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Can anybody give me an understanding of what IEEE 488 GPID is? I have been requested to install a RS-232 cable from a controller to a GPID-232-A protocol converter. From the GPID then to a personal computer with a IEEE 488 conection. Not sure what all this stuff does and how I am supposed to configure all the dip switches.

I think it is actually GPIB or "General Purpose Instrumentation Bus" formerly known originally as HPIB or Hewlett-Packard Instrument Bus" and it is very seldom used. I believe that National
Instruments still supports it.

Walt Boyes

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Walt Boyes -- Director of New Business Development
Branom Instrument Co.-- P. O. Box 80307-- 5500 4th Ave. So.
Seattle, WA 98108-0307
Phone: 1-206-762-6050 ext. 310 -- Fax: 1-206-767-5669
http://www.branom.com -- http://www.branomstore.com
mailto:wboyes@ix.netcom.com
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Another source that I have used for GPIB interface products is ComputerBoards, Inc
www.computerboards.com. They also have a language library available.

You are correct, it is GPIB and it is frequently used in automated testing and calibration, but not so much (AFAIK) in "plant" automation. Many, if not most, stand-alone meters, sources, function generators, oscilloscopes, etc (hence the "general purpose instrument") support GPIB. There are a few protocols that ride on top of the bus, although I'm not sure how/if that would
impact Brad's question.

Take a look at:
http://www.sonic.net/~gklund/instrumentation.htm

I'd also do some searches on HP/Agilent's websites.

Brian Lawry, Mfg Software Engineer
Compressor Controls Corporation
515-253-3268 (direct)
blawry@cccglobal.com
www.compressorcontrols.com

GPIB was used as an instrumentation bus between test instruments and the 'controller' . Each instrument in this 'daisy chained' bus had an address . Multiple instruments were serviced
with a common cable . The protocol converter you refer to is no more than an interface to a computer's RS232 serial port .

You can get tomes of information from HP or National on this bus .
Try http://www.iotech.com/liveAssistance/index to see if they can answer your questions .

Dave Gunderson Hoover Dam Comm & Control Gp
Web Page: http://www.futureone.com/~davegun

It's GPIB not GPID - General Purpose Interface Bus. Electrically I'm not sure what it is. But I recall it being just another master / slave bus. You have one master and multiple slaves, each slave has an address and that's about all there is to it.

Pete

GPID stands for: "General Purpose Interface Bus" and it is a standard bus used for controlling electronic instruments with a computer via parallel interfaces. The bus is defined by ANSI/IEE 488.

Brad,

I used to work with this Interface long time ago. GPIB it is a parallel Interface between a master controller (e. g. PC) and several slaves (laboratory) equipment (printers, oscilloscopes, scanner, etc.). I used it to bring digital images from a scanner Sharp JX-450. It was easy to program the master card using Turbo C. You can find information from National instrument.

Regards,
F=E9lix Blanco

Brad, can you help me: I auctioned a Sharp JX-450 at Ebay, not knowing that it has the GPIB interface that I last met and liked with a Commodore 610 about 15 years ago. Is this code or program you used still on your files? - I promise I won't batter you with questions, I know pretty well what GPIB is and how to handle it. But I get horrified at the idea to write the code from scratch. So if you don't mind and still have it pass it on! Thanks. > Brad, I used to work with this Interface long time ago. GPIB it is a parallel Interface between a master controller (e. g. PC) and several slaves (laboratory) equipment (printers, oscilloscopes, scanner, etc.). I used it to bring digital images from a scanner Sharp JX-450. It was easy to program the master card using Turbo C. You can find information from National instrument. Regards, F=E9lix Blanco