VOLTCRAFT DSP Serie Single Channel DC Power Supply User Manual

VOLTCRAFT DSP Serie Single Channel DC Power Supply

Introduction to the SCPI Language

Syntax
SCPI commands present a hierarchical tree structure and contain multiple sub- systems, each of which is made up of a root keyword and one or more sub- keywords. The command string usually starts with “:”, the keywords are separated by “:” and are followed by the parameter settings available, “?” is added at the end of the command string to indicate query and the command and parameter are separated by “space”.

• For example,
• VOLTage:LIMit
• VOLTage:LIMit?

VOLTage is the root keyword of the command. LIMit is the second-level keywords. The command string starts with “:” which separates the multiple- level keywords. represents parameters available for setting, “?” represents query and the command VOLTage:LIMit and the parameter are separated by “space”.

Syntax Rules

SCPI language itself defines a group of sub-system keywords, and at the same time allows users to add or reduce keywords. Those keywords can be some meaningful English words and are easy to remember, which are called mnemonics. Mnemonic has long and short types. The short are the abbreviation of the long.

Rule to format mnemonics

1. If the letter number of an English word is less than or equal to 4, then the word itself can be the mnemonic.(such as “Free” can be “FREE”)
2. If the letter number of an English word exceeds 4, then the first four letters will be the mnemonic.(such as “Frequency” can be “FREQ”)
3. If the forth letter is vowel, then mnemonic uses the former three letters. Vowels consists of a, e, i, o, and u.(such as “Power” can be “POW”)
4. If it is not a word but a sentence, then use the first letters of the former words and the whole of the last word. (such as “Input Voltage” can be “IVOLtage”)

Usage of symbols

1. Space The space is used to separate command and parameter.
2. Colon :If the colon is in front of the first character, it means the following is Root Command. When the colon is set between two keywords, then it means moving from the current level to the next level.
3. *asterisk The commands start with asterisk are named Common Command, which is used to execute IEEE488.2 common commands.
4. Braces {} The parameters enclosed in the braces are optional and are usually separated by the vertical bar “|”. When using this command, one of the parameters must be selected.
5. Vertical Bar | The vertical bar is used to separate multiple parameters and one of the parameters must be selected when using the command.
6. Triangle Brackets < > The parameter enclosed in the triangle brackets must be replaced by an effective value.
7. Square Brackets [ ] The content (command keyword) enclosed in the square brackets can be omitted. When the parameter is omitted, the instrument will set the parameter to its default.

Parameter Type

1. Real Number Commands that require numeric parameters accept all commonly used decimal representations of numbers including optional signs, decimal points, and scientific notation. Special values for numeric parameters such as MIN, MAX and DEF are also accepted.
2. Discrete The parameter should be one of the values listed.
3. Integer Unless otherwise noted, the parameter can be any integer (NR1 format) within the effective value range. Note that, do not set the parameter to a decimal, otherwise errors will occur.
4. Bool The parameter could be “OFF”, “ON”. For example, OUTPut {0|1|ON|OFF}

Command Abbreviation

Each SCPI command can be written mixed with uppercase and lowercase according to the syntax rules, and the capital letter part is just the abbreviation of the command. If abbreviation is used, all the capital letters in the command must be written completely. For parameters with units, please refer to the detail parameter specifications in the sub-system.

• Example：
• MEASure[:SCALar]:VOLTage
• Abbreviation Below：
• MEAS:VOLT

Third-party API

The SCPI protocol communication of this instrument can use USB, serial port or LAN inte rface. Run the software on the computer. Select “Command Line” under the “Transfer” menu t o open the SCPI command control window, and then you can send SCPI commands to control the power supply.

IEEE488.2 Common Commands

*IDN?

Description
The query returns the ID character string of the instrument.
Return Format