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DATAQ Instruments Application Notes and News

DI-730 Data Acquisition System Aids Moon Roof Design and Qualification

Data Acquisition > Voltage > DI-730 It was a good, long run, but the strip chart recorder our customer had used for years was finally being replaced with a state-of-the-art PC-based data acquisition system. The recorder had become unreliable, and the paper records were tedious to analyze, and difficult to archive. The only problem was Read More

The Fact, Folly and Mathematics of Analog to Digital Converter Resolution

Data Acquisition > Software > WinDaq Everyone agrees that higher resolution analog to digital converters (ADCs) are better, right? So why do so many end-users shell out bucks for one and then fail to exploit that advantage? What I mean is that we are too often shocked when we receive data files from customers with Read More

Variable Speed Drive Measurements using the DI-730 Data Acquisition System

Data Acquisition > Voltage > DI-730 Motors using variable speed drives are found at virtually all levels of production, from mining raw materials and processing them into finished goods, to transporting those to market. Examples include open pit mining machines, steel and steel rolling mills, aluminum rolling mills, paper mills, heavy duty cranes, heavy duty Read More

Frequency and True RMS Data Acquisition

Data Acquisition > Mixed Measurements Are you looking for a quick and easy way to calculate, display, and record frequency and/or True RMS data? Are you interested in saving money? DATAQ Instruments, Inc. has a solution for you. Beginning with the July, 2003 (version 2.85) release of WinDaq data acquisition software, it is possible to calculate, display, Read More

Synchronized and Distributed Data Acquisition Using DI-1000 Instruments in Hot Strip Steel Mills

Data Acquisition > Thermocouple > DI-1000TC Background The need for data acquisition in a distributed and synchronized manner is required in a variety of applications. Consider a hot strip mill that creates a long steel coil starting from a slab of steel. The process consists of: A pre-heat procedure that heats the initially cold slab Read More

How To Determine 4-20 mA Loop Load

Data Acquisition > Current Additional Reading: 4-20 mA Shunt Resistor and Current Loop Data Acquisition Products Process current (4-20 mA) measurements are popular with DATAQ Instruments’ customers, and that often leads to some interesting application questions. One of the better ones relates to how many process current instruments can be connected to a single current Read More

Networked Data Acquisition Using WinDaq Software

Data Acquisition > Software > WinDaq Using WinDaq software and the client networking capabilities built into all Windows Operating Systems, you can monitor acquired data remotely in virtual real time via the WinDaq Waveform Browser (free download!). You can monitor a single data acquisition device or several simultaneously from the comfort and safety of your Read More

How to Make Safe and Accurate Thermocouple Measurements Using Isolated Instrumentation

Data Acquisition > Thermocouple > DI-1000TC Thermocouples are the most widely used devices for temperature measurements. They are: Rugged; Inexpensive; Simply constructed (welded wires composed of dissimilar metals); Used to measure temperature ranges spanning thousands of degrees; Fast in their response to changes in temperature. But these attractive characteristics do not come without a price. Read More

What You Really Need to Know About Sample Rate

Data Acquisition > Software > WinDaq By and large discussions of sample rate are like watching paint dry. Do we really have to get into the details? After all, everyone knows that you only need to sample at twice the frequency of your signal of interest to get good results, right? If you answered “right!” Read More

Data Acquisition Gain and Dynamic Range Considerations

Data Acquisition > Software > WinDaq Attempting to acquire a millivolt level signal with too low a gain factor is like trying to read a license plate from a hundred yards away. In order to read the plate you would need some sort of magnification, a pair of binoculars perhaps. In the realm of data Read More