Specifications

Chapter 1 Programming Overview RIGOL
M300 Programming Guide 1-5
SCPI Command Overview
SCPI (Standard Commands for Programmable Instruments) is a standardized instrument programming
language that is built upon the standard IEEE488.1 and IEEE 488.2 and conforms to various standards
(such as the floating point operation rule in IEEE754 standard, ISO646 7-bit coded character for
information interchange (equivalent to ASCll programming)). This section introduces the syntax, symbols,
parameters and abbreviation rules of the SCPI commands.
Syntax
SCPI commands present a hierarchical tree structure and contain multiple sub-systems, each of the
commands consists of a root keyword and one or more sub-keywords. The keywords are separated by ":"
and are followed by the parameter settings available; "?" is added at the end of the command string to
indicate query; the command and parameter are separated by space.
For example,
CALCulate:LIMit:LOWer:STATe
<mode>,(@<ch_list>)
CALCulate:LIMit:LOWer:STATe? (@<ch_list>)
CALCulate is the root keyword of the command. LIMIt, LOWer and STATe are the second-level, third-level
and fourth level keywords respectively. The multiple-level keywords were separated by ":". <mode>
represents the parameter available for setting. "?" represents query. The command
CALCulate:LIMit:LOWer:STATe and parameter <mode> are separated by space. The parameters <mode>
and (@<ch list>) are separated by comma. The command CALCulate:LIMit:LOWer:STATe? and the
parameter (@<ch list>) are separated by space. "," is generally used for separating multiple parameters
contained in the same command, for example, SYSTem:DATE
<yyyy>,<mm>,<dd>.
Symbol Description
The following four symbols are not the content of SCPI commands and will not be sent with the commands.
They are usually used to describe the parameters in the commands.
1. Braces { }
The parameter enclosed in the braces is optional. It can be omitted or be set for one or more times. For
example, the
CONFigure:CURRent:AC [{<range>|AUTO|MIN|MAX|DEF} [,{<resolution> |MIN| MAX|
DEF}],](@<scan_list>) command.
2. Vertical Bar |
The vertical bar is used to separate multiple parameters and one of the parameters must be selected
when sending the command. For example, in the DISPlay
OFF|0|ON|1 command, "OFF", "ON", "0" and
"1" are the optional parameters and one of them must be selected.
3. Square Brackets [ ]
The content (command keyword) enclosed in the square brackets can be omitted. When the
parameter is omitted, the instrument will set the parameter to its default. For example, for the
[SENSe:]CURRent[:DC]:APERture
{<time>|MIN|MAX}[,(@<ch_list>)] command, sending any of the
four commands below can achieve the same effect.
[SENSE:]CURRent[:DC]:APERture {<time>|MIN|MAX}[,(@<ch_list>)]
[SENSE:]CURRent:APERture {<time>|MIN|MAX}[,(@<ch_list>)]
CURRent[:DC]:APERture {<time>|MIN|MAX}[,(@<ch_list>)]
CURRent:APERture {<time>|MIN|MAX}[,(@<ch_list>)]