| Introduction |
|
The core components of PicoScope are the instrument windows.
 | Oscilloscope window. A PC oscilloscope with all of the features of a modern storage oscilloscope.
|
|
|
| Spectrum analyser window. Displays power at each of a range of frequencies.
|
|
|
| Meter window. Displays DC voltage, AC voltage, frequency or dB.
|
|
|
| XY oscilloscope window. Displays one channel against another, for instance to produce Lissajous figures, or for phase analysis.
|
|
|
| Composite window. Displays the contents of up to four other windows within a single, composite window.
|
Multiple windows
You can have several windows open in the display area, though PicoScope will run slowly if you have too many. If PicoScope gets too cluttered, you can easily close down individual windows, or close all windows, from the Window menu. Alternatively, you can rearrange the windows, or minimise them then reinstate them when you need them.
If you have more than one instrument window, it is worthwhile changing the title of the windows to indicate what type of data they contain - you can set the title using the Options dialog box for the window, for example, the Scope Options dialog box. The title appears on the bar at the top of the instrument window, on print-outs of instrument windows, in the Window menu, and on minimised instrument windows.
One of the windows in the display area is the active window (the bar at the top of the window is highlighted). You can switch between windows using the methods common to most Windows applications. For example, to activate a window, click its title bar.
You can change the settings for data collection or display for any window, but you must first activate it. The commonly used settings for the active window are displayed on the instrument toolbar at the top of the display. To inspect or change the remaining settings, access the Settings menu on the menu bar.
Zoom multipliers
Some instrument windows allow you to zoom in on a small area of the display by setting the multiplier for X or Y axis, or both, to a value other than one. With the multiplier switched off, PicoScope shows you all of the data in the window. With the multiplier set to x1, PicoScope initially shows you all of the data, but you can move the data up and down with the scroll bar provided. This is useful if you wish to separate two traces with similar voltages. With the multiplier set to x2, PicoScope shows you only half of the data but the scroll bar enables you select which half you can see. You can also control X-axis zooming using the mouse (see under oscilloscope toolbar and XY oscilloscope toolbar for details).
Time, date and notes
The computer adds the date and time to each window and you can also add notes of your own.
Printing and exporting
You can print out the contents of windows, or write them to the clipboard or to files in graphical or text form.