Instrument Control Toolbox

Learning the Instrument Control Toolbox

Start with Chapter 1, Getting Started, which describes how to examine your hardware resources, how to communicate with your instrument, how to get online help, and so on. Then read Chapter 2, The Instrument Control Session, which provides a framework for constructing instrument control applications. Depending on the interface used by your instrument, you may then want to read the appropriate interface-specific chapter. These chapters are described in the next section.

If you want detailed information about a specific function, refer to Chapter 7, Function Reference. If you want detailed information about a specific property, refer to Chapter 8, Property Reference.

Using the Documentation Examples with Your Instrument

The examples in this guide use specific peripheral instruments such as a Tektronix TDS 210 two-channel oscilloscope or an Agilent 33120A function generator. Additionally, the GPIB examples use a National Instruments GPIB controller and the serial port examples use the COM1 serial port. The string commands written to these instruments are often unique to the vendor, and the address information such as the board index or primary address associated with the hardware reflects a specific configuration.

If your instrument accepts different string commands, or if your hardware is configured to use different address information, then you should modify the examples accordingly.

Using This Guide

How This Guide Is Organized