PCI-6534 Not responding to commands

[digitalIO]

Hi all,

I recently switched the OS from Windows 2000 to XP pro.  I reloaded LabVIEW 7.1 on the machine and the latest version of DAQmx, which I believe is 8.8.  I'm trying to establish that all of my NI cards and VIs still work, but I'm having trouble with the PCI-6534.

When I first brought up the MAX (ver 4.5), it recognized the card but crashed every time I went to do the test panels in DAQmx.  Using the traditional DAQ test panels, I was able to control the card as expected.  I tried resetting the traditional DAQ driver and the DAQmx driver, but nothing worked.  I then uninstalled and reinstalled DAQmx (and MAX).  Now the DAQmx test panels would run, but the card wasn't acting 100% normal, as channel 1 on port0 wouldn't respond to an input nor activate as an output.  Also, when I try to run one of the NI sample VIs (Synch_Dig_InOut_6534.vi), I get the error (Some of the samples you requsted were not collected...Timeout issue).  The card doesn't seem to be reading/writing any of the samples requested. 

I'm not sure how to troubleshoot this -- I think it's probably a card error, but I don't know how to be sure. 

Any help would be much appreciated.  Please let me know if you need more details.

Kevin

[John_P1]

Hi Kevin,

Thanks for posting!  A couple of questions: 

1. Does channel 1 on port 0 function properly in Traditional DAQ test panels?
2. Do other channels work as expected using DAQmx test panels? 
3. Which channels are you using for the Synch_Dig_InOut example?
4. Can you run the example using a simulated 6534?

Essentially, I'm trying to determine if the problem is with your hardware or with the driver installation--these questions should help us narrow it down. 

Your initial problem of MAX crashing was probably caused by a database corruption.  For future reference, steps to resolve that issue are described here.

-John

Message Edited by John P on 10-14-2008 12:31 PM

[digitalIO]

John,

Thanks for the advice. I've done all that you requested. 

Here's what I got:

1.  Channel 1 on port 0 does not function properly on the Traditional DAQ  test panels or the DAQmx test panels

2. The other channel function as expected in both the Traditional DAQ and DAQmx test panels

3.  For the Synch_Dig_InOut I am using port0/line0:7 for output and port2/line0:7 for input.

4. I ran the example for a simulated 6534 and get no errors (other than trigger errors due to the simulated card -- I changed to onboard triggers and the error went away). 

I also ran into another problem yesterday.  I have a PCI-6071E in the same system that stopped responding.  It fails the self-test reporting error -200020.  Attempting to run the Traditional DAQ test panels locks up the MAX, requiring me to end the task in the task manager. 

All these problems could be related -- we believe there was a lightning storm surge on the system a few weeks ago.  I think it came in on the ethernet to the PC.  The OS replacement was partly due to a hard drive replacement necessitated by this event.  Is there a better way to ascertain whether damage was done to the boards?  We need this system to be up and running ASAP to preform a test. 

Thanks for all of your help,

Kevin

[John_P1]

Hi Kevin,

Thanks for the response.  This sounds like a hardware problem (most likely caused by the surge that you mentioned).  I would try your cards in another computer if possible so we can determine if the problem is with your NI hardware or with the PCI bus on your computer.  If your NI hardware is damaged, you should contact us by phone so we can further troubleshoot the issue and look into getting your hardware repaired.

-John