LabVIEW
Control Current (A) of my power supply via LabVIEW/VirtualBench
Solved!
Hey there!😊
i am controlling my power supply via the Functino Generator of my VirtualBench. I can only set a Voltage in LabVIEW and i was asking myself, if it is possible to also set a current (A)? If yes, can somebody please help me out to make it work?
As always, every help is much appreciated❤️
What power supply are you using? How are you controlling it with the Function Generator? Are you just trying to set the maximum current or are you trying to switch to a "constant current" setup (where you control the current and the voltage goes to whatever is required)?
- As power supply i am using the "Toellner 7621". I´ll attach the manual!
2.
I hooked up a cable from the FGEN output at my virtual bench to the Input of my power supply.
3. Yes, i would like to control the current and the voltage to whatever is required!
Did I have to do more than just connect the 2 of them together and implement the waveform generator i downloaded?
Thank you very very much for your help!!!!
I'm not seeing any way to programmatically control that supply. But there is a CV/CC button that you can press to switch between "Constant Voltage" and "Constant Current".
Can you please explain to me what you mean?
- Is it not possible to control the power supply in any form?
- Or is my specific goal that i had in this post not possible? That i have a constant current and voltage setup? And why?
- And also, IF it is not possible to control it in ANY way, how come that i can change the waveform data on my front panel,and that i can measure the change?
For example if i set a current of 1V, i can measure that on my power supply
Also if I then set it to be a Sinus curve, it also works fine.
I hope i dont bother you too much... I just have to explain to my professor, why i can not set a fixed current... I know i am repeating myself but thank you for your help
It's actually quite easy once you understand that a power supply does just that - it supplies power (Watts). We know that power is the product of Volts and Amperes. In order to satisfy the equation, you can adjust the voltage and not control the amps (to a certain extent - if the device being powered up draws too much current - product of the volts and amps are greater than the maximum rated output power - the power supply will stop supplying power) or you can go into constant current mode, where you can control the maximum current and let the voltage do whatever it needs to satisfy the power equation.
So you can control one or the other, but not both at the same time. At least, that's how all the power supplies that I've used work. I've only ever operated "mundane" power supplies; I don't know if there are more "exotic" power supplies out there that can do both at the same time.
The same goes for devices, too. Your corded drill is rated at a certain power (so many amps at so many volts). If you have a crappy extension cord that has is restive and drops too much voltage - in order for the drill to work properly, it has to draw more current to satisfy the equation. More current means more electrons trying to force their way through the wires and your drill. Both heat up; one or both may fail.
Edit: This is just my "layman's" understanding - I'm not an EE.
You supply the waveform and your supply will use that input to control either the voltage or the current. I don't know of any supplies that controls both at the same time (that would force a constant power input to the system, which really makes 0 sense).
What I meant about the supply lacking programmability was you cannot set any configurations. You cannot send it a command to set the current limit, the mode (CV or CC), etc.
