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Computer-Based
Instruments
NI 5401 User Manual
™
PXI /PCI Arbitrary Function Generator
NI 5401 User Manual
March 1999 Edition
Part Number 322419A-01
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Worldwide Technical Support and Product Information www.natinst.com National Instruments Corporate Headquarters 11500 North Mopac Expressway Austin, Texas 78759-3504 USA Tel: 512 794 0100 Worldwide Offices Australia 03 9879 5166, Austria 0662 45 79 90 0, Belgium 02 757 00 20, Brazil 011 284 5011, Canada (Ontario) 905 785 0085, Canada (Québec) 514 694 8521, China 0755 3904939, Denmark 45 76 26 00, Finland 09 725 725 11, France 01 48 14 24 24, Germany 089 741 31 30, Hong Kong 2645 3186, India 9
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Important Information Warranty The NI 5401 is warranted against defects in materials and workmanship for a period of one year from the date of shipment, as evidenced by receipts or other documentation. National Instruments will, at its option, repair or replace equipment that proves to be defective during the warranty period. This warranty includes parts and labor. The media on which you receive National Instruments software are warranted not to fail to execute programming instructions, du
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Conventions The following conventions are used in this manual: » The » symbol leads you through nested menu items and dialog box options to a final action. The sequence File»Page Setup»Options directs you to pull down the File menu, select the Page Setup item, and select Options from the last dialog box. ♦ The ♦ symbol indicates that the following text applies only to a specific product, a specific operating system, or a specific software version. This icon denotes a note, which alerts you
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Contents Chapter 1 Generating Functions with the NI 5401 About Your NI 5401 ......................................................................................................1-1 Connecting Signals ........................................................................................................1-2 ARB Connector ...............................................................................................1-3 SYNC Connector...............................................................
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Contents SYNC Output and Duty Cycle........................................................................ 2-9 Output Attenuation.......................................................................................... 2-9 Output Impedance ........................................................................................... 2-10 Output Enable ................................................................................................. 2-10 Pre-Attenuation Offset .....................
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Contents Figure 2-1. NI 5401 Block Diagram ........................................................................2-1 Figure 2-2. Waveform Data Path Block Diagram....................................................2-2 Figure 2-3. DDS Building Blocks............................................................................2-3 Figure 2-4. Waveform Generation Trigger Sources ................................................2-5 Figure 2-5. Single Trigger Mode ......................................
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1 Generating Functions with the NI 5401 The NI 5401 User Manual describes the features, functions, and operation of the NI 5401 arbitrary function generator. This device performs comparably to standalone instruments while providing the flexibility of computer-based operation. About Your NI 5401 Thank you for buying a National Instruments NI 5401 arbitrary function generator. The NI 5401 family consists of two different devices: • NI 5401 for PCI • NI 5401 for PXI Your NI 5401 device has th
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PATTERN OUT Chapter 1 Generating Functions with the NI 5401 Connecting Signals Figure 1-1 shows the front panels for the NI 5401 for the PXI and PCI buses. The front panel contains three types of connectors: BNC, SMB, and 50-pin very high-density SCSI (VHDSCSI). The main waveform is generated through the connector labeled ARB. LOCK ACCESS ARB OUT ARB EXT TRIG SYNC PLL IN PLL REF SYNC OUT PXI PCI Figure 1-1. NI 5401 I/O Connectors NI 5401 User Manual 1-2 www.natinst.com
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Chapter 1 Generating Functions with the NI 5401 ARB Connector The ARB connector provides the waveform output. The maximum output levels on this connector depend on the type of load termination. If the output of your NI 5401 terminates into a 50 Ω load, the output levels are ±5 V, as shown in Figure 1-2. If the output of your NI 5401 terminates into a high-impedance load (HiZ), the output levels are ±10 V. If the output terminates into any other load, the levels are as follows: R L V = ± --
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Chapter 1 Generating Functions with the NI 5401 sine wave being generated and t is the pulse width of the SYNC output. w The duty cycle is (t /t ) × 100%. w p t p ARB Output t w SYNC Output (50% Duty Cycle) SYNC Output (33% Duty Cycle) Figure 1-3. SYNC Output and Duty Cycle For your NI 5401 for PCI, you can route the SYNC output to the RTSI lines over the RTSI bus. For your NI 5401 for PXI, you can route the SYNC output to the TTL trigger lines over the TTL trigger bus. The SYNC output is d
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Chapter 1 Generating Functions with the NI 5401 Pattern Out Connector (PCI Only) This connector is used on the NI 5401 for PCI to supply the external trigger input to the board. Connector Pin Assignments Figure 1-4 shows the NI 5401 50-pin digital connector. Refer to Table 1-1 for a description of the signals. DGND 50 25 EXT_TRIG NC 49 24 NC DGND 48 23 NC NC 47 22 NC DGND 46 21 NC NC 45 20 NC DGND 44 19 NC RFU 43 18 RFU DGND 42 17 RFU RFU 41 16 RFU DGND 40 15 RFU RFU 39 14 RFU DGND 38 13 RFU R
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Chapter 1 Generating Functions with the NI 5401 Signal Descriptions Table 1-1 shows the pin names and signal descriptions used on the NI 5401 digital output connector. Table 1-1. Digital Connector Signal Descriptions Signal Name Type Description DGND – Digital ground EXT_TRIG Input External trigger—The external trigger input signal is a TTL-level signal that you can use to start or step through a waveform generation. For more information on trigger sources and trigger mode, see Chapter 2, F
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Chapter 1 Generating Functions with the NI 5401 RFU 1 35 DGND RFU 2 36 DGND RFU 3 37 DGND RFU 4 38 DGND RFU 5 39 DGND RFU 6 40 DGND RFU 7 41 DGND RFU 8 42 DGND RFU 9 43 DGND RFU 10 44 DGND RFU 11 45 DGND RFU 12 46 DGND RFU 13 47 DGND RFU 14 48 DGND RFU 15 49 DGND RFU 16 50 DGND RFU 17 51 DGND RFU 18 52 DGND RFU 19 53 DGND RFU 20 54 DGND RFU 21 55 DGND RFU 22 56 DGND RFU 23 57 DGND RFU 24 58 RFU NC 25 59 DGND NC 26 60 DGND NC 27 61 DGND NC 28 62 DGND NC 29 63 DGND NC 30 64 DGND 65 NC 31 DGND 66 D
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Chapter 1 Generating Functions with the NI 5401 Software Options for Your NI 5401 This section describes the NI-FGEN driver software and development tools that you can use to create application software for your NI 5401. Software Included with Your NI 5401 Your NI 5401 kit includes several VirtualBench soft front panels to help you get up and running quickly with your waveform generator. These soft front panels are an onscreen interface similar to standalone instruments. An NI-FGEN instrumen
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Chapter 1 Generating Functions with the NI 5401 Waveform Editor You use the Waveform Editor to create, sketch, and edit complex waveforms that the VirtualBench-FG player can then generate. A library of standard waveforms for creating complex waveforms is included, and you can also write equations to create arbitrary waveforms and view the waveforms in a time or frequency domain. NI-FGEN Instrument Driver To create your application, you need an industry-standard software driver such as NI-FG
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Chapter 1 Generating Functions with the NI 5401 as C, including looping and case structures, configuration management tools, and compiled performance. Note Use the NI-FGEN instrument driver to program and control your NI 5401 using LabVIEW. LabWindows/CVI LabWindows/CVI is an interactive, ANSI C programming environment designed for automated test applications. LabWindows/CVI has an interactive drag-and-drop editor for building your user interface and a complete ANSI C development environment
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Chapter 1 Generating Functions with the NI 5401 Using the Soft Front Panels to Generate Waveforms You use the VirtualBench soft front panels to interactively control your NI 5401 as you would a desktop function generator. Generating Standard Functions If you need to generate standard waveforms such as a sine, square, ramp, or DC signal, you can use the VirtualBench-FG soft front panel shown in Figure 1-6. Launch the front panel by selecting Start»Programs»National Instruments FGEN»VirtualBen
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Chapter 1 Generating Functions with the NI 5401 To control additional instrument parameters, select Edit»54xx Settings to bring up the dialog box shown in Figures 1-7 and 1-8. Figure 1-7. VirtualBench-FG General Settings Dialog Box for the NI 5401 Figure 1-8. VirtualBench-FG Signals Settings Dialog Box for the NI 5401 Note Refer to the online help for further information about the 54xx Settings dialog box. NI 5401 User Manual 1-12 www.natinst.com
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Chapter 1 Generating Functions with the NI 5401 You can also load a custom waveform pattern with VirtualBench-FG. This waveform should be a text file and should contain exactly 16,384 samples. If the defined waveform does not contain exactly 16,384 samples, you may see undesired effects in your waveform output. Follow these steps to load a custom waveform: 1. Select File»Load Waveform to bring up the dialog box shown in Figure 1-9. Figure 1-9. VirtualBench-FG Load Waveform Dialog Box 2. Sp
