Scope GUI Made Easier

Last time, I assembled a Python object representing a Rigol oscilloscope. Manipulating the object communicates with the scope over the network. But my original goal was to build a little GUI window…

How To Talk To Your Scope

It used to be only high-end test equipment that had some sort of remote control port. These days, though, they are quite common. Historically, test gear used IEEE-488 (also known as GPIB or, from t…

Over-the-Top Programmable Resistor Looks The Part And Performs

Every once in a while we get wind of a project that we’re reluctant to write up for the simple reason that it looks too good to be true. Not that projects need to be messy to be authentic, mi…

Let’s Make SCPI More Helpful

The SCPI (Standards Command for Programmable Instruments) protocol is exceptionally popular in lab and workspace tools, letting you configure and fetch data from oscilloscopes and lab scales alike …

USB Temperature Logger With Some Extra Tricks

Many of us electronics hacker types tend to have at least the same common equipment on our benches, namely a multimeter, an oscilloscope, some sort of adjustable power supply, and maybe a logic ana…

Open Source LXI Tools Free Us From Vendor Bloat

LXI, or LAN eXtensions for Instrumentation is a modern control standard for connecting electronics instrumentation which supports ethernet. It replaces the older GPIB standard, giving much better p…

Hackaday Podcast Ep 146: Dueling Trackballs, Next Level BEAM Robot, Take Control Of Your Bench, And Green Programming

Postpone your holiday shopping and spend some quality time with editors Mike Szczys and Elliot Williams as they sift through the week in Hackaday. Which programming language is the greenest? How ma…

SCPI: On Teaching Your Devices The Lingua Franca Of Laboratories

One could be excused for thinking sometimes that the concept of connecting devices with other devices for automation purposes is a fairly recent invention. Yet for all the (relatively) recent hype …

DIY Source Measurement Unit Shows All The Details

An SMU or Source Measurement Unit works a bit like a power supply, in that it can source current into a load and a bit like an electronic load, in that it can sink current from a power source. It i…