Pinewood Timer Interface Protocol

Race Results Format:

Sent in the order of finish (sent as each lane finishes, or upon request)

Data

Description

Sent when race starts (gate opened - Begin)

3 2.8820

First lane to finish, lane number (3) and time

1 3.5109

Second lane to finish, lane number (1) and time

4 3.5134

Third lane to finish, lane number (4) and time

2 3.6202

Fourth lane to finish, lane number (2) and time

5 0.0000

Lane that didn't finish (timed out), lane number (5) and 0 time

Sent when all lanes have reported finish (End)

This same sequence is sent upon receipt of a Force Results or Retrieve Times command

Race Commands:

Char	Command	Action
R	Reset	Resets the timer for the next heat. Aborts any race in progress. Any lanes that have not finished will send up 0.0000 as their time.
T	retrieve Times	Command to request the timer to send race times Used to request the times be sent again, or if the software cannot receive the times as each lane finishes. Most software will not require this setting. Do not enter this command into Grand Prix Race Manager
F	Force end	Forces the end of the race. (Called Abort Race in some software.) Remaining lanes send up 0.0000 as their results.
C	Check start gate	Requests start gate status Response is Gc for gate closed, Go for gate open
S	Start	Triggers Start Solenoid if solenoid triggering is used Command to cause the timer to trigger the start solenoid. A start solenoid is an option feature, and is not required for proper operation.

Char

Command

Action

Reset

Resets the timer for the next heat. Aborts any race in progress.
Any lanes that have not finished will send up 0.0000 as their time.

retrieve Times

Command to request the timer to send race times
Used to request the times be sent again, or if the software cannot receive the times as each lane finishes.
Most software will not require this setting. Do not enter this command into Grand Prix Race Manager

Force end

Forces the end of the race. (Called Abort Race in some software.)
Remaining lanes send up 0.0000 as their results.

Check start gate

Requests start gate status
Response is Gc for gate closed, Go for gate open

Start

Triggers Start Solenoid if solenoid triggering is used
Command to cause the timer to trigger the start solenoid.
A start solenoid is an option feature, and is not required for proper operation.

There are additional commands specific to each hardware version that are used to save option settings that are not listed above. The commands above are the common basic protocol required for most computer race management software.

This interface should be entirely compatible with the GrandPrix Race Management software package V3.0 or later, if you enter the above settings in the hardware configuration panel under the custom timer settings. Note that you should not enter the Retrieve Times (T) option for Grand Prix Race Manager, as it will take the results as each lane finishes.

Other Commands:

Char	Command	Action
V	Version	Cause the timer to send the version identification string.
D	Toggles Debug Mode	Turns on or off a diagnostic mode that sends extra information to the host for each action Useful for troubleshooting a hardware problem.

Char

Command

Action

Version

Cause the timer to send the version identification string.

Toggles Debug Mode

Turns on or off a diagnostic mode that sends extra information to the host for each action
Useful for troubleshooting a hardware problem.

Timer Setup Commands:

The firmware is "soft configurable" for several hardware options. I've written a MS Windows program to set up and configure the firmware. You can download the executable here or a zip file containing it here. The settings are stored in the eeprom on the timer, so the setup should be a one time process.

Race Timer Software Interface Protocol

Hardware settings:

Race Results Format:

Race Commands:

Other Commands:

Timer Setup Commands: