Develop Reference

C# to arduino communication

Good afternoon everyone,
I'm experimenting with serial communication between c# and arduino.
To understand how the comms work with regards to sending numbers (I know, there's alot being discussed already but bear with me) I want to send the value of a trackbar to the arduino, and then translate this number in movement of a servo.
If I understand correctly, integers can't be sent directly but have to be converted into bytes first.
So for this I would convert the numeric value of the trackbar into a byte array
in C# :
byte[] Numbers;
Numbers = BitConverter.GetBytes(trackBar1.Value);
Via serial communication I would send the value
port.Write(Numbers, 0, 1);
And this is where I'm going wrong I think
The trackbar value goes from 0 to 255, so I guess I'd need to know the bytes that equal 0 to 255 to be able to adjust the last number (in my example '1') to get the correct number after translation in Arduino?
As for Arduino, I would 'translate' the bytes as follows:
int IncomingValue = Serial.parseInt();
And then I'd like to use the IncomingValue for my servo.
My question is what I'm doing incorrectly.
thanks

For those interested in tinkering with c# to arduino serial communication (just desribing the issue I had) and sending a value of a trackbar to use in arduino:
make yourself a form project and name it whatever you like.
Then create a trackbar. I will create a trackbar with a minimum value of 0 and a maximum of 255 as follows:
trackbar1.Minimum = 0;
trackbar1.Maximum = 255;
trackBar1.TickFrequency = 10; // this will set ticks every 10 units.
Now we can setup the actual communication between c# and arduino. I'll start with c#.
Opening a port:
port = new SerialPort("COM5", 9600); //Set your Arduino COM port and baud rate
port.Open();
Now we also need to create an event to close the port when the program shuts:
void Form1_FormClosed(object sender, FormClosedEventArgs e)
{
if (port != null && port.IsOpen)
{
port.Close();
}
}
Now we have set up the port, but we still need data to send. In our example we told we were going to send the value of the trackbar. To do this, click on your trackbar and find the trackBar1_Scroll event and double click it.
This basically creates the event of scrolling the trackbar and now we have to describe in this event what we want to happen.
We want to send the data of the trackbar via serial. The trackbar value is retrieved as follows:
trackbar1.value
Now we know how to retrieve the value, we have to look at the options of sending it, there's 3 options using port.write(), we'll use this later:
-Write(String)
-Write(Byte[], Int32, Int32)
-Write(Char[], Int32, Int32)
but as I'm working with an int, I found that the second one was the one I needed.
As you can see we need a Byte array to be able to send this, so we will cast our trackbar data into a byte array by using BitConverter and declaring a byte array called Numbers:
byte[] Numbers = BitConverter.GetBytes(trackBar1.Value);
Now we have every element we need:
The port which has been opened. We also described when to close it.
The trackbar and its data to send.
The data of the trackbar 'packaged' the correct way to be able to send it.
the only thing we didn't do is describe the scroll event, but now we have the correct data format, we can:
private void trackBar1_Scroll(object sender, EventArgs e)
{
byte[] Numbers = BitConverter.GetBytes(trackBar1.Value);
port.Write(Numbers, 0, 1);
}
so in c# our code will look like this:
public Form1()
{
InitializeComponent();
trackBar1.Minimum = 0;
trackBar1.Maximum = 255;
trackBar1.TickFrequency = 10;
port = new SerialPort("COM5", 9600);//Set your board COM
port.Open();
this.FormClosed += new FormClosedEventHandler(Form1_FormClosed);
}
void Form1_FormClosed(object sender, FormClosedEventArgs e)
{
if (port != null && port.IsOpen)
{
port.Close();
}
}
private void trackBar1_Scroll(object sender, EventArgs e)
{
byte[] Numbers = BitConverter.GetBytes(trackBar1.Value);
port.Write(Numbers, 0, 1);
}
As for arduino, all we need to do is:
A] Start our serial
B] Read the incoming data
#include <LiquidCrystal.h> // include the LCD library
LiquidCrystal lcd(12, 11, 5, 4, 3, 2); //define the LCD display
int Number; //define the number int (the one we'll store our received trackbar value in)
void setup()
{
Serial.begin(9600); //A] Start our serial
}
void loop()
{
lcd.setCursor(0, 0); // Set the LCD cursor at the top left corner
if (Serial.available() > 0 ) { //B] Read the incoming data
nummer = Serial.read(); //
lcd.print(nummer); //
} //
else {}; //
}
I used an LCD to read the data as I couldn't figure out a way to open the serial monitor with the serial communication between c# and arduino happening.
that's why I included an LCD.
I feel explaining this is beyond the scope of this little issue I had.
I hope this helps other beginners like me in the future.
thanks to those who were helpful!

How can I separate every other or every 3rd string from a stream of strings coming in via COM PORT in real time?

I have a stream of strings coming in via serial Port continuously at a fixed baud rate. And I need to separate a specific string every time it is received, split it into useful parts and print those parts in Winform interface. Any help and/or example is appreciated
I am receiving GPS data and have connected it to PC via UART to serial port. Setting up serial port with WinForms and receiving data is no problem. Placing filters to synthesize required messages and handling them is what I need help for.
////////////// This code is only for reference to the GUI ////////////
using System;
using System.Collections.Generic;
using System.ComponentModel;
using System.Data;
using System.Drawing;
using System.Linq;
using System.Text;
using System.Threading.Tasks;
using System.Windows.Forms;
using System.IO;
using System.IO.Ports;
namespace WindowsFormsApplication1
{
public partial class Form1 : Form
{
public Form1()
{
InitializeComponent();
}
private void Clear_Click(object sender, EventArgs e)
{
richTextBox1.Clear();
}
private void Start_Click(object sender, EventArgs e)
{
serialPort1.Open();
}
private void richTextBox1_TextChanged(object sender, EventArgs e)
{
richTextBox1.ScrollToCaret();
}
private void Read_Click(object sender, EventArgs e)
{
string data = serialPort1.ReadExisting(); //reads the whole
readbuffer
if (data.Length >= 10)
{
richTextBox1.Text = data;
}
}
private void Stop_Click(object sender, EventArgs e)
{
serialPort1.Close();
}
}
}
For Example: If you see the GPS data in the image
(link: https://www.google.com/imgres?imgurl=https%3A%2F%2Fidyl.io%2Fwp-content%2Fuploads%2F2017%2F05%2Fraw-gps-data-8.png&imgrefurl=https%3A%2F%2Fidyl.io%2Farduino%2Fhow-to%2Finterface-gps-module-arduino%2F&docid=zNdHsCmZc93QIM&tbnid=P0_E1tvN1Ur0HM%3A&vet=10ahUKEwjh9NudvqTgAhVL4eAKHYtyDHYQMwhbKA0wDQ..i&w=597&h=496&bih=938&biw=1920&q=gps%20data&ved=0ahUKEwjh9NudvqTgAhVL4eAKHYtyDHYQMwhbKA0wDQ&iact=mrc&uact=8#h=496&imgdii=P0_E1tvN1Ur0HM:&vet=10ahUKEwjh9NudvqTgAhVL4eAKHYtyDHYQMwhbKA0wDQ..i&w=597)
you will see that different messages are coming in cyclic order. I am interested in every message that starts with "$GPGGA". I want to read only this message every time it occurs, split it into useful parts, print them, and then go back to receive the next message that starts with "$GPGGA".
Note: When reception is not good, gps skips the positions in message that are reserved for actual readings so the string size gets smaller.

You could do this with a regular expression, or by splitting the received string using '$' - since each line starts with this character.
// Holds the partial/unprocessed data we've read from the serial port.
private string _serialRxString = string.Empty;
private void Start_Click(object sender, EventArgs e)
{
serialRxString = string.Empty;
serialPort1.Open();
}
private void Read_Click(object sender, EventArgs e)
{
// Add the new data to what we have.
_serialRxString += serialPort1.ReadExisting();
// Each line starts with a '$'.
string[] lines = _serialRxString.Split(
new char[] { '$' },
StringSplitOptions.None);
// Don't process the last one yet, it might not be complete.
for (int i = 0; i < lines.Length - 1; i++)
{
// Check if it's the line we're looking for.
if (lines[i].StartsWith("GPGGA"))
{
string[] values = lines[i].Split(new char[] { ',' });
// Do what you want with the values from the $GPGGA line.
}
}
// Keep the last line, since it might not be complete yet.
_serialRxString = lines.Last();
}
You also might want to subscribe to the serial port data received event. This way any data received on the serial port will automatically be processed, without having to click the read button. You can do this either through the designer or in your form constructor. Then the data received event would be the same as what's in the Read_Click function above.
To subscribe to the DataReceived event in the designer:
Or in the constructor:
public Form1()
{
InitializeComponent();
serialPort1.DataReceived += serialPort1_DataReceived;
}
The data received event then would be:
private void serialPort1_DataReceived(
object sender,
SerialDataReceivedEventArgs e)
{
// Add the new data to what we have.
_serialRxString += serialPort1.ReadExisting();
// Each line starts with a '$'.
string[] lines = _serialRxString.Split(
new char[] { '$' },
StringSplitOptions.None);
// Don't process the last one yet, it might not be complete.
for (int i = 0; i < lines.Length - 1; i++)
{
// Check if it's the line we're looking for.
if (lines[i].StartsWith("GPGGA"))
{
string[] values = lines[i].Split(new char[] { ',' });
// Do what you want with the values from the $GPGGA line.
}
}
// Keep the last line, since it might not be complete yet.
_serialRxString = lines.Last();
}
Then whenever anything is received on the serial port this function automatically gets called.
There are also some packages available for parsing NMEA messages that might be helpful. Such as this one: NmeaParser

I feel like this question comes up a lot. You've already done the hard part, that is sending/receiving data. Now you just need to parse it. Looks like from the example image, everything is comma delimited and each line ends with a Carriage Return Line Feed. See my answer to this, you should be able to build a string for each line then split it on commas and get the field you are looking for.

Using Windows Form as a serial communicator to Arduino Uno

I'm new to the Arduino and serial communication, and I haven't coded in a while, but I'm trying to do what I think should be fairly simple, and have been having plenty of trouble. What I'd like to do is to create a simple GUI on Windows Forms and control a Arduino. I keep seeming to run into different problems every new session.
What I've been trying to do is to create a simple GUI that can toggle an LED on and off, and then to use NumericUpDown to toggle it blinking. Previously, I could get the numericUpDown to toggle values but nothing happens, now if I try and toggle, it tells me the port is closed. I've been trying different port communication methods. Since the Form is saying my port is closed, I cannot test to see if what I've written works. Please ignore the commented code as I'm still trying different things.
When I try to call the blink function, it hasn't blinked properly inside a if statement compared to if I kept it in the loop. I'm not sure how and where to send the value from the Winform to the Arduino.
Is Winform much different than using serial monitor commands?
EDIT1: I stepped away from my computer and now when I run the Windows Form, it shows no errors but The program has exited with code 0 (0x0). I've had the timer and haven't really messed with it yet but it wasn't telling me this error earlier and was running the form fine.
My Arduino Code:
// Define Function Prototypes that use User Types below here or use a .h file
int dorun;
int Blinks;
void setup() {
// initialize digital pin LED_BUILTIN as an output.
pinMode(LED_BUILTIN, OUTPUT);
Serial.begin(9600);
getBlinks();
}
// the loop function runs over and over again forever
void loop()
{
if (Serial.available() > 0)
/*
{
byte Blinktimes = Serial.readBytes[];
}
*/
{
String serialInput = Serial.readString();
//Toggle LED
if (serialInput == "On")
{
digitalWrite(LED_BUILTIN, !digitalRead(LED_BUILTIN)); //I have this just to see that the LED is staying on and off, and will need to change things.
for (int x = 1; x = Blinks; x++)
{
blink();
}
}
else
{
digitalWrite(LED_BUILTIN, LOW); // turn the LED on (LOW is the voltage level)
}
Serial.flush(); //Clear Serial
}
/*
digitalWrite(LED_BUILTIN, HIGH);
if ((Serial.available()))
{
int dorun = Serial.read();
if (dorun = 1)
{
blink();
}
else
{
digitalWrite(LED_BUILTIN, LOW);
}
}
*/
/*turnon();
if (dorun == 1)
{
blink();
}
else
{
digitalWrite(LED_BUILTIN, LOW);
}
*/
}
void getBlinks()
{
byte message[3];
if (Serial.available())
{
Serial.readBytes(message, 3);
Blinks = message[3];
}
}
void blink()
{
digitalWrite(LED_BUILTIN, HIGH); // turn the LED on (HIGH is the
voltage level)
delay(250); // wait for a second
digitalWrite(LED_BUILTIN, LOW); //!digitalRead(LED_BUILTIN); // turn the LED off by making the voltage LOW
delay(1000);
}
void turnon()
{
if (Serial.available()> 0)
{
String run = Serial.readString();
if (run == "Run")
{
dorun == 1;
}
if (run == "Off")
{
dorun == 0;
}
}
}
My Windows Form Code
using System;
using System.Collections.Generic;
using System.ComponentModel;
using System.Data;
using System.Drawing;
using System.Linq;
using System.Text;
using System.Threading.Tasks;
using System.Windows.Forms;
using System.IO.Ports;
namespace WindowsFormsApp9
{
public partial class Form1 : Form
{
SerialPort serial; // create serial port
/*
* public class Port
{
public string Name { get; set; }
public int Value { get; set; }
public Port(string n, int i)
{
Name = n;
Value = i;
}
}
*/
SerialPort port;
string[] availablePorts = SerialPort.GetPortNames();
public Form1()
{
InitializeComponent();
}
private void button1_Click(object sender, EventArgs e)
{
port = new SerialPort("COM3", 9600, Parity.None, 8, StopBits.One);
port.Open();
port.Write("On");
port.Close();
}
private void button2_Click(object sender, EventArgs e)
{
port = new SerialPort("COM3", 9600, Parity.None, 8, StopBits.One);
port.Open();
port.Write("Off");
port.Close();
}
private void numericUpDown1_ValueChanged(object sender, EventArgs e)
{
UpdateBlink();
}
void UpdateBlink()
{
port = new SerialPort("COM3", 9600, Parity.None, 8, StopBits.One);
port.Open();
const byte messageType = 2;
byte Blinkcount = (byte)numericUpDown1.Value;
byte[] serialBlink = { messageType, Blinkcount };
serialPort1.Write(serialBlink, 0, serialBlink.Length);
port.Close();
}
private void timer1_Tick(object sender, EventArgs e)
{
}
private void Form1_Load(object sender, EventArgs e)
{
}
private void serialPort1_DataReceived(object sender, System.IO.Ports.SerialDataReceivedEventArgs e)
{
}
I've been checking out these links:
Click here How I toggle the LED
Click here How to return an int since NumericUpDown returns a decimal
Click [here] (https://www.instructables.com/id/Arduino-Visual-Studio-Serial-Communication/) Arduino Visual Studio Serial communication timer things
Click [here] (https://www.instructables.com/id/Communication-From-a-WinForms-to-a-TinyDuino/) instructions about Winforms to TinyDuino, They should use similar commands as the Arduino right?
So I decided to do a slight overhaul. Instead of trying to deal with sending multiple different types of inputs(String and int) I have decided to just change everything into a byte array and then send it all at once.
Regarding 1. I was really just wondering if it'd be alright to create a function to return a value rather than just building the code in a void function. So I tried it and it worked, hence the change. From what I understood and saw that your protected override bool ProcessCmdKey, basically you wanted to see if the key was an arrow key. If it was return true. So what I did was basically if it's one of the selected colors, return a value corresponding to the color.
I was just hoping you could either help me understand the Serial and COM port connection or if you had a link for more explanation. Earlier when I was trying to send a string(On/Off) and then send a numeric(byte/int) to set a number of blink times, I couldn't figure out if the COM port is kind of like a singular channel. If I'm sending a string from the Windows Form, could I send out a int/byte in the same channel? Now that everything is of one keyword (byte) I can just create a byte array and figure out the communication between the Windows Form and Arduino. I'm a little confused about the underlying Serial aspect. When I saw your code I started to think a little differently.
In your code, if I'm understanding it properly, it seems that MyVCOM is how to communicate back and forth, just like port.Write. I believe it's singular as it's basically like the old telephone line, if I'm on a call, and you call try to call me, your call is blocked since my line is already being used.
So in your ConnReset, you want to make sure the COM's aren't open so you can set up communication. So your ConReset will clear the line if it's open already. What I'm confused about is the else part. If your port isn't open, open COM+PortNumber, so basically open the channel so you can communicate, but you declared port number to be 8, so shouldn't you just use:
MyVCOM.PortName = "COM8";
Where does the user select which COM? All of the communication is being done on COM8 isn't it? Or does is that part all part of a built in library? I believe all I need to do now is to send my byte array to my Arduino and then work on the Back End to take the data the Windows Form is sending.
public int Colorselection(string label3, int color) //Toggle a pin
{
if (label3 == "Red")
{
color = 6;
}
else if (label3 == "Green")
{
color = 5;
}
else if (label3 == "Blue")
{
color = 3;
}
return color;
}
private void comboBox1_SelectedIndexChanged(object sender, EventArgs e)
{
String label4 = LEDColor.SelectedItem.ToString(); //Generate A string of selected Color
int xled = Colorselection(label4, color); //Toggle the string into an int
LEDLabel.Text = xled.ToString(); //Generate a string from the int
}
private void Run_Click(object sender, EventArgs e) //Generate byte to send instead of sending strings and int/byte
{
byte RGBLED = Convert.ToByte(color);
byte BlinkNum = Convert.ToByte(number1.Value);
byte BlinkDur = Convert.ToByte(number2.Value);
byte[] array2 = new byte[] { RGBLED, BlinkNum, BlinkDur };
port = new SerialPort("COM3", 9600, Parity.None, 8, StopBits.One);
/*
port.Open();
port.Write(array2, 0, 2);
port.Close();
*/
}

Your WinForms application assumes that your Arduino is connected to COM3. Do you know if that's actually the case, or is that sample code that you just copy and pasted? (Check the Windows Device Manager under COM ports to see what ports are available, then unplug/plug your device to see which port it's being mapped to)
Besides that, have you tried debugging your Arduino code on target to see what, if anything, is actually being received?
From the MS documentation, it's not clear how the SerialPort.Write command works exactly in terms of synchronization, so it may not be a great idea to close the port immediately after sending your command. Unfortunately, since I'm not in possession of an Arduino I can't test your code. But I did create a WinForms GUI to accomplish essentially the same task (and more that you probably don't need) several years ago that I've since posted to github (https://github.com/mbhul/RoboCOM). Let me know if that helps, otherwise please tell us more about your development environment.

How to remove the zero value?

private void serialPort_DataReceived(object sender, System.IO.Ports.SerialDataReceivedEventArgs e)
{
if (Clos_flag) return;
try
{
Listening = true;
if (serialPort.IsOpen)
{
this.txt_weight.Invoke(new MethodInvoker(delegate
{
//txt_weight.Text = serialPort.ReadLine();
serialPort.NewLine = "\r";
string weight = serialPort.ReadLine();
if (weight.IndexOf(")") > 0)
{
weight = weight.Substring(3, 8);
// txt_weight.Text = weight.Substring(0, weight.LastIndexOf("0") + 1);
}
}));
}
}
catch (Exception eg)
{
MessageBox.Show(eg.ToString());
}
finally
{
Listening = false;
}
}
What should i change to remove the first zero in the picture, above is the code i use. I tried to change the substring to (2,8) but still it is not working.
I get the value from a weighing machine, once the user click the "Open Serial Port" button

Change this line:
string weight = serialPort.ReadLine();
to this:
string weight = serialPort.ReadLine().TrimStart('0').Trim();
What that will do is readline, trim the first 0, then trim the outside (start amd end) blank spaces before loading the value into the declared variable

Seems like this could be caused by many factors.
Looking at the code, the leading zero should be stripped out, since you already substring out the first two char.
I see that your function serialPort_DataReceived reads the data from a device in your port, so I presume your screen shot is from the output device.
Try and hard code
weight = "12345";
If the problem still persists, it would be caused not by the code, but by your device, etc..
Hope this helps~

Checking device status, while receiving data from serial port c#

Life status of device connected via serial port.
Hello everyone.
How can I check if the device responds to the request? I'm googling this for couple days and tried lot of solutions also from SO, but nothing gave me results that I've expected. After lot of tries I'm in point described below. I think I'm very close but now I need little help, so thanks for every answer in advance.
The current situation
What am I doing right now is very simple. First of all I'm opening serial port serialPort.Open() at very beggining of app (data is receiving almost all the application running time).
As this is just an example in my form is only one label called labelStatus and labelStatus.Text = "Not connected"
Next I'm adding a timer and it's tick method, that contains execute of serialPort.Write(). Timer Interval is set to 100 if that matters.
private void timer_Tick(object sender, EventArgs e)
{
if (serialPort.IsOpen)
{
serialPort.WriteLine("r"); //I'm sending "r" message and device send data back
}
}
Next step is create DataReceived event like below (very simplified version, in my app received data is parsing to floats and storing in array, but it's just to show the problem)
private void serialPort_DataReceived(object sender, System.IO.Ports.SerialDataReceivedEventArgs e)
{
string someVariable = serialPort.ReadLine();
labelStatus.Invoke((MethodInvoker)(() => labelStatus.Text = "Connected"));
//If i received something that means the device is plugged in and connection is correct (still very simplified)
}
One last thing is create ErrorReceived method.
private void serialPort_ErrorReceived(object sender, System.IO.Ports.SerialDataReceivedEventArgs e)
{
labelStatus.Invoke((MethodInvoker)(() => labelStatus.Text = "Not connected"));
}
Untill now everything works brilliant. Sending data works. DataReceived event is executig each 100 miliseconds when data is send. My data is received properly with no problems. When I start application labelStatus text is "Not connected" (device cable is not plugged in). When I plugged in device labelStatus text changing to "Connected". But now when I plugged of cable ErrorReceived event is not executing and labelStatus text is still "Connected". So as I've asked before: How can I check is device still connected to computer? (Or maybe: how to execute ErrorReceived event, when data is not receiving?).
Note: Serial port ReadTimeout is set to 300 miliseconds.
What have I tried
I've tried lot of things but this one in my head seems to should work but doesn't.
I've modified DataReceived event and I've put serialPort.ReadLine() into try/catch block with TimeoutException where I've tried to manually execute ErrorReceived method like below
private void serialPort_DataReceived(object sender, System.IO.Ports.SerialDataReceivedEventArgs e)
{
try
{
string someVariable = serialPort.ReadLine();
labelStatus.Invoke((MethodInvoker)(() => labelStatus.Text = "Connected"));
//If i received something that means the device is plugged in and connection is correct (still very simplified)
}
catch (TimeoutException)
{
serialPort_ErrorReceived(null, null);
}
}
I was hoping that will work like I want.
BTW. Sorry for my English. It's not perfect, but I do my best. Cheers!

Listen to the WM_DEVICECHANGE event that will be fired when a device is removed or inserted.
Here is an example of a implementation and some more information:
Detect serial port insertion/removal
http://www.codemiles.com/download/file.php?id=719 (USB Sample)
http://msdn.microsoft.com/en-us/library/windows/desktop/aa363480(v=vs.85).aspx

This is solution in my case
Regarding to Martjin's answer i need to further explain my situation. First of all I want to say that I'm not installing any hardware into my computer, so in my opinion WM_DEVICECHANGE event was not what i need (but of course thanks for information, I've learned something new). Application is reading data from scale. Scale after plug into com port is not sending any data and actually there's no communication between it and computer at all. The only way to read data is to send request to scale, so I have to rely on that.
First try
The plan:
Add two static int fields (flags) checkOld and checkNew,
increment checkNew in DataReceived, check in timer Tick method
is checkOld is equal to checkNew. If true that means checkNew
was not increment, and that means DataReceived was not executed.
`
private void serialPort_DataReceived(object sender, System.IO.Ports.SerialDataReceivedEventArgs e)
{
checkNew++;
string someVariable = serialPort.ReadLine();
labelStatus.Invoke((MethodInvoker)(() => labelStatus.Text = "Connected"));
//If i received something that means the device is plugged in and connection is correct (still very simplified)
}
private void timer_Tick(object sender, EventArgs e)
{
if (serialPort.IsOpen)
{
serialPort.WriteLine("r"); //I'm sending "r" message and device send data back
}
if (checkOld == checkNew)
{
labelStatus.Invoke((MethodInvoker)(() => labelStatus.Text = "Not connected"));
}
}
`
The plan was good but when I've tested it result was not even good. What happened? Actually device status was blinking connected-not connected-connected-not connected etc. I've wrote some data to output and get answer. The timer was looping so fast that DataReceived event could not always increment checkNew value.
Final solution
Based on what I had at the moment I've decided to add some little changes. Instead of comparing two integers values try to collect couple last values ad check if all were the sem or not.
The plan:
Add three static fields: first six elements array of integers
statusArray, second integer index with value equals to 6 (last
element of array + 1), third integer checkNew,
increment checkNew in
DataReceived event,
in timer Tick event fill array to index,
decrement index value untill whole array is filled, and if index == 0 reset index value to
6,
and last check if last six values of checkNew, stored in
statusArray are the same. If true that means DataReceived did not
executed six times in a row, and now I can be sure that connection is
lost.
`
static int index = 6;
static int checkNew = 0;
static int[] statusArray = {0,0,0,0,0,0};
private void serialPort_DataReceived(object sender, System.IO.Ports.SerialDataReceivedEventArgs e)
{
checkNew++;
string someVariable = serialPort.ReadLine();
labelStatus.Invoke((MethodInvoker)(() => labelStatus.Text = "Connected"));
//If i received something that means the device is plugged in and connection is correct (still very simplified)
}
private void timer_Tick(object sender, EventArgs e)
{
if (serialPort.IsOpen)
{
serialPort.WriteLine("r"); //I'm sending "r" message and device send data back
}
if (index == 0)
index = 6;
index--;
int value = statusArray[index] = checkNew;
}
`