USB-1208FS-Plus as a replacement for USB-1208FS

[Rhodes]

I've been using USB-1208FS since around 2007. It is part of a device we manufacture, with a couple hundred units around the world. Our device contains a single board computer running Windows XP Embedded, Instacal 5.72, and our custom software created using LabVIEW.

Now that USB-1208FS is no longer available, I had hoped USB-1208FS-Plus would work as an exact replacement. But Instacal 5.72 doesn't find the -Plus board. Instacal 6.35 and 6.73 get mostly installed but then report that the installation is "interrupted". The icalsetup installers for Instacal 6.55 thru 6.72 don't run at all. Only Instacal 6.27 gets fully installed and sees the -Plus board. I can then set the "Identifier" (is this the same as "Custom Serial No." in Instacal 5.72?) and configure for 8 Single Ended channels.

But my software freezes when it calls UL-LabVIEW commands with the -Plus board.

Is it possible to configure a USB-1208FS-Plus such that UL LabVIEW treats it exactly like a USB-1208FS?

[Jeffrey]

Measurement Computing is no longer providing active support for Windows XP embedded.  Microsoft terminated support for that OS on January 12, 2016.

It is unfortunate. 

InstaCal 5.72 (2007) was released many years before there was a USB-1208FS-PLUS (2012).  It was first released in InstaCal 6.24.  That version is available for you to try:

https://mcc.download.ni.com/Archive/InstaCal/Archive_6.24/icalsetup.exe

2 hours ago, Rhodes said:

Is it possible to configure a USB-1208FS-Plus such that UL LabVIEW treats it exactly like a USB-1208FS?

Sorry no, though they are very similar, there is no way to configure the USB-1208FS-PLUS to be a USB-1208FS.

 

[Rhodes]

13 hours ago, Jeffrey said:

Sorry no, though they are very similar, there is no way to configure the USB-1208FS-PLUS to be a USB-1208FS.

I may not need it to be USB-1208FS exactly, but I do need the -Plus board to respond to the same UL commands. The first UL LabVIEW vi that is called is DCFGPORT.VI, which worked with the USB-1208FS but freezes the program with the USB-1208FS-Plus. 

Is the attached picture not valid LabVIEW code to use with the -Plus?

[Jeffrey]

Both devices have the same 2 digital IO "PORTs"  FirstPortA and FirstPortB, so it should work.

I say should because we no longer offer support UL for LabVIEW.  I cannot install it to test this for you because it would require 32 bit LV and I only have 64 bit.

Perhaps you have more than one copy of cbw32.dll on your system?  there should be only one, and it should be found in c:\Program files\Measurement Computing\DAQ for a 32 bit windows OS, or c:\Program files\Measurement Computing (x86)\DAQ for 64 bit Windows OS.

Start your search at C:\ so that you are searching the ENTIRE hard drive.

if you find more than one copy of cbw32.DLL, not found in the locations listed above, I recommend you delete them or at least rename them to something like cbw32.OLD.

 

[Rhodes]

There's only one copy of cbw32.dll and it's in the appropriate folder.

I installed Instacal 6.24, but Windows started complaining about lost driver files. I had to restore the OS from a backup clone to get it to accept the -Plus board again. Instacal 6.24 and 6.27 now have similar behavior. They find the -Plus board, assign it as Board 0, and allow me to select 8 single-ended inputs. But my LabVIEW-generated .exe still freezes when it tries to communicate with the -Plus board. It may not actually be the DCfgPort.vi that's freezing. I'm creating some test code to see whether AOut.vi, DOut.vi, AInScFg.vi, or ToEng.vi might be the culprit. Am I correct in assuming that those should behave the same with USB-1208FS-Plus as they had with USB-1208FS? 

[Jeffrey]

Yes they should but I've recently seen when they do not.

This particular customer was not using LabVIEW, he was running an analog input scan using the default options, it was the sample count that was the problem.  Once that was corrected, the PLUS version operated without any problems.

I agree with your diagnostics, running some very simplified vis to find the offending function.

[Rhodes]

I've come back to this project after not getting it to work a year ago.

My issue might not be specifically with LabVIEW 8.2, but with any attempt to run an Analog Input Scan on the USB-1208FS-Plus. 

If I run the Analog Scan Test in Instacal 6.74, Scan Channels 0 through 2, 1000 Hz, Continuous, Instacal collects no data.

If I run the same Instacal test but change the Scan Mode from Continuous to Single, then the LED flashes, the Stop button does nothing, and Instacal become nonresponsive until I unplug the -Plus board from the USB.

Running the same Analog tests in the same Instacal with the USB-1208FS (not -Plus) gets a good scan in Continuous and in Single mode.

Similar results using DAQami with the USB-1208FS (works great) and the USB-1208FS-Plus (does not get any data on an Analog Input scan).

In LabVIEW 8.2 I've tried every scan mode with AInScFg.vi. They all either continuously flash the LED and freeze the software until the USB is unplugged, or they report "Invalid Sample Mode". And the issues are only with the -Plus board; the USB-1208FS works great.

I'm not sure what else to try. I need to be able to scan 3 channels at 1000 S/s per channel.

[Fausto]

Hello @Rhodes

Please test your USB-1208FS-Plus with a Windows 10 or Windows 11 system, InstaCal v6.74, and preferably without the older version of LabVIEW.  If you continue to have issues with using the module in InstaCal, then the module is defective and can be replaced under warranty, if within a year of its purchase.  Note, this model is not repairable.

Regards,

Fausto

[Rhodes]

Yes, the latest test described was on a Windows 10 computer and InstaCal v6.74, and InstaCal doesn't work with the Analog Scan Test. So I should replace the module.

It has now been over a year since purchase, but that's because I've been in this thread for over a year. As this is an ongoing issue that I reported upthread in 2022, will the warranty apply?  

[Fausto]

Hello @Rhodes.

What is the serial number of your USB-1208FS-Plus, as shown on the backside label and in InstaCal?

Regards,

Fausto

[Giorgio]

On 1/8/2024 at 7:41 PM, Rhodes said:

I've come back to this project after not getting it to work a year ago.

My issue might not be specifically with LabVIEW 8.2, but with any attempt to run an Analog Input Scan on the USB-1208FS-Plus. 

We are also experiencing the same behavior with the exact same LabVIEW Analog Scan call. With the 1208FS, everything works fine, but the 1208FS-Plus causes the application to crash.

4-channel differential
Firmware version 1.07
We have tried multiple versions of InstaCal and multiple brand new modules.

Have you made any progress on the issue?

We have hundreds of units deployed, and this is a serious compatibility limitation for us."

 

Edited February 6 by Giorgio

[Fausto]

Hello @Giorgio.

Which versions of LabVIEW, Windows OS, and InstaCal do you have installed on the target system?

What is the serial number of your USB-1208FS-Plus?

Is the issue reproducible with an ULx for NI LabVIEW vi example or a custom example?  If you are using a custom example vi, then please modify the vi example in any way necessary so that I can test it with my system and device.

 

Regards,

Fausto

[Rhodes]

On 1/12/2024 at 9:48 AM, Fausto said:

Hello @Rhodes.

What is the serial number of your USB-1208FS-Plus, as shown on the backside label and in InstaCal?

Regards,

Fausto

The serial number is 1E44DDE. 

I now also have serial number 223BBCF. It DOES collect data in InstaCal's Analog Continuous Scan Test, and it does NOT cause Instacal to freeze during an Analog Single Scan Test.

[Fausto]

Hello @Rhodes.

Thank you for the update regarding your USB-1208FS-Plus modules.  Serial number 1E44DDE was shipped in August 2019, while s/n 223BBCF is recent from December 2023.  There was no hardware change between the two modules.  Using InstaCal, what are the firmwares listed for both modules?  If you swap the working module (s/n 223BBCF) with the older module (s/n 1E44DDE), using the same system, does the older module cause issues with InstaCal?

Regards,

Fausto

[Rhodes]

Both devices have firmware 1.07. 1E44DDE continues to fail InstaCal's analog scan test, and 223BBCF continues to pass.

We purchased 223BBCF from Digikey on 2/6/2024. I can't find the purchase history of 1E44DDE. I was trying it out as a replacement for USB-1208FS in late 2022, and hadn't realized that it was originally purchased much earlier.

[Fausto]

Hello @Rhodes.

Unfortunately, your USB-1208FS-Plus with s/n 1E44DDE is out of warranty and this daq model is not repairable.

Regards,

Fausto