Hand-Held DAQ System Incorporates 3.1-Inch Thermal Printer

Astro-Med's Test & Measurement Product Group has introduced the Dash 2EZ+, a new two channel, hand-held data acquisition system with integral chart recorder. Developed as a portable, hand-held troubleshooting and maintenance tool, the Dash 2EZ+ can record two channels of analog voltage channels along with one TTL event input to CompactFlash media at sample rates up to 40 kHz per channel. The unit also contains an integrated 3.1 inch strip chart recorder for hard copy printout.

Weighing just 4.5 pounds, the Dash 2EZ+ is suited for electric utilities where portability is required. The Dash 2EZ+ features a 5.7-inch color touch-screen display for viewing waveforms in real-time. This high-resolution display provides remarkable clarity and is fully customizable, allowing channels to be viewed side-by-side or overlapped for measuring phase relationships. A meter function provides a numeric readout of data simultaneously with waveform data. Built-in digital signal processing for each channel allows the user to program low pass, high pass, band stop and RMS filters.

The review function of the Dash 2EZ+ allows analysis of captured data right on the screen, giving immediate access to critical information. On-screen cursors provide quick and accurate information, eliminating the need to approximate measurements. Data capture review also allows expansion or compression of captured data for customized viewing.

The unit offers two types of factory-installed isolated signal modules that provide signal frequency response up to 8 kHz per channel. The HV-EZ+ isolated high-voltage module accepts inputs up to 250 Vrms for power monitoring applications. The BR-EZ+ isolated DC bridge input module is suitable for connecting to most sensors, strain gages and transducers. Factory-installed modules are available in the following configurations; two HV-EZ+, two BR-EZ+ or one of each.

The Dash 2EZ+ saves data directly to 128 MB - 2 GB CompactFlash memory cards at sample rates of up to 40 kHz per channel. It comes standard with a 128 MB CompactFlash memory card for a complete, out-of-the-box solution. Also supplied standard is AstroVIEW X software for the computer. This PC based analysis software allows the user to view captured data onscreen, and includes cursor measurements, a binary format conversion tool and filtering capability. AstroVIEW X easily uploads your data to your PC via Ethernet or USB 2.0.

The 3.1-inch thermal printer built into the Dash 2EZ+ prints has an integral 3.1-inch thermal printer for printing real-time and captured data at chart speeds of up to 25 mm/s. This 200 dpi resolution printer provides the highest quality strip chart printouts of any hand-held system available. The Dash 2EZ+ prints the time and date, chart speed, time scale and scaling information on your chart, giving you an immediate hard copy record of your data. Grids are printed simultaneously with waveform data, eliminating paper skew.