Pico Technology

Here is your monthly Test and Measurement update from Pico Technology.

1.  New Technical Note on Fast USB Data Acquisition

We’ve just published a new Technical Note entitled Using PicoScope PC Oscilloscopes for Fast USB Data Acquisition. The Note contains two sections, one intended for PicoScope 6 users and the other aimed at developers using the PicoScope API. It explains:

• The data rates and record lengths supported by various PicoScope devices
• How PicoScope 6 uses fast USB streaming
• How you can use fast USB streaming in your own software to create large records

Read Using PicoScope PC Oscilloscopes for Fast USB Data Acquisition

2.  PicoScope 9000 R2.2.9 Software Released

PicoScope 9000 is the oscilloscope software for the PicoScope 9000 Series 12 GHz PC Sampling Oscilloscopes. It includes all the usual features including mathematical analysis, histogram analysis, eye-diagram analysis and mask testing to standards including SONET and SDH. The new version adds a few internal improvements and a new MAC address view feature:

• MAC address view. You can now view the MAC address for the PicoScope 9211’s LAN interface. This can be useful if you need to configure your network security to work with the scope.

Download PicoScope 9000 release 2.2.9 free of charge. If you don’t yet have a PicoScope 9000 scope, you can run the software in demonstration mode.

3.  Questions and Answers

Here is a selection of the questions that have cropped up recently on our support forum.

Q. Can I measure voltages >20 V, for example AC mains voltages?

A. You can use x10 probes to attenuate the input by a factor of 10. However, you should NOT use these with mains (house current). For mains, you should use CAT III differential probes.

Q. Is it possible to connect 0-8 mA vibration sensors to a USB PC Data Logger and if so how?

A. Yes, you can, if you use an appropriate shunt resistor. The easiest way to connect the shunt resistor is to use the terminal board designed for the logger. Order the PP053 ADC-11 terminal board, the PP054 ADC-16 terminal board or the PP310 ADC-20/ADC-24 terminal board.

Q. Can you use more than one PT-104 module at a time on one computer like you can with the TC-08?

A. Yes. Multiple PT-104s can be used simultaneously in PicoLog, and PT-104s can be mixed with TC-08s. Up to 20 units of any kind can be connected.

Q. What is the price of the PicoScope 9201 including eye-diagram measurements for NRZ, RZ and USB?

A. The price of the PicoScope 9201 12-GHz sampling scope includes all of the features described on our website and in the brochure. For only £5,995 (about $9892 or €7494), you get a fully functioning sampling scope with eye-diagram measurements, standard mask tests, full statistical analysis and automatic measurements. Unlike some competing products, there are no expensive add-ons.

4.  Exhibitions

Our latest exhibition appearance was at MTEC, the Sensors, Measurement and Instrumentation show in Birmingham last month, where the new PicoScope 4000 Series high-resolution scopes were our most popular exhibits. The scopes have 12-bit resolution, 20 MHz bandwidth, a deep memory of 32 MS and a sampling rate of 80 MS/s. There are 2-channel and 4-channel models, with prices from £499 (about $823 or €623).

For information about future exhibitions, please watch our “Training and Exhibitions” page.

5.  Employment Opportunities

Due to our continuing growth, we have vacancies for the following positions:

• Development Engineer - Analogue Hardware
• Development Engineer - Hardware

Find more details of these positions and complete an online application form

We look forward to hearing from you if you want to be part of a growing company at the leading edge of test equipment design.

6.  Software Releases

As soon as we release new software, it is made available for FREE download from our website. To check which version you are using, start the software (PicoScope, PicoLog or EnviroMon) and select HELP | ABOUT.

The current releases are:

• PicoScope 5: R5.20.3 and R5.20.5 beta
• PicoScope 6: R6.2.2
• PicoScope Education: R6.2.2
• PicoScope 9000: R2.2.9 (new for April 2009)
• PicoLog: R5.20.3 and R5.20.5 beta
• EnviroMon: R5.20.0 and R5.21.1 beta

To download the latest software please visit the software downloads page

(Note: the above web page also contains a link to our ‘what’s new’ page which describes recent changes and additions to the software.)

7.  About this Newsletter

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8.  Contact Details

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