Instrument Control (GPIB, Serial, VISA, IVI)

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how to use an instrument driver?

It is doable to start again in labview but it is a lot of work

greetings from the Netherlands
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Message 11 of 19
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Hi, albert

 

You are right, no error occured when i add on ending characters using Max basic I/o now. But i still cannot use its driver. I encounter a missing file problem when i tried to drag it into my block diagram. here is what i repeated many times installing it.

 

) Close Labview 
2) Install 4.4.1 PNP Driver from this link: 
http://www.home.agilent.com/agilent/editorial.jspx?cc=MY&lc=eng&ckey=112417&nid=-536900351.0.00&id=1... 
3) Unzip attached file "LabviewFiles_for_816x_4_4_1" into 'C:\Program Files\National Instruments\LabVIEW x.x\instr.lib' 
4) This should create a folder hp816x 
5) Open Labview

 

Missing file: hp861x_32.dll

I am using Agilent USB/GPIB and Labview.

Could you give some clue? many thanks

tina 

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Message 12 of 19
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That link is incorrect.

That's an IVI driver isn't it. They usually come with an installer to place the dll and other files in the correct location. In any case if the dll was not part of the zip, you'll have to go back to Agilent and get it.
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Message 13 of 19
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Hi, guys

 

You all sound more professional. Agilent just informed me there is no more support since 816x obselete. NI told me they cannot offer more help since i am using Agilent USB/GPIB to control Aglient product. 

 

Didn't expect the whole thing is so 'difficult". 

But why NI engineer followed exactly the same procedure and he didn't encounter the same problem. I am really lost..

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Message 14 of 19
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Win7 is the problem. It stores 32 bit apps in program files (86) and the old software is checking program files.

Maybe you can find it there but then you still have the 32-64 OS problem.

For one application we managed to use VMWARE virtual machine with xp within Win7 but that took also a lot of time before it worked.

In that case there was also only a driver for xp available.

 

Sorry.

greetings from the Netherlands
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Message 15 of 19
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@tina2012 wrote:

Hi, guys

 

You all sound more professional. Agilent just informed me there is no more support since 816x obselete.


The Agilent 8164A is obselete. The 8164B is not.

You should be able to use the 8164A drivers with the 8164B.

 

Instead of getting two problems muddled together.

Why don't you make sure that the Agilent USB-GPIB is working first. Just by making sure that you can communicate to the instrument using the Agilent IO Suite? Then work on fixing the LabVIEW to 8164A problem.

 

Have you tried installing the 8164A drivers in XP compatibility mode which I linked to in my post above?

 

If you have Win7 Professional, you can dowload Windows XP Mode with Virtual PC.

 

 

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Message 16 of 19
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Yes, the Agilent USB-GPIB is working, and is able to communicate to the instrument using the Agilent IO Suite and send commands successfully but facing a timeout error using NI MAX. When the labview program is run, it will search and prompt to find a shared dll file (hp861x_32.dll) which cannot be found. I am already using 8164A driver in XP compatibility mode, not using Win7 Pro.

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Message 17 of 19
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You've got two different problems. The dll you are looking for was created by Agilent. To repeat what I said, if it was not part of the download, go back to Agilent and get it from them. If they don't have it, then you cannot use the LabVIEW driver. If it was part of the download, you might just have to relink it to the Call Library Function Nodes that are in the driver. Did you at least search your hard driver for the dll?

 

The other issue sounds like you need to enable tulip support in MAX.

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Message 18 of 19
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I am on XP. I downloaded the driver and double-clicked on it. It created and installed files in C:\Program Files\IVI Foundation\VISA\WinNT\AG8614X. Not sure where the DLL file, if there was one, was installed.

Anyone, it was a fruitless effort since the VIs that depend on the DLL was written in LabVIEW version 5.1 so they would not not open in LabVIEW 8.5.1

 

 There is a ag8614x_32.dll in C:\Program Files\IVI Foundation\VISA\WinNT\Bin

 

Since you are on Win7, not sure what you will see.

 

 

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Message 19 of 19
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