Keithley 705 Scanner 7055 General Purpose Relay Card IEEE-488 GPIB 40-Ch

Keithley 705 Scanner 7055 General Purpose Relay Card IEEE-488 GPIB 40-Ch

The Keithley 705 is a general-purpose relay scanner designed for automated switching in bench and workstation measurement systems. It accepts up to two switching cards, providing up to 40 channels of 1-pole switching in its standard two-slot configuration, expandable to 200 channels when used with an external mainframe. A built-in IEEE-488 (GPIB) interface enables full remote control and integration with automated test systems, while direct front-panel programming makes it equally useful for manual bench operation. This unit includes one installed Keithley 7055 General Purpose Relay Scanner Card and a GPIB cable.

Specifications & What's Included

• Manufacturer: Keithley Instruments
• Model: 705 General Purpose Relay Scanner
• Switching Card Slots: 2
• Channels (standard): Up to 40 (1-pole switching)
• Channels (expandable): Up to 200 channels
• Interface: IEEE-488 / GPIB (address selectable via rear-panel switch)
• Front Panel Controls: CHANNEL, OPERATION (Close, Open, First, Last), CLOCK (Time, Date), SCAN (Reset, Interval, Continuous, Single, Start/Stop), CONTROL, PRGM, DATA keypad (0–9), Cancel, Enter
• GPIB Status Indicators: Talk, Listen, Remote
• Scan Modes: Single, Continuous, Interval
• Built-in Clock: Day/time clock for time-stamped measurements and interval scanning
• Rear Panel Connections: IEEE-488 GPIB connector, Serial Out, Channel Ready (BNC), External Trigger (BNC), Alarm (BNC), IEC AC power inlet
• Form Factor: Benchtop
• Included: One Keithley 7055 General Purpose Relay Scanner Card (installed in Card 1 slot), one GPIB cable

Applications

The Keithley 705 was introduced in the 1980s as part of Keithley's switching and data acquisition instrument line, designed to work alongside DMMs, source-measure units, and other GPIB-controlled instruments to build automated test and measurement (ATE) systems. In a typical setup, the 705 sequentially connects multiple sensors, devices under test (DUTs), or signal sources to a single measurement instrument — eliminating the need for manual reconnection between measurements. It is commonly used in research labs, production test environments, and quality assurance stations for tasks such as multi-point temperature logging, component characterization, and multi-channel voltage or resistance measurements. The 7055 card installed in this unit is a general-purpose relay card that routes signals through reed or mechanical relays, making it suitable for low-level DC and AC signal switching. The 705 is compatible with any IEEE-488-equipped controller or PC with a GPIB interface card, and it remains a practical, cost-effective switching solution for legacy automated test systems still operating on GPIB architectures.