The command string is parsed and executed after reading these characters.
These characters are the carriage return and linefeed . They are ascii charac-
ter set values 13 and 10 respectively (hex 0x0D and 0x0A). All command strings
need to have these characters appended.
When the pulse generator responds to a command, whether it is a query or a
parameter change, it also appends its return strings with these characters.
Coded applications could use this behavior to know when to stop reading from
the unit. However, if the echo parameter is enabled, there will be two sets of
line terminators, one following the echoed command string, and one following
the pulse generator s response.
Note: The pulse generator will echo commands on the DB9 serial port only.
The pulse generator responds to every communication string. If the communica-
tion string is a query, the unit responds with the queried response (or error code)
followed by the line terminators. If the communication string is a parameter
change, the response is ok (or error code) followed by the line terminators. For
this reason, it is not recommended that multiple commands be stacked together
into single strings as is common with some other types of instruments. It is
recommended that the coded application send a single command in a string
and follow immediately by reading the response from the unit. Repeat this
sequence for multiple commands.
IEEE 488.2 Common Command Format
The IEEE 488.2 Common Commands control and manage generic system
functions such as reset, configuration storage and identification. Common
commands always begin with the asterisk (*) character and may include param-
eters. The parameters are separated from the command pneumonic by a space
character. For Example:
*RST
<cr> <lf>
*RCL 1
<cr> <lf>
*IDN?
<cr> <lf>
SCPI Command Keywords
The commands are shown as a mixture of upper and lower case letters. The
upper case letters indicate the abbreviated spelling for the command. You may
send either the abbreviated version or the entire keyword. Upper and/or lower
case characters are acceptable.
For example, if the command keyword is given as POLarity, then POL and
POLARITY are both acceptable forms; truncated forms such as POLAR will
generate an error; polarity, pol, and PolAriTy are all acceptable as the pulse
generator is not case sensitive.
