ETAS DCM Reader v2

About ETAS_DCM_Reader_v2

This is a Python based script that extracts data from .dcm files (commonly used in automotive calibration) and outputs the results in JSON format. It supports extracting all data, functions, or variables separately based on user-specified modes.

ETAS DCM Documentation

It follows the standard ASCET DAMOS format and is coded as per ETAS Technical Format. You may find more information by visiting here: DCM File Formats Technical Note

Note

The code only accepts DCM file extension. Any other format will not be parsed by the code.

Features

• File Selection: Uses a Tkinter file dialog to select .dcm files. One can also pass the file URI directly to dcm_file

• Data Extraction: Parses key data: Function, Variable, Description, and associated X/Y/Z values from .dcm files. If values for any axis is not available, it returns "".

• Flexible Output: Returns JSON-formatted data in three modes:

  • all: Full extracted data including function names, variable names, descriptions, and data values.
  • functions: List of unique function names.
  • variables: List of unique variable names.

The above functionality depends on it is called from the constructor. Example:
- for all - output_all = extract_data(dcm_file, mode='all')
- for functions - output_functions = extract_data(dcm_file, mode='functions')
- for variables - output_variables = extract_data(dcm_file, mode='variables')

• Output: Returns the full extracted data into a JSON formatted human readable data and prints results to the console.

Requirements

• Python 3.x: Ensure Python is installed on your system.
• Tkinter: Comes bundled with Python (this can be removed if file URI is passed directly).

Installation

1. Clone or Download:
   • Clone this repository or download the script file (dcm_reader_v2.py) from here.
2. Verify Python:
   • Run python --version or python3 --version in your terminal to confirm Python is installed.
3. No Dependencies: The script uses only standard Python libraries (os, tkinter.filedialog, json).

Usage

4. Run the Script:

   python3 dcm_reader_v2.py

   • A file dialog will prompt you to select a .dcm file. For testing, you can use the Example.DCM file available in this repository under /DCM/ .

5. Output:

   • The script processes the file and outputs JSON-formatted data in three modes:
     • All Data: Printed to the console.
     • Functions: Printed to the console.
     • Variables: Printed to the console.

6. Modes:

   • The extract_data() function accepts a mode parameter:
     • 'all': Returns full extracted data.
     • 'functions': Returns unique function names.
     • 'variables': Returns unique variable names.
   • Example usage within Python:

     output = extract_data("path/to/file.dcm", mode="all")
     print(output)  # JSON string

Code Structure

• select_dcm_file(): Opens a file dialog to select a .dcm file.
• extract_data(dcm_file, mode='all'):
  • Parses the .dcm file line-by-line.
  • Recognizes keywords (e.g., FESTWERT, KENNFELD) and specific tags (FUNKTION, ST_TX/X, etc.).
  • Returns JSON-formatted strings based on the specified mode.
• main(): Orchestrates file selection, data extraction, file writing, and printing.

Example Output

For a .dcm file with content like:

FUNKTION Func1
FESTWERT Var1
ST_TX/X "1" "2"
WERT "10"

Running the script produces:

• All Data:

  {
      "DCM Name": "example.dcm",
      "Extracted Data": [
          {
              "Function": "Func1",
              "Variable": "Var1",
              "Description": null,
              "Data": {
                  "X": ["1", "2"],
                  "Y": null,
                  "Values": ["10"]
              }
          }
      ]
  }

• Functions:

  {
      "DCM Name": "example.dcm",
      "DCM Functions": "Func1"
  }

• Variables:

  {
      "DCM Name": "example.dcm",
      "DCM Variables": "Var1"
  }

Notes

• Quote Handling: The current version does not strip quotes from values (e.g., "\"SomeMode\"" remains as-is). If there is a space in the value like Some Mode then the output will be:

                    "\"Some",
                    "Mode\""

• If you need quote stripping, modify the parsing logic in extract_data().
• Error Handling: Basic mode validation is included; expand as needed for robustness.

Contribute

Feel free to fork this project, submit pull requests, or report issues if you encounter bugs or have suggestions!