Error with Visa and USB device

[DARB]

Dennis,

There are no device drivers for labview, I have asked, and this appears to be my only option.

I followed the tutorial on NI.com (link) to get it installed.

[LV_Pro]

Was tehre any installation software that came with the device? Does it have a .dll associated with it?

[DARB]

yes there is a DLL

[Dennis_Knutson]

The fact that there are no device drivers for LabVIEW is not surprising but creating a RAW device is just wrong in this case. That tutorial should be your last desparate attempt and you need to work on interfacing to the DLL you got from the vendor. You need to undo all of the VISA driver creation that you did. That means removing the inf file, etc from windows.

[DARB]

OK, how do I go about removing the INF, I'm sure I need to do more than just delete it.

once it's deleted, how do I create a driver with the DLL?

Sorry, if these are dumb questions, I'm new to this stuff.

[LV_Pro]

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not sure where the inf file would be, there are probably entries in the registry as well. You might only have to run the Add/Remove hardware in Windows Control Panel. After that do a search on this NI site for .dll and you will get some stuff to start with. Did it come with any kind of programming manual?

[Dennis_Knutson]

You should go into windows device manager and modify the settings for the device (i.e disable and .uninstal). Then you can delete the inf and pnf files that were created.

As far as using the DLL, it really depends on the type of DLL. It could be something you use with the Call Library Function Node, an ActiveX dll, or even .NET. There should be some documentation from the vendor on it's api. Attach the documentation you recieved. Only way to know.

[DARB]

I've attached everything that came on the CD for the device.

I'm not sure what you mean with the API. This is all the documentation i have. the instruction manual has no information in it other than accessories you can buy, really.

[PJS]

I would call or email Shimpo and tell them that you are writing a program for the laser tach and would like the software reference guide.  Chances are that they do not have it handy or it would have been in the literature, but if you get the right tech support guy, he can tell you the information you need to access their DLL in order to communicate with the device.  I have done this with varying levels of success with instrument vendors.  

You can also look through the directory that you installed their software to in order to determine if there is a documentation on writing your own program to interface with their device.

[Dennis_Knutson · Accepted solution]

API means application program interface.

First, do the installation of the vendor's driver and application program. Then run the program just to verify everything has been installed correctly.

I don't see any documentation at all on the dll. I guess they expect everyone to use their program and not control from some third-party software. You will need to contact them and explain that you really need to control/read with third-party software and need documentation on the dll. They may or may not charge you for this documentation but without it, you really can't do anything.