Operation Manual
NPRT 2200
6. Remote Commands
As demonstrated by the NprGraph software, the instrument may be controlled from a computer
using an RS-232 serial or USB connection. The remote command interface is similar to the
standard SCPI protocol although that standard is not completely supported.
6.1.
Cable and Handshaking
For RS232 operation, a standard 9 pin serial cable of the “straight thru” type is used. The
instrument actually uses only 3 pins: transmit, receive and ground. The unit uses 9600 baud
only, no parity, 8 data bits, 1 stop bit.
For USB operation, a standard Type A to Type B cable is used. The system uses a virtual com
port driver to assign a com port number to the USB port. The driver is installed with NprGraph
software.
6.2.
Commands
These commands are described in the standard SCPI notation. Commands are terminated with a
carriage return character. Most commands have a query form that returns the present value.
The notation uses square brackets to denote optional parts of the commands. The lower case
portions may also be omitted to abbreviate the keywords.
RF On/Off
OUTPut[:STATe] <Boolean>
Turns the RF output on or off.
OUTPut[:STATe]?
Returns 0 for off or 1 for on.
Example:
output:state on
output:state?
1
Frequency Range Selection
[SOURce:]FREQuency:RANGe <value>
[SOURce]:FREQuency:RANGe?
Where value may be specified as an index (1 to 3) or the upper frequency in the desired range in
MHz. If a range is selected that is not installed, an error 100, “Invalid value” will be posted.
The query form of this command returns the description of the frequency range.
Examples:
Freq:range 1
(for the first range)
Freq:range 42
(for 5:42 MHz)
Freq:range?
5:42 MHz
Frequency Range Availability
[SOURce:]FREQuency:RANGe:AVAILable?
This query returns the available frequency ranges as a list of comma separated fields. The first
field is the number of frequency ranges that follow.
Example:
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