Looking for some help/advice on LabVIEW

[Laura]

Hello, I'm completely new to LabVIEW but have a project to do and was wondering if anyone could give me some help/advice/ideas.

I need to use LabVIEW to interface with a power meter (Agilent E4419B) via a GPIB cable. I have a GP10 card. I have the drivers from the NI website. Can anyone think of any other software/hardware I may require? Or any advice about the best way to go about this from experience?

[Miquel G.]

Can you be a little more specific?

Saludos

[Laura]

Yeah sorry I am being very vague!

Basically I am wondering how you actually go about setting up LabVIEW to communicate with the meter - is all I need a GPIB card and cable? How do the drivers actually work? Do I need to use any different commands to interact with the meter or do the drivers serve this purpose?

[Miquel G.]

The communication with GPIB instruments s very easy so tyou only need a card and cables.

You send commands to the instruments in text format to the driver. The only thing you may know is the address of the instrumet. Then, by using generic or specific sentences you communicate with the instument

Saludos

[Laura]

Thanks.

So how do I control the power meter from LabVIEW? Does a representation get added into the VI? Or is programming code required?

[Miquel G.]

It depends on what have to do with the instrument.

For example, if you want to know the identification , you hav to write: "IDN?"
And then read, for example, 50 characters. Put an string indicator on the output of the read VI.

I hope this will be useful, Laura

Saludos desde Barcelona

[Miquel G.]

Hi

If you want to ask to the instrument anythin, I'll look how to solve the more accurately possible

Saludos

[Miquel G.]

Hi

If you want to ask to the instrument anything, I'll look how to solve the more accurately possible

Saludos

[Laura]

Im just kind of planning out the project just now.

Thanks!

[Miquel G.]

Ok, only one advice: you may do it with labVIEW and GPIB very easily. I've done several projects and it's not complicated.

If you need help, please, contact me

Saludos
Miquel