Main Content

Interface and Property Help

instrhelp Function

Note

instrhelp will be removed in a future release. For serialport, tcpclient, tcpserver, udpport, visadev, and bluetooth objects, use help instead.

You can use the instrhelp function to:

  • Display command-line help for functions and properties.

  • List all the functions and properties associated with a specific instrument object.

An instrument object is not only for you to obtain this information, but also to display all functions and properties associated with the object, as well as the constructor help. For example, to see this information for a GPIB object, type:

instrhelp gpib

To display help for the EOIMode property, type:

instrhelp EOIMode

You can also display help for an existing instrument object. For example, to display help for the MemorySpace property associated with a VISA-GPIB-VXI object, type:

v = visa('keysight','GPIB-VXI0::80::INSTR');
out = instrhelp(v,'MemorySpace');

Alternatively, you can display help via the Workspace browser by right-clicking an instrument object and selecting Instrument Help from the context menu.

propinfo Function

You can use the propinfo function to return the characteristics of the Instrument Control Toolbox™ properties. For example, you can find the default value for any property using this function. propinfo returns a structure containing the following fields:

Field Name

Description

Type

The property data type. Possible values are any, ASCII value, callback, double, string, and struct.

Constraint

The type of constraint on the property value. Possible values are ASCII value, bounded, callback, enum, and none.

ConstraintValue

The property value constraint. The constraint can be a range of values or a list of character vector values.

DefaultValue

The property default value.

ReadOnly

The condition under which a property is read only. Possible values are always, never, whileOpen, and whileRecording.

InterfaceSpecific

If the property is interface-specific, a 1 is returned. If the property is supported for all interfaces, a 0 is returned.

For example, to display the property characteristics for the EOIMode property associated with the GPIB object g,

g = gpib('ni',0,2);
EOIinfo = propinfo(g,'EOIMode')
EOIinfo = 
                 Type: 'string'
           Constraint: 'enum'
      ConstraintValue: {2x1 cell}
         DefaultValue: 'on'
             ReadOnly: 'never'
    InterfaceSpecific: 1

This information tells you the following:

  • The property value data type is a character vector.

  • The property value is constrained as an enumerated list of values.

  • There are two possible property values.

  • The default value is on.

  • The property can be configured at any time (it is never read-only).

  • The property is not supported for all interfaces.

To display the property value constraints,

EOIinfo.ConstraintValue
ans = 
    'on'
    'off'

instrsupport Function

Execute this function to get diagnostic information for all installed hardware adaptors on your system. The information is stored in a text file, instrsupport.txt in your current folder and you can use this information to troubleshoot issues.

Overview Help

The overview help lists the toolbox functions grouped by usage. You can display this information by typing

help instrument

For the code for any function, type

type function_name

Documentation Examples

This guide provides detailed examples that show you how to communicate with all supported interface types. These examples are contained in all the appropriate sections throughout the documentation. For example, in the sections about Bluetooth® communication, you will find examples of communicating with Bluetooth instruments.

The examples use specific peripheral instruments, GPIB controllers, string commands, address information, and so on. If your instrument accepts different string commands, or if your hardware is configured to use different address information, you should modify the examples accordingly.

There are also some examples that show special applications of the Toolbox or show complete workflows of certain features or interfaces. These appear in the Examples list at the top of the Instrument Control Toolbox Documentation Center main page. You do not need an instrument connected to your computer to use these tutorials as they use prerecorded data.

Online Support

For online support of Instrument Control Toolbox software, visit the MathWorks® website. This site includes documentation, examples, solutions, downloads, system requirements, and contact information.