A Flexible Friend
Paul Gilfrin
Product Specialist
 |
| The screenshots show some of the productivity-enhancing highlights
of new FlexPro 7, including: 1. the object-oriented interface with
easy-to-navigate tabbed windows; 2. FlexPro’s Order Tracking
option for speed-dependent oscillations; 3. an Excel spreadsheet open
within FlexPro for advanced analysis; 4. the Diagram Wizard which helps
you select the most appropriate type of graph; 5. new non-linear curve
and peak fitting capabilities; 6. the Spectral Analysis option. |
When researchers at the University of Utah, working on the dynamic properties
of rock, needed a software tool to process the large amount of data generated
by their testing apparatus, they turned to FlexPro, the data analysis and
presentation software that, as it grows in popularity, is making a big impact
among scientists and engineers. The just-released version 7 is bound to make
the FlexPro name a lot better known.
"We
are using a Split Hopkinson Pressure Bar (SHPB) apparatus to test rock specimens.
The data is recorded by a high speed data acquisition system, but collecting
the data is just half the battle. We were amazed at how easily we could process
the data with FlexPro, which is now the main software tool we use to reduce
our SHPB data."
Jeff Johnson, NIOSH Spokane Research Laboratory, working on a PhD dissertation
concerning the dynamic properties of rock at the University of Utah.
Each data set, graph and analysis is visible in its
own window; and you modify chart attributes in a properties window. The
windows are tabbed so it's easy to find what you're looking for - so
no more rummaging around overlapping windows!
FlexPro 7 is perfect for
analysing Excel data. You can easily import spreadsheet content, or open
an Excel workbook within FlexPro.
FlexPro supports just about any binary file format in
existence, so you can import data from a huge range of measurement instruments
and other software packages. The latter include ODBC compliant databases;
data acquisition programs such as LabVIEW, DASYLab, DaqView, TestPoint,
DIAdem and Agilent VEE; and a wealth of other applications including
SPSS, SYSTAT and MATLAB, as well as plain ASCII text.
There are many export
options too, including a variety of text, vector and bitmap formats;
or you can insert FlexPro objects into other applications via OLE. You
can also export complete analyses in HTML format, ready to publish on the
Internet or your intranet site.
FlexPro's powerful Analysis Wizard integrates
the analysis and presentation of your data in a single, streamlined process.
To create an analysis object, you simply select the data and choose your
analysis method. You have a very wide range of analyses to choose from, including
(new in FlexPro 7) non-linear curve and peak fitting. Single-click macro recording
and playback makes it easy to automate procedures.
It goes without saying
that FlexPro's charting capabilities are very
powerful. You can present your data and analysis results in
a wide range of 2D and 3D charts, in tables or embedded in text. FlexPro's
Diagram Wizard makes light work of choosing the appropriate graph type,
and it's
easy to edit and customise chart attributes. You can even use
cursors to measure the curves and compare them across several graphs.
FlexPro
7 is available in several versions, including one (FlexPro Professional)
that incorporates VBA development tools. There's a range of add-on
options to
choose from as well.
FlexPro 7's unique structure enables you to analyse
trends and results without ever losing sight of any aspect of the data.
That's why FlexPro
should be the data analysis and presentation software of choice
for engineers, scientists, and anyone else who works with technical datasets. |
