Installation manual

FuelMaster
®
Installation Manual
60
communications medium for communications with the FMUs.
Refer to the FuelMaster
®
Plus User Manual for minimum PC requirements, and installation and operation
of the Fuel Management Software.
Central Controller
The Central Controller must be capable of interfacing with the Master FMU(s) to send and receive
data, and the Prokee
®
/Smartcard Encoder to encode and read Prokee
®
s/Smartcards. It may also be
desirable to interface with a printer to print reports generated by the FuelMaster
®
software program.
The Central Controller need not be a desktop PC. Some have found a laptop to be more ideal to carry to
the FMU for direct connection with the FMU.
The Central Controller must conform to the Minimum PC Requirements specified in the FuelMaster
®
Plus User Manual. It may be more functional with future software upgrades, and faster operating, if it
meets the Recommended PC Requirements.
After installation and setup, day-to-day use of the Central Controller and its attachments will require
minimal equipment use. As such, the FuelMaster
®
role of the Central Controller equipment can be
considered secondary to some other primary application that may need more equipment time.
Consideration for the required interfaces and equipment use must be made when selecting a location for
the Central Controller.
Communications to FMU(s)
The means must exist for the Central Controller to communicate with each master FMU. The
communications medium for the master FMUs must be compatible with the communications medium
installed/connected to the Central Controller whether it be phone, two way ringdown device, direct
connect, or wired or wireless network.
Network Communications: if network communications are used, the network administrator must
be involved. The PC and FMU must have IP addresses to be functional with each other, and the existing
network. FuelMaster
®
software setup will require an IP address be entered in the software for the Central
Controller to communicate with the master FMU(s).
Wireless communications will be dependent upon distance and line-of-sight between the Central
Accounting Office and the FMU. If the distance is too great, other options must be pursued. If line-of-sight
is not possible, repeaters may be installed to carry the wireless signal around or over any obstacles.
If an FMU is ordered with a network card, a modem is also provided. As desired, this permits a firewall to
stay active for the network for normal day-to-day FMU communications, and a phone line to be present to
attain support from Syn-Tech’s Customer Satisfaction Center (CSC).
Telephone Line Communications: if telephone lines are used, the phone line must be an
analog, data-grade, USA telephone line. Digital phone lines will not
work. With telephone lines or a two-
way ringdown device, a 100% Hayes-compatible modem must be available, and either connected to
(external) or installed in (internal) the Central Controller.
Two-Way Ringdown Device: if a two-way ringdown device is used, consideration should be given
to placing the two-way ringdown device where an analog phone line (such as from a fax machine) may be
plugged into it. This will permit Syn-Tech’s CSC the option of modem connecting to the FMU for
troubleshooting and support.
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