DI–710 Series and DI-715B Series Hardware Manual
Operation
34
PC-connected operation
The DI-710 or DI-715B Instrument enters PC Operation Mode when the instrument is connected to the PC and the
user initiates W
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Acquisition software. As soon as PC Operation Mode is entered, the Control button is deacti-
vated and all the features of W
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Acquisition Software are accessible. Consult the context-sensitive help files or
your Fast Start W
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Software Manual for directions on using the W
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software package.
Note: When running W
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Acquisition software over the internet, unpredictable latencies may occur, especially at
higher sample rates. The unit generally will continue to acquire data after a latency - but there will be gaps in your
data.
Networked operation as a data acquisition server
The Ethernet option allows data access from anywhere on a local area network (LAN) or DHCP server. A DI-710 or
DI-715B configured for Stand-alone operation
and
an Ethernet interface transparently becomes like any other com-
puter on the network, able to share data whenever and wherever it is needed. This can be over the LAN to a PC on the
other side of the facility, or over the Internet to a PC on the other side of the world. Furthermore, Stand-alone instru-
ments can be easily added to existing networks. Its server functionality means that it does not require a dedicated net-
work to operate efficiently. Data is locally stored to MMC/SD memory, where it is available for upload (using the
Uploader software) only on demand and as network bandwidth permits. In this manner, Stand-alone instruments with
Ethernet interfaces are fully compatible with the intrinsic non-preemptive nature of Ethernet networks.
Stand-alone data logger operation
Use your Stand-alone model as a stand-alone data logger to record a W
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-compatible waveform file onto a Mul-
tiMedia Card (MMC) or Secure Digital Card (SD). After recording, insert the memory card into your card reader to
access the data file. The data file can then be opened with W
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Waveform Browser Software for MMC allowing
analysis and review features. See “WinDaq Waveform Browser for MMC” on page 37 for more information regard-
ing W
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Waveform Browser for MMC software.
Data may be recorded using a circular FIFO memory configuration allowing you to record data nearly indefinitely or
in a non-circular configuration allowing you to stop recording when your memory card is full. Select the desired
memory configuration using the Stand-alone Set Up software inside the Dataq Instruments Hardware Manager.
Note: SanDisk MMC/SD memory cards have a lifetime expectancy of about 100,000 write actions. Each time data
wraps you will use one write action; each singular data file uses two write actions (start and stop). If used properly a
memory card will last years. See your memory card’s specifications to determine lifetime expectancy.
The Stand-alone Set Up Panel
The Stand-alone Set Up software (installed with W
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—accessible in the W
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program group through the
Dataq Instruments Hardware Manager) allows you to customize each data recording session before taking the instru-
ment out into the field. The default settings (i.e., if you do not configure the instrument) are 16 single-ended channels
enabled at 300Hz sample rate and a gain of 1. The default configuration can be reset at any time on the instrument by
holding the Control button in when applying power. Context-sensitive Help is provided within the configuration soft-
ware. Press F1 to access Help topics related to the currently displayed feature. You must run the software with the
device properly installed and connected to your PC.
Operation
To use your instrument as a stand-alone data logger follow these steps:
1.
Configure the Instrument using the Set Up software or by re-setting to the default (See “The Stand-alone Set Up
Panel” above).
2.
Connect signal leads (See “4. Instrument Controls, Indicators, and Connections” on page 21.).
3.
Apply Power to the instrument using the supplied Power Cable.