4. File

There are three types of file for the FTS application: the data file (.tdms format), the configuration file (.ini format) and the log file (.txt format).

4.1. Data File

The data file utilizes LabVIEW™’s TDMS file format, where the data is classifed by groups and channels. There are two groups of the data file, i.e., Linear Encoder and DAQmx. Attributes are also supported in TDMS file. For each tree (group) and leaf (channel), attributes can be attached. Currently, Comments is attached in the root and Sampling_Rate is attached for the Linear Encoder and DAQmx groups. The hierarchy of a typical calibration data file is shown below.

• FTS_test_2024-12-17_17-00-22.tdms (Attributes: Comments = “This is a test file”)

  • Linear Encoder (Attributes: Sampling_Rate = 100000)

    • Untitled: [-99.99, -99.80, -99.70, …, -0.10, 0.00]

  • DAQmx (Attributes: Sampling_Rate = 1000)

    • Second Pulse: [0.0, 0.0, 2.5, 5.0, 5.0, 5.0, 2.5, 0.0, …, 0.0]

Note

TDMS file can be quickly viewed by Excel.

4.2. Config File

The configuration file named FTS.ini should be put under the same directory as FTS.exe. The config file is automatically loaded after the initialization of the FTS.exe. Once loaded, the corresponding panel values are changed or the corresponding commands will be sent to the instruments. All the settings should be put under the FTS section. Currently, only the Data Saving Folder is configured by key DataFolder.

[FTS]
; Change the value of "Data Saving Folder"
DataFolder="E:"

4.3. Log File

The log file simply records the messages outputted from the Log Panel in the FTS application. Log file is important to trace the application errors. If an unexpected error is reported, one should send the lastest log file along with the screen shot of the error message to the developer (see Contact) for help.

Note

The location of the log file is in the same directory as the data file, i.e., under Data Saving Folder specified in the FTS application.