Changes with respect to previous versions

Changes with respect to previous versions#

Changes from V5.2.0.0 to V5.3.0.0#

The TMSi Python Interface release V5.3.0.0 contains a bug fix for the USB-TTL module when using it in combination with SAGA. Furthermore, data can now be exported to either .csv or .set (EEGLAB) format. Please refer to the examples provided in the examples reading data folder. In terms of usage of code, no changes are needed.

Changes from V5.1.1.0 to V5.2.0.0#

The TMSi Python Interface release V5.2.0.0 does not introduce many changes with respect to how the interface can be used, when compared to V5.1.1.0. For APEX, no changes have been made in the interaction with the device.

An integration between Cometa’s WaveX device and SAGA is provided in this new version of the TMSi Python Interface. For details regarding the interface, please review the Getting Started and the Tutorials.

For SAGA, one change has been made that may be encountered when using the device. This change has effect on the method to open the connection via a specific interface. Instead of opening the first discovered device, now the first device is opened that is discovered with the desired interface. Please refer to the table below to see how this method has changed.

SAGA open device#

V5.1.0.0

V5.2.0.0

 
TMSiSDK().discover(dev_type = DeviceType.saga,
                    dr_interface = DeviceInterfaceType.docked,
                    ds_interface = DeviceInterfaceType.usb)

discoveryList = TMSiSDK().get_device_list(DeviceType.saga)

if (len(discoveryList) > 0):
    # Get the handle to the first discovered device.
    dev = discoveryList[0]

    # Open a connection to the SAGA-system
    dev.open()

TMSiSDK().discover(dev_type = DeviceType.saga,
                    dr_interface = DeviceInterfaceType.docked,
                    ds_interface = DeviceInterfaceType.usb)

discoveryList = TMSiSDK().get_device_list(DeviceType.saga)

if (len(discoveryList) > 0):
    # Get the handle to the first discovered device and open the connection.
    for i,_ in enumerate(discoveryList):
        dev = discoveryList[i]
        if dev.get_dr_interface() == DeviceInterfaceType.docked:
            # Open the connection to SAGA
            dev.open()
            break

Changes from V4.1.0.0 to V5.1.0.0#

The TMSi Python Interface release V5.0.0.0 was a major release, introducing breaking changes with older versions of the TMSi Python Interface. Most changes are related to either the SAGA SDK, as this received a major overhaul to align with the APEX SDK. Another important change is the way that Plotters are provided. This page describes the most important changes that you should be aware of, gives code snippets to highlight changes and refers to relevant additional documentation pages.

APEX#

Device discovery#

The first change is related to device discovery, as the TMSiSDK.discover() call now also allows the discovery of other device types. Therefore, an argument should be passed to the function, as outlined in the table below.

APEX device discovery#

V4.1.0.0

V5.1.0.0

 
TMSiSDK().discover(DeviceType.apex, DeviceInterfaceType.usb)
discoveryList = TMSiSDK().get_device_list()

TMSiSDK().discover(DeviceType.apex, DeviceInterfaceType.usb)
discoveryList = TMSiSDK().get_device_list(DeviceType.apex)

Plotters#

Changes are made to the way plotters are handled. For a complete tutorial on how to use and edit these, please refer to Tutorial Plotters. The way to use a plotter has changed as follows.

APEX plotter use#

V4.1.0.0

V5.1.0.0

 
# Initialise the plotter application
app = QApplication(sys.argv)

# Define the GUI object and show it
plot_window = PlottingGUI(plotter_format = PlotterFormat.signal_viewer,
                          figurename = 'A RealTimePlot',
                          device = dev)
plot_window.show()

# Enter the event loop
app.exec_()

# Initialise the plotter application
app = QApplication(sys.argv)

# Initiate the plotter helper
plotter_helper = SignalPlotterHelper(device = dev)

# Define the GUI object and show it
gui = Gui(plotter_helper = plotter_helper)

# Enter the event loop
app.exec_()

SAGA#

The SAGA SDK has been changed so that it aligns with the structure set by the APEX SDK. The most important changes have been outlined in this section.

Device discovery#

Discovery has changed, as explicit initialization of the SDK is not required anymore.

SAGA device discovery#

V4.1.0.0

V5.1.0.0

 
tmsi_device.initialize()

discoveryList = tmsi_device.discover(tmsi_device.DeviceType.saga,
                                     DeviceInterfaceType.docked,
                                     DeviceInterfaceType.usb)

TMSiSDK().discover(dev_type = DeviceType.saga,
                   dr_interface = DeviceInterfaceType.docked,
                   ds_interface = DeviceInterfaceType.usb)

discoveryList = TMSiSDK().get_device_list(DeviceType.saga)

Device configuration#

Adapting the device configuration has changed significantly. For all specific configuration settings, the TMSiSDK now uses standardized “get” and “set” methods, per settable parameter. The table below lists a few examples (loading .xml-files, setting the (base) sample rate and changing the active channel list). For a complete list, please refer to the SagaDevice API reference and the different examples that come with the TMSi Python Interface.

SAGA device configuration#

V4.1.0.0

V5.1.0.0

 
# Import device configuration from xml-file
cfg = get_config("saga_config_EEG64")
dev.load_config(cfg)

# Changing the sampling rate of all channels to 2048 Hz
dev.config.base_sample_rate = 4096
dev.config.set_sample_rate(ChannelType.all_types, 2)

# Changing the channel list to only include AUX channels
ch_list = dev.config.channels
for idx, ch in enumerate(ch_list):
    if (ch.type == ChannelType.AUX):
        ch.enabled = True
    else :
        ch.enabled = False
dev.config.channels = ch_list

# Import device configuration from xml-file
dev.import_configuration(join(configs_dir, "saga_config_EEG64.xml"))

# Changing the sampling rate of all channels to 2048 Hz
dev.set_device_sampling_config(base_sample_rate = SagaBaseSampleRate.Binary)
dev.set_device_sampling_config(channel_type = ChannelType.all_types,
                               channel_divider = 2)

# Changing the channel list to only include AUX channels
ch_list = dev.get_device_channels()
enable_channels = []
disable_channels = []
for idx, ch in enumerate(ch_list):
    if (ch.get_channel_type() == ChannelType.AUX):
        enable_channels.append(idx)
    else :
        disable_channels.append(idx)
dev.set_device_active_channels(enable_channels, True)
dev.set_device_active_channels(disable_channels, False)

Channel properties#

Access to Channel properties has also changed. In line with the device configuration, the different properties now employ a “get” and “set” method per property, wherever applicable. Please see the changes below.

SAGA channel properties#

V4.1.0.0

V5.1.0.0

 
ch_name = ch.name

ch_unit_name = ch.unit_name

ch_list = dev.config.channels

for idx, ch in enumerate(ch_list):
    if idx == 1:
        ch.name = "Fp1"
    if idx == 7:
        ch.name = "F8"
dev.config.channels = ch_list

ch_name = ch.get_channel_name()

ch_unit_name = ch.get_channel_unit_name()

dev.set_device_channel_names(["Fp1", "F8"], [1, 7])

Card configuration#

Some calls to configure SAGA’s SD card and retrieve data from the SD card have changed with respect to the previous version. The most important changes are listed in the table below. As can be seen in the code snippets, the card configuration method has changed to a more generic settable function in set_card_recording_config(). Rather than calling a specific method to start a card recording based on a button press, the method is now generalized where setting the button as start control is one of the parameters to set.

SAGA SD card configuration#

V4.1.0.0

V5.1.0.0

 
# Retrieve active card configuration
device_amb_conf = dev.get_device_memory_configuration()

# Change the start control to button start.
# Rename file prefix to "Button"
dev.set_device_recording_button("Button")

# Retrieve the list of recordings available on SAGA
recordings_list = dev.get_device_storage_list()
if len(recordings_list) <= 0:
    raise(IndexError)

# Download file from device
res = list(recordings_list.keys())[0]
dev.download_recording_file(res)

# Retrieve active card configuration
device_amb_conf = dev.get_card_recording_config()

# Change the start control to button start.
# Rename file prefix to "ButtonRec"
config = SagaStructureGenerator.create_card_record_configuration(
    device = dev,
    start_control = SagaEnums.SagaStartCardRecording.Button,
    prefix_file_name = "ButtonRec")
dev.set_card_recording_config(config)

# Retrieve the list of recordings available on SAGA
recordings_list = dev.get_device_card_file_list()
if len(recordings_list) <= 0:
    raise(IndexError)

# Download file from device
dev.download_file_from_device(file_id= recordings_list[-1].RecFileID)

Plotters#

Changes are made to the way plotters are handled. For a complete tutorial on how to use and edit these, please refer to the Tutorial Plotters. The way to use a plotter has changed as follows.

SAGA plotter use#

V4.1.0.0

V5.1.0.0

 
# Initialise the plotter application
app = QApplication(sys.argv)

# Define the GUI object and show it
plot_window = PlottingGUI(plotter_format = PlotterFormat.signal_viewer,
                          figurename = 'A RealTimePlot',
                          device = dev)
plot_window.show()

# Enter the event loop
app.exec_()

# Initialise the plotter application
app = QApplication(sys.argv)

# Initiate the plotter helper
plotter_helper = SignalPlotterHelper(device = dev)

# Define the GUI object and show it
gui = Gui(plotter_helper = plotter_helper)

# Enter the event loop
app.exec_()

Interface type#

Changing SAGA’s communication interface between Data Recorder and Docking Station is now done by calling a general device set() method, rather than by accessing the “configuration” property of the device, which offered a method to change the communication interface.

SAGA change communication interface#

V4.1.0.0

V5.1.0.0

 
dev.config.set_interface_type(DeviceInterfaceType.wifi)

dev.set_device_interface(DeviceInterfaceType.wifi)

Start a measurement#

Starting a measurement now requires a MeasurementType Enum, where this was previously not strictly controlled. The sampling thread’s refresh time is now also a passable argument in dev.start_measurement(). This argument allows for tweaking whether calls to SAGA should be made frequently (lower refresh time) or more infrequently (higher refresh time). Based on the processing requirements and available computation capacities of the PC, the value can be tweaked to your needs.

SAGA measurement start#

V4.1.0.0

V5.1.0.0

 
# Start a regular signal acquisition
dev.start_measurement()

# Start an impedance acquisition
dev.start_measurement(MeasurementType.impedance)

# Start a regular signal acquisition
dev.start_measurement(MeasurementType.SAGA_SIGNAL,
                      thread_refresh = 0.03)

# Start an impedance acquisition
dev.start_measurement(MeasurementType.SAGA_IMPEDANCE)
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