GalilTools allows the user to set up, configure, tune, test and analyze motion on a Galil controller. GalilTools-Full Edition has a command Terminal with auto-repeat feature and smart coloring, program Editor with syntax highlighting, a data record Watch window including a user-configurable dashboard, an 8-channel real-time Scope, and an automatic axis Tuner (GalilTools-Lite excludes the Scope and Tuner). GalilTools has been written on a cross-platform library, allowing the suite to be deployed on a variety of popular operating systems such as Windows XP, XP x64, Vista, Vista x64, and various Linux distributions on x86 and x64 (Fedora Core 8 examples in these documents). Contact Galil for other operating systems.
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| GalilTools-Full Edition |
Various areas of GalilTools have a yellow highlighted color and indicate operations or fields that can potentially cause axis motion. These areas include the Download and Execute buttons, the Terminal input textbox, and the Tuner settings, Autotune button and sliders. Care should be taken to ensure potential movement will not damage equipment nor cause injury.
When running GalilTools in conjunction with a stand-alone Ethernet controller, it is recommended that an Ethernet connection be used because an RS-232 connection does not offer the optimum communication speed required for the Scope. GalilTools works with the DMC-40x0, 18x6, 41x3, 21x3, 18x2 board revision D and up, and RIO. New firmware (1.0b or greater) is required to use Watch on the DMC-18x6 series. Minimal DMC-1417 support was added in version 1.4.4 (no Watch, no Scope, no Tuner tools).
Hint: Many features in GalilTools have tool tips; further information about the feature may be obtained by hovering over a window element.
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| A tool tip in the Scope showing further information |
The Lite Edition of GalilTools comes packaged with a communications Terminal, program Editors, and a Watch window. The Full Edition adds the multi-channel Scope and Tuner.
The environment contains program Editors in the center surrounded by the Terminal, Watch, Scope, and Tuner dock windows, which are easily accessible from the tool bar. Editors represent Galil-language programs and multiple Editors can be open at the same time. The other tools (Terminal, Watch, Scope, and Tuner) can be docked to any of the four main environment walls, stacked on top of each other to form a tabbed stack, or floated outside of the environment.
From the Controller menu, the user can Connect, Download/Upload Arrays, and Download Firmware (which requires an RS-232 connection on 21x3 controllers).
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| Floating the GalilTools modules outside of the environment over the Windows XP desktop. |
See the individual Tool descriptions in the table of contents for more tool-specific information.
Galiltools allows the font of the terminal and editor to be cutomized by the user. Choose Edit | Font to bring up the font choser.
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| Users can choose a prefered font for working in GalilTools. |
Open the GalilTools for Windows installation executable and proceed with the setup. The installation will create a desktop shortcut and a program group in the start menu.
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| PCI Installation Prompt (Optional) |
If GalilTools is going to be used in conjunction with a PCI controller (DMC-18x2 or 18x6), the PCI driver must be installed. Otherwise, the user can choose to skip this step of the installation by clicking Cancel. If using a PCI controller, once the installation is done, follow the onscreen directions to restart the computer.
If GalilTools is installed on a computer with legacy Galil software such as WSDK or SmartTerm, it may be necessary to manually change the PCI driver to connect to PCI controllers. See the chapter PCI on Windows (DMC-18x2/6) in this manual should your PCI controller not be listed in the Available tab of the GalilTools Connections dialog.
Note: Contact Galil for signed drivers if a PCI based controller is to be used on a Vista x64 operating system.