Use SMB Connector on PXI(e) Controller to Route Trigger Signals

Issue Details

How do I use my PXI(e) controller SMB connector to route/output/send trigger signals to my PXI(e) card? 

Solution

Starting with PXI Platform Services 17.5, you can use the SMB connector for trigger routing for Windows OS PXI(e) controllers. For Phar lap ETS and Linux Real-Time PXI(e) controllers, this feature is available starting with PXI Platform Services 19.0. 

You can reference the SMB connector with the terminal name /<hostname>/TRIG_SMB, where <hostname> is the controller's name on the network. There are three ways you can use TRIG_SMB:

 

1. Route directly to card trigger
2. Route to PXI backplane 
3. Route implicitly to property node

 

Route Directly to Card Trigger

Routes can be performed using most NI routing APIs that accept string-based terminal names, such as NI-DAQmx and NI-DCPower. Provide /<hostname>/TRIG_SMB as an input terminal to trigger the card, as shown in the code snippet below. 


Note: This image is a LabVIEW snippet, which includes LabVIEW code that you can reuse in your project. To use a snippet, right-click the image, save it to your computer, and drag the file onto your LabVIEW diagram.

If the driver returns an error or does not have an option to point directly to the TRIG_SMB terminal (like NI-DMM or NI-SCOPE, as of November 2019), use the method below.

 

Route to PXI Backplane

Use the DAQmx Signal Routing VIs to connect /<hostname>/TRIG_SMB to a PXI Trigger Line /<hostname>/PXI_Trig<number> on the chassis backplane. Then, point the card's trigger to the chosen PXI Trigger Line. This sends the signal from the SMB to a specified TTL or PFI line, allowing multiple PXI(e) cards to be triggered from the same source. 


Note: This image is a LabVIEW snippet, which includes LabVIEW code that you can reuse in your project. To use a snippet, right-click the image, save it to your computer, and drag the file onto your LabVIEW diagram.

 

Route Implicitly to Property Node

For some APIs, you can create a route implicitly by providing /<hostname>/TRIG_SMB  as an input terminal to a property node associated with a given operation. This requires less programming and is more automatic. 

In the image below, the driver will connect the dots between TRIG_SMB being specified as Pause Trigger Source and the module being configured and set a route for you.