Chapter 6 - WaveForm window

Contents

The WaveForm window displays the trace data as timing diagrams and graphs. This window can also display data imported from a digital storage oscilloscope.

The Toolbar’s button views the WaveForm window if it is hidden. The "Window > WaveForm" menu item also views the WaveForm window.


Window areas

 
Window areas
 

 
Toolbar area
The toolbar area contains the quick-action list box plus the WaveForm window's local toolbar.

The quick-actions available in the drop-down list are...

  • Edit custom zoom level - The zoom buttons and keystrokes use a 1-2-5 sequence when changing the time per division. The "Edit custom zoom level" action allows you to enter a non-standard time per division. For example, 1.5 seconds per division instead of 1 second. See the Zoom Level dialog topic (below) for details.
  • Toggle link markers - Links the marker pairs at a fixed distance.
  • Reset all line heights - Resets the lines to the default height.
  • Delete all lines - Blanks all lines so that no channels or scope data is displayed.
  • View all channel groups - Blanks the window then inserts a line for each channel group.
  • Collapse all lines - All expanded lines are collapsed.
  • Expand all lines - All lines are expanded to show this component signals.
  • Edit all lines... - Similar to clicking on a line's setup button except the changes affect all lines. Useful for changing all lines to the same base, channel group, or color.
  • Edit all data views... - Displays trace data on all lines, reference data, or several combinations of these two including the exclusive-or comparison.

The local toolbar buttons are...

  Inserts a new line above the selected line. Click once on the setup buttons to select a line.
  Deletes the selected line. Click once on the setup buttons to select a line.
  Zooms in one time per division so more detail is visible.
  Zooms out one time per division so more data is in the window.
  Zooms so that all data is in the window.
  Goes to the previous zoom setting. A history of the past 10 zooms are saved.
  Edits the WaveForm window options. The selected options are unique to each WaveForm window copy.
  Select the active mouse mode. This defines the behavior when the left and right mouse buttons are clicked in the data area. The following mouse modes are supported in the WaveForm window...
   
  • Move active marker pair. Three marker-pairs are available for making measurements. Click the left mouse button to move the first marker in the active pair. Click the right mouse button to move the second marker in the active pair.
  • Drag-trigger mode (only available when the Simple, Series, or TimeBetween TriggerForms are active). Define a trigger pattern by dragging a box around the trace data with the left mouse button. Click the right mouse button to quickly return to the active marker pair mouse mode. This mouse mode is only available when the Simple, Series, or TimeBetween TriggerForms are active. See the Drag-trigger section later for details.
  • Mouse zoom mode. Click and drag the left mouse button on the trace data to zoom in on the selected area. The left and right edges of the drag-area define the new zoom level. Click the right mouse button to quickly return to the active marker pair mouse mode.
  • Drag-scroll mode. The click and drag the left mouse button on the trace data to scroll the data up, down, left, or right. Click the right mouse button to quickly return to the active marker pair mouse mode.
 
Marker area
The marker area contains the measurements between the moveable data markers...


Using markers


 

Setup area
The setup area contains a button for each line in the window. The setup buttons are used to configure each waveform line in the window.

If a setup button is blank, then line is empty and no data is displayed on the line. A blank setup button is always displayed at the bottom of the setup area. This allows you to quickly add more lines to the window without using the toolbar button.

Each setup button can be sized to adjust the associated line's height. Move the mouse over a setup button's bottom edge. When the mouse cursor changes to the vertical resize icon, click and hold the mouse button. Drag the button height vertically and release the mouse button at the desired height.  

     
The overall width of the line setup area can be adjusted so that long channel group names are not truncated inside the setup buttons. Move the mouse over the setup area's resize bar. When the mouse cursor changes to the horizontal resize icon, click and hold the mouse button. Drag the area width horizontally and release the mouse button at the desired width.  

Click on the line setup buttons to select which data is displayed (trace, reference, or scope), what channel groups is display, the line color, and so forth...
 


 

Clicking a line's setup button displays the waveform setup dialog box...


Viewing trace data

 

 
  • Data - Choosing the "Trace Data", "Reference Data", or "XOR Trace & Reference" options displays the above dialog box. The "XOR" data is a comparison tool which paints a waveform logic-high anywhere the Trace and Reference data differs. Selecting the "Scope Data" option displays the scope data setup dialog box. See the Scope data section later for details.
  • View - The "Timing diagram" option displays the data as timing diagrams. The "Graph values vs. time" option graphs the channel group values on vertical axis while the horizontal axis represents time. The minimum value in the entire trace is at the bottom of the graph while the maximum is at the top. The serial bus conversion options are available if one or more serial buses are defined in the Sampling Tab. For example, the "I2C conversion" option is available if one or more I2C buses are defined in the Sampling Tab.
  • Color - Choose the waveform line's color. The "more..." button allows you to define custom colors.
  • Base - Defines the numeric base for the group values displayed inside the combined parent waveform. If a symbol table is loaded into the selected channel group, the "Symbol" and "Symbol+offset" bases are also available. The group values are replaced by symbol matches where possible using this base.
  • Hide values inside waveform - The channel group values are not displayed inside the combined parent waveform when this option is checked.
  • Hide expanded parent line - The combined parent waveform is hidden if the line is expanded when this option is checked.
  • Data (Lower trace) - Displays a second waveform beneath the first. This allows you to overlay  Trace and Reference data on a single line for comparison purposes (or vice versa).

  • Color (Lower trace) - Defines the color of the lower layer waveform.
  • Channels - Select the channel group to display which was defined earlier in the Setup window. If you forgot to create a channel group, you can either return to the Setup window or click the "New channel group wizard..." button and define the group from the WaveForm window.
  • Apply changes - Copies the changes to the WaveForm setup but leaves the dialog box open. You can then single-click on a different setup button to configure a new line. Configuring several lines this way is faster than opening a closing the dialog box for each line.
  • Done - Copies the changes to the WaveForm setup and exits the dialog box.

The 9 "basic" colors automatically adjust to the pale or dark background colors. The software uses pale versions of these colors when a dark background is used. Likewise, the software uses dark versions when a pale background is used. This feature is very convenient if you open projects file from someone using a different background color.

However, custom colors do NOT adjust to pale or dark background colors. Opening a project file with custom colors may require the channel group colors to be adjusted. Alternatively, you can change your background color to something more compatible with the custom group colors.
 

Choosing the "Scope Data" display option changes the setup dialog's appearance...


Viewing scope data

 
 
  • Data - Choosing the "Trace Data", "Reference Data", or "XOR Trace & Reference" options switches back to the GoLogic data setup dialog box.
  • Probe - Select a channel from the active scope model to display. See Chapter 12 - Scope data for details on controlling an external scope with the GoLogic software.
  • Color - Choose the scope data's color.
  • Threshold line - A dashed line representing the threshold voltage can be displayed. This list defines what threshold voltage is used.
  • Custom volts edit box - Enabled only if the custom threshold line option is selected.
  • Show max voltage level - The largest voltage in the scope data is displayed at the upper left corner of the line.
  • Show min voltage level - The smallest voltage in the scope data is displayed at the lower left corner of the line.
  • Apply changes - Copies the changes to the WaveForm setup but leaves the dialog box open. You can then single-click on a different setup button to configure a new line. Configuring several lines this way is faster than opening a closing the dialog box for each line.
  • Done - Copies the changes to the WaveForm setup and exits the dialog box.

These options allow you to display a lower layer GoLogic trace waveform...

  • Lower trace (Data) - Displays a trace timing diagram under the scope data unless "None" is selected...

  • Lower trace (Color) - Defines the color of the lower layer waveform.
  • Lower trace (Base) - Defines the numeric base for the lower layer trace waveform.
  • Lower trace (Channel group...) - Select the GoLogic channel group to display as the lower trace waveform.

When the activity indicators are enabled via the "Data > Activity indicators" menu command, the setup area grows wider to accommodate the channel activity.

In this example, the combined "pod A" group was expanded to display the individual channel activity values. The combined activity value is displayed on the parent line. The "?" character indicates that the hexadecimal digit has at least one bit which is changing. Changing bits are indeterminate.

Finally, the setup buttons supports drag-n-drop to arrange the waveform lines.

Move the mouse over a line’s setup button then press and hold the left mouse button until the line is "lifted"...

Drag the mouse vertically to the line's desired insertion point...
Then release the mouse button to drop the line at its new location...
Hold down the Control key while dragging to copy the line instead of moving it.
 
Data area
The data area displays the trace, reference, and scope data. If all the waveform lines do not fit in the window, a vertical scroll bar is displayed which scrolls through the lines. If all the trace, reference, and scope data does not fit in the data area, a horizontal scroll bar is displayed which scrolls through the data...
 


 

The button scrolls to the previous bookmark. The button scrolls to the previous transition in the visible waveforms. The button scrolls to the previous time division. The button scrolls to the next time division. The button scrolls to the next transition in the visible waveforms. The button scrolls to the next bookmark. The bookmark buttons are only displayed if one or more bookmarks exist in the project. See Chapter 9 - Measurements for details on adding and using bookmarks in your project.

The click-n-scroll icons are convenient for quickly scrolling to a specific marker or bookmark. All markers and bookmarks are visible here since the scroll bar represents all currently open data.

The current view indicator is similar to a standard scroll bar's drag button. You can drag the view indicator left and right to scroll through the data. However, the GoLogic's custom trace scroll bar also indicates what data is currently visible in the window. The left edge of the bracket represents the left edge of the visible data area. Likewise, the right edge of the bracket represents the right edge of the visible data area. As the zoom level changes, the view indicator grows wider and narrower. The view indicator width remains constant after zooming in enough so that it becomes too narrow to be useful.
 

When the mouse mode is active, click the left and right mouse buttons in the data area to move the active marker pair and make timing measurements. See Chapter 9 - Measurements for tips on using the markers effectively.

When the mouse mode is active, click and drag the left mouse button in the data area to select the new zoom level.


Zooming

When the mouse mode is active, click and drag the left mouse button in the data area to scroll the waveforms up, down, left, or right.

Edit custom zoom level
 


Zooming

The "Edit custom zoom level" command in the toolbar area's Quick-action list displays this dialog box.

  • Time Per Division - Select the time per division or enter a custom values. Fraction times are allowed if needed.
  • Time Units - Select the time units for the time per division setup.
  • View all data - Clicking this button automatically sets the time per division to that all the open data fits in the WaveForm window.

 

 
Simple TriggerForm
When the Simple TriggerForm is active, the WaveForm window's trigger area is displayed next to the setup area...


WaveForm TriggerForms


 

This feature allows customers who mostly work in the WaveForm window to avoid switching back to the Setup window just to edit the Simple TriggerForm. The rules for the Simple TriggerForm are identical to those described earlier in Chapter 4 - Setup step three: triggering. The GoLogic triggers when a single event is detected.
 
The WaveForm window's trigger area can be resized to suit your needs. Drag the resize bar left to hide the trigger area. Drag the resize bar right to view the active triggers. Right-click on the resize bar to restore the trigger area to its default width...
 

Defining the trigger event is similar to the Setup window's Triggering tab. However, the WaveForm window also allows channel groups with two or more channels to be expanded into the component waveforms. When this is done, individual trigger buttons are provided for each channel. The button allows you to choose the "x" character, a logic-high, or a logic-low...


 

In the above example, the ambiguous "?" character is displayed in the combined trigger value because one or more "anything" characters exist in the digit. A logic-high was chosen for one bit while the other three bits on the character are "x". See the "Ambiguous trigger values" section in Chapter 4 - Setup step three: triggering for details.
 
Series TriggerForm
When the Series TriggerForm is active, the WaveForm window's trigger area is displayed next to the setup area...
 


 

This feature allows customers who mostly work in the WaveForm window to avoid switching back to the Setup window just to edit the Series TriggerForm. The rules for the Series TriggerForm are identical to those described earlier in Chapter 4 - Setup step three: triggering. The GoLogic triggers when a series of patterns is detected.
 
TimeBetween TriggerForm
When the TimeBetween TriggerForm is active, the WaveForm window's trigger area is displayed next to the setup area...
 


 

This feature allows customers who mostly work in the WaveForm window to avoid switching back to the Setup window just to edit the TimeBetween TriggerForm. The rules for the TimeBetween TriggerForm are identical to those described earlier in Chapter 4 - Setup step three: triggering. The GoLogic triggers when the time between two events matches the selected criteria.
 
Drag-trigger
 
When the Simple, Series, or TimeBetween TriggerForm is active and the mouse mode is selected, click and drag the left mouse button in the data area to add bits to the a trigger value. Drag a selection box around the data you want to use as a trigger and release the mouse. The trace data inside the box defines the trigger pattern.

   
I2C display
 
When trace data is is captured from an I2C bus, the raw signals can be viewed in the WaveForm window...

To view the converted I2C data, click on a setup button and choose the "I2C conversion" option. Note: The "I2C conversion" option is only listed if one or more I2C bus is defined in the Sampling Tab.

When selected, the setup dialog box changes to suit the selected serial bus view...


Showing serial
bus data


 

  • View - When one or more I2C buses are defined in the Sampling Tab, the "I2C conversion" option is available. Choose the "Timing diagram" or "Graph values vs. time" option to switch back to the normal waveform setup dialog box.
  • I2C bus - Select the I2C bus to display on the line. The serial buses are defined in the Setup window's Sampling tab.
  • Color - Choose the waveform line's color. The "more..." button allows you to define custom colors.
  • Base - Defines the numeric base for each data value.
After the I2C bus is selected and the "Done" button is clicked, the WaveForm window displays the converted I2C serial bus if any exists. If no I2C data is displayed, either capture a trace or go back to the Sampling Tab and click the "Re-convert trace" button.

If you need to display a custom protocol for the I2C bus values, use the GoLogic Plugin Development Kit (PDK) freely available on the NCI web site. The GoLogic software passes the converted I2C bus values to your plugin which you can interpret as needed. See the PDK documentation for more details
 
SPI display
 
When trace data is is captured from an SPI bus, the raw signals can be viewed in the WaveForm window...

To view the converted SPI data, click on a setup button and choose one of the "SPI  conversion" options. Note: The "SPI conversion" options are only listed if one or more SPI bus is defined in the Sampling Tab.

When selected, the setup dialog box changes to suit the selected serial bus view...


Showing serial
bus data


 

  • View - When one or more SPI buses are defined in the Sampling Tab, the "SPI  conversion" options are available. The "SPI conversion (timing diagram)" option shows a timing diagram of the SPI bus values. The "SPI conversion (graph values-vs-time)" graphs the SPI data values. The vertical axis is the SPI data values while the horizontal axis represents time. The minimum value in the entire trace is at the bottom of the graph while the maximum is at the top. Choose the "Timing diagram" or "Graph values vs. time" option to switch back to the normal waveform setup dialog box.
  • SPI bus - Select the SPI bus to display on the line. The serial buses are defined in the Setup window's Sampling tab.
  • Color - Choose the waveform line's color. The "more..." button allows you to define custom colors.
  • Base - Defines the numeric base for each data value.
After the SPI bus is selected and the "Done" button is clicked, the WaveForm window displays the converted SPI serial bus if any exists. If no SPI data is displayed, either capture a trace or go back to the Sampling Tab and click the "Re-convert trace" button.

If you need to display a custom protocol for the SPI bus, use the GoLogic Plugin Development Kit (PDK) freely available on the NCI web site. The GoLogic software passes the converted SPI bus values to your plugin which you can interpret as needed. See the PDK documentation for more details.
 
RS232 display
 
When trace data is is captured from an RS232, RS422, RS423, RS485, or similar UART bus, the raw signals can be viewed in the WaveForm window...

To view the converted RS232 data, click on a setup button and choose one of the "RS232 conversion" options. Note: The "RS232 conversion" options are only listed if one or more RS232 bus is defined in the Sampling Tab.

When selected, the setup dialog box changes to suit the selected serial bus view...


Showing serial
bus data


 

  • View - When one or more RS232 buses are defined in the Sampling Tab, the "RS232 conversion" options are available. The "RS232 conversion (timing diagram)" option shows a timing diagram of the RS232 bus values. The "RS232 conversion (graph values-vs-time)" graphs the RS232 data values. The vertical axis is the RS232 data values while the horizontal axis represents time. The minimum value in the entire trace is at the bottom of the graph while the maximum is at the top. Choose the "Timing diagram" or "Graph values vs. time" option to switch back to the normal waveform setup dialog box.
  • UART bus - Select the RS232 bus to display on the line. The serial buses are defined in the Setup window's Sampling tab.
  • Color - Choose the waveform line's color. The "more..." button allows you to define custom colors.
  • Base - Defines the numeric base for each data value.
After the RS232 bus is selected and the "Done" button is clicked, the WaveForm window displays the converted RS232 serial bus if any exists. If no RS232 data is displayed, either capture a trace or go back to the Sampling Tab and click the "Re-convert trace" button.

If you need to display a custom protocol for the RS232 bus, use the GoLogic Plugin Development Kit (PDK) freely available on the NCI web site. The GoLogic software passes the converted RS232 bus values to your plugin which you can interpret as needed. See the PDK documentation for more details
 
CAN display
When trace data is is captured from the CAN bus, the raw signals can be viewed in the WaveForm window...

To view the converted CAN data, click on a setup button and choose the "CAN conversion" option. Note: The "CAN conversion" option is only listed if one or more CAN bus is defined in the Sampling Tab.

When selected, the setup dialog box changes to suit the selected serial bus view...


Showing serial
bus data

  • View - When one or more CAN buses are defined in the Sampling Tab, the "CAN conversion" option is available. Choose the "Timing diagram" or "Graph values vs. time" option to switch back to the normal waveform setup dialog box.
  • CAN bus - Select the CAN bus to display on the line. The serial buses are defined in the Setup window's Sampling tab.
  • Color - Choose the waveform line's color. The "more..." button allows you to define custom colors.
  • Base - Defines the numeric base for each data value.
After the CAN bus is selected and the "Done" button is clicked, the WaveForm window displays the converted CAN serial bus if any exists. If no CAN data is displayed, either capture a trace or go back to the Sampling Tab and click the "Re-convert trace" button.

LIN display
When trace data is is captured from the LIN bus, the raw signals can be viewed in the WaveForm window...

To view the converted LIN data, click on a setup button and choose the "LIN conversion" option. Note: The "LIN conversion" option is only listed if one or more LIN bus is defined in the Sampling Tab.

When selected, the setup dialog box changes to suit the selected serial bus view...


Showing serial
bus data

  • View - When one or more LIN buses are defined in the Sampling Tab, the "LIN conversion" option is available. Choose the "Timing diagram" or "Graph values vs. time" option to switch back to the normal waveform setup dialog box.
  • LIN bus - Select the LIN bus to display on the line. The serial buses are defined in the Setup window's Sampling tab.
  • Color - Choose the waveform line's color. The "more..." button allows you to define custom colors.
  • Base - Defines the numeric base for each data value.
After the LIN bus is selected and the "Done" button is clicked, the WaveForm window displays the converted LIN serial bus if any exists. If no LIN data is displayed, either capture a trace or go back to the Sampling Tab and click the "Re-convert trace" button.

Bitstream display
 
When trace data is captured from a generic bitstream serial bus, the raw signals can be viewed in the WaveForm window...

To view the converted bitstream data, click on a setup button and choose one of the "Bitstream conversion" options. Note: The "Bitstream conversion" options are only listed if one or more bitstream bus is defined in the Sampling Tab.

When selected, the setup dialog box changes to suit the selected serial bus view...


Showing serial
bus data


 

  • View - When one or more bitstream bus is defined in the Sampling Tab, the "Bitstream conversion" options are available. The "Bitstream conversion (timing diagram)" option shows a timing diagram of the bitstream bus values. The "Bitstream conversion (graph values-vs-time)" graphs the bitstream data values. The vertical axis is the bitstream data values while the horizontal axis represents time. The minimum value in the entire trace is at the bottom of the graph while the maximum is at the top. Choose the "Timing diagram" or "Graph values vs. time" option to switch back to the normal waveform setup dialog box.
  • Bus - Select the bitstream bus to display on the line. The serial buses are defined in the Setup window's Sampling tab.
  • Color - Choose the waveform line's color. The "more..." button allows you to define custom colors.
  • Base - Defines the numeric base for each data value.
After the bitstream bus is selected and the "Done" button is clicked, the WaveForm window displays the converted bitstream serial bus if any exists. If no bitstream data is displayed, either capture a trace or go back to the Sampling Tab and click the "Re-convert trace" button.

If you need to display a custom protocol for your bitstream bus, use the GoLogic Plugin Development Kit (PDK) freely available on the NCI web site. The GoLogic software passes the converted bitstream bus values to your plugin which you can interpret as needed. See the PDK documentation for more details
 
Window options
Click the local toolbar button to customize each WaveForm window’s behavior...


Window options


 
  • Show X divisions - Define the number of time divisions in the data area.
  • Above divisions - Showing the trace sample numbers above each division line places the sample number above the division line. Showing the time position places the time position above the division line. Showing the time to trigger places the elapsed time to the trigger sample above the division line.
  • Scrolling - Scrolling with other data windows causes all data windows not scroll independently to update as this window scrolls. Scrolling independently causes scroll commands to only affect this window.
  • Hide marker lines when printing - Check this option to prevent the marker lines from obscuring trace and scope data in a printout.
  • Show entire time stamp resolution - Normally, time measurements choose the best units (ps, ns, us, ms, etc) and only two digits past the decimal are displayed. This option forces all significant digits past the decimal to be displayed.
  • Link the waveform markers together - Same as the "Toggle link markers" action in the toolbar area's list box. The marker pairs are linked at a fixed distance.
  • Values - Statistical values on each waveform can be displayed...
    • Hide value area - Hides the waveform value area.
    • Show waveform value - Each waveform's binary value at the active marker is displayed.
    • Show transition count - The number of transitions between the active marker pair is displayed.
    • Show rising edge count - The number of rising edges between the active marker pair is displayed.
    • Show falling edge count - The number of falling edges between the active marker pair is displayed.
    • Show high-pulse count - The number of high pulses between the active marker pair is displayed.
    • Show low-pulse count - The number of low pulses between the active marker pair is displayed.
    • Show duty cycle - The ratio of high-to-low time between the active marker pair is displayed.
    • Show matching search count - The number of samples between the active marker pair which match the active SearchForm is displayed.
    • Show bookmark count - The number of samples between the active marker pair which have a bookmark is displayed.
  • Show values for parent waveforms - The statistical values for the combined parent waveforms are displayed. This option is disabled by default to save space in the data area.
  • Snap - The markers can be snapped to the nearest edge on screen, the nearest edge under the mouse, or nothing. Marker snap makes measuring time between edges must easier.
  • Place the least significant bit topmost the first time a waveform is expanded - Normally, new waveforms are expanded with the most significant bit as topmost. This option changes the default so that new waveforms are expanded with the least significant bit as topmost.
  • Hide values inside all waveforms - No channel group values are displayed inside the waveforms.
  • Use lead set resistor code colors when expanding waveforms - Uncheck this option to use the line color for the expanded waveform lines. Normally, each channel's lead set color is used for expanded lines.
  • Separate each waveform with X extra pixels to air readability - This places extra space between waveform lines.
  • Waveform line thickness (video) - The line thickness used to paint the timing diagrams on screen can be adjusted. This is useful for large, higher resolution monitors. The "0 pt" option uses lines one pixel wide for the logic-high and logic-low states. The "1 pt" option uses lines one pixel wide for the logic-high states and two pixels wide for the logic-low states. The "2 pts" option uses lines one pixel wide for the logic-high states and three pixels wide for the logic-low states. The "3 pts" option uses lines two pixels wide for the logic-high states and four pixels wide for the logic-low states.
  • Waveform line thickness (print) - The line thickness used to print the timing diagrams can be adjusted. This is useful for large-format, high resolution printers. The "1 pt" option uses lines two pixels wide for the logic-high states and four pixels wide for the logic-low states. The "2 pts" option uses lines four pixels wide for the logic-high states and eight pixels wide for the logic-low states. The "3 pts" option uses lines eight pixels wide for the logic-high states and sixteen pixels wide for the logic-low states.
 
Dual WaveForm windows
Check the "Window > Enable WaveForm #2" menu command to view a second WaveForm window. Uncheck this menu item to display only one WaveForm window.


Dual windows

Each WaveForm window has an independent zoom level and setup database. This allows each window to display different data and/or channels, or the same data and channels at different zoom levels. When you first activate the second WaveForm window, the new window uses the same setup and zoom level as the first window.

Likewise, each window can be configured to scroll independently or synchronously with the other data windows. Use the window options to change this option as needed.

 
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