Negative Kelvin Values When Simulating a DAQ Temperature Input Device

Updated Dec 1, 2025

Reported In

Software

  • FlexLogger

Driver

  • NI-DAQ™mx

Issue Details

When simulating a DAQmx temperature input device, I am receiving unexpected negative Kelvin values in FlexLogger.

Solution

This is a normal behavior for temperature input modules, since the simulation doesn't model real analog behavior - it simply generates synthetic data. DAQmx uses a fixed, full-scale sine wave or predefined signal pattern that ignores user-defined input ranges or thermocouple limits. The "Min" and "Max" settings in this context serve only as metadata for scaling or display, not as active voltage constraints. Since there's no real sensor producing microvolt-level changes and no analog front end adjusting gain, the simulated readings stay consistent and predictable, reflecting nominal temperature trends rather than true hardware response.