Timeouts occurring during image acquisition.

[kimmel]

I recently purchased and installed the IMAQ PCI-1411. I had the hardware working for a day and a half, and then I started recieving the following message when I try to grab an image:

ERROR(DMA Timeout): The system is unable to capture all of the incoming video data. To fix this problem, you can reduce the size of the acquisition window. This setting is located in the Basic Camera Setting property page. Reducing the acquisition window size decreases the amount of video data to capture.

I reduced the acquisition window to the following sizes: 320x240, 160x120, 100x100, 10x10, and I recieve the same error message each time.

In addition, when I try to snap an image, I get the following error:

wait timed out
- acquisition not complete

Nothing on the computer was changed between the time that the hardware was working and the time it stopped working.

I am running NI MAX to acquire the images running on a Windows 98 700Mhz Pentium 3, trying to acquire from a camera with NTSC output. I know that the camera is working properly because I can run the image through a monitor.

Thanks for any help or suggestions.

Angie

[Kyle_V]

Hi Angie. This sounds like a pretty frustrating issue. Obviously SOMETHING must have changed from yesterday to today. The first thing to check is your camera. Since you're using a 1411, I assume that your camera is an NTSC camera. If so, you should be able to wire it straight to a normal TV to view the image.

If the picture appears fine on the TV, then we need to focus on the cable, environment, 1411 board, and the computer. With that in mind, then next thing I would look at is the cable. Please make sure that the BNC cable connecting your camera to the 1411 firmly connected at both ends, and that you don't have any Ys or splitters in between the 1411 and the camera.

Next, please try taking the 1411 out of the PCI slot and reinstalling it in a different
slot. This will force the computer to reassociate the 1411 and reconfigure the hardware. Also, in MAX, click on the diagnostics button to make sure all of the chips on your 1411 are working properly. Also in MAX, make sure that the camera type associated with Channel 0 is the correct type (NTSC for a color camera, RS-170 for monochrome, etc.)

Finally, if all else fails, please try this 1411 with camera in another computer entirely. Hopefully somewhere along the way you'll acquire good images. If not, please go to ni.com/ask to have an IMAQ Applications Engineer contact you.

Kyle V

[kimmel]

Kyle -

Just so you know, moving the 1411 to a different PCI slot solved the problem.

Thanks for your help.

Angie