Agilent 8453 Instrument Driver Readme
To rate this driver, go to the Agilent 8453 driver download page on the Instrument Driver Network.1. Overview
Instrument Driver Technology: Plug and Play (project-style) Supported Language(s): LabVIEW Supported Model(s): 8453 Model(s) Tested: 8453 Interface(s): GPIB, Ethernet, Serial Firmware Revision Tested: A.03.90 Certified: Yes NI Supported: Yes Source Code Available: Yes Driver Revision: 2.0 Original Release Date: 5/2004 Current Revision Date: 9/20052. Required Software
Some software components need to be installed before using this instrument driver. The minimum versions of these components are listed below, and can be downloaded from the Download Site. VISA 3.0 Note: VISA has additional software requirements. NI-VISA requires that NI-488.2 and/or NI-VXI be installed on your system. Check with VISA help for additional support software and hardware requirements.3. Installation Instructions
LabVIEW: Instrument drivers should be installed as a subdirectory of the labview\instr.lib. For example, the HP34401A instrument driver, which is included with LabVIEW, is installed in the following directory: labview\instr.lib\hp34401a Within this directory you can find the menu files and VI libraries that make up an instrument driver. The menu files allow you to view the instrument driver VIs from the Functions palette. The VI libraries contain the instrument driver VIs.4. Using the Instrument Driver
LabVIEW: To verify communication with your instrument and test a typical programmatic instrument operation, you should first open the Example VIs within the instrument driver. Look over each of the controls and set them appropriately. Generally, with the exception of the address field, the defaults for most controls will be sufficient for your first run. You will need to set the instrument resource name appropriately. After running the VI, check to see that reasonable data was returned and an error was not reported in the error cluster. Refer to the Agilent 8453 Service Manual for information regarding the configuration switches for serial and GPIB communication on the back of the instrument. After you have verified basic communication with your instrument, you might want to customize instrument control for your needs. If your application needs are similar to the Getting Started or Example VI, the simplest means of creating a customized VI is to save a copy of the Getting Started or Example VI by selecting Save As from the File menu. You can then modify this example to meet your specific needs. For more details, reference the LabVIEW Help under Help » VI, Function, & How-To Help.5. Using the TCP/IP protocol
To use the TCP/IP protocol to communicate with the spectrophotometer, you must first install the CAG BootP server from the Agilent Technologies UV-visible ChemStation Software Products CD. Make sure the instrument is connected to the PC via ethernet (either directly with a crossover cable or through a network). Run the BootP Server and turn the spectrophotometer on. The server should show a request received from a MAC address. Access the BootP Manager and select for this MAC address to be assigned to an IP address that you specify. Ensure that you will be able to access this IP address with your network settings. After adding this entry, recycle the power on the instrument and verify that the BootP Server shows a successful assignment of the IP address. NOTE that the BootP Server needs to assign an IP address to the spectrophotometer every time the power is cycled on the instrument. After the BootP Process is complete, The instrument can be accessed through LabVIEW by using the VISA resource name : "TCPIP::[ip address]::9100::SOCKET", where [ip address] is the address assigned to the instrument by the BootP Server.6. Known Issues
To report issues or provide feedback about this instrument driver, please send an email to instrument.drivers@ni.com. In early stages of development for this driver, if the user halted the communication between the computer and the instrument during a read or write, there were instances when resynchronization could not occur until the power was cycled on the spectrophotometer. This has not been reproduced recently, but the user should beware that such a situation may occur. A special null-modem cable (HP 24542U) is required to communicate through the RS-232 port on the instrument. The Measurement Analysis Example requires the LabVIEW Full Development or Professional Systems.7. Revision History
The latest version of this and other LabVIEW and LabWindows/CVI instrument drivers can be downloaded at the Instrument Driver Network. REV 2.0, 09/2005 Modified by: Rob Hammond, Austin, TX. Original Release for LabVIEW 8.0 created from version 1.2 of ag8453 LabVIEW 7.0 driver.