Analog Input

Acquired analog input data, returned as doubles. If using only one output port for all channels, each scan is available as a matrix of scan blocksize by number of channels, M-by-N. If using a port for each channel, each scan results in a blocksize-by-1 column vector on each port. Multiple ports are named by channel names or device specified channel IDs.

Data Types: double

Relative timestamp of each scan, returned as a double. This port is available when you check the Output relative timestamps parameter.

Data Types: double

The device from which you want to acquire data. The items in the list vary, depending on which devices you have connected to your system. Devices in the list are specified by adaptor or vendor name and unique device ID, followed by the model name of the device, for example, ni Dev1 (USB-6255). The first available device is selected by default. A CompactDAQ chassis would be shown as a single device identified by vendor name, chassis ID, and chassis model; for example, ni cDAQ2 (cDAQ-9172).

Synchronous setting, specified as one of the following options.

Asynchronous — In asynchronous mode, the data acquisition from the device and the simulation happen in parallel. The model initiates the acquisition from the device when the simulation starts. Data from the device is continuously acquired into a FIFO (first in, first out) buffer in parallel as the simulation runs. At each time step, the model fetches data from the FIFO buffer and outputs a block of data. The data in the FIFO buffer is contiguous according to the hardware acquisition clock.

Synchronous — In synchronous mode, the simulation is blocked while acquiring data from the device. The model initiates the acquisition from the device at each time step and immediately enters a wait state until the acquisition request has completed. This is unbuffered input; the block outputs the latest block of data at each time step.

The following diagrams show the difference between synchronous and asynchronous modes for the Analog Input block.

Synchronous Analog Input

At the first time step (T1), the acquisition is initiated for the required block of data (B1). The simulation does not continue until B1 is completely acquired.

Asynchronous Analog Input – Scenario 1

Scenario 1 shows the case when simulation speed outpaces data acquisition speed. At the first time step (T1), the required block of data (B1) is still being acquired. Therefore, the simulation does not continue until B1 is completely acquired.

Asynchronous Analog Input – Scenario 2

Scenario 2 shows the case when data acquisition speed outpaces simulation speed. At the first time step (T1), the required block of data (B1) has been completely acquired. Therefore, the simulation runs continuously.

Device channel selection and configuration table. The channel configuration table lists the hardware channels of your device, and lets you select and configure them. Specify which channels to acquire data from (by default all the channels are selected). The following parameters are specified for each selected channel:

Channel ID — Hardware channel ID specified by the device. The Channel ID column is read-only, and the parameters are defined when the device is selected.

Name — Channel name. By default the table displays any names provided by the hardware, but you can edit the names. For example, if the device is a sound card with two channels, you can name them Left and Right.

Module — Device ID the channel belongs to. The Module column is read-only. If a CompactDAQ chassis is selected, it shows the ID of the CompactDAQ module which the channel belongs to; otherwise the ID of the device.

Measurement Type — Measurement type of the channel. This block supports only voltage measurement types. (For other measurement types, use a DataAcquisition object in MATLAB^®.)

Input Range — Input ranges available for each channel supported by the hardware, defined when a device is selected.

Terminal Configuration — Specifies the hardware terminal configuration, such as single-ended, differential, etc. The terminal configuration options are defined by the capabilities of the selected channel.

Coupling — Hardware coupling configuration, such as AC or DC. The coupling type is defined when a device is selected.

Number of output data ports, specified as:

1 for all channels — Output data from a single port as a matrix, with a size of blocksize by number of channels selected.

1 per channel — Output data from N ports, where N is equal to the number of selected channels. Each output port is a column vector with a size of blocksize-by-1. For naming, each output port uses the channel name if one was specified, otherwise the channel ID, for example, ai0.

The rate at which samples are acquired from the device, in samples per second. This is the sampling rate for the hardware. The sample rate must be a positive real number within the range supported by the selected hardware.

The number of data samples to read from the block output at each time step for each channel. It must be a positive integer greater than or equal to 2, within the range supported by the selected hardware.

Select this option to output the relative data timestamps, one for each sample. This option adds a new output port to the block. The data type of this port is double, and corresponds to the time offset in seconds of the sample related to the start of acquisition. For asynchronous acquisition, the acquisition is initiated once at the start of model execution, the relative timestamp is a monotonically-increasing number relative to the start of simulation. For synchronous acquisition, an acquisition is initiated at every time step; as a result, the relative timestamp is reset to zero every time an acquisition is initiated.