ADLINK USB-3488A User Manual

LPCI-/USB-3488A, PXI-3488

IEEE488 GPIB Interface Card Series

User’s Manual

Manual Rev. 2.02
Revision Date: May 23, 2009
Part No: 50-17023-3010

Advance Technologies; Automate the World.

Copyright 2009 ADLINK TECHNOLOGY INC.
All Rights Reserved.

The information in this document is subject to change without prior
notice in order to improve reliability , design, and function and does
not represent a commitment on the part of the manufacturer.

In no event will the manufacturer be liable for direct, indirect, spe­cial, incidental, or consequential damages arising out of the use or
inability to use the product or documentation, even if advised of
the possibility of such damages.

This document contains proprietary information protected by copy­right. All rights are reserved. No part of this manual may be repro­duced by any mechanical, elec tronic, or other means in a ny form
without prior written permission of the manufacturer.

Trademarks
Product names mentioned herein are used for identification pur-

poses only and may be trademarks and/or registered trademarks
of their respective companies.

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Table of Contents

1 Introduction ........................................................................ 1

1.1 Overview.............................................................................. 1

Performance ................................................................... 1

Compatibility ................................................................... 2

1.2 Features............................................................................... 3

LPCI-3488A .................................................................... 3

PXI-3488 .................................... ................................. ....3

USB-3488A ....................................... .............................. 4

1.3 Specifications....................................................................... 5

GPIB Bus Properties ....................................................... 5

Certifications .............................. .....................................5

General Specifications ....................................................6

1.4 Software Support................................................................. 7

2 Installation .......................................................................... 9

2.1 Contents of Package ... ... ... .... ... ... ... .... ... ... ... ... .................... 9

LPCI-3488A .................................................................... 9

PXI-3488 .................................... ................................. ....9

USB-3488A ....................................... .............................. 9

2.2 Unpacking.......................................................................... 10

2.3 Mechanical Drawing .......................................................... 11

LPCI-3488A .................................................................. 11

PXI-3488 .................................... ................................. ..12

USB-3488A ....................................... ............................ 13

2.4 PCI Configuration .............................................................. 14

Plug and Play ............................................................... 14

Configuration ................................................................ 14

Troubleshooting ................................ ............................ 14

2.5 Hardware Installation.................................................... .... . 15

LPCI-3488A Installation Procedures ............................. 15

PXI-3488 Installation Procedures ................................. 16

USB-3488A Installation Procedures ............................. 16

Cabling ......................................................................... 17

2.6 Software Installation .......................................................... 21

Driver Installation ..........................................................21

Using the ADLINK GPIB Utility ..................................... 23

3 Operation Theory ............................................................. 27

Table of Contents i

3.1 Connection Configuration .................................................. 27

Data Lines .....................................................................29

Handshake Lines ..........................................................29

System Management Lines ..........................................29

3.2 Block Diagram.......................... .... ... ... ... .... ... ...................... 30

ADLINK GPIB Interface Cards Block Diagram .............30

ADLINK USB-3488A GPIB Interface Block Diagram ....31

ii Table of Contents

List of Tables

Table 1-1: Power Requirements, LPCI-3488A .......................... 6

Table 1-2: Power Requirements, PXI-3488 ............................... 6

Table 1-3: Power Requirements, USB-3488A ........................... 6

Table 3-1: GPIB Bus ................................................................ 28

List of Tables iii

List of Figures

Figure 2-1: PCB Layout of the LPCI-3488A............................... 11

Figure 2-2: PCB Layout of the PXI-3488.................................... 12

Figure 2-3: Layout of the USB-3488 .......................................... 13

Figure 2-4: LPCI-3488A Linear Connection Configuration......... 17

Figure 2-5: LPCI-3488A Star Connection Configuration............ 18

Figure 2-6: PXI-3488 Linear Connection Configuration............. 18

Figure 2-7: PXI-3488 Star Connection Configuration................. 19

Figure 2-8: USB-3488A Linear Connection Configuration......... 19

Figure 2-9: USB-3488A Star Connection Configuration............. 20

Figure 3-1: Standard GPIB Connector....................................... 27

Figure 3-2: Block Diagram of ADLINK GPIB Interface Cards.... 30

Figure 3-3: Block Diagram of ADLINK USB-3488A

GPIB Interface......................................................... 31

iv List of Figures

1 Introduction

1.1 Overview

ADLINK’s LPCI-/USB-3488A and PXI-3488 GPIB controller inter­face cards are fully compatible with the IEEE488.2 instrumentation
control and communication standard and are capable of control­ling up to 14 stand-alone instruments via IEEE488 cables. The
LPCI-3488A and USB-3488A are designed to meet the require­ments for high performance and maximum programming portabil­ity. They were developed using ADLINK’s intellectual property in
FPGAs which incorporates the GPIB controller, provides reliable
GPIB bus control capability, and supports a transfer rate up to 1.5

MB/s. With APIs that are compatible with National Instruments
software and VISA support, the LPCI-/USB-3488A and PXI- 3488
offer the best compatibility with your existing applications and
instrument drivers.

1.1.1 Performance

ADLINK’s expertise in PCI and PXI interface cards was leveraged
when developing these newly designed GPIB interface card. The
LPCI-3488A, which is the low-profile PCI form factor, supports
both 3.3 V and 5 V PCI buses and can be adapted to most indus­trial and desktop computers. The PXI-3488 is compliant with PXI
specification Rev. 2.0 and can be used with most PXI and Com­pactPCI system. A 2 KB FIFO is placed between the GPIB bus
and PCI controller to buffer GPIB read/write operations. This FIFO
eliminates the gap between the slow GPIB bus (~1.5 MB/s) and
the fast PCI bus (132 MB/s), and dramatically increases overall
system performance. ADLINK USB-3488A equipped with 32 KB
FIFO to the read/write operations, the maximum transfer rates of
more than 1.2 MB/s.

1

1. National Instruments is a registered trademark of National Instruments Cor­poration

Introduction 1

1.1.2 Compatibility

ADLINK’s GPIB interface solutions are delivered with complete
software support, including a driver API set that is fully binary com-

1

patible with NI
GPIB-32.DLL library can be executed with LPCI-/USB-3488A or
PXI-3488 without any modification. VISA library is also supported
to ensure compatibility with applications utilizing VISA. The
ADLINK LPCI-/USB-3488A and PXI-3488 thus provides the “Plug
and Play” compatibility with all your existing applications.

’s GPIB-32.DLL. All programs written based on the

1. NI is a r egistered trademark of National Instruments Corporation

2 Introduction

1.2 Features

1.2.1 LPCI-3488A

The LPCI-3488A IEEE 488 GPIB interface card provides the fol­lowing advanced features:

 Fully compatible with the IEEE 488 standard
 Up to 1.5 MB/s data transfer rates
 Built-in 2 KB FIFO for read/write operations

 Provides APIs compatible with NI-488.2
 Supports industrial-standard VISA Library
 Interactive utility for testing and diagnostics
 Fully low-profile MD1 PCB compliant

1.2.2 PXI-3488

The PXI-3488 IEEE 488 GPIB interface card provides the follow­ing advanced features:

 PXI specifications Rev. 2.0 compliant
 3U Eurocard form factor, CompactPCI compliant (PICMG

2.0 R3.0)

 Fully compatible with the IEEE 488 standard
 Up to 1.5 MB/s data transfer rates
 Built-in 2 KB FIFO for read/write operations

 Provides APIs compatible with NI-488.2
 Supports industrial-standard VISA Library
 Interactive utility for testing and diagnostics

1

driver software

1

driver software

1. NI-488.2 is a trademark of National Instruments Corporation.

Introduction 3

1.2.3 USB-3488A

The USB-3488A IEEE 488 GPIB interface card provides the fol­lowing advanced features:

 Fully compatible with the IEEE-488 standard
 Easy GPIB connectivity and GPIB connections for laptop

computer

 Plug and Play interface; No GPIB cable required for instru-

ment connection

 APIs compatible with NI-488.2 driver software
 Fully IEEE 488.1 and 488.2 compatible
 Fully industry-standard VISA library compatible
 On-board FIFO for read/write operations
 Maximum GPIB transfer rates Up to 1.2 MB/s
 2 m USB cable attached
 RoHS compliant
 USB 2.0 compatible
 No external power required

4 Introduction

1.3 Specifications

1.3.1 GPIB Bus Properties

 Up to 14 instruments can be connected to one controller
 Maximum 1.5 MB/s data transfer rate
 Cable length

 2 meters between each instrument (suggested)

 20 meters total cable length
 Data transfer mode: 8 bits parallel
 Handshake: 3 wire handshake, reception of each data byte

is acknowledged

1.3.2 Certifications

 EMC/EMI: CE, FCC Class A

Introduction 5

1.3.3 General Specifications

 I/O Connector: IEEE 488 standard 24-pin connector
 Operating temperature: 0 to 55ºC
 Storage temperature: -20 to 80ºC at 10 to 90% humidity
 Relative humidity: 10 to 90%, non-condensing
 Power requirements

 LPCI-3488A

+5 V

250 mA (typical)

300 mA (maximum)

Table 1-1: Power Requirements, LPCI-3488A

 PXI-3488

+5 V

250 mA (typical)

300 mA (maximum)

Table 1-2: Power Requirements, PXI-3488

 USB-3488A

+5V

190 mA (typical)

500 mA (maximum)

Table 1-3: Power Requirements, USB-3488A

 Dimensions (not including connectors):

 LPCI-3488A: 120 mm x 64 mm
 PXI-3488: 160 mm x 100 mm
 USB-3488A : 81.6 mm (L) x 61.5 mm (W) x 27.8 mm (H)

 Vibration Test

 USB-3488A
 Operating: 1 G 3 axes
 non-operating: 2.5 G 3 axes

6 Introduction

1.4 Software Support

The ADLINK LPCI-/USB-3488A and PXI-3488 GPIB interface
cards provide a device driver package: ADL-GPIB for Windows
98/2000/XP/Vista. The AD-GPIB driver package also provides a
diagnostic utility to test GPIB interface cards, as well as program­ming samples and source code examples for Microsoft Visual
C++. The ADL-GPIB driver package can be found in the included
All-in-one CD. Please refer to the Software Installation section
(2.6), on page 21 for detailed software installation instructions.

For other OS support, please contact ADLINK for more informa­tion.

Introduction 7

8 Introduction

2 Installation

This chapter outlines the contents of package, describes unpack­ing information, and describes how to install the hardware and
software.

2.1 Contents of Package

2.1.1 LPCI-3488A

The LPCI-3488A includes the following items:

 LPCI-3488A
 An additional low-profile bracket
 ADLINK GPIB Driver CD
 This User’s Manual

2.1.2 PXI-3488

The PXI-3488 includes the following items:

 PXI-3488
 ADLINK GPIB Driver CD
 This User’s Manual

2.1.3 USB-3488A

The USB-3488A includes the following items:

 USB-3488A USB/GPIB with built-in 2m cable
 ADLINK GPIB Driver CD
 This User’s Manual

If any of these items are missing or damaged, contact your
ADLINK dealer. Please save the shipping materials and carton to
ship or store the product if needed.

Installation 9

2.2 Unpacking

Both the LPCI-/USB-3488A and PXI-3488 contain electrostatic
sensitive components that can be easily be damaged by static
electricity.

Therefore, these modules should be handled on a grounded anti­static mat. The operator should be wearing an anti-static wrist­band, grounded at the same point as the anti-static mat.

Inspect the module for obvious damage. Shipping and handling
may cause damage to the module. Be sure there is no shipping
and handling damage on the module before continuing.

Note: DO NOT APPLY POWER TO THE CARD IF IT HAS BEEN

DAMAGED.

10 Installation

2.3 Mechanical Drawing

2.3.1 LPCI-3488A

Figure 2-1: PCB Layout of the LPCI-3488A

Installation 11

2.3.2 PXI-3488

Figure 2-2: PCB Layout of the PXI-3488

The ADLINK PXI-3488 is packaged in a Eurocard form factor com­pliant with the PXI Specification and measuring 160 mm in length
and 100 mm in height (not including connectors). The IEEE488
standard 24-pin connector is located at the front panel and the J1
IEC connectors in the rear are used to link the chassis backplane.
With its modular, rug ged, and high shock resistant mechanical fea­tures, the IEEE488 GPIB Interface module functions exceptionally
well in harsh environment applications.

12 Installation

2.3.3 USB-3488A

Figure 2-3: Layout of the USB-3488

The ADLINK USB-3488A is assembled with top and bottom cases,
The USB-3488A GPIB interface provides a direct connection

between the USB port on a desktop and laptop computer to GPIB
instrumen. With the USB-3488A GPIB inter face and its USB Plug
and Play feature, GPIB instruments can be connected a nd discon­nected without having to shut down the computer. No external
power supplies are necessary. The USB-3488A GPIB interface is
equiped with a 2meter USB cable that is USB 2.0 compliant.

Installation 13

2.4 PCI Configuration

2.4.1 Plug and Play

As a plug-and-play component, the card requests an interrupt
number via its PCI controller. The system BIOS responds with an
interrupt assignment based on the card information and on known
system parameters. These system parameters are determined by
the installed drivers and the hardware is acknowledged by the sys­tem.

2.4.2 Configuration

Board configuration is accomplished on a board-by-board basis
for all PCI/PXI boards in the chassis. Because configuration is
controlled by the system and so ftware, there is no jumpe r setting
required for base-address, DMA, and interrupt IRQ.

The configuration is subject to change with every boot of the sys­tem as new boards are added or removed.

2.4.3 Troubleshooting

If the system doesn’t boot or you experience erratic operation with
the PCI/PXI board in place, it’s likely caused by an interrupt con­flict (perhaps the BIOS settings are incorrectly configured). In gen­eral, the solution, once you determine it is not a simple oversight,
is to consult the BIOS documentation that comes with your sys­tem.

14 Installation

2.5 Hardware Installation

2.5.1 LPCI-3488A Installation Procedures

Please follow the instructions to install LPCI-3488A in your sys­tem.

1. Turn off the computer

2. Turn off all accessories (printer, modem, monitor, etc.)

connected to the computer.

3. Open the computer case.

4. Select a 32-bit PCI slot. PCI slots are shor ter th an ISA or

EISA slots, and are usually white or ivory.

5. Before handling the PCI cards, discharge any static

buildup on your body by touching the metal case of the

computer. Hold the edge of the board and do not touch

the components.

6. Position the board into the selected PCI slot.

7. Secure the card in place at the rear panel of the system.

8. Replace the computer case cover.

Turn on the computer, and install the software according to the
instructions in the Software Installation section (2.6), on page 21.

Installation 15

2.5.2 PXI-3488 Installation Procedures

Please follow the instructions to install the PXI-3488 into your PXI
chassis.

1. Turn off the system.

2. Align the module’s edge with the card guide in the PXI
chassis.

3. Slide the module into the chassis, until resistance is felt
from the PXI connector

4. Push the ejector upward s and fully insert the module into
the chassis.

5. Once inserted, a “click” can be heard from the ejector
latch.

6. Tighten the screw on the front panel.

Turn on the computer, and install the software according to the
instructions in the Software Installation section (2.6), on page 21.

2.5.3 USB-3488A Installation Procedures

Please follow the instructions to install USB-3488A in your system.

1. Connect USB-3488A to any USB Port

2. After several seconds, the "Ready" LED become Green,
USB-3488A is ready for work.

if you use USB-3488A with a USB Hub, we suggest you to have
an independent power for the Hub.

16 Installation

2.5.4 Cabling

The following connection configuration can ensure that the GPIB
throughput achieves optimal performance. These configurations
include the number of instruments and cable distances:

 Cable lengths should be no longer than 4 meters (2 meter

lengths maximum is suggested).

 The total GPIB BUS distance should be less than 20 meter.
 The total number of devices must less than 15 (including

computer itself), and at least two-thrids (2/3) of the devices
are powered on.

Devices can be connected in a linear configuration, star configura­tion, or combination the two. The following figures show both lin­ear and star connections.

Note: For a star connection, the total current load will be less if

there are less than three cable connections on an individual
instrument.

Figure 2-4: LPCI-3488A Linear Connection Configuration

Installation 17

Figure 2-5: LPCI-3488A Star Connection Configuration

Figure 2-6: PXI-3488 Linear Connection Configuration

18 Installation

Figure 2-7: PXI-3488 Star Connection Configuration

Figure 2-8: USB-3488A Linear Connection Configuration

Installation 19

Figure 2-9: USB-3488A Star Connection Configuration

20 Installation

2.6 Software Installation

ADLINK GPIB interface cards are delivered with an ADL-GPIB
driver package for Windows 98/2000/XP/Vista. The ADL-GPIB is
designed to be fully compatible with your current applications and
includes APIs and a binary-compatible gpib-32.dll for users using

LabVIEW
GPIB interface cards also adequately support VISA to work with
most available instrument drivers. Please visit the ADLINK web­site (www.adlinktech.com) to download the latest version of ADL­GPIB.

Note: You must install ADL-GPIB revision 3.0 or later to use the

This section will illustrate the procedure to install the ADL-GPIB
driver package.

2.6.1 Driver Installation

1

, LabWindow/CVI2, VC++, VB, and Delphi. ADLINK

LPCI-/USB-3488A and PXI-3488.

For Windows 98/2000/XP/Vista users:

1. Insert the ADLINK GPIB Driver CD.

2. Execute x:\Software Package\ADL-GPIB\Setup.exe to

launch the setup program. (x: denotes your CD-ROM
drive). A InstallShield® wizard appears to guide you
through the setup procedure.

1. LabVIEW is a trademark of National Instruments Corporation

2. LabWindow/CVI is a trademark of National Instruments Corporation

Installation 21

3. Reboot the system to complete setup

22 Installation

2.6.2 Using the ADLINK GPIB Utility

The ADL-GPIB driver package also provides an “ADLINK GPIB Utility”

utility program to diagnose and verify GPIB connections. It
is located on the GPIB Driver: x:\ADLINK\ADL-GPIB\Utili-
ty\GPIB Utility.exe.

1. Launch GPIB Utility.exe. A window appears to show all

installed GPIB interfaces and instruments

2. Click on a GPIB interface (GPIB0, GPIB1, etc.) and

select “Setting” > “GPIB Preference”. A “GPIB Interface
& Bus Setting” dialog appears to enable configuration of
the GPIB interface.

Installation 23

24 Installation

3. Double click on a connected GPIB instrument. A ‘”GPIB

Interactive control” dialog appears to allow write com-

mand strings to be inputted into the GPIB instrument and
read the result.

Installation 25

26 Installation

3 Operation Theory

This chapter describes the operation theory of GPIB bus and the
basic architecture of ADLINK’s GPIB interface cards.

3.1 Connection Configuration

The GPIB bus has 24 lines which are divided into 16 signal lines
and 8 ground return or shield drain lines. The 16 signal lines can
be divided into 8-bit parallel data transfer bus and 8 control lines.
The 8 control lines contain 5 system management lines and 3
handshake lines.

Figure 3-1: Standard GPIB Connector

Operation Theory 27

GPIB BUS Type Function Pin

No. Description

1DIO1
2DIO2
3DIO3

4DIO4
13 DIO5
14 DIO6
15 DIO7
16 DIO8

5EOI

9IFC
10 SRQ
11 ATN
17 REN

6DAV

7 NRFD

8NDAC

18 GND
19 GND
20 GND
21 GND
22 GND
23 GND

SIGNAL

24

GROUND

24 lines

16 signal lines

8 ground lines

8 data lines

5 system management

lines

8 control

lines

3 handshake lines

1 shield drain line 12 SHIELD

7 ground return lines

Table 3-1: GPIB Bus

28 Operation Theory

3.1.1 Data Lines

DIO1 to DIO8 carry both data and command messages. All com­mands and most data use 7-bit ASC II codes, the 8th bit, DIO8, is
either unused or used as a parity check.

3.1.2 Handshake Lines

Three handshake lines control the transfer of data/messages
between devices.

 DAV (Data Valid): Indicates the condition (availability and

validity) of information on the DIO signal lines

 NRFD (Not Ready For Data): Indicates the condition of

readiness of the device(s) to accept data

 NDAC (Not Data Accepted): Indicates the condition of

acceptance of the data by the device

3.1.3 System Management Lines

Five system management lines manage the flow of control and
data bytes across the interface.

 EOI (End or Identify): Used (by a talker) to indicate the end

of a multi-byte transfer sequence or used in conjunctio n with
ATN (by a controller) to execute a polling sequence

 IFC (Interface Clear): Used (by a controller) to place the

interface system, portions of which are contained in all inter­connected devices, in a known quiescent state

 SRQ (Service Request): Used by a device to indicate the

need for attention and to request an interruption of the cur­rent sequence of events

 ATN (Attention): Used (by a controller) to specify how data

on the DIO signal lines are to be interpreted and which
devices must respond to the data

 REN (Remote Enable): Used (by a controller) in conj unction

with other messages to enable or disable one or more local
controls that have corresponding remote controls.

Operation Theory 29

3.2 Block Diagram

FPGA

GPIB IP

(Built-in 2 KB FIFO)

PCI

Controller

Transceiver/

Receiver

3.2.1 ADLINK GPIB Interface Cards Block Diagram

ADLINK’s LPCI-3488A and PXI-3488 GPIB interface cards include
a 2 KB FIFO inside the FPGA IP to maximize data transfer rates.
Its state-of-the-art state machine in the CPLD coordinates th e data
flow between the PCI controller, FIFO and GPIB bus.

Bus

CPLD

Figure 3-2: Block Diagram of ADLINK GPIB Interface Cards

The FIFO can buffer data from the master (either from the PCI
controller or external device) when the target is busy. Efficiency is
thus significantly improved when transferring large blocks of data.

30 Operation Theory

3.2.2 ADLINK USB-3488A GPIB Interface Block Diagram

FPGA

GPIB IP

(Built-in 2 KB FIFO)

PCI

Controller

Transceiver/

Receiver

SRAM

8051

The ADLINK USB-3488A GPIB interface include a 32 KB FIFO to
maximize data transfer rates.

Its state-of-the-art state machine in the the 8051 coordinates the
data flow between the USB Bus, FIFO and GPIB bus.

Bus

CPLD

Figure 3-3: Block Diagram of ADLINK USB-3488A GPIB Interface

Operation Theory 31

32 Operation Theory