DrDAQ Application Project

Welcome to the home of the DrDAQ application project.

Please feel free to visit the  DrDAQ project on Sourceforge.net also.
 
06Sept12 DrDAQ app v0.3 released -  third snapshot from CVS,  lots of small bug fixes 
06July11 DrDAQ app v0.21 released -  patched to fix issues with v2.0
06July11 DrDAQ app v0.2 released -  second snapshot from CVS,  includes the nameServer stuff
06June07 DrDAQ app v0.1 released -  first snapshot from CVS
06Mar07  Sourceforge CVS has been seeded with iCanProgram course code and some vTcl code
06Mar06  Just getting started

Our mission

We intend to build applications which surround the DrDAQ data acquisition module produced by Pico Technology.

What have we done thus far?

The change log for the current released version is here.

Some of this work will be based on the iCanProgram course which explores the DrDAQ device.

The course proposed a highly modular design based on the SIMPL toolset.

The current system picture for this project is presented below.

The picoMgr module encapsulates all the interfacing to the DrDAQ driver.     The Tcl/Tk GUI connects and controls the picoMgr.      The picoReader is held Reply() blocked on the picoMgr until such time as a series of readings is requested.     The picoReader feeds those readings to the Grace graphics package as well as back to the Tcl/Tk GUI.
 

The course GUI is quite simple and only exercises a small portion of the DrDAQ capabilities:

There are some other screenshots here.

There is a photo gallery here

We have also been working on a many (student) to one (DrDAQ unit) variation of this system.   Fortunately, with SIMPL it is quite easy to achieve this without much additional code.

However,  in the many to one variation it would be nice to have the SIMPL names be "metered" out to the student startup script from a central authority so as to avoid name conflicts.    Here's the current system picture for this interface to the startup scripts:

How do I get involved?

Certainly we encourage you to download the source and play with it (and you are completely free to use it in your projects and products).

Contact and use our mailing list.


As it is with any Open Source project,  the DrDAQ application project can only grow and prosper if the people using the code give something back in return.

If you are an experienced LINUX developer or kernel hacker we certainly could use your contributions.

Our code is written with the KISS philosphy in mind. As such even a novice C programmer could study and understand the code. So even if you are just starting out as a LINUX developer your contribution to this effort is welcome. We will make every reasonable effort to help you get going and support you along the way.
 

Other contributions and related links

 

What sort of things are being worked on (or need to be done)?

As with any Open Source project, our success ultimately depends on the participation rate of its volunteer developers. We encourage you to get involved and help grow the code base in new and different directions. There is ample work for developers of all skill levels from new C programmers to seasoned veterans.


This project is being coordinated by iCanProgram Inc.