The Semiconductor Device Control Add-On large panel displays the active device control setup and hardware configuration. Use this panel to view application status and hardware communication status, and to control registers, fields, and DIO pins in the hardware configuration.

Figure 1. Semiconductor Device Control Add-On Large Panel Interface—Register Tab (top) and Quick Debug Tab (bottom)




  1. Start Button
  2. Hardware Status Indicator
  3. Application Status Bar
  4. Register Operation Tabs
  5. IP Block List
  6. Register/Field List
  7. Register/Field Information
  8. View Selector
  9. Representation Selector
  10. DIO/Script Configuration Menu
  11. Register/Field Action Controls
  12. Register Map Information
  13. Device Activity Log
  14. Custom Register Information
  15. Custom Register Action Controls

Start Button

The Start button controls the communication between hardware in the system.

Start The Semiconductor Device Control Add-On initiates communication using the active hardware configuration.
Stop The Semiconductor Device Control Add-On terminates communication between hardware in the system.

Hardware Status Indicator

The Hardware Status indicator displays the current status of communication with the hardware interface of the system.

Hardware Online The Semiconductor Device Control Add-On has established connections to all hardware interfaces in the system.
Hardware Partially Online The Semiconductor Device Control Add-On is established a connection with only some of the hardware interfaces in the system.
Hardware Offline The Semiconductor Device Control Add-On is not currently connected to a hardware interface.
Note Click More on the application status bar to view additional information about the hardware communication status.

Application Status Bar

The application status bar displays error and warning information about Semiconductor Device Control Add-On operations as well as general information about communication with hardware interfaces in the system. Clicking the More button expands the application status bar to display more detailed information about the most recent series of Semiconductor Device Control Add-On operations.

Register Operation Tabs

You can perform operations whether or not registers are present in the register map. The Register Map tab contains the options to perform operations on the registers present in the register map. The Quick Debug tab contains options to perform operations on the registers that are not present in the register map using the register address and size.

IP Block List

The IP block list displays the IP blocks and devices in the register map. You can select an IP block or device in the list to display the list of registers and fields assigned to that IP block or device.

Register/Field List

The register/field list displays all of the registers assigned to the IP block or device selected in the IP block list, as well as the fields assigned to each register. Select a register or field in this list to view details about the register or field in the information pane. You can select more than one register or field at a time to view information about each side-by-side.

Note The View Selector drop-down menu determines whether this list displays registers or fields.

Register/Field Information

This pane presents detailed information about the register or field selected in the register/field list. You can configure the controls in this pane to change the behavior of the register or field during Semiconductor Device Control Add-On operations.

Note A grayed-out control indicates that the control is read-only and cannot be edited.

View Selector

The View Selector drop-down menu determines whether the register/field list displays the registers or fields that are assigned to the IP block or device selected in the IP block list.

Representation Selector

The Representation Selector drop-down menu determines whether the values in the register/field list display as numerical values or hexadecimal values.

DIO Configuration/Script Menu

The DIO Configuration/Script menu displays the DIO pins defined in the Hardware Configuration tab of the large panel and the available scripts. You can use this menu to control the status of each input pin and to read all output pins or a subset of output pins. You can also use this menu to select and run a script.

The DIO action control buttons in the DIO Configuration/Script menu control read and write actions for DIO pins loaded from the pin maps.

Note An error returns if a digital session is used by multiple measurements that share the same instrument. To proceed with the operations, ensure that all digital sessions are unreserved in other measurements.
  • Read All DIOs—The Semiconductor Device Control Add-On reads all DIO pins in the output section of the DIO Configuration menu.
  • Read Selected DIO—The Semiconductor Device Control Add-On reads only the DIO pins selected in the output section of the DIO Configuration menu.

    • You can also run scripts from the DIO Configuration/Script menu by selecting an existing script from the Select Script drop-down menu and clicking the Run Script button.

    Register/Field Action Controls

    The Register/Field Action Control buttons on the large panel control read and write operations for the devices and pins. The following list defines the function of each Register/Field Action Control button.

    Note An error returns if a digital session is used by multiple measurements that share the same instrument. To proceed with the operations, ensure that all digital sessions are unreserved in other measurements.
  • Write Selected—The Semiconductor Device Control Add-On writes all selected register values (or field values) to the device. The order of write operations depends on the selection order of the registers or fields.
  • Write Modified—The Semiconductor Device Control Add-On identifies changes to values on the large or small panel that have not yet been written to the device. Then, the add-on writes the values to the device and updates the large panel to indicate the modified values have been written.
  • Read Selected—The Semiconductor Device Control Add-On reads the values of all selected registers (or fields) on the device. The order of read operations depends on the selection order of the registers or fields.
  • Read All—The Semiconductor Device Control Add-On reads the values of all registers or fields on the selected device, or the values for all registers displayed in the register/field list.

    • Register Map Information

    The Register Map Information section of the Semiconductor Device Control Add-On large panel displays documentation about the register or field you select in the Register/Field List. The documentation in the register map file determines the information that appears in this large panel section.

    Device Activity Monitor

    The Device Activity Monitor window displays a log of all read and write actions the Semiconductor Device Control Add-On has executed. Click Clear Log to clear the contents of the Device Activity Monitor window.

    Custom Register Information

    The Custom Register Info pane on the Quick Debug tab contains controls to configure registers that may or may not be present in the register map. This pane also contains a bit representation of the register value, which you can edit.

    Custom Register Action Controls

    The Custom Register Action Control buttons on the Quick Debug tab perform read and write operations on the register configured in the Custom Register Info pane. The following list defines the function of each Custom Register Action Control button.

  • Read Register—The Semiconductor Device Control Add-On reads the value of the register configured in the Custom Register Info pane.
  • Write Register—The Semiconductor Device Control Add-On writes the value to the register configured in the Custom Register Info pane.
    • Note Indirect registers do not support custom register actions.