Devices used in everyday laboratory work, such as balances or stirrers, can be connected to Laboperator via a Connector Box or a Virtual Connector Box.


TABLE OF CONTENTS



Connecting Devices with Laboperator

When you connect a Device to a Connector Box, it creates a Device object in your Laboperator app. This is called "Connecting a Device". There are three different ways to connect a Device with Laboperator, by connecting it with a cable, via a wireless Device, and connect an already in Laboperator registered Device.



Connect to a Device through the Connector Box with a cable

You can connect a Device to Laboperator via a cable with a USB end which is plugged into a physical Connector Box. 

Once connected, you can double-click anytime on the Device to view the default Dashboard of the Device. Connector as well as the Dashboard behave as Resources within Collections the Connector is in. From here you can rename, share, etc. the Device like any other Resource.


Note: Only Driver that are compatible with your Devices should be selected to ensure full functionality.

To do so, please follow the steps below: 

  1. Plug your Device cable to one of the four ports of the Connector Box. 
  2. Once the cable is attached, open the Connector Box screen on Laboperator. The corresponding digital representation of the USB port now states Attached.
  3. Click on the CONNECT button to open a list of available Drivers. Choose the Driver corresponding to your Device. You can narrow the search by entering the name of your Device in the field.
  4. Click on CONFIRM to create the Device object in Laboperator.



Connect to a wireless Device through the Connector Box

Laboperator can also connect to wireless Devices via a Connector Box. 

Note: Only Driver that are compatible with your Devices should be selected to ensure full functionality.


To do so, please follow the steps below:

  1. Open the Connector Box screen on Laboperator.
  2. Find the virtual “Pending device”. This is always the last Device visible at the bottom of the page. Click on the CONNECT button to open a list of available Drivers.
  3. Choose the Driver corresponding to your Device. You can narrow the search by entering the name of your Device in the field.
  4. Click on CONFIRM to create the Device. 
  5. Click on MANAGE DEVICE and configure the necessary parameter, so that the Connector Box can communicate with the correct Device.  


Connect an already in Laboperator registered Device to your Connector Box

If you’re connecting a Device that has already been registered in Laboperator but is not connected to any box, click the box that states “Select a previously connected device?”. A new list of available Devices will appear. Select your Device in the list to connect it to your Connector Box.



Connect a wireless Device with the Virtual Connector

Instead of having a physical Connector Box, Laboperator offers also the possibility of a Virtual Connector. To be able to connect a wireless Device to it, it first needs to be installed. Once installed it behaves like the Connector Box as a Resource in Laboperator. To connect a Device to it, please follow the steps below:

  1. Open the Connector in Laboperator.
  2. Click on the CONNECT button to open a list of available Drivers.
  3. Choose the Driver corresponding to your Device. You can narrow the search by entering the name of your Device in the field.
  4. Click on CONFIRM to create the Device. 
  5. Click on MANAGE DEVICE and configure the necessary parameter, so that the Connector Box can communicate with the correct Device.  



Detaching Devices

You can unlink a Device by clicking on the "UNLINK DEVICE" button in the USB-port representation of the Device, in the Connector Box screen.


Note: Unlinking a Device does not mean deleting it. The Device will still be accessible from your Collection, and remain connected to previously set-up Connector Boxes.



View Device Commands

To view the commands a Device has sent, please follow the steps below:

  1. Open the respective Dashboard via the Connector or the Resource. 
  2. Once the Dashboard screen is opened, navigate to the tab sent commands (clock symbol). You will find a list of the latest commands sent.



Configuring Devices

To configure the Device Driver or channels, open the Device, click on the three dots in the top right corner and select settings. You can also access the Configuration Screen by clicking on the "MANAGE DEVICE" button on the Connector Box Screen. The Channel options control how data points are generated.  You can configure the update behavior as well as the interval of data points.


Note: Configuring the device driver requires expert knowledge. Changing Settings of a device driver might crash the driver. Please contact your account manager if you need any help.



Console

To view the port console of a USB port (e.g. to observe the port loggings), open the connector and click on the three dots button of the port you'd like to view. Choose console from the dropdown menu. 



Simulating Devices

Laboperator also allows simulating Devices, which enables you to test a Driver without the Device available. That means, you can fake the Device's behaviour in Laboperator. To create a simulated Device, create a Device as described under "Attaching and Editing Devices". Click on the three dots in the top right of the port representation and choose simulation. You now again have to select the correct Driver by typing in the name and confirm afterward.


Note: Not all Drivers currently allow for simulation. Please contact your account manager to get more information about the availability of simulations.



Virtual connector vs. physical connector

Laboperator also offers the connector as a purely virtual version that can be installed on a windows computer. It can be used for example to connect to a device software running on the same machine/network or extract files using a folder watcher. After the installation, the connector can be added as described above. Please reach out to your account manager if you'd like to get access to the virtual connector software.