Pico TC-08 - 8 Channel Thermocouple Data Logger

Thermocouple Data Logger

Temperature measurement and recording with the TC-08 is very easy - simply plug the TC-08 into a USB port on your computer, plug in your thermocouples, and you are ready to go.

Wide temperature range

The TC-08 thermocouple data logger is designed to measure a wide range of temperatures using any thermocouple that has a miniature thermocouple connector. Pico supply a wide range of suitable thermocouples (see Accessories).

All popular types of thermocouple are supported, allowing an effective temperature range of –270 to +1820 °C (the actual temperature range depends on the thermocouple being used).

The built in Cold Junction Compensation (CJC) circuit can also be used as a 9th channel to measure room temperature.

Fast and accurate temperature data acquisition

With the TC-08 thermocouple data logger your temperature measurements can be made both fast and accurately.

The short conversion time of the TC-08 means up to 10 temperature measurements can be taken every second, while the high (20-bit) resolution ensures that the TC-08 can detect minute changes in temperature. For popular Type K thermocouples the TC-08 can maintain a better than 0.025°C resolution over a –250 to +1370 °C range.

Also measure voltage and 4–20 mA current loops!

As well as measuring temperature with thermocouples, the terminal board allows other sensors with voltage or current outputs to be connected. The optional Single-Channel Terminal Board (see Accessories) plugs into a channel on the TC-08 and turns it into a 20-bit high resolution data logger. Screw terminals allow wires to be attached to the data logger without soldering. The four input ranges (±50mV, ±500 mV, ±5 V and 4–20 mA) allows a wide range of other sensors and signals to be measured.

All you need in one easy-to-use unit

Temperature data acquisition with the TC-08 is very easy - simply plug the TC-08 into a USB port on your computer (no external power required), connect your thermocouples, and you are ready to measure temperatures.

The easy-to-use PicoLog data acquisition software is supplied with the TC-08 - allowing you to start measuring and recording temperatures with the minimum effort. The intuitive user interface of PicoLog makes it easy for you to set how frequently you want to take a measurement, and the number of measurements you want to take.

If you need more than 8 channels, up to 20 TC-08s can be used on one PC. You can even mix and match different data loggers from the Pico range to build a flexible, expandable data acquisition system.

PicoLog Data Logger Software

Spreadsheet view

Displays text data in a format that can be easily copied and pasted into other applications. Data can also be saved to disk in standard ASCII text format.

Graph view

Graphs can be displayed both during and after data collection. Each channel can be displayed in its own graph or multiple channels can be displayed in the same graph. Axes can be set up manually, automatically or in chart recorder mode. Multipliers allow you to magnify areas of interest. Graphs can be copied and then pasted into reports.

XY graph view

Displays one parameter against another. Useful for plotting voltage against current, for example.

Player view

Displays previously recorded data. It enables you to scroll quickly through stored files to compare results on successive runs. The player can be used to examine old data while new data is still being recorded.

Parameter scaling can be used to convert raw data into standard engineering units. A wide range of equation and table lookup scaling options are provided. Additional parameters can be calculated. For example, to calculate power output from a boiler you may need to multiply a flow reading from one channel with the temperature difference between two further channels. Alarm limits can be set for each channel to alert the user should a parameter go out of a specified range.

Software Development Kit (SDK)

As well as the supplied PicoLog software, also included are drivers and examples for those who want to write your own software or interface to other programs. Software drivers are supplied for Microsoft Windows, Apple Mac (OS X) and Linux (including Raspberry Pi and BeagleBone).

Example code shows how to interface to third-party software packages such as Microsoft Excel and National Instruments LabVIEW as well as how to write your own software in C++ / C#.