The complete guide to building a measurement system from National Instruments

Data acquisition (DAQ) is the process of measuring an electrical or physical phenomenon such as voltage, current, temperature, pressure or sound with a computer. PC-based DAQ systems exploit the processing power, productivity, display and connectivity capabilities of industry-standard computers to provide a more powerful, flexible and cost-effective measurement solution than traditional measurement systems. To take full advantage of this data acquisition approach, you need to keep in mind several considerations when choosing your hardware, software and PC. Use the National Instruments guide and checklist of questions to learn how to choose the following components for your DAQ system: • Sensor • DAQ Device • Computer Bus • Computer • Driver Software • Application Software • Data Storage Format • Analysis Tools • Visualization Tools • Reporting Tools What Is a DAQ Device? DAQ hardware acts as the interface between a computer and signals from the outside world. It primarily functions as a device that digitises incoming analogue signals so that a computer can interpret them. The three key components of a DAQ device used for measuring a signal are the signal conditioning circuitry, analogue-to-digital converter (ADC) and computer bus. Many DAQ devices include other functions for automating measurement systems and processes. For example, digital-to-analogue converters (DACs) output analogue signals, digital I/O lines input and output digital signals, and counter/timers count and generate digital pulses. Review 5 questions to ask when choosing your DAQ device Download the complete guide here.