Labview Equipment Control

[Brzhou]

Hi Sir, 

Normally we use VISA to control the DC/AC source, e-load, DMM, I/O, matrix, etc.

Do you have any kind of standard commands for those equipments? or it is varied from supplier to supplier ?

Thanks.

[crossrulz · Accepted solution]

There is SCPI as a standard that covers many instruments.  Whether or not your instruments actually follow that standard is a different question.

[santo_13 · Accepted solution]

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@Brzhou wrote:

Hi Sir, 

Normally we use VISA to control the DC/AC source, e-load, DMM, I/O, matrix, etc.

Do you have any kind of standard commands for those equipments? or it is varied from supplier to supplier ?

Thanks.

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It varies by manufacturer, model and even firmware version. There are few common commands that most support.

[Brzhou]

So normally the supplier will provide the commands, then we can just control by VISA, and  some times, they will provide simples VIs, that is my understanding.

Thanks.

[santo_13]

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@Brzhou wrote:

So normally the supplier will provide the commands, then we can just control by VISA, and  some times, they will provide simples VIs, that is my understanding.

Thanks.

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Every supplier is expected to provide the commands for their products if it uses common protocols or a DLL of some sort if uses proprietary protocol if they advertise their product can be automated and optionally give simple LabVIEW libraries that implement some set of the commands for the instruments.

For instance, Audio Precision instruments uses proprietary protocol and hence comes with an elaborate set of libraries and documentation that can be integrated with LabVIEW. On the other hand, instruments that use common protocol such as RS232, GPIB or LXI, the manufacturer just provides a manual documenting all the commands, formats, operation instructions, error and troubleshooting methods.

* All these are applicable only for "reputable" manufacturers, there are some off-brand Chinese manufacturers who just leaves the customer in the dark without even sufficient documentation.