Rick Nelson

LXI instruments keep programming simple
November 21, 2006

Programming LXI instruments is no different than what you’re used to when programming instruments using IVI. One of LXI’s strengths is that it leverages other standards. LXI doesn’t create any new software standards; it simply requires that LXI instruments provide an IVI driver. When working on the demo that LXI showed at Autotestcon 2006 (www.autotestcon.com), using The MathWorks MATLAB and Instrument Control Toolbox, I used the same code that I used with GPIB. All I had to change was the VISA resource string that I handed to the IVI driver. Doing this with raw C# code, Data Translation Measure Foundry, and National Instruments LabView is straightforward as well.

Also at Autotestcon, The LXI Consortium displayed a number of demonstration applications showing the capabilities of many existing software packages working with LXI instruments. The key word is “existing”--the hardware and software exists today. The demonstrations showed how LXI is the successor to GPIB. Specifically, the demonstrations showed how LXI provides discovery mechanisms and how moving from GPIB to LXI requires minimal software changes.

Going further, the demonstrations showed LXI’s capabilities on a variety of software packages: raw C# code, Data Translation Measure Foundry, The MathWorks MATLAB and Instrument Control Toolbox, and National Instruments LabView. LXI has arrived--there’s hardware and software you can buy today.--Rob Purser, The MathWorks

Posted by Rick Nelson on November 21, 2006 | Comments (0)