How to Use a USB-TEMP, With a Thermocouple and RTD Sensor, to Measure Temperature With InstaCal and TracerDAQ
This article explains how to use a MCC USB-TEMP module with a J-type thermocouple wire (MCC part # 745690-J001) and a 3-wire, 100 Ohm RTD sensor (MCC part # 745691-02). For software, the latest release of the MCC DAQ CD was used to install InstaCal and TracerDAQ, onto a Windows 10 system.
When installing the MCC DAQ CD (mccdaq.exe), select TracerDAQ and the InstaCal & Universal Library packages.
On a system with a 32-bit version of Windows OS, Measurement Computing’s software will appear in the folder path: ‘C:\Program Files\Measurement Computing’. On a system with a 64-bit version of Windows OS, Measurement Computing’s software will appear in the following folder paths: ‘C:\Program Files (x86)\Measurement Computing\DAQ’ ‘C:\Program Files\Measurement Computing\DAQami’
Next, connect the USB-TEMP module to the target system’s USB port. On some systems, a notification window may appear indicating the ‘device is ready’.
The next step is to launch MCC’s InstaCal software. ‘C:\Program Files (x86)\Measurement Computing\DAQ\inscal32.exe’ ‘C:\Program Files\Measurement Computing\DAQ\inscal32.exe’
If connecting a USB-TEMP module to the target system, for the first time, then you will be prompted to run the HID Registry Update utility.
After rebooting the target system or cycling the USB cable connection to the module, restart InstaCal. A ‘Plug and Play Board Detection’ window will appear. Select the USB-TEMP device and click the OK button.
Once in InstaCal, the USB-TEMP module will appear in the PC Board List.
Right mouse-click on the USB-TEMP device to configure the device.
In this example, channel 0 was configured to use a single 3-wire, 100 Ohm RTD sensor (MCC part # 745691-02). Set the coefficient standard to ‘DIN 43760’ and click the ‘Show Connections’ button to view the appropriate wiring for the RTD sensor.
Next, click on the CH(2-3) tab to configure channel 2 with a Type J thermocouple.
Click the OK button to exit the Board Configuration window. A message window will prompt the user to save the configuration.
Using InstaCal’s top menu, select TEST – ANALOG.
In the Board Test window, channel 0 was selected for the 3-wire RTD sensor and channel 2 was selected for the Type J thermocouple. Click the TEST button to acquire temperature readings. Click the OK button to exit the test window.
Close InstaCal and launch TracerDAQ. Select the Strip Chart option and click the RUN button.
In the Strip Chart window, click the EDIT menu option and then select 'Channel Settings'.
In the 'Channel Settings' window, set the Number of Channels to be 2. Select the first channel and update the Settings section as shown in the following image.
Next, select the second channel and update the Settings section as shown in the following image.
Click the OK button and then from the main menu, select EDIT - DAQ Hardware Settings. For the first channel, select the USB-TEMP module and temperature channel 'Ti0'. For the second channel, select the USB-TEMP module and temperature channel 'Ti2'. (Recall that channels 0 & 2, where initially configured in InstaCal for RTD and thermocouple sensors, respectively.)
Next, from the main menu, select EDIT - Display Settings. In the Display Settings window, click the Lanes tab. Set the number of lanes to 2. Each lane will only have one data channel. Configure the Lane Settings with a label and input range limits.
Next, from the main menu, select EDIT - Scan Rate/Trigger Settings. Enter a scan rate and the length of time to acquire data.
Next, from the main menu, select EDIT - Display Settings. Click on the Markers tab. A user has the option to enable markers in order to view the data values, on the strip chart. (Refer to the TracerDAQ Help for more information.)
In order to view the Markers, click VIEW from the main menu and select the Marker Values option.
To acquire data, click on the triangle icon in the upper left-hand (and lower left-hand) corner of the strip chart.