# Rhopoint COM Agent

Rhopoint COM Agent is a Windows application that captures measurement data sent over a serial (COM) connection by Rhopoint instruments — such as the FT3 film thickness gauge — and turns it into something useful: structured files on disk, or values typed straight into another program.

Whenever the instrument prints a result, COM Agent reads it, recognises the data format, and writes it out in the format you choose: a raw **TXT** file, a structured **CSV** file, or by **emulating keystrokes** so the values appear directly in whatever field currently has focus (a spreadsheet cell, a QA database, an ERP form, …).

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![](../_images/com-agent-main-screen.png)

## What you can do with COM Agent

1. [Install COM Agent](rhopoint-com-agent-install-com-agent.md) — download, install and start the application.
2. [Connecting an Instrument](rhopoint-com-agent-connecting-an-instrument.md) — choose the COM port and baud rate and confirm data is arriving.
3. [Output Formats](rhopoint-com-agent-output-formats.md) — write each measurement to TXT and/or CSV files.
4. [Keyboard Emulation](rhopoint-com-agent-keyboard-emulation.md) — type measured values straight into another application, with configurable separators.
5. [Capturing Measurements](rhopoint-com-agent-capturing-measurements.md) — start and stop capture and follow the live activity.
6. [Demo Mode](rhopoint-com-agent-demo-mode.md) — try the application without an instrument connected.
7. [Licensing](rhopoint-com-agent-licensing.md) — unlock live capture by adding a licence; demo mode always works without one.
8. [Settings and Language](rhopoint-com-agent-settings-and-language.md) — your configuration is remembered, and the interface is available in thirteen languages.
9. [Command-Line Launch](rhopoint-com-agent-command-line-launch.md) — start pre-configured and capture automatically (for automation).
10. [Updating COM Agent](rhopoint-com-agent-updating-com-agent.md) — keep the application up to date.

## Supported instruments

COM Agent reads the serial output of Rhopoint instruments, including:

- **FT3** Film Thickness Gauge

> [!info] COM Agent currently provides full structured (CSV) parsing for the FT3 *"print all samples"* thickness format. Other instruments are captured as raw text; structured parsing is added as sample data becomes available. Keyboard and TXT output work for every instrument.

> [!info] COM Agent runs on Windows only. It is distributed as a self-contained application — no separate .NET installation is required — and keeps itself up to date automatically.