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Installation

Requirements

  • Python 3.10 or later (use 3.12 if you plan to drive the toolkit from NI TestStand - see NI TestStand Setup)
  • pip
  • git on PATH (the install pulls from the GitHub repo - pip install scpi-instrument-toolkit does NOT work; the package is not on PyPI)

Install from GitHub

The toolkit is distributed as a git+https:// install, not a PyPI package. Run:

pip install "git+https://github.com/T-O-M-Tool-Oauto-Mationator/scpi-instrument-toolkit.git"

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

scpi-instrument-toolkit is NOT on PyPI

Running pip install scpi-instrument-toolkit will fail with Could not find a version that satisfies the requirement scpi-instrument-toolkit. Always use the git+https://... form above.

Install from source (for development)

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

Platform notes

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

After installation, verify:

python --version
pip --version
git --version

Then install with the git+ URL above. If you are on a TAMU managed machine and do not have git yet, run setup-tamu.ps1 first - it installs git and Python in one shot.

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

Install Python and git via Homebrew (recommended):

brew install python git
pip3 install "git+https://github.com/T-O-M-Tool-Oauto-Mationator/scpi-instrument-toolkit.git"

Or download the macOS installer from python.org.

sudo apt update
sudo apt install python3 python3-pip git
pip3 install "git+https://github.com/T-O-M-Tool-Oauto-Mationator/scpi-instrument-toolkit.git"

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 git
pip install "git+https://github.com/T-O-M-Tool-Oauto-Mationator/scpi-instrument-toolkit.git"

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] @ git+https://github.com/T-O-M-Tool-Oauto-Mationator/scpi-instrument-toolkit.git" Build HTML docs locally with MkDocs
Test suite pip install "scpi-instrument-toolkit[test] @ git+https://github.com/T-O-M-Tool-Oauto-Mationator/scpi-instrument-toolkit.git" 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 "git+https://github.com/T-O-M-Tool-Oauto-Mationator/scpi-instrument-toolkit.git"

To pull the latest nightly:

pip install --upgrade --force-reinstall "git+https://github.com/T-O-M-Tool-Oauto-Mationator/scpi-instrument-toolkit.git@dev/nightly"

Vendor drivers

The Python install above is enough for --mock mode and any instruments that speak SCPI over an OS-native serial / Ethernet path. Real hardware needs the matching vendor driver installed once per machine. Pick only the drivers for the instruments you actually have.

NI-VISA runtime — required for almost every real instrument

NI-VISA is the underlying VISA backend that the toolkit's pyvisa dependency talks to. You need it for:

  • Any USB-TMC instrument (Keysight DMMs / PSUs, Rigol scopes, Tektronix scopes, BK function generators, etc.)
  • Any GPIB instrument
  • Any VXI-11 / HiSLIP instrument over Ethernet

Skip this only if every instrument you plan to use is mocked, raw serial (/dev/ttyUSB*, COMx with no VISA), or accessed through a non-VISA driver below.

  1. Download the runtime from ni.com/en/support/downloads/drivers/download.ni-visa.html.
  2. Run the installer. Admin rights required, takes about 5–10 minutes on Windows.
  3. Restart your terminal so the new PATH entries take effect.
  4. Verify with python -c "import pyvisa; print(pyvisa.ResourceManager().list_resources())" — you should see ('ASRLn::INSTR', ...) style strings and no OSError.

TAMU managed machines

NI-VISA installs cleanly on TAMU-managed Windows machines because the installer is signed and submitted through the standard MSI path. You still need the admin password / TA assist for the one-time install.

NI-DCPower — only if you have an NI PXIe-4139 SMU

If you're driving an NI PXIe-4139 source-measure unit, install the NI-DCPower driver and the Python binding:

  1. Download NI-DCPower from ni.com/downloads/drivers/ (admin required).

  2. After NI-DCPower is installed, add the Python binding:

    pip install nidcpower

The toolkit's PXIe-4139 driver imports nidcpower at scan time — without it, the SMU won't enumerate.

EV2300 USB-to-I2C bridge — no separate driver needed

The original TI EV2300A enumerates as a generic USB-HID device on all three OSes; the toolkit talks to it via hidapi (pulled in by the hid extra). To install the optional hid extra:

pip install "scpi-instrument-toolkit[hid] @ git+https://github.com/T-O-M-Tool-Oauto-Mationator/scpi-instrument-toolkit.git"

If your kit ships an in-house STM32 replacement instead (Adafruit Feather STM32F405 + FeatherWing), no additional setup is needed at runtime — the bridge enumerates with the same USB descriptor and the existing driver picks it up. Re-flashing the firmware does need extra tools; see the Flashing the STM32 bridge section in the TA Developer Guide Ch 12.

Vendor utilities — only for one-off troubleshooting

You don't need these to use the toolkit, but TAs and instructors usually install them on lab bench machines so they can fall back to vendor software for cross-checks:

  • Keysight Connection Expert — verifies Keysight USB / GPIB / LXI links; ships with the IO Libraries Suite.
  • NI MAX — bundled with NI-VISA. Useful for checking that VISA can see your instruments before launching the REPL.
  • TI BQStudio — only relevant if you're working with the BQ76920 EVM via the EV2300 bridge.

All three are admin-installer-required Windows-only tools. Skip if you don't already use them.

Only one program can hold a VISA resource at a time

If scan in the REPL reports "Resource busy" or "Cannot open resource", close NI MAX / Keysight Connection Expert / a second scpi-repl first. The lock is exclusive.