USB-based hardware simplifies acquisition setup

Engineers and scientists can now access the high-quality measurement capabilities of National Instruments data acquisition (DAQ) hardware as easily as plugging a USB cable into a computer.

Engineers and scientists can now access the high-quality measurement capabilities of National Instruments data acquisition (DAQ) hardware as easily as plugging a USB cable into a computer.

Five new USB DAQ products the first in a series of devices scheduled to release during 2004 deliver easy connectivity, portability and decreased system setup time.

The new family of high-quality USB devices includes: the DAQPad-6016, a 16-channel, 16bit analogue input module, rated at 200Ksample/s maximum, with two analogue outputs, 32 digital I/Os and two counter-timers; the DAQPad-6015, a 16-channel, 16bit analogue input module, 200Ksample/s maximum, two analogue outputs, eight digital I/Os, two counter-timers; the USB-9215, a four-channel, 16bit simultaneous sampling analogue input module, +/-10V, 20Ksample/s maximum; the USB-9211 four-channel, 24bit thermocouple input, +/-80mV, 14sample/s maximum; and the SCXI-1600, with up to 352 channels, 16bit analogue input module, 200Ksample/s maximum.

"National Instruments continues to lead the data acquisition market by addressing industry needs, including the call for highly accurate and portable data acquisition devices built on the USB platform", said Pete Zogas, Senior Vice President of NI Sales and Marketing.

"This new family of USB devices combines a quick and easy plug-and-play setup with the high-quality capabilities and features of NI DAQ products".

"By using NI USB devices, engineers not only can save time and resources in system setup, but they can meet the overall accuracy and reliability of their measurement systems as well".

The NI DAQPad-6015 and NI DAQPad-6016 add 16bit accuracy to the NI USB multifunction DAQ product line and increase the maximum sampling rate of the product line to 200Ksample/s for a single channel.

Both devices offer built-in screw terminal connectivity, eliminating the need to purchase a cable and terminal block.

The NI USB-9211 and 9215 deliver integrated signal conditioning and are the first in a series of single-function USB DAQ devices.

The USB-9211 is a four-channel, 24bit, highly accurate thermocouple measurement device that includes built-in screw terminal connectivity.

The USB-9215 is a four-channel, 16bit, simultaneous sampling analogue input device that accurately measures multiple signals with minimal phase delay.

Both devices ship with free ready-to-run data-logging software so engineers can begin gathering data immediately.

The SCXI-1600 DAQ module delivers plug-and-play USB connectivity to 40 measurement modules within the NI SCXI signal conditioning platform.

Engineers now can create high-channel-count sensor measurement systems without the extra cost and setup time of connecting a DAQ device and cable to the SCXI signal conditioning hardware.

Because the DAQ device is integrated into the SCXI-1600 module, the user needs only to connect to a computer with a single cable.

The small size and easy connectivity of all NI USB DAQ devices make them ideal for operations such as in-vehicle data logging and environmental monitoring.

They also are useful in academic settings where students and researchers must share hardware and labs.

In addition, by combining the new SCXI-1600 data acquisition module and new SCXI sensors plug-and-play hardware, engineers can build a complete plug-and-play measurement system, saving valuable time and resources previously spent installing hardware and manually entering configuration information from data sheets.

A recent NI survey of data acquisition customers and prospects found that system setup can comprise 18% of overall measurement cost.

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