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Glossary
© National Instruments Corporation G-3 LabWindows/CVI Standard Libraries
D
D/A Digital-to-analog.
DAC D/A
converter
An electronic device, often an integrated circuit, that converts a digital
number into a corresponding analog voltage or current.
Data acquisition (1) Collecting and measuring electrical signals from sensors, transducers,
and test probes or fixtures and inputting them to a computer for processing.
(2) Collecting and measuring the same kinds of electrical signals with A/D
and/or DIO boards plugged into a PC, and possibly generating control
signals with D/A and/or DIO boards in the same PC.
DC Direct current.
device Device is used to refer to a DAQ device inside your computer or attached
directly to your computer via a parallel port. Plug-in boards, PCMCIA
cards, and devices such as the DAQPad-1200, which connects to your
computer parallel port, are all examples of DAQ devices. SCXI modules
are distinct from devices, with the exception of the SCXI-1200, which is a
hybrid.
differential input An analog input consisting of two terminals, both of which are isolated
from computer ground, whose difference is measured.
digital port See port.
DIO Digital I/O.
E
external trigger A voltage pulse from an external source that triggers an event such as A/D
conversion.
F
FIFO A first-in first-out memory buffer; the first data stored is the first data sent
to the acceptor.
format string A mini-program that instructs the formatting and scanning functions how
to transform the input arguments to the output arguments. For conciseness,
format strings are constructed using single-character codes.