Clever device logs temperature
The USB-TC01 can run on any PC with Windows XP or later without the need for administrator rights.
Martin Rowe, Senior Technical Editor -- Test & Measurement World, 7/20/2010 9:50:43 AM
Here is a thermocouple measurement device that runs
almost runs by itself. Yes, you can develop your own application for the NI
USB-TC01 Thermocouple Measurement Device, but you don't even need to install a
driver or application software to use it with your Windows PC.
The NI USB-TC01 lets you log temperature with most any
thermocouple. A Type-J thermocouple comes in the box. To use the device,
connect the thermocouple to the logger and then connect the logger to a USB
port. Your Windows-based PC thinks the device is a CD-ROM drive. The software
runs from within the logger. Select your thermocouple type to get a reading in
Fahrenheit or Celsius.
When you plug in the device, you get an immediate
temperature reading and you get three options: temperature logger, LabView
code, and download additional applications. Selecting logger opens another
window where you can plot and log data to a tab-delimited text file.
The USB-TC01 will run on any PC with Windows XP or later.
You don't even need administrator rights because it installs no software. You
do, however, need Microsoft .NET 2.0 SP1 or later. I found that out when I
tried to use the logger on an old laptop. See my blog posting
for details on how I used the logger.
The USB-TC01 also comes with the LabView source code for
the logger software. LabView programmers can modify the code to suit their
needs. If you do that, the first thing you'll probably do is add a provision to
change the 1 sample/s measurement rate. National Instruments should consider
adding a menu that lets you change time between samples. I suggest calling it
"time between measurements" rather than sample rate. I'd like to see sample
intervals of 0.1 s, 0.2 s, 0.5 s, 1 s, 2 s, 5 s, 10 s, and 60 s. The company
should also provide a means for existing users to download and install new
firmware.
National Instruments has several free applications that
you can use with the USB-TC01. They run on your PC, not from the USB module.
Clicking on "Do more with your NI USB-TC01" lets you download applications such
as an alarm generator or limit logger.
Price: $129. National Instruments, sine.ni.com/nips/cds/view/p/lang/en/nid/208177
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