Arbitrary Waveform Generator

Figure 1. Arbitrary Waveform Generator (AWG)
AWG GUI

AWG GUI Description

AWG GUI Description

Table 1. GUI Description

AWG GUI Description
1 Company Name and Instrument Identification
2 Top Functions Panel
3 Control Panel
4 Channel Function Parameters and Channel State View (two activated channels of four).
5 Sub-Control Menu for detailed settings

Top Functions Panel

Screenshot Button

Table 2. Screenshot Button
Screenshot Button Function
NK Takes a Screenshot of the entire screen, and saves it as .JPG- or .PNG-file..
  • Press the Screenshot Button and then select the JPG Button or PNG Button to specify the image file type.
  • To save a screenshot a folder can be selected before pressing the OK button. The image is saved to the selected location and named as: AWG_Screenshot_Date-Time.jpg or AWG_Screenshot_Date-Time.png.
  • If no folder is selected before clicking "OK," the file will be automatically saved to the current folder location.

CSV- and BIN-Button

Table 3. CSV- and BIN-Button
CSV- and BIN-Button Function
CSV- and BIN-Button Loads an arbitrary signal from a .csv or .bin file. (Enabled only for arbitrary mode).

State Button

Table 4. State Button
State Button Function
State Button Saves the current values (status) of the instrument.

Arbitrary Waveform Generator Control Panel Overview

System Panel

Table 5. System Panel
System Panel Button Function Button Function
System Panel Preset Button Resets the Arbitrary Waveform Generator to default settings. Utility Button some text here!!!!

Waveform Panel

Table 6. Waveform Panel
Waveform Panel Button Function Button Function
Waveform Panel Sine Button Generates a sine wave on the active channel, and displays the sine wave menu to configure its parameters. Pulse Button Generates a pulse wave on the active channel, and displays the pulse wave menu to configure its parameters.
Square Button Generates a square wave on the active channel, and displays the square wave menu to configure its parameters. Noise Button Generates a noise signal on the active channel, and displays the noise signal menu to configure its parameters.
Ramp Button Generates a ramp wave on the active channel, and displays the ramp wave menu to configure its parameters. Arbitrary Button Generates an arbitrary waveform on the active channel, and displays the arbitrary waveform menu to configure its parameters.

Mode Panel

Table 7. Mode Panel
Mode Panel Button Function Button Function
Mode Panel Generator Button Changes to the generator screen (see Table 13 ) where the parameters of the selected waveform are configured and displayed Modulation Button Switches to the modulation screen (see Table 14 ) where the modulation parameters are configured
Sweep Button Switches to the sweep screen where the sweep parameters are configured Burst Button Switches to the burst screen where the burst parameters are configured

Universal Knob and Arrows

Table 8. Universal Knob and Arrows
Universal Knob and Arrows Button Function Button Function
Universal Knob and Arrows Knob Increase or decrease the active numeric value on screen. Arrows For more a accurate setting than the universal knob, the active numeric value on screen can be increased or decreased. The horizonal arrows change the position left ro right, the vertical arrows increase or decrease the value.

Numeric Keypad

Table 9. Numeric Keypad
Numeric Keypad Function
Numeric Keypad Enter the numerical value in the active configuration parameter on the screen.

Units Keypad

Table 10. Units Keypad
Units Keypad Button Function Button Function
Units Keypad MHz Button Gives the unit of megahertz to the entered numeric value. (Only if the parameter is frequency). V/S Button Sets a unit of Volts if the active parameter receives voltage values or unit of seconds if the active parameter corresponds to unit of time.
KHz Button Gives the unit of kilohertz to the entered numeric value. (Only if the parameter is frequency). mV/ms Button Sets a unit of millivolts if the active parameter receives voltage values or unit of milliseconds if the active parameter corresponds to unit of time.
Hz Button Gives the unit of Hertz to the entered numeric value. (Only if the parameter is frequency). uV/us Button Sets a unit of microvolts if the active parameter receives voltage values or unit of microseconds if the active parameter corresponds to unit of time.
uHz Button Gives the unit of millihertz to the entered numeric value. (Only if the parameter is frequency). dBu/ns Button Returns the decibels per milliwatt unit to the entered numeric value.
%/0° Button Place as a percentage unit if the active parameter is in percentage, or degrees if the active parameter is expressed in degrees. dBm Button Sets a unit of decibels per microwatt or nanosecond.

Impedance Panel

Table 11. Impedance Panel
Impedance Panel Button Function
Impedance Panel Impedance Button Switches the output impedance of the selected channel to 50Ohm or High Impedance.

Channel Buttons

Table 12. Channel Buttons
Channel buttons Button Function Button Function
Channel Buttons Channel 1 Button Turns on, off and / or selects channel 1 wave output. Channel 2 Button Turns on, off and / or selects channel 2 wave output.
Channel 3 Button Turns on, off and / or selects channel 3 wave output. Channel 4 Button Turns on, off and / or selects channel 4 wave output.

Arbitrary Waveform Generator Screen View

Waveform Generator Screen

Table 13. Waveform Generator Screen

WG screen
1 Company name and instrument identification
2 Channel 1 waveform parameters and channel state view
3 Channel 2 waveform parameters and channel state view
4 Channel 3 waveform parameters and channel state view
5 Channel 4 waveform parameters and channel state view
6 Area where the corresponding function menu is displayed

Modulation Screen

Table 14. Modulation Screen (not sure if needed)

Modulation screen
1 some text ............
2
3
4
5
6
7
8

Sweep Screen

Table 15. Sweep Screen (not sure if needed)

Sweep screen
1 some text ............
2
3
4
5
6
7
8

Burst Screen

Table 16. Burst Screen (not sure if needed)

Burst screen
1 some text ............
2 some text ............
3 some text ............
4 some text ............
5 some text ............
6 some text ............
7 some text ............
8 some text ............

Arbitrary Waveform Generator Functions

Enable and Disable Channels

Press Channel 1 Button Selected , Channel 2 Button , Channel 3 Button or Channel 4 Button buttons to switch the selected channel and the output state. The state of the channel is displayed with a led LED Mode Off / LED Mode ON on the upper part of each channel, when a channel is selected the button is highlighted with the color of that channel Channel 1 Button Selected or Channel 2 Button , in that case the parameters of that channel can be selected and edited. If the switch is in ON mode LED Mode ON and the channel is not selected Channel 1 Button, the channel button changes to ON mode Channel 1 Button ON or Channel 1 Button ON .

To Set Waveform output

The following section describes how to set and output one of the available waveforms: Sine, Square, Ramp, Pulse, Noise and Arbitrary.

Detailed Instructions

  1. Select the desired waveform from the Waveform Panel (see Table 6).
  2. For setting the Frequency, Amplitude, Offset and Phase, etc press the respective Frequency Button, Amplitude Button, Offset Button or Phase Button ... button in the wave parameters submenu, then the cursor will be activated in the respective box.
  3. The value can be modified through the Numeric Keypad (see Table 9), or through the Universal Knob and Arrows (see Table 8). The decimal can be changed with the left/right arrows below the knob.
  4. The unit is selected via the Units Keypad (see Table 10).

To Set Sine Signal

Press the Sine Sine Button button, to show the sine waveform parameter submenu.
Table 17. Sine Wave Function Buttons

AWG Sine Function
1 Sine amplitude parameter.
2 Sine frequency parameter.
3 Sine offset parameter.
4 Sine phase parameter.

To Set Square Signal

Press the Square Square Button button, to show the square waveform parameter submenu.
Table 18. Set Square Parameter

AWG Square Function
1 Square frequency parameter.
2 Square amplitude parameter.
3 Square offset parameter.
4 Square phase parameter.
5 Square duty-cycle parameter.

To Set Ramp Signal

Press the RAMP Ramp Button button, to show the ramp waveform parameter submenu.
Table 19. Ramp Waveform Parameter

AWG Ramp Function
1 Ramp frequency parameter.
2 Ramp amplitude parameter.
3 Ramp offset parameter.
4 Ramp phase parameter.
5 Ramp symmetry parameter.

To Set Pulse Signal

Press the Pulse Pulse Button button, to show the pulse waveform parameter submenu.
Table 20. Pulse Waveform Parameter

AWG Pulse Function
1 Pulse frequency parameter.
2 Pulse amplitude parameter.
3 Pulse offset parameter.
4 Pulse edge time parameter.
5 Pulse phase parameter.
6 Pulse width parameter.

To Set Noise Signal

Press the Noise Noise Button button, to show the noise waveform parameter submenu.
Table 21. Noise Waveform Parameter

AWG Noise Function
1 Noise amplitude parameter.
2 Noise offset parameter.

To Set Arbitrary Signal

Press the Arbitrary Arbitrary Button button, to show the arbitrary waveform parameter submenu.
Table 22. Arbitrary Waveform Parameter

AWG Arbitrary Function
1 Arbitrary frequency parameter.
2 Arbitrary amplitude parameter.
3 Arbitrary DC-offset parameter.
4 Arbitrary delay parameter.
5 Arbitrary waveform preview submenu.

Detailed Instructions

  • To select an arbitrary waveform from an external .csv or .bin file press csv CSV or bin Bin button in the top menu, then a window will open to select the .csv / .bin file, then press the OK button to load the waveform in the status view. This option is only enabled if Arbitrary signal is selected.
  • To select a Predefined Arbitrary Waveform Signal, press the Predefined WaveformPredefined Waveform Button button, to display the window containing the predefined arbitrary function signals to be loaded into the channel view.
    Table 23. Predefined Arbitrary Waveform Signal

    AWG Predefined Arbitrary Waveform Function
    1 Arbitrary signal function selection information.
    2 The name of the selected function.
    3 Graph of the selected function.
    4 Table of functions of arbitrary signals.
    5 Loading arbitrary waveform from extern file.
    6 Loading arbitrary waveform from file.
    7 Cancel button.
    8 Select button that loads the currently selected signal.
    • The function with the Green border Dirchlet Button shows the currently selected function.
    • The functions with a Blue border Real Sinc Button shows the currently available functions.
    • The functions with a Red border DN Ramp Button are not yet available.
    • Load Arbitrary Waveform from external File

      1. Press the 'Load arbitrary waveform' button Load Arbitrary Waveform From File Button

      2. Select the wave arbitrary file extension (.csv or .bin)

      3. Select the file. The menu for selecting the file is displayed.

      4. Press the OK button.

      5. The arbitrary waveform is loaded into the menu with its parameters and graph.

    • Load Arbitrary Waveform from external Source

      1. Press the 'External Source' button External Source Button

      2. Select the wave arbitrary file source (Audio)

      3. Select the file. The menu for selecting the file is displayed.

      4. Press the OK button.

      5. The arbitrary waveform is loaded into the menu with its parameters and graph.

Arbitrary Waveform Generator Modulation Functions

The following section describes how to set and output one of the three available modulations: AM, FM and PM.

Detailed Instructions

  1. For setting the AM Frequency, FM Frequency, FM Deviation, PM Frequency and PM Phase, etc press the respective AM Frequency Button,FM Frequency Button,FM Deviation Button PM Frequency or PM Phase Button … button in the modulation parameters submenu, then cursor will be activated in the respective box.
  2. To adjust the parameters of the carrier wave, it is done in the signal display in Generator mode. At the moment only the sine waveform is available as a carrier.
  3. To change the parameter of the modulation wave is done by selecting it from the table.
  4. The modulation index, FM deviation and carrier frequency of the FM modulation are automatically calculated if the value of one of the parameters is changed. For example:
    • If the modulation index value is changed, FM DEV is calculated.
    • If the value of Carr Freq or FM DEV is changed, the Mod index is calculated.

To Set Modulation output

The following section describes how to set and output one of the three available modulations: AM, FM and PM. Press the ModulationModulation Button button, to show the modulation waveform parameter submenu. parameter submenu.
Table 24. Modulated Waveform Parameter

AWG Modulation
1 Modulation types submenu.
2 Knob
3 Arrow
4 Units keypad.
5 Numeric keypad.

To Set Modulation AM

The following section describes how to set and output AM ModulationAM Button button, to show the modulation waveform parameter submenu.
Table 25. AM Modulation Waveform Parameter

AWG AM Modulation
1 AM frequency parameter.
2 Carrier amplitude parameter.
3 Carrier frequency parameter.
4 Modulation wave parameter.
5 Selector parameter.
6 Depth parameter.
7 AM modulation parameters submenu

To Set Modulation FM

The following section describes how to set and output FM ModulationFM Button button, to show the modulation waveform parameter submenu.
Table 26. FM Modulation Waveform Parameter

AWG FM Modulation
1 FM frequency parameter.
2 FM deviation parameter.
3 Modulated wave parameter.
4 Carrier frequency parameter.
5 Modulation index parameter.
6 Carrier wave parameter (for sine waveform only).
7 Carrier amplitude parameter.
8 FM modulation parameters submenu.

To Set Modulation PM

The following section describes how to set and output PM ModulationPM Button button, to show the modulation waveform parameter submenu.
Table 27. PM Modulation Waveform Parameter

AWG PM Modulation
1 Start frequency parameter.
2 Stop frequency parameter.
3 Frequency Step parameter.
4 Time parameter.
5 Number of Steps parameter.
6 Type Parameter (Only linear).
7 PM modulation parameters submenu.

Arbitrary Waveform Generator Other Functions

The following section describes other functions of AWG like: the sweep and the burst.

To Set Sweep

Press the sweep Sweep Button button, to show the modulation waveform parameter submenu.
Table 28. Sweep Waveform Parameter

AWG Sweep Function
1 Start frequency parameter.
2 Stop frequency parameter.
3 Frequency Step parameter.
4 Time parameter.
5 Number of Steps parameter.
6 Type Parameter (Only linear).

Detailed Instructions

  1. Select a waveform (Sine, Square, Ramp, etc.) before applying the sweep.
  2. Press the Frequency Frequency Button button to configure the sweep with a start frequency and a stop frequency (not implemented yet).
  3. Press the Amplitude Amplitude Button button to configure the sweep with a start amplitude and a stop amplitude.
  4. For setting the Start Frequency, Stop Frequency, Frequency Stop, Number of Steps and Sweep Time, etc press the respective Start Button,Stop Button,Frequency Stop Button,Number of Step or Sweep Type button in the sweep parameters submenu, then cursor will be activated in the respective box.
  5. The start frequency, frequency steps and number of steps are automatically calculated if the value of one of the parameters is changed. For example:
    • If the number of steps or start frequency value is changed, frequency steps is calculated.
    • If the number of steps or start frequency value is changed, frequency steps is calculated.

General Functions

Figure 2. General Functions
AWG General Functions

- maybe needed ... maybe combined for ALL instruments