Attribute based instrument drivers

The task of programming instruments in a test system has always been a concern for end users and a major cost for the overall system development. Many users know that programming can often be the most time-consuming part of developing a system. The developer spends much valuable time learning the specific programming requirements of each instrument in the system. Almost all instruments are designed for interactive use through a physical front panel and also offer remote control capability via a communication port on the back of the instrument. An instrument driver, in the simplest definition, is a set of software routines that handles the programmatic details of controlling and communicating with a specific instrument. The most successful instrument driver concepts have always distributed instrument drivers in source code and provided end users with access to the same tools developers use to write drivers. With this philosophy, new instrument drivers were often easily developed by end users through modifying an existing driver for another instrument.