Missing data between buffer pages

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filk
Newbie
Posts: 0
Joined: Tue Mar 01, 2016 10:25 am

Missing data between buffer pages

Post by filk »

Hello,

I have a 3204A. Everything is fine.
Except when navigating between pages after capturing.
I am missing data from one page to another. When there is no important data, it is fine, but when important data ends at the end of a page, the rest of the data are not displayed in the next page.
See bellow screenshot for better understanding.

http://d52.imgup.net/Untitled-552b2.jpg

Any idea how not to loose data between buffer's pages?
Reducing Time/Div. just makes it less likely to happen but reduced the visibility.

Cheers

filk
Newbie
Posts: 0
Joined: Tue Mar 01, 2016 10:25 am

Re: Missing data between buffer pages

Post by filk »

I should probably have posted this in the PicoScope 6 for Windows section...
Also, I updated to the latest version but no improvement.

Martyn
Site Admin
Site Admin
Posts: 4491
Joined: Fri Jun 10, 2011 8:15 am
Location: St. Neots

Re: Missing data between buffer pages

Post by Martyn »

There are three modes of operation for our scopes, Block, Rapid Block and Streaming.

Block Mode
In this mode a block of data is captured to the memory of the scope and, when complete, it is downloaded to the PC and processed/displayed as required. The software can then ask for a new block of data, filling the waveform buffers to give you the "1 of x" captures you see at the top of the screen. The number of waveforms you can collect will depend upon the setup of the scope.

This will be the mode you are seeing, and there will be gaps of between 1msec and 60msecs between waveforms, depending upon activity on the USB bus, and other processes running on the PC.

Rapid Block Mode
This is a special trigger mode, available at faster timebases. In this mode the memory of the scope is segmented into a number of buffers. On starting the scope it will capture the complete set of waveforms to it's memory and, when complete, will notify the software that collection is complete. The software can then download and display the data for all the buffers. There will still be a gap between buffers, although this will be a fixed value, and is typically 1 or 2 usecs, depending upon the scope being used.

Streaming Mode
In this mode the memory of the scope is used as a FIFO buffer from which data is sent directly over the USB bus to the application. With your own application, this can be gap free data, with our PicoScope application the data is still treated as waveform buffers, and there will be gaps between them of a few msecs. However, it is possible to set the scope up on a very slow timebase, so that all the data will be in a single waveform, and then you can zoom in to see the detail. This mode is available from timebases of 100ms/div or slower.

Which is the best approach for you depends upon the nature of the data you are collecting, and the details you are looking to see in the data. So if you let us know how much data you wish to collect, over how long, at what sample rate, and if there are suitable characteristics that can be used to trigger on, then we will be able to advise on the options.

Further information is available in the relevant sections of the A to Z
Martyn
Technical Support Manager

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