Page 3 - Important Information; Warranty; WARNING REGARDING USE OF NATIONAL INSTRUMENTS PRODUCTS
Important Information Warranty The NI PCI-6115, NI PXI-6115, NI PCI-6120, and NI PXI-6120 devices are warranted against defects in materials and workmanship for a period of one year from the date of shipment, as evidenced by receipts or other documentation. National Instruments will, at its option, ...
Page 4 - Compliance; FCC/Canada Radio Frequency Interference Compliance; Determining FCC Class; Class A; Class B; Federal Communications Commission
Compliance FCC/Canada Radio Frequency Interference Compliance Determining FCC Class The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) has rules to protect wireless communications from interference. The FCC places digital electronics into two classes. These classes are known as Class A (for use in industri...
Page 5 - Canadian Department of Communications; Compliance to EU Directives
Canadian Department of Communications This Class B digital apparatus meets all requirements of the Canadian Interference-Causing Equipment Regulations. Cet appareil numérique de la classe B respecte toutes les exigences du Règlement sur le matériel brouilleur du Canada. Compliance to EU Directives R...
Page 6 - Contents; About This Manual
© National Instruments Corporation vii NI 6115/6120 User Manual Contents About This Manual Conventions ................................................................................................................... xiNational Instruments Documentation ...............................................
Page 8 - Glossary
Contents © National Instruments Corporation ix NI 6115/6120 User Manual GPCTR1_OUT Signal ...................................................................... 4-36GPCTR1_UP_DOWN Signal ........................................................... 4-37FREQ_OUT Signal ....................................
Page 9 - Conventions; File»Page Setup»Options
© National Instruments Corporation xi NI 6115/6120 User Manual About This Manual This manual describes the electrical and mechanical aspects of the NI 6115/6120 and contains information concerning its operation and programming. The NI 6115/6120 family includes the following devices: • NI PCI-6115 • ...
Page 10 - bold; National Instruments Documentation
About This Manual NI 6115/6120 User Manual xii ni.com bold Bold text denotes items that you must select or click on in the software, such as menu items and dialog box options. Bold text also denotes parameter names and hardware labels. CompactPCI CompactPCI refers to the core specification defined b...
Page 11 - Related Documentation; Start»Programs»National Instruments»NI-DAQ»
About This Manual © National Instruments Corporation xiii NI 6115/6120 User Manual • DAQ hardware documentation—This documentation has detailed information about the DAQ hardware that plugs into or is connected to the computer. Use this documentation for hardware installation and configuration instr...
Page 12 - Introduction
© National Instruments Corporation 1-1 NI 6115/6120 User Manual 1 Introduction This chapter describes the NI 6115/6120, lists what you need to get started, describes the optional software and optional equipment, and explains how to unpack the device. About the NI 6115/6120 Thank you for buying an NI...
Page 13 - Using PXI with CompactPCI
Chapter 1 Introduction NI 6115/6120 User Manual 1-2 ni.com you do not need the RTSI cable for system triggering and timing on the PXI. In addition, a phase-locked loop (PLL) circuit accomplishes the synchronization of multiple NI PXI-6115/6120 devices or other PXI devices which support PLL synchroni...
Page 14 - What You Need to Get Started; PXI Pin Name
Chapter 1 Introduction © National Instruments Corporation 1-3 NI 6115/6120 User Manual What You Need to Get Started To set up and use the NI 6115/6120, you need the following: ❑ A computer or a PXI/CompactPCI chassis and controller (hereafter referred to as the computer) ❑ At least one of the follow...
Page 15 - Software Programming Choices
Chapter 1 Introduction NI 6115/6120 User Manual 1-4 ni.com Software Programming Choices When programming National Instruments DAQ hardware, you can use an NI application development environment (ADE) or other ADEs. In either case, you use NI-DAQ. NI-DAQ NI-DAQ, which shipped with the NI 6115/6120, h...
Page 16 - Download Software; National Instruments ADE Software
Chapter 1 Introduction © National Instruments Corporation 1-5 NI 6115/6120 User Manual Figure 1-1. The Relationship Among the Programming Environment, NI-DAQ, and the Hardware To download a free copy of the most recent version of NI-DAQ, click Download Software at ni.com . National Instruments ADE S...
Page 17 - Optional Equipment; Custom Cabling
Chapter 1 Introduction NI 6115/6120 User Manual 1-6 ni.com DAQ hardware. These ActiveX controls provide a high-level programming interface for building virtual instruments (VIs). For Visual C++ developers, Measurement Studio offers a set of Visual C++ classes and tools to integrate those classes int...
Page 18 - Unpacking
Chapter 1 Introduction © National Instruments Corporation 1-7 NI 6115/6120 User Manual • Route the analog lines separately from the digital lines. • When using a cable shield, use separate shields for the analog and digital halves of the cable. Failure to do so results in noise coupling into the ana...
Page 22 - Installing the Software; Installing the Hardware
© National Instruments Corporation 2-1 NI 6115/6120 User Manual 2 Installing and Configuring the NI 6115/6120 This chapter explains how to install and configure the NI 6115/6120. Installing the Software Before you install the NI 6115/6120, complete the following steps to install the software: 1. Ins...
Page 24 - Configuring the Device
Chapter 2 Installing and Configuring the NI 6115/6120 © National Instruments Corporation 2-3 NI 6115/6120 User Manual 8. Replace the cover. 9. Plug in and power on the computer. The NI PCI-6115/6120 is now installed. You are now ready to configure the hardware and software. Configuring the Device Be...
Page 25 - Hardware Overview
© National Instruments Corporation 3-1 NI 6115/6120 User Manual 3 Hardware Overview This chapter presents an overview of the hardware functions on the NI 6115/6120. Figures 3-1 and 3-2 provide block diagrams for the NI 6115 and NI 6120, respectively. Figure 3-1. NI 6115 Block Diagram Timing PFI / Tr...
Page 26 - Analog Input; Input Mode
Chapter 3 Hardware Overview NI 6115/6120 User Manual 3-2 ni.com Figure 3-2. NI 6120 Block Diagram Analog Input The following sections describe in detail each AI category. Input Mode The NI 6115/6120 supports only differential (DIFF) input mode. For more information about DIFF input, refer to the Con...
Page 27 - Input Polarity and Input Range
Chapter 3 Hardware Overview © National Instruments Corporation 3-3 NI 6115/6120 User Manual Input Polarity and Input Range The NI 6115/6120 has bipolar inputs only. Bipolar input means that the midpoint of the input voltage range is centered at zero volts. You can independently configure each channe...
Page 28 - Considerations for Selecting Input Ranges; Input Range
Chapter 3 Hardware Overview NI 6115/6120 User Manual 3-4 ni.com Considerations for Selecting Input Ranges The range you select depends on the expected range of the incoming signal. A large input range can accommodate a large signal variation but reduces the voltage resolution. Choosing a smaller inp...
Page 29 - Analog Output; Analog Trigger; lowValue
Chapter 3 Hardware Overview © National Instruments Corporation 3-5 NI 6115/6120 User Manual Analog Output The NI 6115/6120 supplies two channels of AO voltage at the I/O connector. The range is fixed at bipolar ±10 V. The AO channels on the NI 6115 contain 12-bit DACs that are capable of 4 MS/s for ...
Page 31 - highValue
Chapter 3 Hardware Overview © National Instruments Corporation 3-7 NI 6115/6120 User Manual Figure 3-5. Above-High-Level Analog Triggering Mode In inside-region analog triggering mode, the trigger is generated when the signal value is between the lowValue and the highValue , as Figure 3-6 shows. Fig...
Page 32 - Antialiasing Filters
Chapter 3 Hardware Overview NI 6115/6120 User Manual 3-8 ni.com In low-hysteresis analog triggering mode, the trigger is generated when the signal value is less than lowValue , with the hysteresis specified by highValue , as Figure 3-8 shows. Figure 3-8. Low-Hysteresis Analog Triggering Mode The ana...
Page 34 - Correlated Digital I/O; Timing Signal Routing
Chapter 3 Hardware Overview NI 6115/6120 User Manual 3-10 ni.com Figure 3-10. PLL Block Diagram Correlated Digital I/O The NI 6115/6120 contains eight lines of DIO for general-purpose use. You can software-configure groups of individual lines for either input or output. The NI 6115/6120 includes a F...
Page 36 - Programmable Function Inputs
Chapter 3 Hardware Overview NI 6115/6120 User Manual 3-12 ni.com Programmable Function Inputs The 10 PFIs are connected to the signal routing multiplexer for each timing signal, and software can select one of the PFIs as the external source for a given timing signal. It is important to note that any...
Page 39 - Connecting Signals
© National Instruments Corporation 4-1 NI 6115/6120 User Manual 4 Connecting Signals This chapter describes how to connect input and output signals to the NI 6115/6120 using the device I/O connector. I/O Connector Figure 4-1 shows the pin assignments for the 68-pin I/O connector on the NI 6115/6120....
Page 41 - I/O Connector Signal Descriptions
Chapter 4 Connecting Signals © National Instruments Corporation 4-3 NI 6115/6120 User Manual I/O Connector Signal Descriptions Table 4-2. Signal Descriptions for I/O Connector Pins Signal Name Reference Direction Description ACH<0..3>GND — — Ground for Analog Input Channels 0 through 3—These p...
Page 45 - Types of Signal Sources; Floating Signal Sources
Chapter 4 Connecting Signals © National Instruments Corporation 4-7 NI 6115/6120 User Manual Types of Signal Sources When making signal connections, you must first determine whether the signal sources are floating or ground-referenced. The following sections describe these two types of signals. Floa...
Page 46 - Ground-Referenced Signal Sources; Connecting Analog Input Signals
Chapter 4 Connecting Signals NI 6115/6120 User Manual 4-8 ni.com source. You must tie the ground reference of a floating signal to the NI 6115/6120 AI ground to establish a local or onboard reference for the signal. Otherwise, the measured input signal varies as the source floats out of the common-m...
Page 47 - Connections for Ground-Referenced Signal Sources
Chapter 4 Connecting Signals © National Instruments Corporation 4-9 NI 6115/6120 User Manual Connections for Ground-Referenced Signal Sources Figures 4-2 and 4-3 show how to connect a ground-referenced signal source to a channel on the NI 6115 and NI 6120, respectively. Figure 4-2. Pseudodifferentia...
Page 49 - Connections for Nonreferenced or Floating Signal Sources
Chapter 4 Connecting Signals © National Instruments Corporation 4-11 NI 6115/6120 User Manual Connections for Nonreferenced or Floating Signal Sources Figures 4-4 and 4-5 show how to connect a floating signal source to a channel on the NI 6115 and NI 6120, respectively. Figure 4-4. Differential Inpu...
Page 50 - Common-Mode Signal Rejection Considerations
Chapter 4 Connecting Signals NI 6115/6120 User Manual 4-12 ni.com Figure 4-5. Differential Input Connections on the NI 6120 for Nonreferenced Signals Figures 4-4 and 4-5 show a bias resistor connected between ACH0– and the floating signal source ground. This resistor provides a return path for the ±...
Page 51 - Working Voltage Range
Chapter 4 Connecting Signals © National Instruments Corporation 4-13 NI 6115/6120 User Manual Like any amplifier, the common-mode rejection ratio (CMRR) of the PGIA is limited at high frequency. This limitation has been compensated for in the design of the NI 6115/6120 by using a common-mode choke o...
Page 52 - Connecting Analog Output Signals
Chapter 4 Connecting Signals NI 6115/6120 User Manual 4-14 ni.com Connecting Analog Output Signals The AO signals are DAC0OUT, DAC1OUT, and AOGND. DAC0OUT is the voltage output signal for AO channel 0. DAC1OUT is the voltage output signal for AO channel 1. AOGND is the ground-reference signal for th...
Page 53 - Connecting Digital I/O Signals
Chapter 4 Connecting Signals © National Instruments Corporation 4-15 NI 6115/6120 User Manual Connecting Digital I/O Signals The DIO signals are DIO<0..7> and DGND. DIO<0..7> are the signals making up the DIO port, and DGND is the ground-reference signal for the DIO port. You can program...
Page 56 - Power Connections; Connecting Timing Signals
Chapter 4 Connecting Signals NI 6115/6120 User Manual 4-18 ni.com Figure 4-10 shows a DIO operation driven by an RTSI clock signal on its falling edge. Figure 4-10. Falling-Edge RTSI Clock Signal Driving a DIO Signal Power Connections Two pins on the I/O connector supply +5 V from the computer power...
Page 58 - Programmable Function Input Connections
Chapter 4 Connecting Signals NI 6115/6120 User Manual 4-20 ni.com Programmable Function Input Connections You can externally control 13 internal timing signals from the PFI pins. The source for each of these signals is software-selectable from any PFI when you want external control. This flexible ro...
Page 59 - TRIG1 Signal
Chapter 4 Connecting Signals © National Instruments Corporation 4-21 NI 6115/6120 User Manual Figure 4-12. Typical Posttriggered Acquisition Pretriggered data acquisition allows you to view data that is acquired before the trigger of interest in addition to data acquired after the trigger. Figure 4-...
Page 60 - TRIG2 Signal
Chapter 4 Connecting Signals NI 6115/6120 User Manual 4-22 ni.com Refer to Chapter 3, Hardware Overview , for more information on analog triggering. As an output, TRIG1 reflects the action that initiates a DAQ sequence even if another PFI is externally triggering the acquisition. The output is an ac...
Page 62 - STARTSCAN Signal
Chapter 4 Connecting Signals NI 6115/6120 User Manual 4-24 ni.com STARTSCAN Signal Any PFI pin can receive as an input the STARTSCAN signal, which is available as an output on the PFI7/STARTSCAN pin. Refer to Figures 4-21 and 4-22 for the relationship of STARTSCAN to the DAQ sequence. As an input, S...
Page 65 - AIGATE Signal
Chapter 4 Connecting Signals © National Instruments Corporation 4-27 NI 6115/6120 User Manual The ADC switches to hold mode within 20 ns of the selected edge. This hold-mode delay time is a function of temperature and does not vary from one conversion to the next. The sample interval counter on the ...
Page 66 - SCANCLK Signal
Chapter 4 Connecting Signals NI 6115/6120 User Manual 4-28 ni.com Either the 20 MHz or 100 kHz internal timebase generates SISOURCE unless you select some external source. Figure 4-22 shows the timing requirements for SISOURCE. Figure 4-22. SISOURCE Signal Timing SCANCLK Signal SCANCLK is an output-...
Page 67 - Waveform Generation Timing Connections
Chapter 4 Connecting Signals © National Instruments Corporation 4-29 NI 6115/6120 User Manual EXTSTROBE* Signal EXTSTROBE* is an output-only signal that generates either a single pulse or a sequence of eight pulses in the hardware-strobe mode. An external device can use this signal to latch signals ...
Page 69 - UISOURCE Signal
Chapter 4 Connecting Signals © National Instruments Corporation 4-31 NI 6115/6120 User Manual Figures 4-27 and 4-28 show the timing requirements for UPDATE*. Figure 4-27. UPDATE* Input Signal Timing Figure 4-28. UPDATE* Output Signal Timing The DACs are updated within 100 ns of the leading edge. Sep...
Page 70 - General-Purpose Timing Signal Connections
Chapter 4 Connecting Signals NI 6115/6120 User Manual 4-32 ni.com Figure 4-29. UISOURCE Signal Timing The maximum allowed frequency is 20 MHz, with a minimum pulse width of 10 ns high or low. There is no minimum frequency limitation. Either the 20 MHz or 100 kHz internal timebase normally generates ...
Page 77 - Field Wiring Considerations
Chapter 4 Connecting Signals © National Instruments Corporation 4-39 NI 6115/6120 User Manual Field Wiring Considerations Environmental noise can seriously affect the measurement accuracy of the NI 6115/6120 if you do not take proper care when running signal wires between signal sources and the devi...
Page 78 - Calibration; Loading Stored Calibration Constants
© National Instruments Corporation 5-1 NI 6115/6120 User Manual 5 Calibration This chapter discusses the calibration procedures for the NI 6115/6120. NI-DAQ includes calibration functions for performing all of the steps in the calibration process. Calibration refers to the process of minimizing meas...
Page 79 - External Calibration
Chapter 5 Calibration NI 6115/6120 User Manual 5-2 ni.com This method of calibration is not very accurate because it does not take into account the fact that the device measurement and output voltage errors can vary with time and temperature. It is better to self-calibrate when the device is install...
Page 80 - Manual
Chapter 5 Calibration © National Instruments Corporation 5-3 NI 6115/6120 User Manual To externally calibrate your device, be sure to use a very accurate external reference. The reference should be several times more accurate than the device itself. For a detailed calibration procedure for the NI 61...
Page 82 - DC Transfer Characteristics
Appendix A Specifications NI 6115/6120 User Manual A-2 ni.com ACH+ to ACHGND NI 6115.....................................100 G Ω NI 6120.....................................100 G Ω Input bias current ....................................±300 pA Input offset current .................................±2...
Page 84 - Dynamic Characteristics
Appendix A Specifications NI 6115/6120 User Manual A-4 ni.com Dynamic Characteristics Interchannel skew ...................................1 ns typ Analog filters Number NI 6115.....................................2 NI 6120.....................................1 Type NI 6115.............................
Page 91 - Stability
Appendix A Specifications © National Instruments Corporation A-11 NI 6115/6120 User Manual Figure A-6. NI 6120 THD + N with Filters Stability Recommended warm-up time ................ 15 min Offset temperature coefficient Pregain NI 6115 .................................... ±12 µ V/°C NI 6120 .........
Page 93 - Voltage Output
Appendix A Specifications © National Instruments Corporation A-13 NI 6115/6120 User Manual Voltage Output Ranges .................................................... ±10 V Output coupling...................................... DC Output impedance .................................. 50 Ω ±5% Current dr...
Page 95 - Level
Appendix A Specifications © National Instruments Corporation A-15 NI 6115/6120 User Manual Digital I/O Number of channels ............................... 8 input/output Compatibility ......................................... TTL/CMOS Power-on state ........................................ Input (hig...
Page 96 - Triggers
Appendix A Specifications NI 6115/6120 User Manual A-16 ni.com Base clock accuracy................................±0.01% Max source frequency.............................20 MHz Min source pulse duration .....................10 ns, edge-detect mode Min gate pulse duration .........................10 ...
Page 98 - Safety
Appendix A Specifications NI 6115/6120 User Manual A-18 ni.com Maximum altitude...................................2,000 meters Pollution Degree (indoor use only) ........2 Safety The NI 6115/6120 was evaluated using the criteria of EN 61010-1 a-2:1995 and meets the requirements of the following stan...
Page 99 - Common Questions; General Information; What does the maximum sampling rate mean to me?
© National Instruments Corporation B-1 NI 6115/6120 User Manual B Common Questions This appendix contains a list of commonly asked questions and their answers relating to usage and special features of the NI 6115/6120. General Information What is the NI 6115/6120? The NI 6115/6120 is a switchless an...
Page 100 - Installing and Configuring the Device; Devices and Interfaces
Appendix B Common Questions NI 6115/6120 User Manual B-2 ni.com What type of 5 V protection does the NI 6115/6120 have? The NI 6115/6120 has 5 V lines equipped with a self-resetting 1 A fuse. How do I use the NI 6115/6120 with the NI-DAQ C API? The NI-DAQ User Manual for PC Compatibles describes the...
Page 101 - Analog Input and Output; Why is there a minimum sampling rate on the NI 6115?; paramID
Appendix B Common Questions © National Instruments Corporation B-3 NI 6115/6120 User Manual Analog Input and Output Why is there a minimum sampling rate on the NI 6115? The NI 6115 makes use of a pipelined ADC in order to achieve high sampling rates. Sampling at rates below 20 kS/s can result in imp...
Page 103 - Timing and Digital I/O; What are the PFIs and how do I configure these lines?; Hardware
Appendix B Common Questions © National Instruments Corporation B-5 NI 6115/6120 User Manual Timing and Digital I/O What types of triggering can be hardware-implemented on the NI 6115/6120? Hardware digital and analog triggering are both supported on the NI 6115/6120. If I’m using one of the general-...
Page 106 - Prefix
© National Instruments Corporation G-1 NI 6115/6120 User Manual Glossary Prefix Meaning Value p- pico- 10 – 12 n- nano- 10 – 9 µ - micro- 10 – 6 m- milli- 10 – 3 k- kilo- 10 3 M- mega- 10 6 Numbers/Symbols ° degree > greater than ≥ greater than or equal to < less than ≤ less than or equal to /...
Page 118 - Index; Numerics
© National Instruments Corporation I-1 NI 6115/6120 User Manual Index Numerics +5 V signal description (table), 4-3incorrect connections (caution), 4-15self-resetting fuse, 4-18, B-2 A above-high-level analog triggering mode, 3-7AC input coupling, 3-4ACH<0..3>– signal analog input signal conne...
