Guidance on writing Vi or C/C++/VB.Net Code for ancient Air Data Test Set that uses 488-1975 ASCII Interface Board??

[sOc724]

     Greetings All.

     I have taken on a personal task to try to automate an ancient Sperry (now Honeywell) ADT-222b Air Data Test Set for work and my drive to learn something new. I am somewhat at an understand of the whole aspect of the workings of GPIB communication after spending a few days doing research.

     I guess where I am hung up, to an minor extent, is how to approach the way the ADT-222b reads and writes the GPIB info to and from a program. The ADT-222b programming instructions within the manual and sample conversations works with binary code with each instruction being only 8-bits in length. Communication is from automated test equipment (Controller/CPU) to an ASCII interface board via IEEE-488 connector to the ADT-222b processor then back. Now the manual has listed all the ASCII data bits for the: Bus Words (Listen, Talk, Unlisten, Untalk, Memory Address and Data), Input Memory Addresses and Data and Output Memory and Data.

     So my question is would it be useful for me to create some sort of seperate file (a header .h or .cpp file) or independent driver for the ADT-222b to reference a variable to each Bus Word, Input Memory Address, Input Data, Output Memory Address and Output Data since they all have their own defined ASCII data bits (byte) associated with them.

     Please throw everything you got at me. I am open to trying anything and learning what I can even if it might be a slow process. I'll learn it one way or the other.

     I have tried throwing lines into the Interactive Control with little result that I can see. The ADT-222b does communicate with the PCI-GPIB board installed as I can see it in MAX and see the DIP switch programmed address on ADT-222b.

Thank You In Advance..... Robert Haas

[Nathan-M]

If there are several manufacturer defined ASCII words, then using a header file with all of these variables listed as a #DEFINE sounds like it would be a good approach, you got it. 

I don't really see where the problem is, are you getting any error messages or is the device not responding? 

[sOc724]

Thank you for the reply...

     I will research on building a header to link under #DEFINE. I am learning C++ on this path also.

     I don't have much of a problem with this, at least not yet, fore I am at the moment trying to get the best avenue of approach for the project. I get all kinds of different errors with the interactive communicator app. When sending different ib commands. But that is expected at this point in the game since I am trying to figure out the way to communicate via the 488.1 way with the hardware specific coding of the ADT-222B. All while this is something new to myself.

     I found some old (2007 & 2008) posts regarding someone trying to do the same task in VB.Net then in C++ . The posts gave me some insight on a way to communicate with the ADT-222B. But it seems that the posts were short and not too descriptive.

     I would like as a whole goal for this is to create the header file link it to Labview and create the whole automation of the ADT-222B within Labview just the same as the other air data test set we have (which is 488.2 interfaced and had a LLBs for it created by the manufacturer).

     I enjoy taking on projects that give me a reason to learn programming. For without these projects, I would have no fun way of learning.

Thank You,

Robert Haas

[Mustanghipo65]

We have been using this set of vi's for a test systems for about 15 years. It is quite poorly written and the only updates we really have done to it is to compile it into later versions of labview. The ADT must be set to have an address of 8. Our GPIB controller card is a legacy ISA device from NI. These VI's won't let you control the pressure in feet, but maybe these can give you a head start. We've never tried properly writing these into an instrument controller becasue it works for our needs. Run "InitializeADTS.vi" first, then "adtpressurechange.vi" to update pressure values. "CloseADTS.vi" should disable the ADT when you're done.

Sorry that they're horribly written and there isn't a way to read any values from the ADT. I hope this can get you started on a much better set that we have.

[sOc724]

Thank you for the reply and the info/files. I had set this project aside and almost forgot I had this post out here. I am game for any help anyone can give. I am going really slow if not at a stand still with this project. I've been trying to learn as much coding as possible and the lack of having more than one GPIB card (old PCI card) in the building that is tied up to my other test stand.

But I will go through the files you sent and see what all I can come up with.

Thank you once again,

Robert Haas