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Measurement system control using real-time clocks and data buffers

  • US 5,293,374 A
  • Filed: 05/20/1992
  • Issued: 03/08/1994
  • Est. Priority Date: 03/29/1989
  • Status: Expired due to Term
First Claim
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1. A method of controlling measurement instruments in a system having a coordination means that transmits control instructions to different ones of a plurality of remotely-located measurement instruments which are responsive to control instructions to perform measurements and transmit results of those measurements back to the coordination means, the method comprising:

  • transmitting from the coordination means to a first one of the measurement instruments a control instruction that specifies a measurement to be performed and a predetermined finite time after occurrence of a predefined event at which the measurement is to be performed;

    storing the control instruction in a local buffer in the first measurement instrument;

    detecting the time of occurrence of the specified event by means of a local clock in a second measurement instrument;

    transmitting said time of occurrence to the first measurement instrument;

    determining by reference to a local clock in the first measurement instrument that the time at which the measurement is to be performed is at hand;

    performing the measurement when said time to perform the measurement is at hand; and

    storing the result of the measurement and the time at which the measurement was taken in the local buffer in the first measurement instrument.

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