Nighthawk High Performance DAQ

The Nighthawk family offers a range of input modules to support virtually all mechanical and electrical signals with exceptional accuracy and stability. High speed modules fully support shock and pyroshock recommendations of NASA-STD-7003 and MIL-STD-810H, Method 517.3. In addition to analog inputs, Nighthawk supports CAN and CAN-based modules, digital I/O, counter/timer functions, and quadrature inputs.

8-channel Universal DAQ Module (P/N: NT-8D8-2M)

Universal signal-conditioned input module with eight channels, each with a 2 MS/s, 24-bit SAR ADC. Supports DC bridge-type sensors (strain, load, force, pressure, torque, and piezoresistive) with independent 0-24 V bipolar bridge excitation and sense lines, IEPE accelerometers and microphones with selectable 2-20 mA excitation, and thermocouples with on-board cold junction compensation and linearization.

8-channel High Speed Universal DAQ Module (P/N: NT-8D8-20M)

High speed input module with eight channels, each with a 20 MS/s, 20-bit ADC. Includes independent 0-24 V bipolar bridge excitation and selectable IEPE excitation from 2-20 mA per channel, with BNC input connectors and an additional multipin connector for bridge sensors.

8-channel High Voltage Module (P/N: NT-8HV-2M)

Isolated high-voltage input module with eight channels, each with a 2 MS/s, 24-bit SAR ADC. Input ranges from ±100 mV to ±2000 V allow shunt measurements and high voltage signals on the same module, using safety-shrouded 4 mm banana jack pairs per channel.

32-channel DAQ Module (P/N: NT-32D8-100K)

Ultra high density universal module with thirty-two channels, each with a 100 kS/s, 24-bit SAR ADC. Provides 0-10 V bridge excitation and 4 mA IEPE excitation per channel. Two D-104 front-panel connectors per 16 channels support a wide range of breakout options including BNC, spring terminals, thermocouple, solder cup, or flying leads.

Continuous Streaming to Internal SSD

Acquire and store data at maximum sample rates directly to dedicated internal U.2 NVMe SSD storage. Optional removable and lockable SSD bays support secure applications and rapid access to terabyte-length data records from external PCs or workstations.

Streaming to Remote Workstations

Use the dual 2.5GbE Ethernet ports to transmit and store data in realtime on remote workstations or network locations. View, analyze, and archive data locally on the Nighthawk system, remotely, or simultaneously in both locations.

Redundant, Worry-Free Acquisition

Nighthawk supports simultaneous realtime capture to both on-board SSD and across Ethernet to a remote PC, minimizing the risk of data loss. Data can be stored in native Aspire format and/or exported automatically into many popular third-party file formats including S3T, RPC3, MAT, HDF5, and CSV.

Triggered Transient and Oscilloscope Operation

In addition to continuous recording, Nighthawk supports triggered single-shot and repetitive scope-style acquisition with flexible pre- and post-trigger settings. Slope, hysteresis, and Boolean trigger combinations across analog, digital, and CAN channels provide stable triggering even on noisy signals.

Realtime Spectral Analysis

Integrated hardware-based processing enables realtime FFT and spectral analysis, including octave and third-octave analysis and spectral maps. This allows users to monitor frequency-domain behavior as data is acquired.

Low Latency Data Streaming

Nighthawk can stream realtime data directly from its embedded Linux OS to external hosts over 2.5GbE, supporting high speed control and measurement applications on Linux, Windows, or other realtime platforms.

Nighthawk is fully integrated with Hi-Techniques Aspire software, providing an easy-to-use environment for setup, display, and analysis. Aspire automatically discovers local and networked Hi-Techniques systems and configures displays and capabilities accordingly.

From guided setup wizards to spreadsheet-based configuration for large channel counts, Aspire streamlines everything from sensor definition and calibration to advanced analysis. Multiple synchronized display types — strip charts, oscilloscopes, meters, spectral displays, video, and numeric readouts — can be arranged across multiple pages and monitors.

Built-in analysis tools and an integrated formula editor support hundreds of math, timing, and spectral functions, while open Python scripting and remote command capabilities enable full custom automation and integration.

An integrated sensor database maintains calibration constants, serial numbers, and next calibration dates, enabling traceable measurements from sensor through final report.

• Networked operation — control, display, and storage across 2.5GbE with realtime streaming to a host or remote PC.
• Standalone operation — choose between the integrated portable mainframe and the 8-slot chassis with external PC control.
• Synchronized operation — IEEE 1588 PTP synchronization aligns multiple Nighthawk and Echelon systems to within 1 µs.
• Redundant operation — simultaneously stream data to on-board SSD and remote storage for robust test campaigns.
• Realtime operation — low latency data paths from the embedded Linux OS support realtime control applications.