Many labs only have a basic function generator. IntuiLink allows you to take a complex custom waveform (say, an ECG simulation or a multi-tone audio signal), quantize it to the 8-bit, 16k-point memory of an old 33120A, and download it via GPIB or RS-232.
Specifically, the —a deceptively simple piece of freeware that has saved more engineering deadlines than most paid EDA tools combined. intuilink waveform editor
With IntuiLink, you could capture that ringing via an oscilloscope (the sister app, IntuiLink for Scope), extract the waveform data, drop it into the Waveform Editor, edit the noise out , and then play the "corrected" version back into your circuit via the function generator. Many labs only have a basic function generator
The editor presents a Cartesian grid where X is time and Y is voltage. But here is the magic: It allows you to draw waveforms using or point-by-point dragging . Want a sine wave with a 10% duty cycle spike on the third period? You type it in. You don't wrestle with a nested menu structure. The "Poor Man's AWG" The most beloved feature of the IntuiLink Waveform Editor is the "Arbitrary to Standard" conversion. With IntuiLink, you could capture that ringing via
For the uninitiated, IntuiLink was the bridge between a PC and a bench-top waveform generator (like the venerable 33120A or 33250A). But for those who have used it, the Waveform Editor was never just a driver. It was a sandbox. Modern arbitrary waveform generators (AWGs) come with massive touchscreens and complex Python APIs. But when you need to generate a 16-level staircase with a glitch exactly 2.3 milliseconds after the trigger, nothing beats the raw, spreadsheet-like logic of IntuiLink.
This piece is written from the perspective of a technical journalist or application engineer, focusing on the value and utility of the tool rather than just a list of specifications. In the age of bloated GUI software and cloud-based subscription models, there is a quiet hero still humming along on the hard drives of legacy XP machines and modern Windows 10 virtualization layers alike: Agilent (now Keysight) IntuiLink .
It turned $500 used generators into $5,000 simulation engines. For startups and university labs in the late 90s and early 2000s, this tool was the difference between a published paper and a failed prototype. Hardware prototyping is messy. You design a power supply. You expect a clean ramp-up voltage. You probe it, and there is nasty ringing.