Autolab SDK manual
Autolab SDK manual
Autolab SDK manual
1.11
User Manual
Version 1.11.0
Autolab SDK User manual
Table of contents
1 – Introduction .................................................................................................... 5
2 – Install Autolab SDK ......................................................................................... 6
2.1 – USB Drivers installation ............................................................................. 7
2.1.1 – Windows 8, 7 and Windows Vista ..................................................... 7
2.1.2 – Windows XP .................................................................................... 11
3 – Autolab instrument ....................................................................................... 16
3.1 – Connect/Disconnect Autolab instrument ................................................ 16
4 – Procedure ..................................................................................................... 18
4.1 – Procedure model .................................................................................... 18
4.2 – Using procedures ................................................................................... 20
5 – LabVIEW ....................................................................................................... 25
5.1 – Install LabVIEW examples ....................................................................... 25
5.2 – Using Autolab SDK in LabVIEW .............................................................. 25
6 – Appendix ...................................................................................................... 29
6.1 – Command names ................................................................................... 29
6.2 – Input command parameter names.......................................................... 29
6.3 – Output command parameter names ....................................................... 30
6.4 – Command parameter types .................................................................... 30
6.5 – General remarks using individual modules .............................................. 31
Acknowledgements ............................................................................................ 33
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Autolab SDK
1 – Introduction
The Autolab Software Development Kit (Autolab SDK) is designed to control the
Autolab instrument from different external applications such as LabVIEW, Visual
Basic for Applications (VBA), scripting etc. With the Autolab SDK the external
application can be used to measure complete procedures or control individual
Autolab modules.
In order to use the Autolab SDK from other applications, these applications must
have the possibility to use .NET assemblies or in the case of “older” applications to
use COM assemblies. How to integrate these assemblies is explained in the manual
of the application.
The Autolab SDK is compatible with NOVA however it does not require Nova to be
installed. It is assumed that the user is familiar with Nova. More information about
NOVA can be found in the NOVA User manual.
Note
Before reading this manual, we recommend you read Section 6.5 – General
remarks using individual modules located at the end of this document.
Warning
Important
For instruments fitted with an IF040 interface, the ADK.bin file must be used
instead of the ADK.x file (for IF030 interface).
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When asked to install the Shared Add-in Support Update for Microsoft .NET
Framework (KB908002) component, click Install.
When asked to install the Microsoft .NET Framework component, click Install. The
Setup installs the following items:
On Windows XP:
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To use the Autolab SDK in Office 2003, copy all the files with .dll extension from
C:\Program Files\Metrohm Autolab\Autolab SDK 1.11 folder to the C:\Program
Files\Microsoft Office\OFFICE11 folder.
Note
After Autolab SDK has been successfully installed, connect the Autolab instrument
to the computer using an available USB port. Switch on the instrument. If no
Autolab USB drivers are installed, Windows will attempt to find a suitable driver for
the instrument. Since the Autolab is not automatically recognized by Windows, the
driver installation will fail, indicating that no driver was found this instrument (see
Figure 2.1).
Figure 2.1 – The driver installation dialog in Window 7 and Windows Vista
Open the Device Manager window, available in the Control Panel. The Autolab will
be listed as Unknown device under Other devices (see Figure 2.2).
1
Depending on the instrument, this part of the installation process may have to be repeated twice.
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Figure 2.2 – The Autolab is listed as Unknown device in the Device Manager
Right-click the Unknown device in the Device Manager and select the Update Driver
Software option from the context menu (see Figure 2.2).
The Update Driver Software dialog will be displayed (see Figure 2.3).
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Select the second option, Browse my computer for driver software to continue. In
the next screen, click the button to specify the location of the Autolab drivers.
In the Browse for Folder window, navigate to the C:\Program Files\Common
Files\Metrohm Autolab\Drivers\Usb folder and click OK to continue (see
Figure 2.4)
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Click OK to confirm the location of the driver and the Next to proceed with the
installation. The Autolab driver is not recognized by Windows and a warning will be
displayed (see Figure 2.5).
Select the Install this driver software anyway option to proceed with the installation.
At the end of the installation, a message will be displayed indicating that the driver
has been successfully installed (see Figure 2.6).
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2.1.2 – Windows XP
After Autolab SDK has been successfully installed, connect the Autolab instrument
to the computer using an available USB port. Switch on the instrument. If no
Autolab USB drivers are installed, the Found New Hardware window should appear
(see Figure 2.7).
Note
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Select the Install from a list or specific location (Advanced) option and click Next
(see Figure 2.7). In the next screen, choose the Search for the best driver in these
locations option and check the Include this location in the search (see Figure 2.8).
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Click the button to specify the location of the Autolab drivers. In the Browse
for Folder window, navigate to the C:\Program Files\Common
Files\Metrohm Autolab\Drivers\Usb folder and click OK to continue (see
Figure 2.9).
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A warning message will appear, indicating that the selected driver has not passed
Windows Logo tests (see Figure 2.11).
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Click the Continue Anyway button to disregard this warning and complete the
installation (see Figure 2.12).
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Autolab instrument
3 – Autolab instrument
Before the Autolab instrument can be used with the Autolab SDK it must be
connected to the computer. To use the Autolab instrument, the Autolab SDK
requires an adk.x and a HardwareSetup.xml file.
Note
//Connect Autolab.
MyAutolab.Connect()
End
Note
The code presented in the grey frame above (and in the rest of this document) is
so-called pseudocode. The real code should be adapted to the syntax of the used
programming language. This falls out of the scope of this manual.
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Or, if the Nova setup must be used, the following paths are to be used:
C:\ProgramData\Metrohm Autolab
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Measuring
4 – Procedure
With the Autolab SDK it is possible to load, measure and save procedures that are
made with Nova. The Autolab SDK is suitable to:
• Measure a procedure.
• View measured data.
• Adjust procedure parameters.
The names of commands and command parameters consists of a user defined name
and a key name.
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Note
In order to distinguish between commands with the same name, change the
description of this command. For instance with a procedure with two CV
Staircase commands, rename the commands to CV Staircase 1 and CV Staircase
2.
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This section illustrates code to load, measure and save a procedure. To load a
procedure, type the path where the procedure is located in the LoadProcedure
function.
//Connect Autolab.
MyAutolab.Connect()
//Measure procedure.
myProcedure.Measure()
End
The Autolab SDK is delivered with standard procedures, these are located in:
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This section illustrates code to view the measured values of a procedure. The
Autolab SDK uses the command model of the procedure to get the data.
//Connect Autolab.
MyAutolab.Connect()
End
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This section illustrates code to adjust procedure input parameters. The Autolab SDK
uses the command model of the procedure to set these parameters.
//Connect Autolab.
MyAutolab.Connect()
End
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This section illustrates code to monitor the potential during the measurement. It is
also possible to monitor the current and time. These values cannot be monitored
for a FRA measurement.
//Connect Autolab.
MyAutolab.Connect()
//Measure procedure.
myProcedure.Measure()
End
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LabVIEW
5 – LabVIEW
This chapter explains the use of the Autolab SDK in LabVIEW.
To use the Autolab SDK in LabVIEW install the Autolab SDK according to Chapter
2.
The Autolab SDK package is delivered with LabVIEW examples. The dll’s and the
project (Autolab.lvproj) with the SubVI’s and Examples are located in:
C:\Program Files\Metrohm Autolab\Autolab SDK 1.11
• SubVI: General used SubVI’s for i.e. Connecting and Releasing Autolab
instruments.
• Advanced SubVI: SubVI’s used in the Advanced examples. Can be used as
building blocks for customized LabVIEW applications.
• Basic SubVI: SubVI’s used in the Basic examples. Can be used as building
blocks for customized LabVIEW applications.
• Advanced Examples: Example application using the Advanced SubVI´s. The
Hardware setup as well as the embedded executable and measurement
procedures must be specified manually for each example.
• Basic Examples: Example application using the Basic SubVI´s. When the
Hardware setup is chosen properly, these examples are ready to run.
Standard the Hardware setup is configured for a PGSTAT302N with FRA2.
To use the Autolab SDK in LabVIEW install the Autolab SDK according to Chapter
2.
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To integrate the Autolab SDK, place a .NET constructor on the block diagram and
select Instrument from the EcoChemie.Autolab.Sdk.dll assembly (C:\Program
Files\Metrohm Autolab\Autolab SDK 1.11)
Enter the path to the adk.x and HardwareSetup.xml file (see Section 2.1):
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Load procedure:
Note
See Sections 6.1-6.4 for more information on the name of the commands and
command parameters.
Measure procedure:
To view the potential during the measurement, get the potential (WE(1).Potential)
from the sampler:
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Note
See Sections 6.1-6.4 for more information on the name of the commands and
command parameters.
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6 – Appendix
6.1 – Command names
To select a command in the Autolab SDK it is possible to use the command name,
which can be changed in Nova, or to use the key name, this is a fixed general name.
Switch on “Advanced” in Nova to see the names (see Figure 6.1).
Figure 6.1 – The name and key of a command is shown in the advanced view of NOVA
To select an input command parameter in the Autolab SDK it is possible to use the
command name, or to use the key name.
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Example Cyclic voltammetry input command parameter names and key names:
To select an output command parameter in the Autolab SDK it is possible to use the
command name, or to use the key name.
Example Cyclic Voltammetry output command parameter names and key names:
To cast the command parameter to the associated type the following types are
available in the Autolab SDK:
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• In order to avoid spikes during the measurement it is advised not to use the
AD converter of the Autolab instrument during measurement with an
external data acquisition board.
• Connection of an Autolab instrument to an external Data acquisition system
can introduce ground loops in the measurement system. This can introduce
higher noise levels than expected. The shields of the BNC connectors are
connected together inside the Autolab instruments. If possible, avoid analog
ground connections between the AD and DA converters on the data
acquisition board.
• Applying signals to the Potentiostat/Galvanostat system of the Autolab is
restricted due to bandwidth limitations. The overall bandwidth is defined by
the control loop. For the Autolab instruments this is:
o In Ultra High Speed 2 mode:
500 kHz for PGSTAT128N, 12, 100N and 100
1 MHz for PGSTAT30, 302, 302N, PGSTAT101/204 and
M101/M204
o In High Speed mode:
100 kHz
o In High Stability mode:
10kHz
2
The µAutolabII, µAutolabIII and PGSTAT302F are not fitted with the Ultra High Speed mode.
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• The Ein input (if available) is a 1:1 input. So the Voltage set on this input will
be the voltage on the cell. Take care that a voltage step on the Potentiostat
will lead to immediate electrochemical response. The best sequence to
switch on the cell is:
• When the Galvanostat is used, the applied current is equal to the Applied
voltage multiplied by the selected current range. So 1 V on the 1 mA current
range means an applied current of 1mA.
• The Eout is a 1:-1 output. So .5 V on Eout means -.5 V over the
Electrochemical cell.
• The Iout is a 1:1*c.r. output. That means that 1 V output on the 1 mA current
range is equal to 1 mA current trough the cell.
• The Manual Cell status in the Manual Control test.vi example is not available
for the µAutolab type II and III.
• The setpoint of the PGSTAT must be set to zero volt to avoid unexpected
offsets. Setting the DAC of the Autolab will lead to extra offset. The voltage
of the setpoint and the Ein will be added up. So a setpoint of .5 V with an
Ein of .3 V will lead to .8 V setpoint on the electrochemical cell.
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Acknowledgements
Metrohm Autolab gratefully acknowledges the following following people for their
scientific contribution in LabVIEW software development:
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12/2014
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