Measurement Computing Data Translation DT9857 User manual

DT9857 and DT9857E
UM-25656-M
User’s Manual
Title Page

Copyright Page
Trademark and Copyright Information
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Other product and company names mentioned herein are trademarks or trade names of their
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may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted, in any form by any means,
electronic, mechanical, by photocopying, recording, or otherwise without the prior written
permission of Measurement Computing Corporation.
Notice
Measurement Computing Corporation does not authorize any Measurement Computing
Corporation product for use in life support systems and/or devices without prior written consent
from Measurement Computing Corporation. Life support devices/systems are devices or systems
that, a) are intended for surgical implantation into the body, or b) support or sustain life and whose
failure to perform can be reasonably expected to result in injury. Measurement Computing
Corporation products are not designed with the components required, and are not subject to the
testing required to ensure a level of reliability suitable for the treatment and diagnosis of people.

Radio and Television Interference
This equipment has been tested and found to comply with CISPR EN55022 Class A and
EN61000-6-1 requirements and also with the limits for a Class A digital device, pursuant to
Part 15 of the FCC Rules. These limits are designed to provide reasonable protection against
harmful interference when the equipment is operated in a commercial environment. This
equipment generates, uses, and can radiate radio frequency energy and, if not installed and
used in accordance with the instruction manual, may cause harmful interference to radio
communications. Operation of this equipment in a residential area is likely to cause harmful
interference, in which case the user will be required to correct the interference at his own
expense.
Changes or modifications to this equipment not expressly approved by Data Translation could
void your authority to operate the equipment under Part 15 of the FCC Rules.
Note: This product was verified to meet FCC requirements under test conditions that
included use of shielded cables and connectors between system components. It is important
that you use shielded cables and connectors to reduce the possibility of causing interference
to radio, television, and other electronic devices.
Canadian Department of Communications Statement
This digital apparatus does not exceed the Class A limits for radio noise emissions from
digital apparatus set out in the Radio Interference Regulations of the Canadian Department of
Communications.
Le présent appareil numérique n’émet pas de bruits radioélectriques dépassant les limites
applicables aux appareils numériques de la class A prescrites dans le Règlement sur le
brouillage radioélectrique édicté par le Ministère des Communications du Canada.
FCC
Page

5
Table of Contents
About this Manual . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11
Intended Audience. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11
How this Manual is Organized . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11
Conventions Used in this Manual . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12
Related Information . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12
Where To Get Help. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13
Chapter 1: Overview . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 15
Hardware Features . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 16
Supported Software . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19
Supported Accessories. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 22
Getting Started Procedure. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 24
Chapter 2: Setting Up and Installing the Module . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 27
Unpacking . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 29
System Requirements . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 30
Applying Power to the Module . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 31
Applying Power to the DT9857 Module . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 31
Applying Power to the DT9857E Module . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 33
Attaching Modules to the Computer. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 34
Connecting Directly to the USB Ports . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 34
Connecting to an Expansion Hub. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 35
Configuring the DT9857 Series Device Driver. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 38
Chapter 3: Wiring Signals . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 41
Preparing to Wire Signals . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 43
Wiring Recommendations . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 43
Warm-Up Time . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 43
Wiring Signals to the Module . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 43
Connecting Analog Input Signals . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 48
Connecting Analog Output Signals . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 49
Connecting a Tachometer Input Signal . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 50
Connecting Digital Input Signals. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 51
Connecting Digital Output Signals . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 52
Connecting Counter/Timer Signals . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 53
Event Counting . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 53
Up/Down Counting . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 54
Period/Pulse Width Measurement. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 55
Edge-to-Edge Measurement . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 56
Table of Contents

Contents
6
Continuous Edge-to-Edge Measurement . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 57
Pulse Output . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 58
Connecting Signals for Measure Counter Operations . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 59
Chapter 4: Verifying the Operation of a Module . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 61
Select the Device . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 63
Acquire Data from an Analog Output Channel. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 65
Configure the Analog Output Settings . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 65
Configure the Analog Input Channel. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 66
Configure the Recording Settings. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 68
Configure the Acquisition Settings. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 69
Start the Operation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 70
Chapter 5: Principles of Operation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 73
Block Diagram . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 74
Analog Input Features. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 76
Analog Input Channels . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 76
Input Ranges and Gains . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 76
IEPE Functions. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 77
Input Resolution . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 77
Input Clock Source . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 77
Analog Input Conversion Modes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 78
Single-Value Operations . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 78
Single-Values Operations . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 78
Continuous Scan Mode . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 79
Input Triggers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 80
Start Trigger Sources . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 81
Reference Trigger Sources . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 82
Data Format and Transfer . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 83
Error Conditions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 83
Analog Output Features . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 84
Analog Output Channels . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 84
Output Range and Gain . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 84
Output Resolution. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 84
Output Clocks . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 84
Output Conversion Modes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 85
Single-Value Mode . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 85
Waveform Generation Mode . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 85
Continuous Analog Output Operations . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 87
Output Trigger. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 88
Data Format and Transfer . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 89
Error Conditions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 89

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Tachometer Input Features . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 90
General-Purpose Counter/Timer Features. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 92
C/T Channels . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 92
C/T Clock Sources . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 93
Gate Types . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 93
Pulse Output Types and Duty Cycles . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 94
Counter/Timer Operation Modes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 94
Event Counting . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 95
Up/Down Counting . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 95
Edge-to-Edge Measurement . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 96
Continuous Edge-to-Edge Measurement . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 96
Rate Generation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 97
One-Shot . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 97
Repetitive One-Shot . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 98
Measure Counter Features . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 99
Digital I/O Features. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 103
Digital I/O Lines . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 103
Operation Modes. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 103
Triggering Acquisition on Multiple Modules . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 104
Synchronizing Acquisition on Multiple Modules . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 105
Synchronizing the Analog Input Subsystems of Multiple DT9857 Modules. . . . . . . 105
Synchronizing the Analog Input and/or Analog Output Subsystems of Multiple
DT9857E Modules . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 108
Chapter 6: Supported Device Driver Capabilities. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 113
Data Flow and Operation Options. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 115
Buffering . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 116
Triggered Scan Mode . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 116
Data Encoding. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 116
Channels . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 117
Gain . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 117
Ranges . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 118
Resolution . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 118
Current and Resistance Support . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 118
Thermocouple, RTD, and Thermistor Support . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 119
IEPE Support. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 120
Bridge and Strain Gage Support . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 120
Start Triggers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 121
Reference Triggers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 122
Clocks. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 123
Counter/Timers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 124
Tachometers. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 125

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Chapter 7: Troubleshooting . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 127
General Checklist . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 128
Technical Support . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 130
If Your Module Needs Factory Service . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 131
Chapter 8: Calibration . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 133
Using the Calibration Utility . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 135
Calibrating the Analog Input Subsystem . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 136
Warming up the Module . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 136
Connecting a Precision Voltage Source . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 136
Using the Auto-Calibration Procedure . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 136
Using the Manual Calibration Procedure . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 137
Calibrating the Analog Output Subsystem . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 139
Appendix A: Specifications . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 141
Analog Input Specifications . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 142
Analog Output Specifications. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 148
Digital I/O Specifications . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 150
Tachometer Input Specifications . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 151
Measure Counter Specifications. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 152
General-Purpose Counter/Timer Specifications . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 153
Trigger Specifications. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 154
Master Oscillator Specifications . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 155
Power, Physical, and Environmental Specifications . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 156
Regulatory Specifications . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 157
Connector Specifications . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 158
External Power Supply Specifications. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 159
Appendix B: Connector Pin Assignments and LED Status Indicators . . . . . . . . . 161
Analog Input Connectors . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 162
Analog Output Connectors. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 163
Tachometer Connector (DT9857 Only) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 164
External Trigger Connector (DT9857E Only) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 165
Digital Connector . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 166
External USB Connector . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 167
External Power Connectors. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 168
External Power Connector on the DT9857 Module . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 168
External Power Connectors on the DT9857E Module . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 169
Sync Bus Connector . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 171
Sync Bus Connector on the DT9857 Module. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 171
Sync Bus Connector on the DT9857E Module . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 172
STP25 Screw Terminal Panel. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 174

Contents
9
LED Status Indicators . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 176
LED Status Indicators on the DT9857 Module . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 176
LED Status Indicators on the DT9857E Module . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 178
Appendix C: Register-Level Programming . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 181
Writing to the EEPROM Register. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 182
Index . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 185

Contents
10

11
About this Manual
The first part of this manual describes how to install and set up your DT9857 or DT9857E
module and device driver, and verify that your module is working properly.
The second part of this manual describes the features of the DT9857 and DT9857E modules,
the capabilities of the DT9857 Device Driver, and how to program the DT9857 or DT9857E
module using the DT-Open Layers for .NET Class Library™software. Troubleshooting
information is also provided.
Note: For more information on the class library, refer to the DT-Open Layers for .NET Class
Library User’s Manual. If you are using the DataAcq SDK or a software application to program
your device, refer to the documentation for that software for more information.
Intended Audience
This document is intended for engineers, scientists, technicians, or others responsible for
using and/or programming a DT9857 or DT9857E module for data acquisition operations in
the Microsoft® Windows Vista®, Windows 7, Windows 8, or Windows 10 operating system. It
is assumed that you have some familiarity with data acquisition principles and that you
understand your application.
How this Manual is Organized
This manual is organized as follows:
•Chapter 1, “Overview,” describes the major features of the DT9857 and DT9857E modules,
as well as the supported software and accessories for the modules.
•Chapter 2, “Setting Up and Installing the Module,” describes how to apply power to the
module, connect one or more modules to a host computer, and configure the DT9857
Device Driver.
•Chapter 3, “Wiring Signals,” describes how to wire signals to a DT9857 or DT9857E
module.
•Chapter 4, “Verifying the Operation of a Module,” describes how to verify the operation
of a DT9857 or DT9857E module using the QuickDAQ application.
•Chapter 5, “Principles of Operation,” describes all of the features of the DT9857 and
DT9857E modules.
•Chapter 6, “Supported Device Driver Capabilities,” lists the data acquisition subsystems
and the associated features accessible using the DT-Open Layers for .NET Class Library
with the DT9857 and DT9857E modules.
•Chapter 7, “Troubleshooting,” provides information that you can use to resolve problems
with the DT9857 or DT9857E module and DT9857 Device Driver, should they occur.

About this Manual
12
•Chapter 8, “Calibration,” describes how to calibrate the analog I/O circuitry of the
DT9857 or DT9857E module.
•Appendix A, “Specifications,” lists the specifications of the DT9857 and DT9857E
modules.
•Appendix B, “Connector Pin Assignments and LED Status Indicators,” lists the pin
assignments of the connectors on the DT9857 and DT9857E modules, describes the screw
terminal assignments of the STP25 screw terminal panel, and describes the LED status
indicators on the DT9857 and DT9857E modules.
• An index completes this manual.
Conventions Used in this Manual
The following conventions are used in this manual:
• Notes provide useful information or information that requires special emphasis, cautions
provide information to help you avoid losing data or damaging your equipment, and
warnings provide information to help you avoid catastrophic damage to yourself or your
equipment.
• Items that you select or type are shown in bold.
Related Information
Refer to the following documents for more information on using the DT9857 module:
•Benefits of the Universal Serial Bus for Data Acquisition. This white paper describes why USB
is an attractive alternative for data acquisition. It is available on the Data Translation web
site (www.mccdaq.com).
•QuickDAQ User’s Manual (UM-24774). This manual describes how to create a QuickDAQ
application to acquire and analyze data from a DT-Open Layers data acquisition module.
•DT-Open Layers for .NET User’s Manual (UM-22161). For programmers who are developing
their own application programs using Visual C# or Visual Basic .NET, this manual
describes how to use the DT-Open Layers for .NET Class Library to access the capabilities
of Data Translation data acquisition devices.
•DataAcq SDK User’s Manual (UM-18326). For programmers who are developing their own
application programs using the Microsoft C compiler, this manual describes how to use
the DT-Open Layers DataAcq SDK™to access the capabilities of Data Translation data
acquisition devices.
•LV-Link Online Help. This help file describes how to use LV-Link™with the LabVIEW™
graphical programming language to access the capabilities of Data Translation data
acquisition devices.
• Microsoft Windows Vista, Windows 7, Windows 8, or Windows 10 documentation.
• USB web site (http://www.usb.org).

About this Manual
13
Where To Get Help
Should you run into problems installing or using a DT9857 or DT9857E module, the Technical
Support Department is available to provide technical assistance. Refer to Chapter 7 for more
information. If you are outside the United States or Canada, call your local distributor, whose
number is listed on our web site (www.mccdaq.com).

About this Manual
14

15
1
Overview
Hardware Features. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 16
Supported Software . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19
Supported Accessories. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 22
Getting Started Procedure. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 24

Chapter 1
16
Hardware Features
The DT9857 and DT9857E modules are high-accuracy, dynamic signal analyzers for the USB
(Ver. 3.0, 2.0, or Ver. 1.1) bus. Available with either 8 or 16 IEPE inputs and two stimulus
waveform output channels, these modules are ideal for noise, vibration, and acoustic
measurements. Figure 1 shows the DT9857 module. Figure 2 shows the DT9857E module.
Figure 1: DT9857 Module (DT9857-16 Module Shown)
Figure 2: DT9857E Module (DT9857E-16 Module Shown)
Note that OEM versions of the modules are also available. The OEM versions of the modules
do not include an enclosure or an external power supply.
The key features that are common to both the DT9857 and DT9857E modules are as follows:
• Simultaneous analog input and waveform analog output operations
• Analog input subsystem:
−Up to eight analog input channels on the DT9857-08 and DT9857E-08 modules and up
to 16 analog input channels on the DT9857-16 and DT9857E-16 modules.
−One 24-bit A/D converter per analog input channel.
−Programmable throughput rate from 195.3125 Samples/s to 105.469 kSamples/s.
−Input range of ±10 V with software-selectable gains of 1 and 10 for an effective input
range of ±10 V and ±1 V.

Overview
17
−Support for IEPE (Integrated Electronic Piezoelectric) inputs, including use of a 4 mA
current source with 24 V compliance voltage for AC or DC coupling.
−In continuous scan mode, supports a start trigger for acquiring pre-trigger samples
and a reference trigger for acquiring post-trigger samples. You can specify the number
of post-trigger samples to acquire before stopping the operation.
−For the start trigger, supports a software-programmable trigger source (software,
external digital trigger, threshold trigger, or Sync Bus). For the threshold trigger, you
can program the threshold value from –10 V to +10 V.
−For the reference trigger, supports a software-programmable trigger source (external
digital trigger, threshold trigger, or Sync Bus).
−Supports the ability to return the value of the tachometer, general-purpose
counter/timer, measure counters, and digital input port in the analog input data
stream, allowing you to measure a variety of signals synchronously with analog input
measurements.
• Analog output subsystem:
−Two stimulus analog output channels.
−One 32-bit D/A converter per analog output channel.
−Single value, waveform, and continuous streaming output.
−Programmable output rate from 30 kSamples/s to 216 kSamples.
−Output range of ±10 V.
−Software-programmable trigger source (software trigger or external digital trigger) to
start the analog output operation.
−Supports the ability to update the digital output port synchronously with the analog
output channels.
• Eight digital input lines and eight digital output lines. For synchronous measurements,
you can return the value of the digital input port with your analog input data and/or
update the value of the digital output port with the analog output channels.
• One tachometer input signal. The value of the tachometer input signal is returned in the
analog input data stream for synchronous measurements.
• One general-purpose counter/timer for performing event counting, up/down counting,
edge-to-edge measurement, continuous edge-to-edge measurement, rate generation, and
pulse output operations. You can read the value of the counter/timer directly or through
the analog input data subsystem, as the counter/timer can be included in the analog input
data stream for synchronous measurements.
• Two measure counters. You can program the edge that starts the measurement and the
edge that stops the measurement. Many edge types are supported. The data from the
measure counters is returned in the analog input data stream for synchronous
measurements.

Chapter 1
18
• Sync Bus for connecting and synchronizing multiple modules.
• Locking USB connector.
• External power supply.
The key differences between the DT9857 and DT9857E modules are listed in Table 1.
Table 1: Key Differences Between the DT9857 and the DT9857E
Feature DT9857 Specification DT9857E Specification
External Power Supply The DT9857 module requires a +5 V
power supply that is connected to the DIN
connector on the module.
Both the DT9857E and DT9857E-OEM
require a +4.75 to +28 V power supply that
can be connected to either the DIN
connector or the 3-position Phoenix
connector on the module.
Synchronization All the analog input channels of up to four
modules can be synchronized using the
Sync Bus. The Sync Bus is implemented
with one RJ45 connector on each module
and an optional RJ45 distribution panel,
with four RJ45 connectors.
All the analog input channels of up to four
modules can be synchronized using the
Sync Bus and all the analog output
channels of up to four modules can be
synchronized using the Sync Bus. The
Sync Bus is implemented with two RJ45
connectors on each module No patch
panel is required.
External Digital (TTL) Input
Trigger
Provided on Digital connector Provided on BNC input
Tachometer Input Provided on BNC input Provided on Digital connector

Overview
19
Supported Software
The following software is available for use with the DT9857 and DT9857E modules and is
included on the Data Acquisition OMNI CD:
•DT9857 Series Device Driver – The DT9857 Series Device Driver allows you to use a
DT9857 or DT9857E module with any of the supported software packages or utilities.
•DT9857 Calibration Utility – This utility, described in Chapter 8 starting on page 133,
allows you to calibrate the analog input and analog output circuitry of the DT9857 and
DT9857E modules.
•QuickDAQ Base Version – The base version of QuickDAQ is free-of-charge and allows
you to acquire and analyze data from all Data Translation USB and Ethernet devices,
except the DT9841 Series, DT9817, DT9835, and DT9853/54. Using the base version of
QuickDAQ, you can perform the following functions:
−Discover and select your devices.
−Configure all input channel settings for the attached sensors.
−Load/save multiple hardware configurations.
−Generate output stimuli (fixed waveforms, swept sine waves, or noise signals).
−On each supported data acquisition device, acquire data from all channels supported
in the input channel list.
−Choose to acquire data continuously or for a specified duration.
−Choose software or triggered acquisition.
−Log acquired data to disk in an .hpf file.
−Display acquired data during acquisition in either a digital display using the Channel
Display window or as a waveform in the Channel Plot window.
−Choose linear or logarithmic scaling for the horizontal and vertical axes.
−View statistics about the acquired data, including the minimum, maximum, and mean
values and the standard deviation in the Statistics window.
−Export time data to a .csv or .txt file; you can open the recorded data in Microsoft
Excel® for further analysis.
−Read a previously recorded .hpf data file.
−Customize many aspects of the acquisition, display, and recording functions to suit
your needs, including the acquisition duration, sampling frequency, trigger settings,
filter type, and temperature units to use.
•QuickDAQ FFT Analysis Option – When enabled with a purchased license key, the
QuickDAQ FFT Analysis option includes all the features of the QuickDAQ Base version
plus basic FFT analysis features, including the following:
−The ability to switch between the Data Logger time-based interface and the FFT
Analyzer block/average-based interface.
−Supports software, freerun, or triggered acquisition with accept and reject controls for
impact testing applications.

Chapter 1
20
−Allows you to perform single-channel FFT (Fast Fourier Transform) operations,
including AutoSpectrum, Spectrum, and Power Spectral Density, on the acquired
analog input data. You can configure a number of parameters for the FFT, including
the FFT size, windowing type, averaging type, integration type, and so on.
−Allows you to display frequency-domain data as amplitude or phase.
−Supports dB or linear scaling with RMS (root mean squared), peak, and peak-to-peak
scaling options
−Supports linear or exponential averaging with RMS, vector, and peak hold averaging
options.
−Supports windowed time channels.
−Supports the following response window types: Hanning, Hamming, Bartlett,
Blackman, Blackman Harris, and Flat top.
−Supports the ability to lock the waveform output to the analysis frame time.
−Allows you to configure and view dynamic performance statistics, including the input
below full-scale (IBF), total harmonic distortion (THD), spurious free dynamic range
(SFDR), signal-to-noise and distortion ratio (SINAD), signal-to-noise ratio (SNR), and
the effective number of bits (ENOB), for selected time-domain channels in the Statistics
window.
−Supports digital IIR (infinite impulse response) filters.
•QuickDAQ Advanced FFT Analysis Option – When enabled with a purchased software
license, the QuickDAQ Advanced FFT Analysis option includes all the features of the
QuickDAQ Base version with the FFT Analysis option plus advanced FFT analysis
features, including the following:
−Allows you to designate a channel as a Reference or Response channel.
−Allows you to perform two-channel FFT analysis functions, including Frequency
Response Functions (Inertance, Mobility, Compliance, Apparent Mass, Impedance,
Dynamic Stiffness, or custom FRF) with H1, H2, or H3 estimator types,
Cross-Spectrum, Cross Power Spectral Density, Coherence, and Coherent Output
Power.
−Supports the Exponential response window type.
−Supports the following reference window types: Hanning, Hamming, Bartlett,
Blackman, Blackman Harris, FlatTop, Exponential, Force, and Cosine Taper windows.
−Supports real, imaginary, and Nyquist display functions.
−Allows you to save data in the .uff file format.
•Quick DataAcq application – The Quick DataAcq application provides a quick way to get
up and running using a DT9857 or DT9857E module. Using this application, you can
verify key features of the modules, display data on the screen, and save data to disk. (Note
that this application does not support configuring AC/DC coupling or the excitation
current source for IEPE inputs.)
•DT-Open Layers for .NET Class Library – Use this class library if you want to use Visual
C# or Visual Basic for .NET to develop your own application software for a DT9857 or
DT9857E modules using Visual Studio 2003-2012; the class library complies with the
DT-Open Layers standard.