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Features and Functions
IVI-COM Drivers
The Agilent IVI- COM drivers simplify instrument control when you are
working in a COM- compatible environment. IVI- COM allows you to
programmatically control your instrumentation and make measurements
while providing a greater degree of instrument interchangeability and code
reuse. The Agilent IVI- COM drivers support the use of IntelliSense for even
greater ease- of- use within a Microsoft development environment.
The Agilent IVI- COM driver supports all the U2100A Series DAQ (U2121A,
U2122A, U2123A). The Agilent U2100A Firmware Revision: 1.0.0 is the
minimum revision required for full driver functionality.
An IVI- COM driver can program a particular set of instrument models. It
implements an instrument- specific interface tuned to the capabilities of those
models. The driver may also implement an IVI class- compliant interface which
implements a limited set of functionality common to all instruments of the
class. Instrument class- compliant interfaces are defined by the IVI
Foundation. The application writer must choose whether to use the
instrument- specific interface or the class- compliant interface.
The IVI inherent capabilities, through the IIviDriver interface, are available in
both the instrument- specific interface and class- compliant interface. The
general programming techniques are also the same.
Choosing Instrument-Specific Interface
With this interface, you have the benefit of full access to the instrument's
capabilities. All capabilities in the class- compliant interface are also covered
by the instrument- specific interface, but you will find some capabilities in the
instrument- specific interface that are not available through the
class- compliant interface. You may also see some performance enhancements,
as the driver can be tuned to use efficient programming methods for that
particular instrument.
Choosing Class-Compliant Interface
By limiting your program to the class- compliant interface, you have the
potential advantage of syntactic interchangeability. Hence, another IVI- COM
driver (and instrument) which supports the same class could be substituted
for the original driver, if the prior IVI- COM driver supports all the capability
groups used in the original driver. In this case, the application will compile,
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Agilent U2100A Series Digital IO, 32-Terminal User's Guide
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