[time-nuts] TTi TF930/960 linux programming

[Florian Teply]

Am Wed, 13 May 2015 13:44:01 -0400
schrieb James via time-nuts <time-nuts at febo.com>:

> I have the TI 930 and did run it from a computer - I did it under
> Windows but had quite a lot of trouble. It worked fine if I used the
> Windows own command line shell (I forget what it is called and I'm on
> a Linux machine at the moment) but when I tried communicating
> directly via the USB port (as COM3) using a c program I found it
> difficult to get responses. But this may well be my lack of knowledge
> of USB/RS232 under Windows.
> 
> It might well be easier under Linux.
> 
Well, that strongly depends ;-) As long the OS doesn't interfere too
much, it should work on *ANY* platform. Its just that I do not have a
windows machine as I'm fine with the various unices around since quite
some years...

> Basically the instrument responds to command strings and you can set
> it to just return values continually which is what I did.
> 
That's what I figured from datasheet and manual, and which got me into
considering it in the first place...

> I've since got the Tek FS3100 (Pendulum CNT91 I think) which is much
> more sophisticated and I started working on programming that.
> 
> Unfortunately I've since got a job away from home so I have no time
> for electronics and won't have until I eventually manage to move
> house.
> 
> If I were you I'd use a terminal emulator, at least at first, and get
> it going interactively and then just save the output to a file. Once
> you've got used to how it all works (and there isn't much to it) you
> can set up a more robust software system.
> 
That's exactly what I'm planning to do. In the end it will always need
some sort of testing it out anyways.
Thanks for sharing in any case.

Florian

> James
> 
>  
> 
>  
> 
>  
> 
> -----Original Message-----
> From: Florian Teply <usenet at teply.info>
> To: Discussion of precise time and frequency measurement
> <time-nuts at febo.com> Sent: Tue, 12 May 2015 22:59
> Subject: [time-nuts] TTi TF930/960 linux programming
> 
> 
> Hi guys,
> 
> I seem to recall that someone on this list mentioned that he's using
> a
> Thurlby-Tandar TF930 or 960 Frequency counter. As I'm considering to
> buy
> such a unit for some experiments at my workplace, I figured I'd
> better ask
> around here for some suggestions.
> 
> Has someone already used one of these
> gadgets in a computer-controlled
> fashion, with some luck using some Linux
> environment? Judging from the
> manual, I probably ccould hack some shell script
> to repeatedly perform
> frequency readings and write that to a file, but if
> someone already has
> done that I'd be much too lazy to reinvent the
> wheel...
> 
> The actual setting I'd plan to use it in is to monitor some
> ring
> oscillators (frequency drift) and/or delay lines (output pulse
> length)
> sort-of-continuously over extended periods of time. I'd be
> interested
> in frequency drifts due to device aging and/or radiation effects,
> and
> as especially device aging tests can take quite some time (a few
> months
> each...), some sort of stability would be needed. This is not
> strictly
> a time-nuts application where one might chase the 10th digit, and
> I
> figure I probably could tolerate (and wouldn't even notice
> without
> cross-checking) an constant offset in frequency readings even of a
> few
> percent, but it would bite me quite a bit if the readings wander
> around
> too much when the input frequency doesn't...
> 
> Any suggestions?
> 
> best
> regards,
> Florian
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