Installation¶

Requirements¶

Python 3.8 or later
pip

Install from PyPI¶

pip install scpi-instrument-toolkit

This installs the scpi-repl command and all required dependencies automatically.

Install from source¶

git clone https://github.com/T-O-M-Tool-Oauto-Mationator/scpi-instrument-toolkit.git
cd scpi-instrument-toolkit
pip install -e .

Platform notes¶

WindowsmacOSLinux (Debian/Ubuntu)Linux (Arch)

Python installers from python.org include pip. During installation, check "Add Python to PATH".

After installation, verify:

python --version
pip --version

If scpi-repl is not recognised after install, see Troubleshooting.

Install Python via Homebrew (recommended):

brew install python
pip3 install scpi-instrument-toolkit

Or download the macOS installer from python.org.

sudo apt update
sudo apt install python3 python3-pip
pip3 install scpi-instrument-toolkit

Serial instruments communicate via device files (/dev/ttyUSB*, /dev/ttyACM*) owned by the dialout group — your user must be a member. See Troubleshooting.

sudo pacman -S python python-pip
pip install scpi-instrument-toolkit

Serial instruments communicate via device files (/dev/ttyUSB*, /dev/ttyACM*) owned by the uucp group — your user must be a member. See Troubleshooting.

Optional extras¶

Extra	Command	Purpose
NI PXIe-4139 SMU	`pip install nidcpower`	NI DCPower driver for PXIe SMU — required only if you have NI PXIe-4139 hardware
Docs build	`pip install "scpi-instrument-toolkit[docs]"`	Build HTML docs locally with MkDocs
Test suite	`pip install "scpi-instrument-toolkit[test]"`	Run unit/integration tests

Verify the installation¶

scpi-repl --mock

This launches the REPL with simulated instruments — no hardware required. Type help for available commands.

Upgrading¶

pip install --upgrade scpi-instrument-toolkit