© National Instruments Corp.
1-1
GPIB-PRL User Manual
Chapter 1
Description of the GPIB-PRL
This chapter contains general information about the National Instruments
GPIB-PRL and lists components and accessories. Environmental,
electrical, and physical specifications are also provided.
Introduction
The GPIB-PRL, shown in Figure 1-1, provides a method of connecting a
device with a Centronics-type interface port to the IEEE 488 (GPIB) bus.
The GPIB-PRL allows transparent conversion of data between the two ports
so that control codes or special commands are not required. The GPIB-PRL
also increases the efficiency of the interface system by isolating the slower
device from the faster port with a 256 KB character buffer. This buffer is
used to offload the host computer during printer and plotter applications.
Figure 1-1. The GPIB-PRL