PyVISA Communication
Selecting the right backend and choosing the best interface
Chris Armstrong
Last Update setahun yang lalu
Pyvisa is a python module that enables VISA calls from within Python.
You can learn more about configuring the backend here: https://pyvisa.readthedocs.io/en/latest/introduction/configuring.html
Pyvisa connects to a underlying library to directly access VISA hardware. This typically would be the NI-VISA backend, Keysight VISA, or the pure python back end created explicitly for this purpose.
Some older instruments may still be in use that were tested directly with NI-VISA, but either predate or were not tested with Pyvisa and the pure visa implementation. For this reason, some instruments may have communication issues with certain backends especially when using USB. Small differences between how NI-VISA operates and other VISAs can cause issues.
It is recommended that whenever using Pyvisa, the NI backend should be used if possible. If you encounter communication issues with some instrument, we also suggest connecting via ethernet rather than over USB. We collect data on bugs and issues in the field, but older instruments that were built to work with NI-VISA do not get routinely updated to add communication capabilities via other backends or operating systems.