Additional Information
There are speed and determinism limitations when using a DAQ device with a standard PC for a software-timed approach. In a software-timed generation, the rate at which data is generated is controlled entirely by software. Each operation requires a separate command from the host application to the hardware, meaning the timing depends on:
- Software execution
- Communication between the host and the device
Because of this, the time between samples is not deterministic.
In contrast, hardware-timed operations use a dedicated hardware signal to control the rate of generation. This timing signal can be generated internally or provided externally, allowing:
- Deterministic timing between samples
- Much shorter time between samples compared to software-timed operations
- Support for hardware triggering
Hardware-timed operations are implemented using buffered generation, where data is transferred from host memory to the device FIFO before being written to the output. This allows continuous or finite data generation independent of software execution once started.