BFFA0018 code when using configure Current level or transient .vi

[Agilent N3300 channel]

Getting an error code BFFA0018, "AGN330XA configure Current Level>vi err Driver Stratus: Not a Valid Configuration. Elaboration Invalid Channel". I am getting this both in the configure Transient Current and the Current Level others have been working on the all channels. I have seen this on channel 2,4 and 5 and have not been able to isolate the reason for this I have moves modules in the Load Module and did not follow any particular load module. And in some programs it is in one channel and other a different channel is affected.

[JLS]

Hello,

I think you're using the IVI driver at NIs site right?  Anyway, the invalid configuration may not only be a result of that specific attribute.  It is likely that it refers to a combination of attributes which would, if set on the instrument, cause an invalid configuration.  Can you consult the instrument user manual to verify that the state of all attributes you have at a given time on the instrument are legal?  This may explain why "some programs it is in one channel and other a different channel is affected," because those programs may set other attributes to different values; some may define a valid combination of the attributes involved, while others may not.

It is possible that the driver has incorrectly detected an invalid state of the attributes.  You may try setting them explicitly on the instrument to see if the instrument generates an error, or continues behaving normally. In any event, the source code for IVI drivers is public (just download the CVI version, and you can look at the underlying code for any driver; the LabVIEW drivers are built via wrapping IVI drivers built in CVI into a dll, and then preserving the function tree in CVI to build the corresponding palette in LabVIEW).  This may not be the easiest thing to do first, so the other methods suggested for determining whether the configuration is invalid are probably better to try first.  If it comes to this, repost and I'll look at the code with you to see if we need to change the source code.

Best Regards,

JLS

[JLS]

Oops... NIs should have been NI's in the previous post 😉

Regards,

JLS

[Agilent N3300 channel]

JLS,

I have traced the problem down to a Module in the unit. I did not originally think it was module related because the error did not follow the module and I was sometimes getting 2 address that had the errors in the same program. but, I was not restarting LabView after switching modules. If I restart LabView and establish communication with the unit the errors always follows the N3307A module.

I talked to Agilent and they are suggesting that the N3307A Module is newer than your driver and I should try to communcate with VISAs because the driver I am using may not communicate with this N3307A Module. I will try direct communcation to see if the module is at fault or the driver is not able to communicate with this new Module.

Thanks for your help,

[JLS]

Ok,

That is very possible, however, often such instruments are built with the same (or only slightly different) APIs from other versions.  Thus, it may be possible to modify the "send strings" in the driver in a fairly trivial way to get a driver that works.  You may want to test out some functionality with the driver to see what works, and use VISA directly to do the things which don't work.  Also, if you find things that don't work, this is something you should certainly post here, because it is very possible the driver can be revised and reposted (or a newer form of the driver added) by NI developers formally.  You can request such an update by emailing instrument.drivers@ni.com (although there is no guarantee about if and when it will happen).

Repost if you need anymore help; in either case, as long as you have the commands the instrument understands available, we can work through getting a program that implements your desire functionality 🙂

Best Regards,

JLS

[Tim_C.]

Do you know if the N3300A NI Driver Suite is designed for RS232 or GPIB communication?  I ask this because when I look at

the examples I see nowhere to set a GPIB address only a VISA resource which I am interpeting as a RS232 COM Port.

Thanks

Tim C.

[Dennis_Knutson]

GPIB, just like the download page says. A VISA resource can be GPIB, RS-232, USB, Ethernet, PCI, PXI, etc. Once you use MAX to search and find the instrument, it will appear when you click on the little arrow on the right side of the control. It should be something like GPIB0::INSTR::n where n is the address.

Message Edited by Dennis Knutson on 12-27-2009 09:45 AM

[Tim_C.]

I am using a CRIO 9012 to control the N3300A Load Banks via the NI GPIB-232 converter.

The CRIO example showing this configuration requires a GPIB address

http://zone.ni.com/devzone/cda/epd/p/id/5978

Any chance you could point me in the right direction on how to handle addressing multiple N3300A (GPIB address 1 & 2). 

I am unsure how MAX would see the CRIO serial port as a GPIB resource (that probably doesn't make sense).  When I am in

MAX the CRIO serial port is available.  I can talk to the load bank using the example described in the link above,  but it would

be nice to be able to use the existing N3300A VIs.

Thanks

Tim C.

[Tim_C.]

When I run the N3300A Channel Status VI I see the resource "9012_COM1",  this is what I had renamed the 9012's com port for clarity on my part.

How to I append the GPIB address to the end of the resouce name,  and for other functionality how do I append the GPIB address and the Channel?

Thanks

Tim C.

[Tim_C.]

I think I understand what you referred to when you said to discover the resource in MAX.  But I cannot seem to figure out how

to get MAX to see the GPIB resouces through the CRIO, then though the Converter.

Thanks

Tim C.