Trouble opening NI 4050 with labview

[Bandido33]

Hello,

I'm having trouble running my DMM PCMCIA NI-4050 in labview.  I'm running Labview PDS 8.0 on Windows XP, and the driver version for the DMM is 2.0. 

The problem is that the DMM works well on the soft panel, and also works well when I run a test in MAX.  When I try to run an example .VI using the DMM it returns error code -1074118656.  I've read other posts where the device name was typed incorrectly, or it wasn't selected at all.  But I've checked and re-checked the device name in MAX.  When that didn't work I deleted it and renamed it to NI 4050, and I still get the same error code.  Is there a step that I'm missing?  The only other thing I can think of is that the driver needs to be updated.  The updated driver file is about 1.6 GB so I'll have to download it over night and try again in the morning.  Just wanted to post to see if anyone else had an idea what it could be.

Thanks,

Lluno

[Andy-K]

Hi Bandido33,

Updating the drivers is a good step. One thing to note is that NI-DMM 2.8 is the latest version that supports Labview 8.0 so do not install a later version if you are working with Labview 8.0.

Also, what example are you running?  In most of our examples the device is selectable through a device name control.  When you press the down arrow from the device name control does the 4050 show up in the list with its respective name given in MAX?

Another thing to check is what operating system are you using? Some DMMs are only supported for certain operating systems for certain cards. This information is available in the driver readme files.

[TobiasG]

Lluno,

Device names cannot have spaces. If you have it named as "NI 4050", I would suggest renaming it to something like "NI_4050" or "NI4050". Error -1074118656, as listed in nidmm.h, is defined as NIDMM_ERROR_UNKNOWN_DEVICE. Try removing the space, and see if that helps.

Please let us know if this is able to solve your problem.

Sincerely,

Tobias G

Software Engineer

Precision DC Software

National Instruments

[Bandido33]

Hey Andy,

Thanks for the quick reply.  It's a good thing I read this because I downloaded a later version of the driver and was getting ready to install it this morning. 

I'm running example "Measure DC Volts", which is a single DC measurement from the DMM.  On the Front panel there is a drop down menu labeled device name.  When I click on the arrow the name I've given the DMM in MAX appears.  I select it, start the VI, and almost immediately get the error code -1074118656. 

I'm using Windows XP.  I'll check the driver read me file to see if it's supported.  unfortunatelt I downloaded the wrong driver version so I'll have to wait the extra hour or so to download the zip file.  I'll keep you posted

[Bandido33]

Tobias,

I shall try your suggestion and see what happens

Thanks,

Lluno

[Bandido33]

---

Tobias G wrote:

Lluno,

Device names cannot have spaces. If you have it named as "NI 4050", I would suggest renaming it to something like "NI_4050" or "NI4050". Error -1074118656, as listed in nidmm.h, is defined as NIDMM_ERROR_UNKNOWN_DEVICE. Try removing the space, and see if that helps.

Please let us know if this is able to solve your problem.

Sincerely,

Tobias G

Software Engineer

Precision DC Software

National Instruments

---

Hey Tobias,

I renamed the DMM to NI4050, no spaces, and I'm still getting the same error code.  I made sure to do a restart after changing the name so that the changes would take effect.  Thanks for the tip though

-Lluno

[TobiasG]

LLuno,

What example are you trying to run? As Andy had mentioned, did you type the name in manually or did you select the device from the drop-down menu? If you have not, try selecting the device from the drop-down menu, then run the example. If that does not fix it, I would suggest looking at the Receiving Error -1074118656 when Running NI-DMM VIs KB. Try using the Traditional DAQ name and see if that works as well.

Failing that, my best suggestion as well would be to upgrade to 2.8, and hopefully that will fix the problem. NI-DMM 2.0 is *very* old, and although  The 4050 should work on XP.

Also, for future reference, renaming the device in MAX does not require a reboot in order for it to take effect.

Please let us know if that helps!

[Bandido33]

Tobias,

The example I'm trying to run is "Measure DC Volts.vi".  As an update, I have upgraded to NIDMM 2.8 and I still have the problem.  I have typed the name in manually as well as selected it from the drop down menu with an error message occuring in both. 

I found this note under the link you sent me; NOTE: If NI TestStand, LabVIEW or CVI is being used with an IVI-DMM driver session, use the DAQmx names for the Resource Descriptor under the hardware tab in MAX if the device is National Instruments hardware. (e.g.,  PXI1Slot6).

What would be the DAQmx name for my DMM?  Or where can I locate it?

[kirsch]

There's no "DAQmx name" for the 4050. This is an older device that does not use the DAQmx driver framework internally. You need to refer to it as DAQ::1 or such. Can you post a screenshot of MAX with the device tree in the left fully extended?

Thanks

[Bandido33]

All,

The issue has been solved.  Instead of using the name for DMM under IVI driver (Which was NI_4050), I assigned a new device number to the DMM.  In the drop down menu in the VI, the Device # was DAQ::1, but in MAX it was assigned as device #2.  I changed the Device number from 2 to 1 in MAX, hit apply, went to the VI's drop down menu, selected DAQ::1 and ran the program....... And it worked!  Thanks everyone for all your help, I couldn't have done it without you.

Thanks again,

Lluno