Configure real-time NI acquisition using ME'Scope?

[casefive]

Good afternoon everybody:

I have been asked to evaluate ME'Scope for real-time acquisition and analysis of accel data from a NI system (4472).  For the last few months we've been using a .vi to collect data, then output it as an ME'Scope block file and read it back into ME'Scope for modal analysis, visualization, etc.

I'm new here, but apparently ME'Scope has never worked in our lab for acquisition.  We have a support request out to the ME'Scope fellows, but in the meantime I thought I would ask if anyone here has information/experience on configuring ME'Scope to work with the NI racks (or equivalently, configuring NI racks to work with ME'Scope)?  Is there a particular DAQ setting on the computer or drivers that makes a difference for this type of setup?

Brief rundown on the ME'Scope situation:
When I open a ME'Scope acquisition, I connect to the NI front end, assign some channel DOFs, and try to acquire (either 'record' or 'scope').  The NI rack flashes for ~15 seconds, but the ME'Scope screen stays stuck on "collecting data."  Using the hammer for a trigger gives "trigger armed" and a hammer tap changes the screen to "collecting data" though no data appears.  Again, the lights flash for ~15s before going steady.  The hammer being recognized seems to imply that ME'Scope is hearing the data internally, but is getting confused during the recording?  At any rate, no data from the NI racks ever makes it to the ME'Scope screen.

Thanks,
-Case

[wildcat_600]

Hello Case,

Let me make sure that I completely understand your question.  From what I read it seems that you are successful in using a VI to acquire and save your data.  Then you can analyze the data in ME'Scope at a later time.  However you want to bypass using your current VI and just use ME'Scope for acquisition and analysis.  Is this correct?

If this is not the case and you are having trouble with your LabVIEW VI, please let me know some more information about your VI as well as what drivers you are using and I can help you get your VI running with DAQ.

If this is the case then I think you are on the right track making a support request with ME'Scope, since they will know how to use their software better than anyone else.  I'd really like to be able to help more but I have not used the ME'Scope software so I can't tell you exactly what you would need to do.  But please let me know if you are having any difficulties with either LabVIEW or your 4472.

Have a great day!

Brian P.
Applications Engineer

[casefive]

Good morning:

Thank you Brian P., your interpretation was correct:  I am trying to use ME'Scope as my all-in-one acquisition and visualization tool.  My setup works with a .vi, but ME'Scope's acquisition interface doesn't see my data.

I don't suppose anyone here uses ME'Scope and could think about common configuration errors?  Is there some way to put my racks into a more "friendly" state (for want of a better word) so that the ME'Scope hooks can grab the data?  The ME'Scope tech implied that ME'Scope should "Just Work" if MAX configured the devices properly.

In case there is such a ME'Scope guru lurking, my setup is:

Many accels -> Seven 4472b cards in a PXI-1045 Chassis -> PXI-1052 Chassis (using the fancy PXI-8336) -> lab PC (Windows XP), again with the fiber optics

Hardware wizard installs the traditional drivers, so I'm doubled up in MAX with mx and legacy devices for each 4472.  All the boards are recognized, and connected to the associated internal chassis bus/slot.  Test panels for mx and traditional are A-OK, and as I mentioned, my .vi can grab the data.  I have, therefore, configured MAX properly enough to talk with a .vi, but not properly enough to speak with ME'Scope.  (There are no ME'Scope DAQ settings (!), it reads the system configuration to learn what to do.)

Thanks,
-Case

[casefive]

Good morning everybody:

A few updates and reinstalls of ME'Scope and the NI software, and I have success!  I can acquire data in ME'Scope and look at modal information, match it to a structural animation, all in near-real-time.

The "trigger" mode is not working, it thinks that the channel is disabled.  I can record free-run data from the hammer and all channels, so I am cut-n-pasting by hand at the moment.  Again, I'll call ME'Scope this afternoon, but I'd love to hear back from a NI/ME'Scope expert who has configured a similar system.

Thanks,
-Case

[MickeyD]

Hey Case,

Brian is out, so I was going to see if I could help at all on this issue.  When you say the trigger mode is not working and that the channel is disabled is this describing the situation in the ME'Scope software.  It seems like ME'Scope must have some way of setting which channel it looks for the trigger on.  I will ask around if anyone hear has setup an application using ME'Scope, but hopefully someone from the community will have the expereience to help you with this issue.  I would recommend continuing to communicate with ME'Scope as much as possible, since it is their software.  I can not think of anything you should change in MAX to make the board more accesible to ME'Scope.

Let me know how things progress and if you need further information,

Michael D

Applications Engineering
National Instruments

[casefive]

Michael D.:

Thank you for your reply, I've been working on another project and hadn't checked the NI forums in a bit.

Last week ME'Scope sent me an update that has fixed the triggering behavior, it seems that, just as you suggested, there was a glitch in the ME'Scope vitals during the "scan for channels" phase of a triggering acquisition.  It wasn't an NI issue, but I want to thank you (and Brian P. above) for your help.  I'm now playing with the triggering options, and working out how to stack multiple acquisitions.  Good times.

Thanks again,
-Case