Spectrum Instrumentation M2p.7515-x4 digital I/O card

The M2p.7515-x4 from Spectrum Instrumentation offers a way to generate and acquire fast digital signals using a half-length PCIe card that measures just 168 x 107 mm in size. The tiny form factor means that it can be inserted into almost any desktop PC, turning it into a powerful tool for applications such as logic analysis or pattern generation.

The digital I/O card features 32 parallel channels that can be clocked at speeds up to 125 MHz. When set for digital acquisition, the channels offer 3.3 and 5 V TTL compatibility, making them suitable for use with a range of digital signals. In generation mode, the cards typically deliver output levels of 0.2 V for low states and 2.8 V for high states into high impedance.

Designed for versatility, the cards come with 1 GB of onboard memory and a variety of different acquisition and replay modes. When generating patterns, the cards can operate in Single-shot, Multiple Replay (Burst), Gated Replay, Sequence and FIFO modes, making it possible to generate almost any signal pattern. It’s even possible to load new data to the onboard memory while replaying previously stored signals. The ability of the cards to use FIFO streaming, with a top transfer speed over the PCIe bus of 700 MBps, enables users to generate constantly changing digital patterns for long periods of time.

When acquiring digital signals, the cards support Single-shot, Multiple Recording, Gated Sampling and FIFO modes. Combining the different modes with the onboard memory makes it easy to capture and monitor long and complex digital signal patterns. To ensure timing precision, the cards feature a flexible internal clock design with an onboard reference that’s said to be accurate to better than 1 ppm. If required, they also support the use of a direct external clock or an external clock reference.

The product is fully programmable and comes with drivers for Windows and Linux operating systems, as well as programming examples for C++, LabVIEW, MATLAB, Visual Basic.NET, Python and other programming languages. If a turnkey solution is required, Spectrum offers its own control software that allows signal generation, acquisition, display, processing, storage and reporting.