Cheap data acquisition device? - Page 1
Forum section: electronics / testgear

author: Unknown
author_rank: Unknown
timestamp: March 04, 2019, 11:58:22 pm
content: I'm looking for an inexpensive device for data acquisition.I know I could build a gadget that does this out of a microcontroller and 4 ADC channels, but I'd rather buy it off the shelf.All it needs to do plug into a PC (USB), and sample 4 (or more) channels once every ~10 seconds (for a week) and report the DC voltage on each (0 to 5 volts). 10 bits of precision is enough. Doesn't need to be super accurate.And produce a spreadsheet with the results - time, voltage on each of the 4 channels.Any suggestions? I don't mind writing a little Python code to drive it.

author: thm_w
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: March 05, 2019, 12:14:04 am
content: https://www.mccdaq.com/data-acquisition/low-cost-daqhttps://www.dataq.com/products/di-1100/https://labjack.com/products/t4http://www.ni.com/en-ca/shop/select/multifunction-io-device?modelId=124893

author: Unknown
author_rank: Unknown
timestamp: March 05, 2019, 12:37:33 am
content: Quote from: thm_w on March 05, 2019, 12:14:04 amThanks, Google found those for me, too.I was hoping to hear from somebody with personal experience with these things. (And I was thinking it shouldn't cost more than US$50 or so.)

author: beanflying
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: March 05, 2019, 01:02:12 am
content: The Phidget is well worth a look toohttps://www.phidgets.com/?reasonable accuracy and modular.The really cheap and dirty way out is Arduino based with even a datalogging shield (SD Card) on top to run it as a standalone logger. Adding some sort of Vref to it will improve measurement accuracy.

author: Romain
author_rank: Regular Contributor
timestamp: March 05, 2019, 07:28:00 am
content: Sensything?https://www.crowdsupply.com/protocentral/sensything

author: joeqsmith
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: March 05, 2019, 12:05:27 pm
content: I have the Labjack U3 HV. More than double your price and at the time, it was the lowest cost product they offered. It has some basic peripherals( Digital I/O, timers, DACs and ADCs). I have not had any problems with the software or hardware.

author: ebclr
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: March 05, 2019, 09:17:03 pm
content: https://www.ebay.com/itm/iCP12-usbStick-6-Ch-USB-PC-Oscilloscope-Data-Logger-IO-ADC-DAQ-PWM-PIC18F2550/392082189572?hash=item5b49eb6d04:g:mfUAAOSwys5WUMMB

author: NiHaoMike
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: March 06, 2019, 01:36:29 am
content: There's simply not much of a market for what you're describing. Hobbyists generally just use an Arduino while businesses generally go for something that's quite expensive by hobbyist standards but well supported and with room for expansion.I wouldn't recommend any random cheap board since I have come across many where the software used with them is hopelessly out of date. Even some not so cheap niche devices have that problem.

author: Unknown
author_rank: Unknown
timestamp: March 06, 2019, 04:50:54 pm
content: Thanks, all.I ordered a DATAQ DI-1100 per thm_w's suggestion.

author: orenthalcaleb
author_rank: Newbie
timestamp: March 09, 2019, 12:05:10 am
content: LabJack.com offers student discounts and also great volume discounts. Although our devices aren't the cheapest on the market, our legendary lifetime support and free software are something to consider when evaluating DAQ hardware devices

author: orenthalcaleb
author_rank: Newbie
timestamp: May 17, 2019, 10:21:07 pm
content: Dave, how did your evaluation of both the DATAQ and LabJack devices go?