Features and Functions
3
Keysight 34980A Mainframe User’s Guide
169
Monitor Mode
In the Monitor mode, the instrument takes readings as often as it can on a single
channel or the internal DMM, even during a scan. This feature is useful for
troubleshooting your system before a test or for watching an important signal.
– Any channel that can be “read” by the instrument can be monitored.
This includes any combination of temperature, voltage, resistance, current,
frequency, or period measurements on multiplexer channels. You can also
monitor a digital input channel or the totalizer count on the digital modules.
You can also monitor measurements on the internal DMM, independent of any
channel measurements.
– Readings acquired during a Monitor are
not
stored in memory but they are
displayed on the front panel; however, all readings from a scan in progress at
the same time are stored in memory.
– The Monitor mode is equivalent to making continuous measurements on a
single channel or the internal DMM with an infinite scan count. Only one
channel can be monitored at a time but you can change the channel being
monitored at any time.
– A scan in progress always has priority over the Monitor function.
– Channels do
not
have to be part of an active scan list to be monitored; however,
the channel must be configured for a measurement in order to be monitored.
– The Monitor mode ignores all trigger settings and takes continuous readings
on the selected channel using the IMMediate (continuous) source.
– The Monitor mode is automatically enabled on all channels that are part of the
active scan list. If you define the scan list after monitoring has already been
enabled, any channels that are not part of the active scan list will be ignored
during the monitor operation (no error is generated).
– Mx+B scaling and alarm limits are applied to the selected channel during a
Monitor and all alarm data is stored in the alarm queue (which will be cleared if
power fails).
– You can monitor a digital input channel or totalizer channel even if the channel
is not part of the scan list (the internal DMM is not required either). The count
on a totalizer channel is not reset when it is being monitored (the Monitor
ignores the totalizer reset mode).
– If a channel that is currently being monitored is manually closed or opened,
the Monitor operation will be disabled on that channel.
