[Test-Equipment] Graphics Interface for HP Network Analyzer

Tue, 25 Nov 2003 16:23:11 -0800 (PST)

Hi Eric,

A little bit depends on what you really want -
graphics or data.  I've found that if all I want is
graphics, I can take a picture with my digital camera
and that's plenty good enough.

Here's the mess you've run into:

The 8752A (and 8753A/B/C) could drive either plotters
or printers.  If driving a plotter, they issued HP-GL
code.  If driving a printer, they issued PCL code. 
The old HP Thinkjet was the world's first PCL printer.

In "the old days", all HP inkjet printers were PCL
compatible.  However, that required the presence of a
microprocessor inside the printer.  Nowadays, all
inkjet printers use a hardware-based protocol, and the
printer has no processor, only a shift register.  So,
the PC has to provide the printer the exact bit stream
required to drive the head.  This is done via the
printer driver, which is unique to each printer.  Give
any of today's inkjet printers the old PCL language,
and they'll print garbage.

However, the high end LaserJets still run PCL and they
also can take HP-GL.  A used HP LaserJet 4, 5 or 6
will do it.

However, you're still stuck with the fact that it's an
HP-IB interface on the back, not a parallel port. 
Enter "Intelligent Interfaces" of Stone Mountain
Georgia.  For $300-$400 they'll happily sell you an
interface between HP-IB and parallel, and can even
recommend specific printer models.

Gosh, this is just TOO complicated, isn't it?

My preferred low-cost solution is this:

Go to eBay and find an HP-IB version of the old HP
ThinkJet.  That'll be a model 2225A/B/C.  I think it
was the A version that was HP-IB.  They go for $30 to
$50 on eBay.  They're thermal printers, finding the
thermal paper is a bit tricky, but a Google search for
"thermal printer supplies" will probably get you a few
useful suppliers.

The 8752 uses programming codes that are similar to
the 8753 series.  Using an NI card, you could have it
transfer over the actual S-parameters, which you could
then dump into Excel.  But that won't look like the
screen.

Everything was fine until the printer manufacturers
started yanking the microprocessors out of the
inkjets, then it got messy.

I've got an 8753A at home and just use my digital
camera!

73,

Dave W8NF

===========

Date: Mon, 24 Nov 2003 20:02:01 -0800
From: Eric Lemmon <[email protected]>
To: [email protected],
[email protected]
Subject: [Test-Equipment] Graphics Interface for HP
Network Analyzer

I just acquired a mint-condition HP8752A Network
Analyzer, and I am
having a ball using it to tune duplexers and
isolators, sweep cables,
and test a wide variety of RF components.  However,
this unit does not
have a user-friendly interface for getting the graphic
on the color
display screen into a PC for printing or saving.

There is the usual HP-IB connector on the back panel,
along with a
DB-25F connector labeled "TEST SET - I/O INTERCONNECT"
which purpose is
unclear.  The Agilent Tech Support guy advised me that
I could connect 
a
now-obsolete HP Deskjet printer to the analyzer and
make plots, but he
stated that there was no way to get the graphic image
into a PC.  Other
than taking a picture of the screen with a digital
camera, that is!

I know that I'm not the only owner of this model
analyzer, and I'd also
think that at least one smart person on this planet
has figured out how
to import the screen image into a Windows PC.  The
ideal solution would
be an adapter that converts the HP8752A graphic data
into a USB port
readable signal.  Is there such a device?

73, Eric Lemmon WB6FLY

__________________________________
Do you Yahoo!?
Protect your identity with Yahoo! Mail AddressGuard
http://antispam.yahoo.com/whatsnewfree