Owner’s Guide
42
frequency response.
The bandwidth in which a circuit passes a signal without too much
attenuation. A low-pass filter’s frequency response is the frequency where the output voltage
becomes 0.707 (1/√2) of the input voltage or has been attenuated by 3 decibels. If a low-pass
filter has a frequency response of 200 Hz, say, then the signal is eff ectively unattenuated up to
150 Hz, and is 0.707 of the original value at 200 Hz.
front-end.
An ancillary device that extends PowerLab capabilities, providing additional signal
conditioning and features for specialized work. Front-ends are recognized automatically by the
PowerLab system and seamlessly integrated into its applications, operating under full soft ware
control.
gain.
The amount of amplification of a signal.
I
2
C (‘eye-squared-sea’).
This connection is used by the PowerLab to control front-ends. It
provides power and communications using a 4-wire serial bus (two wires for standard I
2
C and
two control lines).
IEC.
International Electrotechnical Commission.
LabChart.
An application supplied with a PowerLab that emulates a multi-channel chart
recorder, with other powerful options. (Macintosh and Windows versions diff er slightly.)
PD.
Power Delivery. An industry standard regulating the flow of power between devices which
use USB-C standard.
port.
A socket where you plug in a cable for connection to a network or a peripheral device.
Also, any connection for transferring data, for instance between the CPU and main memory.
PowerLab Event Link (PEL).
A communication protocol supported by USB-C which allows
vendor-defined data transmission between devices.
range.
In LabChart and Scope, the range is the greatest positive and negative voltage that can
be displayed, usually from ±5 mV to ±10 V, in 11 steps. (Range is inversely proportional to gain,
the extent of amplification.)
transducer.
A physical device that converts a mechanical, thermal or electrical stimulus into a
proportional electrical output. For example, there are common transducers to measure force,
displacement, temperature, pressure, and similar parameters.
UFP.
Upstream-Facing Port. A port that is intended for connection of a controlling device such
as a computer.
USB.
Universal Serial Bus.
USB-C.
Universal Serial Bus with Type-C connector. An industry standard specifying providing
high-speed data and power.
waveform.
The shape of a wave; a graph of a wave’s amplitude over time.
