Omega OMB-DAQ-2408 Series User manual

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OMB-DAQ-2408 SERIES
Multifunction USB
Data Acquisition Modules
Extended Warranty
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User’s Guide

Servicing North America:
U.S.A.: Omega Engineering, Inc., One Omega Drive, P.O. Box 4047
Stamford, CT 06907-0047 USA
Toll-Free: 1-800-826-6342 (USA & Canada only)
Customer Service: 1-800-622-2378 (USA & Canada only)
Engineering Service: 1-800-872-9436 (USA & Canada only)
Tel: [phone] Fax: [phone]
e-mail: [email protected]
For Other Locations Visit omega.com/worldwide
omega.com [email protected]
The information contained in this document is believed to be correct, but OMEGA accepts no liability for any errors it contains, and reserves
the right to alter specifications without notice.
WARNING: These products are not designed for use in, and should not be used for, human applications.

3
Table of Contents
About this User's Guide .......................................................................................................................5
What you will learn from this user's guide .........................................................................................................5
Conventions in this user's guide .........................................................................................................................5
Where to find more information.........................................................................................................................5
Chapter 1
Introducing the OMB-DAQ-2408 Series ..............................................................................................6
Overview: OMB-DAQ-2408 Series features......................................................................................................6
OMB-DAQ-2408 Series block diagram .............................................................................................................7
Chapter 2
Installing a OMB-DAQ-2408 Series Device.........................................................................................8
What comes with your shipment?.......................................................................................................................8
Hardware .......................................................................................................................................................................... 8
Documentation.................................................................................................................................................................. 8
Unpacking...........................................................................................................................................................8
Installing the software ........................................................................................................................................8
Installing the hardware .......................................................................................................................................9
Calibrating..........................................................................................................................................................9
Self-calibration ................................................................................................................................................................. 9
Factory calibration............................................................................................................................................................ 9
Chapter 3
Functional Details ...............................................................................................................................10
External components ........................................................................................................................................10
USB connector.................................................................................................................................................................10
LEDs................................................................................................................................................................................10
Screw terminals................................................................................................................................................................10
Signal connections............................................................................................................................................12
Input isolation..................................................................................................................................................................12
Analog/TC input..............................................................................................................................................................13
Analog input mode...........................................................................................................................................................13
Gain queue.......................................................................................................................................................................14
TC input mode.................................................................................................................................................................15
Analog output (OMB-DAQ-2408-2AO only)..................................................................................................................17
Digital I/O........................................................................................................................................................................17
Internal pull-up/pull-down capability...............................................................................................................................17
External pull-up/pull-down capability .............................................................................................................................19
Counter input...................................................................................................................................................................19
Ground.............................................................................................................................................................................19
Mechanical drawings........................................................................................................................................20
Chapter 4
Specifications......................................................................................................................................21
Analog input.....................................................................................................................................................21
Channel configurations.....................................................................................................................................22
Compatible sensors..........................................................................................................................................................22
Accuracy...........................................................................................................................................................22
Thermocouple measurement accuracy.............................................................................................................................22
Analog input DC voltage measurement accuracy ............................................................................................................23
Input bandwidth...............................................................................................................................................................24
Noise performance...........................................................................................................................................................24
Channel switching error...................................................................................................................................................25
Throughput rate ................................................................................................................................................25
Analog voltage output (OMB-DAQ-2408-2AO only) .....................................................................................26

OMB-DAQ-2408 Series User's Guide
4
Analog input/output calibration........................................................................................................................27
Digital input/output...........................................................................................................................................27
Counter.............................................................................................................................................................28
Memory ............................................................................................................................................................29
Microcontroller.................................................................................................................................................29
Power................................................................................................................................................................29
USB specifications ...........................................................................................................................................29
Environmental ..................................................................................................................................................30
Mechanical .......................................................................................................................................................30
Screw terminal connector type and pinout .......................................................................................................30

5
Preface
About this User's Guide
What you will learn from this user's guide
This user's guide describes the Omega Engineering OMB-DAQ-2408 Series data acquisition devices and lists
device specifications.
Conventions in this user's guide
For more information about …
Text presented in a box signifies additional information and helpful hints related to the subject matter you are
reading.
Caution! Shaded caution statements present information to help you avoid injuring yourself and others,
damaging your hardware, or losing your data.
bold text Bold text is used for the names of objects on a screen, such as buttons, text boxes, and check boxes.
italic text Italic text is used for the names of manuals and help topic titles, and to emphasize a word or phrase.
Where to find more information
Additional information about OMB-DAQ-2408 Series hardware is available on our website at
www.omega.com. You can also contact Omega Engineering by phone, fax, or email with specific questions.
Phone: [phone]
Fax: [phone]
Email: [email protected]m

6
Chapter 1
Introducing the OMB-DAQ-2408 Series
Overview: OMB-DAQ-2408 Series features
The OMB-DAQ-2408, OMB-DAQ-2408-2AO includes the following devices:
OMB-DAQ-2408
OMB-DAQ-2408-2AO
These devices are USB 2.0 high-speed devices supported under popular Microsoft®Windows®operating
systems. The OMB-DAQ-2408 Series is compatible with both USB 1.1 and USB 2.0 ports, although the speed
of the module maybe limited when using USB 1.1 ports.
Each OMB-DAQ-2408 Series device provides the following features:
16 single-ended (SE) or eight differential (DIFF) 24-bit analog inputs with sampling rates up to 1 kS/s.
Each channel is software-configurable as SE or DIFF. For each DIFF channel pair, you lose one SE
channel.
Analog input ranges of ±10 V, ±5 V, ±2.5 V, ±1.25 V, ±0.625 V, ±0.312 V, ±0.156 V, and ±0.078 V.
Up to eight analog inputs can be configured as DIFF thermocouple (TC) inputs, which include built-in
cold-junction compensation and open TC detection.
Computer protection provided through a minimum of 500 VDC input isolation between field wiring and the
USB interface.
Eight lines of digital I/O and two 32-bit counters.
Screw terminals for field wiring connections
The OMB-DAQ-2408-2AO also provides two 16-bit analog output channels. You can pace a single channel at
rates of up to 1 kS/s. You can pace both channels simultaneously at rates of up to 500 S/s.

OMB-DAQ-2408 Series User's Guide Introducing the OMB-DAQ-2408 Series
7
OMB-DAQ-2408 Series block diagram
OMB-DAQ-2408 Series functions are illustrated in the block diagram shown here.
Figure 1. OMB-DAQ-2408 Series functional block diagram

8
Chapter 2
Installing a OMB-DAQ-2408 Series Device
What comes with your shipment?
As you unpack your OMB-DAQ-2408 Series device, verify that the following components are included.
Verify that the following hardware components are included in the shipment:
Hardware
OMB-DAQ-2408 Series device —OMB-DAQ-2408 or OMB-DAQ-2408-2AO (shown here)
USB cable (2 meter length)
Documentation
In addition to this hardware user's guide, a Quick Start Guide booklet is included with the OMB-DAQ-2408
Series shipment. This booklet provides an overview of the software you received with the device, and includes
information about installing the software. Please read this booklet completely before installing any software or
hardware.
Unpacking
As with any electronic device, take care while handling to avoid damage from static electricity. Before
removing the OMB-DAQ-2408 Series device from its packaging, ground yourself using a wrist strap or by
simply touching the computer chassis or other grounded object to eliminate any stored static charge.
If any components are missing or damaged, notify Omega Engineering immediately by phone, fax, or e-mail.
Phone: [phone]
Fax: [phone]
Email: [email protected]m
Installing the software
Refer to the Software for OMB-DAQ-2400, OM-USB, OM-WEB, and OM-WLS Series Data Acquisition
Modules User's Guide for instructions on installing the software on the CD. This booklet is available in PDF at
http://www.omega.com/manuals/manualpdf/M4803.pdf.

OMB-DAQ-2408 Series User's Guide Installing a OMB-DAQ-2408 Series Device
9
Installing the hardware
Install the software before you install your hardware
The driver needed to run your board is installed with the software. Therefore, you need to install the software
before you install your hardware.
To connect a OMB-DAQ-2408 Series device to your system, turn on your computer and connect the USB cable
to an available USB port on the computer or to an external USB hub connected to the computer. Connect the
other end of the USB cable to the USB connector on the device. No external power is required.
When you connect the device for the first time to a computer running Windows, a Found New Hardware dialog
opens when the operating system detects the device. The dialog closes after the device is installed.
A green Status LED indicates the device status. When the LED is on, the device is powered and ready for
operation. If the LED is not on, the device is not powered or did not initialize.
Figure 2 on page 10 shows the location of the STATUS LED.
Caution! Do not disconnect any device from the USB bus while the computer is communicating with the
OMB-DAQ-2408 Series device, or you may lose data and/or your ability to communicate with the
device.
If the Status LED turns off
If the Status LED turns on but then turns off, the computer has lost communication with the OMB-DAQ-2408
Series device. To restore communication, disconnect the USB cable from the computer and then reconnect it.
This should restore communication, and the Status LED should turn on.
Calibrating
Self-calibration
OMB-DAQ-2408 Series hardware supports self-calibration. You should calibrate the device whenever the
ambient temperature changes by more than ±10 °C from the last self-calibration. Use InstaCal to calibrate the
device.
Factory calibration
The Omega Engineering Manufacturing Test department performs the initial factory calibration. Contact
Omega Engineering for details about how to return your device and have it calibrated to the factory
specifications.

OMB-DAQ-2408 Series User's Guide Functional Details
10
Chapter 3
Functional Details
External components
OMB-DAQ-2408 Series devices have the following external components:
USB connector
LEDs
Screw terminals
Figure 2 shows the location of each component.
1
Screw terminal pins 1 to 22
4
Status LED
2
USB connector
5
Screw terminal pins 23 to 44
3
Activity LED
Figure 2. OMB-DAQ-2408 Series components
USB connector
The USB connector provides +5 V power and communication. No external power supply is required.
LEDs
OMB-DAQ-2408 Series devices have two LEDs –STATUS and ACTIVITY.
The Status LED is lit when the device is detected and installed on the computer.
The Activity LED indicates the communication status of a device. This LED blinks when data is
transferred, and is off when the device is not communicating.
Screw terminals
OMB-DAQ-2408 Series devices have two banks of screw terminals. Screw terminal functions for SE and DIFF
modes are identified in Figure 3 and Figure 4.

OMB-DAQ-2408 Series User's Guide Functional Details
11
The OMB-DAQ-2408 Series device screw terminals provide the following connections:
16 SE (CH0 to CH15 –see Figure 3) or eight DIFF (CH0H/CH0L to CH7H/CH7L) analog input connections
Eight digital I/O connections (DI00 to DI07)
Two analog output connections (AOUT0, AOUT1) –OMB-DAQ-2408-2AO only
Two counter inputs (CTR0, CTR1)
One power output (+5V)
10 analog grounds (AGND), four digital grounds (DGND), and one chassis ground (CHAS)
Figure 3. SE mode pin out
* These pins are labeled "NC" (no connection) on the OMB-DAQ-2408.

OMB-DAQ-2408 Series User's Guide Functional Details
12
Figure 4. DIFF mode pin out
* These pins are labeled "NC" (no connection) on the OMB-DAQ-2408.
Signal connections
Input isolation
OMB-DAQ-2408 Series devices are isolated data acquisition devices. The analog I/O, digital I/O, counters, and
all the digital control/timing are referenced to an isolated ground as shown in the figure below. This ground is
physically and electrically separate from the ground used by the circuit connected to the system bus interface.
Isolation provides a barrier between the host computer and potentially hazardous voltages by physically and
electrically separating two parts of the measurement device.
The "non-isolated" ground is common to the chassis ground of the computer, while the "isolated" ground is
not.
All analog measurements are made relative to the isolated ground. See Figure 5 for details.

OMB-DAQ-2408 Series User's Guide Functional Details
13
Figure 5. OMB-DAQ-2408 Series input isolation diagram
When making measurements in industrial environments, DAQ devices can encounter hazardous voltages,
transients, large common mode voltages and fluctuating ground potentials. Any one of these issues can
seriously degrade the measurement accuracy of the device and possibly damage the measurement instrument.
To overcome these issues, some DAQ devices provide physical and electrical isolation. Some of the benefits of
isolation include:
Safety: A DAQ device employing physical and electrical isolation helps to keep high voltages and
transients from damaging the system-side host computer.
Ground loops: Improper grounding of the signal source that the DAQ device is measuring is one of the
most common sources of noise and measurement inaccuracies. Isolation improves the measurement
accuracy by physically preventing ground loops. Ground loops –a common source of noise and error –are
the results of a measurement system having multiple grounds at different potentials.
Common mode rejection: With isolation, a DAQ device can measure small signals in the presence of large
common mode voltages. Isolation increases the ability of the measurement system to reject common mode
voltages. The common mode voltage is the signal that is common to both the positive and negative inputs
of the measurement device, but is not part of the signal to measure.
Analog/TC input
Each analog input channel has the following measurement parameters:
Voltage input range
TC type J, K, T, E, R, S, B, or N
You can select a unique input range or signal type for each channel. For example, one channel could be used for
volts and another for temperature.
Analog input mode
You can configure the analog inputs for SE or DIFF mode. The input voltage range is software selectable for
±10 V, ±5 V, ±2.5 V, ±1.25 V, ±0.625 V, ±0.312 V, ±0.156 V, or ±0.078 V.
With SE mode, connect up to 16 inputs to screw terminals CH0 to CH15. SE mode requires two wires:
Connect one wire to the signal you want to measure (CHx).
Connect one wire to the analog ground reference (AGND).
Refer to Figure 3 on page 11 for the location of the SE inputs.
With DIFF mode, connect up to eight DIFF inputs to screw terminals CH0H/CH0L to CH7H/CH7L. DIFF mode
requires two wires plus a ground reference:
Connect one wire to the high/positive signal (CHxH).
Connect one wire to the low/negative signal (CHxL).
Connect one wire to the analog ground reference (AGND).

OMB-DAQ-2408 Series User's Guide Functional Details
14
Refer to Figure 4 on page 12 for the location of the DIFF inputs.
When connecting DIFF voltage inputs to a "floating" voltage source, make sure there is a DC return path from
each voltage input to ground. You make this path by connecting a resistor from each low channel input to an
AGND pin. A value of approximately 100 kΩ can be used for most applications. This does not apply to
channels configured for TC input, as they have their own internal reference.
Leave unused input channels either floating or tied to an AGND terminal.
Source impedances should be kept as small as possible to avoid settling time and accuracy errors.
Figure 6 shows a DIFF voltage connection using a ground path resistor.
Figure 6. DIFF voltage connection with ground path resistor example
Gain queue
Use the OMB-DAQ-2408 Series channel - gain queue feature to configure a list of channels, modes, and gains
for each scan. The settings are stored in a channel –gain queue list that is written to local memory on the
device.
The channel - gain queue list contains one or more channel numbers and range settings. You can configure up to
64 elements. The channels can be listed in any order, and can include duplicate channels for sampling at
different ranges.
An example of a 12-element list is shown in the table below.
Sample channel gain queue list
Element
Channel
Range
0
CH0
BIP10V
1
CH1
BIP5V
2
CH0
BIP2Pt5VOLTS
3
CH4
BIP2Pt5VOLTS
4
CH8
BIP2Pt5VOLTS
5
CH0
BIP5V
6
CH1
BIP1Pt25VOLTS
7
CH7
BIP5V
8
CH0
BIP1Pt25VOLTS
9
CH15
BIP10V
10
CH9
BIP1Pt25VOLTS
11
CH10
BIP2Pt5VOLTS
Carefully match the gain to the expected voltage range on the associated channel or an over range condition
may occur. Although this condition does not damage the device, it does produce a useless full-scale reading,
and can introduce a long recovery time due to saturation of the input channel.
CH0H
CH0L
AGND
CH1H
CH1L
AGND
100 kΩ
–
+

OMB-DAQ-2408 Series User's Guide Functional Details
15
For more information on analog signal connections
For more information on single-ended and differential inputs, refer to the OMB-DAQ-2400, OM-USB,
OM-WEB, and OM-WLS Series General Guide to Signal Connections (available on our web site at
www.omega.com/manuals/manualpdf/M4830.pdf).
TC input mode
You can make up to eight high-resolution DIFF TC measurements with a OMB-DAQ-2408 Series device.
Built-in cold-junction compensation sensors are provided for each of the screw-terminal blocks and any
supported TC type can be attached to any of the 8 TC channels.
Do not connect TCs as SE –doing so can cause false readings.
You do not need to use ground-referencing resistors for TC inputs because the analog front-end circuit level-
shifts the TC output into the common-mode input range of the A/D.
OMB-DAQ-2408 Series devices also provide an open TC detection feature for each of the analog input
channels configured for TC measurement. This feature is enabled or disabled by software, and when enabled, it
detects if an open-circuit condition exists at the TC sensor.
OMB-DAQ-2408 Series devices provide electrostatic discharge (ESD) protection for each of the TC inputs.
However, before handling TC sensors, follow standard ESD practices and discharge any accumulated ESD
charge.
Once the TC sensor is connected to the device, the configuration options have been selected, and the
recommended 45 minute warm up has elapsed, the device is ready to make high-resolution DIFF temperature
measurements.
Built-in cold junction compensation (CJC) automatically compensates for the additional thermal EMFs
generated by connecting the TC leads to the OMB-DAQ-2408 Series device terminal blocks.
CJC is performed using a high-resolution temperature sensor connected close to the device terminal blocks. The
device includes two separate CJC sensors –one on each side of the PCB. Software corrects for the additional
TCs created at the terminals.
Once the A/D and CJC data is collected, the application software uses this data to linearize to an accurate
temperature reading. The TC linearization uses the latest NIST linearization coefficients for each of the eight
TC types supported by OMB-DAQ-2408 Series devices.
When configuring TC sensors, keep any stray capacitance as small as possible relative to AGND to avoid
settling time and accuracy errors. For TC channels, do not provide a return path to ground. This is done
internally.
Figure 7 shows a typical TC connection.
Figure 7. DIFF TC connection example

OMB-DAQ-2408 Series User's Guide Functional Details
16
Noise filtering, data rate and throughput rate
Although the OMB-DAQ-2408 Series A/D converter has a maximum data rate of 3,750 samples per second, the
actual throughput rate you observe for voltage and temperature data is determined by these formulas.
Maximum single-channel throughput:



Maximum multiple-channel throughput:

󰇡
󰇢

where nis the number of channels
See Table 18 and Table 19 in the "Specifications" chapter for details.
This drop-off in throughput rate is due to the noise filtering feature in the device. You can control the amount of
the noise filtering by adjusting the data rate setting. By reducing the data rate, the averaging of samples
increases, and noise drops correspondingly.
Figure 8 illustrates this inverse relationship. This graph applies to the A/D converter only –do not expect this
level of performance from a OMB-DAQ-2408 Series device itself.
Figure 8. OMB-DAQ-2408 Series A/D converter data rate vs. noise graph
If low noise is your main concern, you can operate the OMB-DAQ-2408 Series device at very low data rates
starting from 2.5 samples per second (S/s). At low rates, much of the noise is averaged out of the data, and
issues such as reference noise become less important.
At higher data rates, higher-frequency noise sources are not averaged out and begin to be troublesome. These
noise sources include the noise inherent in the A/D converter itself, which is not reducible.
Since TCs can pick up noise in your environment, select a data rate based on the primary noise frequency. For
example, to reduce the effect of 60 Hz noise, select a data rate of 60 (or a supported submultiple of 60, such as
10 or 5).
Multiple-channel throughput rates
When setting different sample rates for channels, be aware that all the channels will be sampled within the same
sample window based on the channel with the lowest sample rate.
For example, if you set a 10 Hz data rate for channel 0, and a 50 Hz data rate for channel 1, basically, both
channels pass the same number of samples per second to the host computer. However, more averaging is
performed on channel 0 samples; therefore, channel 0 is sampled at a higher resolution.
The OMB-DAQ-2408 Series A/D converter performs averaging, and the number of averages equals
30,000/data rate.
In this example, channel 0 is sampled 3000 times over 100 ms, and all samples are averaged into one sample.
Then, channel 1 is sampled 600 times over 20 ms, and samples are likewise averaged into one sample.
The final samples are available to you at a maximum rate of about 8 Hz (8.245 Hz).

OMB-DAQ-2408 Series User's Guide Functional Details
17
Figure 9. OMB-DAQ-2408 Series data rate vs. resolution example
Analog output (OMB-DAQ-2408-2AO only)
The OMB-DAQ-2408-2AO has two 16-bit analog outputs (AOUT0 and AOUT1). Both outputs can be updated
simultaneously at a rate of 500 S/s per channel. One output can be updated at a rate of 1000 S/s. The output
range is fixed at ±10 V. The outputs default to 0 V when the host computer is shut down or suspended, or when
a reset command is issued to the device.
Digital I/O
You can connect up to eight digital I/O lines to DIO0 through DIO7. The digital I/O terminals can detect the
state of any TTL-level input.
Digital input voltage ranges of up to 0 to +15 V are permitted, with thresholds of 0.6 V (low) and 2.2 V (high).
Each DIO channel is an open-drain, which, when used as an output, is capable of sinking up to 150 mA for
direct drive applications.
Figure 10 shows an example of a typical DIO connection.
Figure 10. Digital output connection example
The figure represents connections for one channel. The other seven channels are connected in the same manner.
The maximum sink current is 150 mA per 8-channel bank, or if all eight channels are used, 18 mA (maximum)
per channel.
Internal pull-up/pull-down capability
Unconnected inputs are pulled low by default to 0 V through 47 kΩ resistors via jumper J6 on the circuit board.
The pull-up/pull-down voltage is common to all 47 kΩ resistors. Complete the following steps to configure
these inputs to pull high (+5V).

OMB-DAQ-2408 Series User's Guide Functional Details
18
Caution! The discharge of static electricity can damage some electronic components. Before removing the
OMB-DAQ-2408 Series device from its housing, ground yourself using a wrist strap or touch the
computer chassis or other grounded object to eliminate any stored static charge.
To open the case and set the J6 jumper, do the following.
1. Turn the device over and rest the top of the housing on a flat, stable surface.
2. Peel off the four rubber feet on the bottom of the device to access the screws.
3. Remove the four screws from the bottom of the device.
4. Hold both the top and bottom sections together, turn the device over and rest it on the surface, then
carefully remove the top section of the case to expose the circuit board.
5. Configure jumper J6 for either pull-up, pins 1-2, or pull-down, pins 2-3. The jumper is configured by
default for pull-up. Figure 11 shows the location of the jumper on the board.
Figure 11. Location of J6 jumper
Figure 12 shows the jumper configured for pull-up and pull-down.
Figure 12. J6 jumper configurations
6. Replace the top section of the case, and fasten it to the bottom section with the four screws. Replace the
rubber feet.
For more information about digital signal connections
For more information on digital signal connections and digital I/O techniques, refer to the OMB-DAQ-2400,
OM-USB, OM-WEB, and OM-WLS Series General Guide to Signal Connections (available on our web site at
www.omega.com/manuals/manualpdf/M4830.pdf).
The pull-up/pull-down voltage is common to all of the internal 47 kΩ resistors.

OMB-DAQ-2408 Series User's Guide Functional Details
19
External pull-up/pull-down capability
You can also place an external pull-up resistor on any of the DIO bits, which enables you to pull the DIO bit up
to a voltage that exceeds the internal +5 V pull-up voltage.
When using external pull-up resistors, be aware of the following:
You should either remove the J6 jumper, or store it by attaching it to one of the three pins.
When using external pull-up resistors, be aware that the internal resistors cause a slight voltage impedance
shift to digital lines in the "on" state as various lines change between the on/off states.
Figure 13. Digital I/O external resistor configuration
Counter input
The CTR0 and CTR1 terminals are 32-bit event counters that can accept frequency inputs up to 1 MHz. The
internal counter increments when the TTL levels transition from low to high.
Ground
The analog ground (AGND) terminals provide a common ground for all analog channels.
The digital ground (GND) terminals provide a common ground for the digital and counter channels and the
power terminal.
47 kΩ
DIO0
DIO1
DIO2
DIO3
DIO4
DIO5
DIO6
DIO7
+5 V + V
External pull-up resistor
J6
Internal jumper
disabled (placed on
center pin only)

OMB-DAQ-2408 Series User's Guide Functional Details
20
Mechanical drawings
Figure 14. OMB-DAQ-2408 Series device circuit board (top) and enclosure dimensions