Description:

Lectures provide information about standard interfaces of personal computers - parallel, serial, USB, LAN and special interface cards; about standalone equipment that communicate with computers via serial lines or GPIB (IEEE488) interface, further about measuring systems with VME, VXI and LXI interfaces, discuss their advantages and disadvantages. Next, lectures deal with programming of measuring systems - special dedicated software, problems of use of high programming languages and especially use of graphical oriented development tools (Agilent VEE ane LabView); data acquisition and evaluation. Finally, students prepare individual software project for data acquisition and evaluation.

Contents:

1. Standalone equipment, PC cards for measurement and bus based measuring systems (VME, VXI, LXI). Examples or measuring instruments, their features and capabilities of computer control
2. Parallel, serial, USB, LAN a Firewire interfaces for communication among PC and instruments, examples and demonstration
3. GPIB (IEEE488.2) interface, systems based on VXI bus with practical demonstration
4. Examples of measuring instruments and their computer control by standard communication programs and dedicated software
5. Graphical oriented development tool Agilent VEE 1; basics of developing environment, programming in VEE, interface for inputs and outputs
5. Graphical oriented development tool Agilent VEE 2; control of instruments, I/O drivers, work with files
5. Graphical oriented development tool Agilent VEE 3; work with variables, extended function for evaluation of experimental data, hierarchical structure of programs
8. Graphical oriented development tool LabView 1; basics of developing environment National Instruments LabView, software production in LabView, differences in comparison to Agilent VEE

9. Graphical oriented development tool LabView 1, control of instruments, data acquisition and evaluation
10. Demonstration of system for validation of software for VR 1 training reactor safety and control system controlled by software on basis of Agilent VEE
11.-13. Individual students work on given software project under lecturer?s guidance

Seminar contents:

Students gradually train work with measuring instruments, development tools for software, and finally, they develop individual software project for control of experiment, data acquisition and evaluation

Recommended literature:

Key references:
Agilent VEE Pro User?s Guide, Agilent Technologies, 2005
Getting Started with LabVIEW, National Instruments, 2009

Recommended references:
Robert Helsel: Visual Programming with HP VEE, Prentice Hall, 1997
Advanced Programming Techniques, Agilent Technologies, 2000
Hewlett Packard/Agilent Instruments Documentation

Media and tools:
electronic laboratory of Department of nuclear reactors, graphical oriented development tools Agilent VEE and LabView

Keywords:

graphical oriented development tools Agilent VEE and LabView, data acquisition and evaluation, interface, systems with USB, GPIB, LAN and VXI busses

Abbreviations used:

Semester:

• W ... winter semester (usually October - February)
• S ... spring semester (usually March - June)
• W,S ... both semesters

Mode of completion of the course:

• A ... Assessment (no grade is given to this course but credits are awarded. You will receive only P (Passed) of F (Failed) and number of credits)
• GA ... Graded Assessment (a grade is awarded for this course)
• EX ... Examination (a grade is awarded for this course)
• A, EX ... Examination (the award of Assessment is a precondition for taking the Examination in the given subject, a grade is awarded for this course)

Weekly load (hours per week):

• P ... lecture
• C ... seminar
• L ... laboratory
• R ... proseminar
• S ... seminar