LT VISTA™ SOFTWARE FOR NIR ANALYSIS

LT Vista for Windows is the latest generation of software offered by LT Industries Inc. for the collection and manipulation of Near IR spectra.  The software consists of a data collection module and GRAMS/32 for the processing and manipulation of spectra.  Some of the control capabilities of LT Vista include:

·        Instrument Setup – Change the options used for display of spectra, default options for data collection, and wavelength calibration setup.

·        Multiplexer Configuration/ Control – The user is able to configure a multiplexer if attached to the instrument.  The default reference and background channels can be set in the software, so that manual switching of the multiplexer for these operations is not required.  In addition, the use of a simple drop down menu allows the user to move to the desired multiplexer channel.

·        Diagnostics – The user is able to perform diagnostic tests on the spectrometer via a diagnostics window.  Both the instrument and the multiplexer can be checked for correct operation.

·        Wavelength Calibration – Wavelength calibration can be performed simply by pressing the Instrument Calibration button.

In addition to its control capabilities, once LT Vista is linked in with GRAMS/32, it can perform necessary processing, calibration, and modeling tasks.  A partial list of the processing capabilities of the software include:

·        Spectral Editing – Spectra can be manipulated and saved in many ways.  Some of the most relevant for NIR spectroscopy include calculation of absorbance, first derivatives, and second derivatives.  Preprocessing activities such as smoothing, baseline correction, or mean centering can also be performed on the individual spectra or later on a calibration set.  These modified spectra can be saved for later use, printed, or combined with other spectral files for additional manipulation.

·        Calibration – Once the data have been collected, various calibration routines can be used to generate models.  Principal Components Regression (PCR), Principal Components Analysis (PCA), and Partial Least Squares (PLS) methods are all available and simple to use through PLSplus/IQ.

·        Discriminate Analysis – The PLS plus/IQ module also allows one to create a calibration that can later be used to perform discriminate analyses.

·        Validation – Various types of validation are provided for testing calibration models, including cross-validation and leverage validation.

·        Prediction – Once a calibration model has been set up, all you need to do is feed in an unknown spectrum to the model to get the results.

·        Calibration Transfer – Calibrations can be transferred with the click of a button.

·        Export/Import of data:

-         File format:  The primary file formats used are ASCII and the GRAMS spectral format SPC.  GRAMS have an extensive library of file conversion routines that can be used to change the file format as needed.

-         Communication:  Standard communication between the instrument and the control PC is via LAN.  Communication to outside sources could use LAN, RS-232, or any other format supportable from a Windows based PC.  As an example, RS-232 can be used from a standard serial port.  If an adapter card exists for another communication format, it can be enabled.

·        Industrial Automation Servers – The instrument can be controlled from external software through the Windows control PC.  A number of commands can be sent to the PC, which then formats them properly and sends them to the instrument.  For example, the Mod bus protocol established for LT Industries spectrometers allows a specific scan to be taken, diagnostic routines to be run, and even a wavelength calibration to be performed.  The interface used for these communications is the National Instruments Industrial Automation servers.

·        Process Control Systems – Communication with process control system is accomplished using the Industrial Automation servers.  The LT Vista software interprets requests for information or action from the automation server and then sends the appropriate instrument commands. Any communication medium capable of operating on a Windows PC can be used as the communication method, and any protocol for which and Industrial Automation server exists has or can be implemented quickly.

·        Intranet, Internet, LAN – The full data scanned by the instrument is stored on the Windows control PC.  Since this can be placed on a LAN, it can be accessible to all other computers within or outside the company’s network, as desired.

·        Security – Multilevel security structure is built in the software to allow authorized access to data.

NIR Tools, Windows® Utility, Technical Sophistication

New VISTA software includes a panoply of useful tools for the NIR analyst -- and offers a truly comprehensive package of data manipulation features for all instrumental analysis techniques.  Best of all, VISTA software is fully integrated with Microsoft® operating systems -- Windows 95, 98, 2000 and Windows NT.

Designed for interaction with all LT Industries’ data acquisition programs, VISTA software adds the extensive Windows utilities for graphic manipulation and full use of related programs such as Excel®, Word® and PowerPoint®.  These features make VISTA software an ideal choice for chemometric model development, on-line and at-line NIR monitoring and time-based trend analysis.

Stand-alone or integrated use?

The answer is, “Both”.  VISTA software is designed for fully independent operation with data sets from a huge variety of sources.  Need kinetics?  VISTA software has a routine for it.  Need regression analysis on ICP data?  The established routine is right there in VISTA software.  Will simple adjustment of X-Y scale parameters in your FT-IR spectra serve your needs?  Click the VISTA software menu and you’ll find it prominently displayed.

When your need is implementation of a NIR model on-stream, VISTA software will not only do the job, it will also give you full GMP analysis of the instrumental parameters -- with print-out capability.  After the process run is over, VISTA software allows you to develop a parametric report with trend illustrations and transmit it to local network sites.

Many tasks, one package

The overriding advantage of VISTA software is its learn-it-once, apply-it-many-times structure.  The package can handle all of your spectroscopic and chromatographic data while performing its specialized NIR control tasks.  Most operators are already familiar with Windows conventions, so VISTA software has a familiar “feel” right out of the box.  The data analysis tools include virtually all commonly-used data manipulations, so it can be used one day by the NIR quality control analyst and the next by the staff chromatographer.  The discomfort of unfamiliarity just doesn’t happen, so productivity is at a maximum and analytical workloads proceed smoothly.

Features . . .

Listed below are selected samples of VISTA software features.

Graphic routines

Multiple data set displays with sequential and simultaneous activation, intelligent cursor, adaptive scaling parameters, multiaxial scale normalization, scale shifting, zeroing, zoom, restore, range reset, auto scaling, 2D and 3D range addition, spectral annotation, axial labelling, 3D arrays

Calculation routines

Constant addition, factored scaling, absorbance-transmittance conversion, T-to-%T conversion, normalizing, peak normalizing, log intensity, multipoint baseline correction, baseline generation, minimum intensity subtraction, Akima smoothing, Savitsky-Golay smoothing, derivatives, abscissa limit adjustment, abscissa data interval adjustment, interpolation, point-to-point connection, wave number-wavelength conversion, peak table generation, area calculation, area deletion, arithmetic operations on graphic sets.

Data field mathematics and chemometrics

Intensity listing, concentration calculation, peak ratio, kinetics, multipoint calibration, multipoint analysis, multiple linear regression, K-matrix, P-matrix, MLR unknown analysis, PLS --partial least squares calibration and analysis, and PCR -- Principal Components Regression.

Mathematical operators

Purity index, Fourier deconvolution, curve-fitting, Kubelka-Munk math, ATR correction, Kramers-Kronig calculation, FFT, bar code.

Search function

Library creation, search, status, edit, retrieve, mark, pack, convert, index.

Y2K Compliance

VISTA Software for NIR Analysis has a lot of features, but one of its comforting attributes is something that it doesn’t have -- problems with Year 2000 dates!  The program has been built from the ground up with state-of-the-art algorithms.  This software accommodates the world’s current fast, high-memory access computers -- and that means freedom from “00” dating protocols.  Users will run this software package with full confidence that Year 2000 won’t be marked by system failure.

What’s needed to run VISTA software?

For LT Industries NIR instruments, the SPX™ parallel processing unit is required.

VISTA software for NIR analysis is a Windows-based program.  Memory, processor speed and disk capacity should match the Windows module.  Our minimum system suggestion:  266 MHz Pentium II processor, 64 MBytes RAM, 10 Gbyte hard disk, 1.44 MBytes floppy disk, modem.