daisylab 0.3.14

Python library for Daisy laboratory instruments over USB serial

daisylab

Python library for controlling Daisy laboratory instruments over USB serial.

daisylab discovers Daisy hardware on your serial ports, validates the connected instruments against what your code expects, and gives you a clean, per-instrument API for pumps, valves, and motion stages — with background threads handling the serial protocol for you.

Installation

pip install daisylab

Requires Python 3.9+ and pyserial 3.5+.

Quick start

import daisylab

with daisylab.connect() as lab:
    print("Found ports:", lab.ports)
    print("Instrument types:", lab.instruments_list)

    # Declare the instruments on a port, in physical order, by type code.
    group = daisylab.InstrumentGroup([10, 2])   # Peri T + Multi-Valve
    lab.add_group(group)

    pump  = group.inst[0]   # DaisyPeriT
    valve = group.inst[1]   # DaisyMultiValve

    valve.home()
    pump.run(speed=50.0, volume=10.0, wait=True)   # 50 ml/min, 10 ml
    valve.select_port(3, wait=True)

connect() returns a DaisyInterface (usable as a context manager). Each InstrumentGroup is bound to a serial port in the order you call add_group().

Supported instruments

Instruments are declared by integer type code (the value the firmware reports during roll-call) or by a case-insensitive name substring such as "Peri T" or "gantry".

Code	Class	Hardware
1	DaisyPeriS	Peri pump S
2	DaisyMultiValve	12-port rotary valve
3	DaisySolVal	Solenoid valve array (≤8)
4	DaisyPistonPump	Piston pump (1 ml)
5	DaisyPeriPumpXL	Peri pump XL
6	DaisyMultiValveXL	Rotary valve XL
7	DaisySolValXL	Solenoid valve array XL
8	DaisyGantry	XY Cartesian stage
9	DaisyZStage	Z linear stage
10	DaisyPeriT	Peri pump T
11	DaisyPeriP	Peri pump P
12	DaisyPistonPump	Piston pump (5 ml)
13	DaisyProcess	Multi-channel pH/sensor

Peristaltic pump speed limits

Peri pumps enforce a per-model maximum motor speed. run(speed, volume) converts the requested flow (ml/min) to RPM using the current calibration and raises ValueError before sending anything if it would exceed the cap:

Model	Max RPM
Peri S / Peri P	150
Peri T / Peri Pump XL	300

The cap is calibration-aware: recalibrating the tubing shifts the ml/min ceiling but the motor is always held to its rated RPM.

Examples

Standalone, runnable scripts live in daisylab/examples/:

• daisy_controller.py — universal interactive controller for any instrument
• z_stage_controller.py — interactive Z-stage controller
• z_stage_peri_t_sequence.py — automated dispense sequence (home → lower → pump → raise)

Each supports a --demo flag that runs against simulated hardware (no serial I/O required):

python daisylab/examples/daisy_controller.py --demo

A sample Jupyter notebook is also included in the package at daisylab/jupyter/sample.ipynb. After installing, you can find it at <site-packages>/daisylab/jupyter/sample.ipynb.

Exceptions

Every error the library raises derives from DaisyError, so a single except daisylab.DaisyError is a complete catch-all for any instrument:

• DaisyTimeoutError — no OK / a BAD reply within the timeout
• DaisyConnectionError — no devices found / connection failure
• DaisyInstrumentMismatchError — software list ≠ hardware roll-call
• DaisyValueError — invalid argument or value (e.g. speed above a pump's MAX_RPM, unknown type code, malformed device response). Also subclasses the built-in ValueError, so existing except ValueError handlers keep working.

Stopping safely

stop_all() halts every instrument across all groups (best-effort — one instrument's failure won't block the others); ports stay open so you can recover. safe_session() wraps a command sequence and stops everything if any exception propagates:

with lab.safe_session():
    pump.run(speed=50, volume=10, wait=True)
    gantry.run(100, 150, wait=True)   # if this raises, the pump is stopped
# the original exception is re-raised after the stop

lab.stop_all()          # or halt everything manually (alias: lab.emergency_stop())
group.stop_all()        # or just one group

Development

git clone https://github.com/ScalablesLab/daisy-python-library
cd daisy-python-library
pip install -e ".[test]"
pytest

The test suite is hardware-free — tests/fakes.py provides a synchronous FakeSerialManager that synthesises device replies, so the real drivers run end to end without any instruments attached.

License

Apache License 2.0 — see LICENSE. Copyright Scalables, LLC.