Control a Thorlabs BPC303 Using .NET and Thorlabs' Kinesis Software

Updated May 3, 2018

Reported In

Software

  • LabVIEW

Other

Thorlabs BPC303 Benchtop Piezo Controller

Issue Details

I want to control a Thorlabs™ BPC303 Benchtop Piezo Controller from LabVIEW. It works fine using the Thorlabs software called Kinesis®, however when inserted into LabVIEW using .NET, it says "No suitable devices found". I used the LabVIEW example code from Thorlabs' handbook "Kinesis LabView Guide". The device's serial number I use is correct (it is printed on the device), so I can't work out why LabVIEW cannot connect.

Solution

The code examples in the handbook referenced in the issue above are not detailed enough to work with the BPC303 out of the box. There is an additional step needed that is not mentioned in the handbook. This is a working example which includes the required channel selection:

Additional Information

  • Often there are several serial numbers on Thorlabs' devices, try all of them in case you are not sure you used the correct one. Typically the serial number has the format "7XXXXXX".
  • Make sure the Kinesis software has closed its connection to the device before you use it from LabVIEW.
  • When reading different channels, call them separately.

Related Links

Using Labview with kinesis to control Thorlabs BPC303 community post

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