WinWedge is a highly versatile data acquisition tool because it communicates with other applications by simulating keyboard input. When you need to store data in a Comma Separated Values (CSV) format for use in analysis tools or databases, you can achieve this either by sending data to Excel first or by writing directly to an opened text file.
This guide assumes you have already configured WinWedge to communicate with your device. Before implementing these specific steps, we recommend reviewing our WinWedge Quick Start Guide to understand the process of parsing your instrument data into fields.
Understanding CSV files and Keystrokes
A Comma Separated Values (CSV) file is a lightweight, plain-text format where every data “column” is separated by a comma and every “row” ends with a new line. Because of their simple structure, CSVs are one of the most flexible file formats available; they can be read by almost any analysis tool, database, or programming language. This simplicity also makes them ideal for AI agent parsing and large-scale data processing.
WinWedge can contribute to these files by assigning specific keystrokes to be sent before or after the data values you have parsed from your instrument. In the WinWedge configuration, you can assign any arbitrary character or special key to your fields, allowing you to precisely control how the destination application receives and formats the information.
Method 1: Sending Data to Excel and Exporting to CSV
The most common workflow involves sending captured data into a Microsoft Excel spreadsheet. Because WinWedge can act as a keyboard wedge, you configure it to “type” data into the spreadsheet cells field by field. To do this, you define a tab character as the keystroke that follows each data field. This moves the cursor to the next column after every reading. At the end of a complete data record, you define a carriage return or enter key to move the cursor to the first cell of the next row.
// Keystroke sequence for Excel
[Field 1]{TAB}[Field 2]{TAB}[Field 3]{ENTER}Once the data is collected in Excel, you can use the standard “Save As” function and select “.CSV (Comma delimited)” from the file type menu. This is the simplest method if you prefer to see your data visually organized in a grid during the collection process.
Method 2: Writing Directly to a CSV File
If you want to bypass Excel and write data directly into a file that is ready for your analysis tool, you can manually recreate the CSV syntax within WinWedge. You can have a blank file open in a basic text editor like Notepad or a coding environment to receive these simulated keystrokes.
To set this up, configure WinWedge to send a comma character ( , ) after every data field instead of a tab. At the end of the data record, send a carriage return. As WinWedge captures data from your instrument, it will build the CSV structure in real-time within your open text document.
// Keystroke sequence for direct CSV
[Field 1],[Field 2],[Field 3]{ENTER}
When your data collection session is finished, you simply save the text file with a .csv extension.