Calibration or Zero. What are the differences?

[Vroa]

Hello.

I am evaluating the Flexlogger software for our needs.

My Flexlogger =  2018 R4, Build 6.2.0.52383

I am using a 9174 chassis, 4 slots.  Slot 1 = 3862 Hi speed xnet, Slot 2 = 9237, Slot 3 = 9213, Slot 4 = 9239

I have a load cell connected to Slot 2, 9237, Ch 0.

In my channel configuration menu for Ch 0 I have selected the following.

--- General info, Physical measurement = force, Sensor class = Bridge,

---Physical Unit, Pound force,  Minimum = -250, Maximum = 250

---Electrical -  Hardware Range = Auto (-25/25mv/V, Bridge = Full Bridge, Excitation source = Internal, Excitation Value = 10V , Bridge offset  0 mv/v

--Scaling = Sensitivity, Sensitivity = 0.01236 (mv/V)/lbf, Offset = 0

1. What exactly does the "Calibrate" button do to populate the Bridge Offset field in my Electrical settings?
2. How is this different than the "Zero Channel" button in my Scaling settings?

[BriBear]

Often times when you are using a bridge-based sensor, it won't necessarily output exactly 0 V with no load. This can leave you with a slight initial offset voltage. The "Calibrate" button allows the software to capture this initial offset voltage due to the bridge sensor and null it out specifically using the DAQ driver.

The offset under the Scaling section is essentially the 'b" in the "y = mx + b". In general, "Zero Channel" takes the next buffer of data read from the driver and sets the Average as the Offset on your scale. In this particular case, the "Zero Channel" button provides a similar benefit as the bridge offset nulling but through the FlexLogger application's scaling functionality.

Here are some additional resources:

Configuring Scaling for FlexLogger Load Cell Channel

Scaling Electrical Values to Physical Values