Handbook
November 2011
/
59-UMC0071
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Issue
01
Mercury
iTC
Page 105
COMMAND REFERENCE GUIDE
Original Instructions
10
COMMAND REFERENCE GUIDE
10.1
Nomenclature used in this section
The following conventions are used in this document when listing SCPI commands:
Capital letters designate a keyword that must be entered literally (e.g. SET).
Capital letters in angle brackets designate a parameter that must be substituted by the
required value (e.g. <UID> might represent DB[2], MB[1] etc.).
Several words in square brackets, separated by vertical lines, indicate alternative values
that a parameter can take (e.g. [LIN | SPL | LAGR].
10.2
SCPI and legacy command sets
The iTC supports two separate sets of remote commands:
SCPI
These commands are based on the SCPI command set, although the iTC may not be
fully compliant with SCPI.
Legacy commands
These commands were used in previous temperature controller models (e.g.
ITC503).
The user configures the iTC to use one set or the other.
It is recommended that new applications use the SCPI command set, as these
commands provide greater functionality. The legacy command set is provided so that
the iTC is compatible with any existing remote applications that have been written to
drive older OINS equipment.
10.3
SCPI command messages
This section specifies the command message format for communication using the SCPI
(Signal Orientated Measurement Commands) derived protocol. Although the messaging
protocol is based on SCPI, it is not SCPI compliant.
10.3.1
SCPI protocol conventions
The commands are case-sensitive.
Keywords are a maximum of four characters long. Keywords longer than four characters
generate an invalid command response.
Keywords are separated by a colon
:
(ASCII 0x3Ah).
The maximum line length is 1024 bytes (characters), including line terminators.
All command lines are terminated by the new line character
\n
(ASCII 0x0Ah).
