reading from an Inficon IC/5 deposition controller

[jhackl]

I have never used any VISA applications before and am having trouble communicating with an Inficon IC/5 controller via an RS232 cable.  Are there any drivers or code out there that could get me started?  I basically just need to read frequency and thickness data, and save it to disk.  I am using Labview 7.0, with Windows XP. 

Thanks,

Justin

[AnalogKid2DigitalMan]

Here's some RS232 and GPIB drivers for other Inficon equipment, my browser hung on the popup to display specific models supported.

http://sine.ni.com/idnetwork/main/p/sn/n25:IK.inficon

If you have the programming manual for the device, you could set up Windows Hyperterminal to quickly check communications and cabling out

Message Edited by Support on 05-26-2009 10:50 AM

[MichaelChaney]

Hi Justin,

I searched our Instrument Driver Network (IDNet) and only found two devices from Inficon that we have instrument drivers for.

http://sine.ni.com/idnetwork/main/p/sn/n25:IK.inficonhttp://sine.ni.com/idnetwork/main/p/sn/n25:IK.inficon

Neither of these drivers is certified by National Instruments and are provided as-is.  You may be able to modify one of these drivers to use it with your IC/5.  Your other option is to use VISA read and write to send commands to the device.  You would need to know the serial settings of the device (baud rate, parity, termination character, etc.), and the command set of the device.  You can use the Basic Serial Write and Read VI that ships with LabVIEW as a starting point.  This can be found in the NI Example Finder by selecting Help >> Find Examples... then browsing to Hardware Input and Output >> Serial.  You should be able to send commands using this VI to verify that you can communicate with your device in LabVIEW, and to use as a starting point for developing your program.

Message Edited by Michael C on 09-22-2005 10:46 AM

Message Edited by Support on 05-26-2009 10:51 AM

[terpguru]

Justin, Same problem here! I tried a bunch of commands through Measurement and Automation Explorer, then used some simple VIs. No luck! The
on board self test passes but when I make a VISA read I get timeout errors. I was told in another forum to check to see whether the cable required is a null
modem type or simply direct connection. I am looking up that information now. If you have solved this problem would you mind sending me this VI ?
thanks

[Simran_K]

Hello,

The previous posts are from 2005 and I am not sure if you will get a reply. I would recommend downloading NI-VISA and NI-Serial. Once you have the drivers you use the Basic Serial Write and Read.vi located under LabVIEW examples to test your hardware. Look through the Inficon IC/5 product manual for commands recognized by your controller.

Thank you,