Specifications

Voltmeter Reading
In this section, the codes provided below are used for the “voltmeter” application using the DC
load. It provides a convenient and remote way to collect voltage readings into a data file to serve
its purpose.
Instructions
Two settings must be configured correctly to run the script. They are port and baudrate. In the
code of voltmeter.py, they are declared at the beginning as “port = 5” and “baudrate = 38400” by
default. Please change the values to match the port and baudrate settings used to interface on
the PC. Note: The DC load must have the same baudrate configurations as in the code, and port
number has to match the COM port on the PC used to connect to DC load.
voltmeter.py
import sys, dcload
from time import time
from win32com.client import Dispatch
from msvcrt import kbhit
port = 5
baudrate = 38400
load = Dispatch('BKServers.DCLoad85xx')
load.Initialize(port, baudrate) # Open a serial connection
load.SetRemoteControl()
of = open("fast.dat", "w")
start = time()
count = 1
while True:
msg = "%6d %8.2f s %s\n" % (count, time() - start, load.GetInputValues())
of.write(msg)
if kbhit():
break
count += 1
finish = time() - start
load.SetLocalControl()
of.write("\nReading rate = %.1f readings/second\n" % (count/finish))
print "\nReading rate = %.1f readings/second\n" % (count/finish)
Fuse Application
A practical feature in most DC loads is the overpower, overcurrent, and overvoltage protection.
With this, a DC load can behave like a fuse in a circuit, monitoring current, voltage, or power from
exceeding design specifications of the circuit. An excellent way to demonstrate this application is
to use a program. Provided in the following is an example python script for monitoring current
using B&K Precision's 8500 DC load.
Instructions
Two settings must be configured correctly to run the script. They are port and baudrate. In the
code of voltmeter.py, they are declared at the beginning as “port = 5” and “baudrate = 38400” by
15 of 17