Instruction on schools daq 2
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Contents |
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Features
- The system starts automatically after a reboot.
- The system runs in a virtual desktop so the special viewer should be run to see the main data acquisition (DAQ) screen. On the other hand the computer can be logged in/out without interference with the data acquisition.
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Monitoring (viewing) the system
- login to a computer as root
- open a terminal window (click on the small monitor icon in the top panel)
- at the "#" prompt in the terminal window type: vncviewer :1 <Enter> Be careful to include the space between the r and :. (<Enter> means hitting the "Enter" key)
A window should pop up which represents a virtual desktop where the system is running. Use this window as if it were your computer desktop. The data acquisition system features two windows:- use the small window to stop/start the DAQ program
- the bigger window shows data collection in progress
- to disconnect from the virtual desktop hit F8 and choose "Exit Viewer" from a popped up window.
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Start/Stop any time
- open a virtual desktop window as described above
- to stopt/start the DAQ program always use the small window: Hit the "Stop" button to stop, the white arrow on LabView panel to start.
The reason there are two windows is that the small one controls and synchronizes the bigger one which collects detector counts and another subprogram which runs invisibly and collects timestamps. It is important to start/stop via the small window so that both above parts of the DAQ system do it simultaneously.
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Programming a coincidence box manually
- type in mariachi-loader.sh <Enter> in a terminal window (the box must be turned on).
You might not have the above script, then use the command: alterald -v /usr/lib/mariachi/altera/mariachi.RBF <Enter>
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Troubleshooting
If you suspect that something is wrong with the system it should be shutdown and restarted. To shutdown:
- bring up the virtual desktop window
- stop the program by pressing the "Stop" button in the small window. Whether it worked or not go to the next step:
- Use "File", then "Quit" Menus to exit the program. Whether it worked or not proceed with restarting the virtual desktop which automatically restarts the DAQ system (next step):
- type in service vncserver restart <Enter> in a terminal window
Some hints on the coincidence box:
- The coincidence box has a power switch under the lid on an internal power supply.
- When the coincidence box is ready to communicate with a computer the red LED located on the FPGA chip board near the USB connector is ON. If it's OFF recycle the power.
- If the box is successully programmed the green LED near the red one is ON. If it's OFF for any reason the box should be reprogrammed (see the beginning of the instruction).
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Shutting the system down
To shut the system down (e.g. for replacing a detector) follow the steps:
- stop the software as described in the "Start/Stop any time" section,
- exit the LabView (File->Exit Menu in any LabView window),
- power off the coincidence box with the switch inside the box (located on the small power supply box),
- now the detector(s) can be disconnected.
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Starting the system after the shutdown
- Turn the power switch on in the coincidence box
- restart the virtual desktop to start all over: service vncserver restart <Enter> in a terminal window
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Local Data Files
Look for them in /home/mariachi/data/sd/ directory. File formats are described here. You can use the following linux commands to see them (as usual, commands are typed in the terminal window (see above)):
- cd /home/mariachi/data/sd <Enter> will bring you to a that directory
- ls shows the list of files
- less file.txt shows the content of the file,
