impressions and info about signal express

[Questionmarker]

Hello,

We are about to buy a DAQ system. Therefore we have had a look at the different softwares coming with the systems. Sadly, we only got few info about the SignalExpress (or we failed to find the right information site on ni.com) coming with a PXI without spending half of the day with the sales engineer (although he is a really nice guy). So I would like to ask you:

- what do you like about SignalExpress?

- how often do you use it?

- what could be better?

- do you experience problems on a regular basis?

- what limitations annoy you?

- could you post a screenshot of the software?

Thank you for your answers!

[DFGray]

You can download a trial copy of SignalExpress directly from the product page.  This will give you a 30-day, full featured demo of the software.  It comes with many example projects to give you a good idea of what it can do.  Since I am an NI employee, I will not answer the rest of your questions.  The community should respond fairly quickly.  If you have any specific questions when trying it out, don't hesitate to ask.

[OKors]

- what do you like about SignalExpress?

Easy to use, quick to setup multiple channel tests, displays data in realtime; chart/xy/numerical format (essential for my needs), flexible, GUI based so navigation is intuitive and data presentation is customizable, NI support is amazing

- how often do you use it?

Every day since SigEx 2009

- what could be better?

There's a whole sticky dedicated to this very question but to list a few: As your test becomes more complex and multiple signal types are added (voltage, custom voltage, strain, bridge, etc) the project step pane can become very cluttered and borderline unwieldy. I feel like this could be streamlined a bit better.

Zero offest is a bit clunky (again... especially for multiple signal types)

Scaling of sensors could be better (with respect to how other DAQ systems handle scaling). Custom scaling for your sensor is not saved directly within the Channel Settings of the Signal Express project file, rather they're saved in a "library" which is managed behind the scenes by a different program (MAX). Potentially, someone can create their own SE project on the same PC, use the same sensor you're using from the "library" and change the scaling according to thier calibration info. When you go to run your test again later down the road your scaling has changed, as it retained the values last entered. This could lead to erroneous data if you're not careful about double checking your custom scaling values.

- do you experience problems on a regular basis?

not so much with the last couple releases of SE. The dev's have worked hard at addressing some of the more crucial issues. For the most part the software is pretty stable and any bugs or issues I've come across have workarounds or are non-critical.

- what limitations annoy you?

Many limitations are hardware specific, for instance using a standard load cell with a SCXI system you're forced to use a y=mx slope as a custom scale. With the cDAQ and NI9237 you can directly enter a mV/V sensitivity without creating a custom slope.

The zero offset step can be a limitation depending on how many signal types you're working with. There becomes a point when the step configuration pane becomes so cluttered you'd rather zero your offests manually in the custom scale.

Timing settings can be frustrating. Finding a balance between the acquisition rate (not over/under sampling) of the data output file while maintaining a visual graph that still displays in realtime.

- could you post a screenshot of the software?

Attached is a SS of something I'm working on at my desk. Two displacement sensors which I've created my own external excitation unit for. Its just a stability test, nothing fancy but it gives you an idea of the overall interface. I recommend you download the trial version and test drive if for a few days. In MAX you can add virtual hardware which will allow you to see how different sensors are defined within the Channel Setup screen.

In short, SigEx is great for quickly setting up tests of multiple similar or disimilar sensors.

Its data acquisition software with a graphical interface for whatever hardware you plug it into. It does have its limitations but its also built on LabVIEW so whatever SigEx cant do out of the box you can fill in with a custom VI.

For my needs it works great but I rely heavily on realtime graphs of my data and I need to minipulate my graphs to capture certain characteristics of the specimin under test. Rarely are any two tests the same so SigEx is much simpler and faster to use than building a LabVIEW VI for every test.

You may have needs that SigEx simply wasnt designed for, so again, test drive the trial edition.

I'm familiar with many different DAQ platforms (which all fill a specific need within our facility), may I ask what sort of testing/acquisition you will be using SigEx for primarily?

[Questionmarker]

Thank you so much for your extensive answer OKors!

I will download the test version and give it a try. Thanks for the link. Maybe I will be back with questions next week (;