SPARKvue data acquisition software

SPARKvue data-acquisition software is a platform with a clean page layout that optimizes data collection and provides tools for in-depth analysis in a compact, powerful workspace. Introduction to SPARKvue: SPARKvue provides cross-platform compatibility, running on Chromebooks™ (Google notebook computers), iOS (Apple's mobile operating system), Android™ (the Android mobile operating system), Windows® (Microsoft's computer operating system), and Mac® (Apple's computer operating system). It can also be used on our standalone data loggers, such as SPARK LXi, SPARK LXi2, and SPARK LX Air, making data acquisition and analysis easier than ever. Why choose SPARKvue? SPARKvue makes data collection, analysis, and sharing quick and convenient across platforms. Compatible with all PASCO wireless sensors and PASPORT interface sensors, it lets students quickly set up experiments or start collecting data immediately with the built-in Quick Start Lab function. SPARKvue suits all science disciplines and educational levels. Advanced users needing additional functions, such as video analysis, advanced statistics and calculations, or highly customized data displays on a PC or Mac®, can explore our PASCO Capstone™ software. Since its first release, SPARKvue has won numerous awards and has been continually improved. In the latest major version, SPARKvue 4, we added multiple features without adding complexity. The new Welcome Screen helps users get started and quickly discover SPARKvue's capabilities, whether manually adding data, logging live or remote sensor data, or opening hundreds of existing laboratory templates. SEPA award: SPARKvue with Blockly programming won the 2020 SEPA (Science Education Partnership) Presidential Awardee's Product of Excellence Award!

Blockly programming: Help students develop computational thinking. Introducing programming and computer-controlled experiments is easier than ever with Blockly. Blockly integrates computational thinking into the investigation of phenomena, opening new opportunities in STEM (science, technology, engineering, and mathematics). Students can use Blockly to create custom data-acquisition parameters, feedback loops, data displays, and more. [Learn more »] Using Blockly in SPARKvue can introduce computational thinking to students; let them investigate scientific phenomena while learning programming; create data-driven feedback loops; and program acquisition parameters for any PASCO sensor or interface.

Data acquisition: Through USB or a dedicated interface, SPARKvue provides plug-and-play operation, supporting nearly a hundred sensor types over Bluetooth®; simply pair wireless sensors from the software's built-in list without opening system settings. PASCO understands that classroom and laboratory environments can be complex, so SPARKvue lets users select a sensor directly from a sorted list, with the nearest sensor first, and connect by matching its 6-digit laser-etched ID number. This method remains effective even when dozens of Bluetooth sensors share a laboratory. After selecting a sensor, choose a template or Quick Start Lab, or create custom pages to suit your needs. Designed for inquiry-based learning, SPARKvue does not restrict students to a few preset layouts and readily supports expansion. Data visualization and analysis: SPARKvue offers multiple ways to display data, making collection and visualization simple while keeping analysis tools readily accessible. Students can annotate data, apply curve fits, compare data from different experimental groups, create custom calculations, and more. In-context tools help users quickly find the functions they need, leaving students more time for science and less time learning software operation. Whether teaching K-8 (kindergarten through junior high), high-school, or college students, SPARKvue provides the displays and tools needed to acquire and analyze data. In addition to digital displays, meters, graphs, and tables, it includes Fourier transforms (FFT), bar charts, map displays, embedded assessment questions, video playback, image capture and analysis, and areas for inserting text and images. The experiments you can design are limited only by time and creativity. Data sharing and export: When students need to submit work, SPARKvue supports multiple output formats, and its export tools also help teachers. Students can easily capture experimental screens as images, export data as .csv files for further spreadsheet processing, or save .spklab files for later reopening and continued analysis. SPARKvue also works with various applications to save or share data, such as Google Drive on Chromebooks™. For experiments requiring collaboration across devices, students can create a shared session to transmit results in real time. At the end of the session, each student receives a copy of the data for independent analysis. Such sessions can be created within student groups in seconds, and an entire class can also share data from a teacher's demonstration. Data acquisition: Live data bar: View sensor readings before sampling begins. Timed sampling: Sample automatically at a fixed frequency. Manual sampling: Save data only when manually specified by the user. Data displays: Graphs with multiple plot areas and axes; digital displays; meters; data tables; Fourier transforms (FFT); map displays; bar charts; and a weather dashboard, which requires a wireless weather sensor with GPS. Analysis tools: Autoscale adjusts axes for the best data view. Data selection makes it easy to select subsets for analysis. Prediction tools visualize predictions alongside data. Smart tools query data-point coordinates and calculate delta values. Statistical calculation tools provide easy access to minimum, maximum, mean, and other statistical results. The slope tool calculates the slope at a data point. Curve fitting offers 10 different fits with goodness-of-fit values. User annotations make it easy to add text to runs or data points. Easily add a Y axis or a new plot area. Designed for science learning: Convenient annotations, snapshots, and electronic journaling support peer communication, classroom presentations, and assessment. Create and export students' electronic laboratory journals. Integrate with cloud-based file-sharing services such as Google Drive and Dropbox. More functions: Display sensor graph data and view results in real time. Use bar charts to study absorbance. Combine manually entered and sensor data to verify Boyle's law. Monitor atmospheric conditions with the weather dashboard. The new entry screen simplifies startup with three entry paths to choose from.