Making a Custom Scale in Measurement & Automation Explorer

I have a flow sensor from which voltage data is acquired. Therefore, I would like to convert the voltage from NI-DAQmx to real- world units (Ex. pressure, temperature, strain etc.,) for the flow sensor using a custom scale. I need to create NI-DAQmx custom scale in the "My System" and also at the "cRIO" level. How can I do that?

1. First, open NI MAX by going to Start » Programs » National Instruments » Measurement & Automation. 

2. Once NI MAX has opened, find the Scales branch, which is found under My System in the Configuration tree:
 

3. Right-click on Scales and select “Create New…”
 

4. A menu will display prompting you to choose whether to create an NI-DAQmx Scale or a Traditional NI-DAQ Custom Scale. Choose the one you want to create and click Finish.
 

For NI- DAQmx: 
5. After selecting NI-DAQmx Scale, another menu will appear to allow you to choose the type of scale to create. The example images below follow the creation of a Linear Scale.
 

6. Next, you can choose a name for the Custom Scale and click Finish. After clicking finish, you will be returned to the main view of NI MAX, with the center pane displaying the settings of your new Custom Scale.
 

7. The scale is also now listed under the NI-DAQmx Scales Folder.
 

For Traditional NI-DAQ: 
After selecting Traditional NI-DAQ Custom Scale, another menu will appear to allow you to choose the type of scale to create. The example images below follow the creation of a Linear Scale.
 

After naming the Custom Scale and selecting the type, click Next>. The following menu allows you to configure the Custom Scale.
 

Once you’ve configured the scale to your liking, you can view it in graph form and set the range of raw input values of the NI-DAQ device to be scaled.
 

The scale should now be listed under the Traditional NI-DAQ Custom Scales folder.
 


Create a NI-DAQmx custom scale to use at the "cRIO" level:

1. First, open NI MAX by going to Start » Programs » National Instruments » Measurement & Automation. 

2. Once NI MAX has opened, find the Scales branch, which is found under NI cRIO in the Configuration tree:



3. Right-click on Scales at the NI cRIO level and select “Create New…”. 



4. Repeat the above mentioned steps 4 to 6 to create the desired scales.

5. The scale is also now listed under the NI cRIO Scales Folder.



 

Additional Information

If the conversion formula provided by your sensor's datasheet cannot be performed with the functionality available in a custom scale, you can implement your scaling and conversion after acquiring your data in your program. 

When using custom scaling in a Task the Signal Input Range is specified in the newly created Custom Scaling.