User manual

60 Relay Multiplexer Command Reference Chapter 3

Command Separator A colon (:) always separates one command from the next lower-level

command, such as [ROUTe:]SCAN:MODE? Colons separate the root

command from the second-level command ([ROUTe:]SCAN) and the

second level from the third level (SCAN:MODE?).

Abbreviated Commands The command syntax shows most commands as a mixture of upper- and

lowercase letters. The uppercase letters indicate the abbreviated

spelling for the command. For shorter program lines, send the

abbreviated form. For better program readability, you may send the

entire command. The instrument will accept either the abbreviated form

or the entire command.

For example, if the command syntax shows DIAGnostic, DIAG and

DIAGNOSTIC are both acceptable forms. Other forms of DIAGnostic,

such as DIAGN or DIAGNOS will generate an error. You may use upper-

or lowercase letters. Therefore, DIAGNOSTIC, diagnostic, and

DiAgNoStIc are all acceptable.

Implied Commands Implied commands appear in square brackets ([ ]) in the command

syntax. The brackets are not part of the command and are not sent to the

instrument. Suppose you send a second-level command but do not send

the preceding implied command. In this case, the instrument assumes

you intended to use the implied command and it responds as if you had

sent it. Examine the portion of the [ROUTe] subsystem shown below:

[ROUTe:] 

CLOSe? <channel_list>

The root command [ROUTe:] is an implied command. To make a query

about a channel’s present status, you can send either of the following

command statements:

ROUT:CLOSe? <channel_list> or CLOSe? <channel_list>

Variable Commands

Syntax

Some commands have what appears to be a variable syntax, such as

OUTPut:ECLTrgn and OUTPut:TTLTrgn. In these commands, the n is

replaced by a number. No space is left between the command and the

number because the number is not a parameter. The number is part of

the command syntax. In the case of OUTP:ECLTrgn, n can range from



0 to 1. In OUTP:TTLTrgn, n can range from 0 through 7.