14
OPERATING INSTRUCTIONS - LDTC LAB
INSTALL THE NATIONAL INSTRUMENTS
RUNTIME ENGINE 2017
Prior to installing Wavelength's Virtual Instrument application,
the National Instruments (NI) Runtime Engine 2017 must be
installed on the remote computer.
When installing the Virtual Instrument .EXE file, if the
Runtime Engine is not already installed on the computer, a
message with a link to the NI website download page opens.
The Runtime Engine can take several minutes to install and
requires restarting the computer.
INSTALL LDTC LAB VIRTUAL INSTRUMENT
APPLICATION
1. On the
Interface for LDTC LAB Series Instrument and download
it to the computer.
2.
Save the file to the computer, and open it.
3. Follow the prompts to install the application.
CONNECT THE LDTC LAB TO THE REMOTE
COMPUTER
Connect a USB cable from the instrument to the remote
computer, turn on the rear panel switch and open the Virtual
Instrument application.
Choose the instrument to control using the
Choose Instrument
dropdown menu on the right hand side. The list is filtered,
and will only show LDTC LAB instruments connected to the
computer.
Figure 15. Choose the LDTC LAB to control.
The other functionality of the executable is disabled until a
proper connection is made with an instrument.
Start:
Use this button to initialize the program
after selecting the instrument.
Once a connection is made, the program will initialize all the
parameters to match the local values on the instrument.
ADDITIONAL CONTROLS
Stop:
Use this button to gracefully stop the
execution of the program.
Run:
This button will only be available if the program has
been stopped previously. Use it to re-start the execution
of the program. This is located in the upper left corner
of the window.
Running:
This icon will only appear when the program
is currently running after pressing the
Start
button. This
will replace the
Run
button in the upper left corner.
USING THE GUI
The graphical user interface (GUI) for the LDTC LAB allows
the user to set and monitor the status of the instrument
remotely.
gives an example of the GUI.
Numerical monitor-only values have a gray background, and
are uneditable fields (for example, see Actual Temperature).
Boolean monitors are dark for FALSE and lit for TRUE (see In
Tolerance) and are also uneditable.
Button controls set a boolean value, and also indicate the
current value of their state (for example, see TC ENABLE).
Controls have a white background, and are editable either
through typing the desired value directly in the field, or by
choosing the desired setting from a dropdown box (see
Temperature Setpoint and Temperature Units). When a
value is set using a control, the instrument is immediately
queried, and the field is updated with the current status of
the instrument. In this way, the GUI maintains synchronization
with the instrument.
Figure 16. Various controls and monitors on the GUI.
TC ENABLE: TC current is enabled.
Actual Temperature: Read only field - the temperature of
the currently used sensor. Actual Temperature shown is
18.0001ºC.
Temperature Units: Dropdown box - choice is to display
temperature in degrees Celsius.
TEC I (A) & TEC V (V): Read only fields - TEC current and
voltage. The TEC Current shown is 0.6239 A, and the TEC
Voltage shown is 0.8573 V.
Temperature Setpoint: Editable field - 18.0000ºC has been
chosen for the setpoint.
In Tolerance: Indicator is lit, so Actual Temperature is within
tolerance settings of setpoint.
INSTRUMENT
SERIAL NUMBER
