HBM reports results of data acquisition and analysis survey

The survey generated a strong response, with nearly 600 replies from professional engineers; it showed that the needs of DAQ users worldwide are very similar, making it important to provide a global service. Ease of use and performance, precision and quality were considered the most important features in a DAQ system, while multi-functional capability was also thought to be important.

These findings align closely with HBM's philosophy of integrating Teds (Transducer Electronic Data Sheet) and APM (Advanced Plug and Measure) technologies into its DAQ equipment.

There was a clear preference to use a PC for data acquisition and configuration - which is in line with the need for greater flexibility in data acquisition, since the PC is a more mobile, yet robust, option for gathering data and subsequent analysis.

Engineers also showed a clear preference for USB and Ethernet as interfaces, although the interest in both digital I/O and analogue output were very close behind, and there was strong demand for a mixture of centralised and distributed units for multipoint measurements. This meets with HBM's aims of providing equipment that can easily be integrated into all systems.

There is an ongoing trend towards increasing the number of channels, although this does not imply any move towards lower accuracy: ever higher standards of accuracy are demanded. HBM says: "We are very impressed by the initial results since they show some clear trends as well as some interesting regional differences impacting on the future development of data acquisition and analysis equipment."

Follow the link for full details of the data acquisition and analysis survey.