:STARt

FlexOTO Instance:
Hardware Diagram
Root Commands

Command Syntax

:STARt

Description

Station Settings are Persistent

The current state of a Station (Test Plan and color theme) are persistent. As a result, when Stations are stopped, these settings are saved and applied the next time that the Station is opened. To prevent this, send the :TPRogram:REMove:ALL to each Station before sending the STOP command. Or, send a :SYSTem:DEFault command, which also resets the color theme.

Launches FlexOTO's Station processes. This command is equivalent to clicking the Start button. Before sending this command, specify the number of sessions (:CONFigure:NSESsions) to create and assign the DUTs to individual sessions (:CONFigure:DUT:SESSion). To end all Station processes, use the (:STOP) root command.

Starting Stations is complex process that can consume approximately 10 seconds, so always follow a :STARt command with an *OPC? query. After the Stations are started, connecting to them, configuring their Test Programs, and returning measurements is very fast. If changes to the Test Program are needed during testing, avoid stopping and restarting Stations. Instead, use the :TPRogram subsystem commands to edit the existing Test Program and re-run the Test Program.

Use an *OPC? query to pause program execution while waiting for this command to execute.

Each session is automatically assigned a VISA HiSLIP address in numerical order as shown in the following table.

Assigned HiSLIP Addresses
Station
Number		 HiSLIP Address
1 TCPIP0::<computer name>::hislip1,4880::INSTR
2 TCPIP0::<computer name>::hislip2,4880::INSTR
3 TCPIP0::<computer name>::hislip3,4880::INSTR
4 TCPIP0::<computer name>::hislip4,4880::INSTR
5 TCPIP0::<computer name>::hislip5,4880::INSTR
6 TCPIP0::<computer name>::hislip6,4880::INSTR
7 TCPIP0::<computer name>::hislip7,4880::INSTR
8 TCPIP0::<computer name>::hislip8,4880::INSTR
9 TCPIP0::<computer name>::hislip9,4880::INSTR
10 TCPIP0::<computer name>::hislip10,4880::INSTR
11 TCPIP0::<computer name>::hislip11,4880::INSTR
12 TCPIP0::<computer name>::hislip12,4880::INSTR
13 TCPIP0::<computer name>::hislip13,4880::INSTR
14 TCPIP0::<computer name>::hislip14,4880::INSTR
15 TCPIP0::<computer name>::hislip15,4880::INSTR
16 TCPIP0::<computer name>::hislip16,4880::INSTR

Example

hwdiagram.write(':CONFigure:NSESsions 2')  # Number of Stations.
hwdiagram.write(':CONFigure:FIXTure:SESSion "My DUT #1", SESSion1')  # Assign DUT to Station.
hwdiagram.write(':CONFigure:FIXTure:SESSion "My DUT #2", SESSion2')
hwdiagram.write(':STARt')  # Start all Stations.
hwdiagram.query('*OPC?')  # About 10 second wait.
rm = visa.ResourceManager()
session1 = rm.open_resource('TCPIP0::<computer name>::hislip1,4880::INSTR')
session1.write('SYStem:DEFault')  # Set Station to default setting.
session1.query('*OPC?')