilities.
The system needs to address IR coexistence issues if a single IR controller is capable of supporting more than one physical-layer IR protocol transceiver, such as legacy consumer IR and IrDA. Such controllers might support only one protocol at a time if they are using a single communication port connection to the PC’s I/O subsystem. A method for either switching automatically to alternate modes or notifying the IR driver of the need to switch modes is required. If the second alternative is used, then the device manufacturer must publish the hardware interface that the software can use for mode switching.
IrDA and Control IR have been designed to coexist and to share the IR media. Controllers are expected to provide separate data connections into the PC using USB. The IrDA and USB industry associations define guidelines for how to build and interface such devices. For more information, contact the organizations listed in the “References for I/O Ports and Devices” section at the end of this chapter.