AcqKnowledge
Introduction
AcqKnowledge is software used for recording physiological data using the BIOPAC system and can be used for further physiological data processing.
General Information
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Name | Internal | Description | Version | Type | Online | Support | Lab PCs | Analysis PCs | LIBC PCs | VR PCs | Status | License and Installation | System Owner | Functioneel Beheer | Technisch Beheer | Key User | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| AcqKnowledge | AcqKnowledge Admin | Software for recording and analyzing physiological signals (such as ECG). | 5.0.6 | App | No | Full | Yes | Yes | No | No | Active | Paid software. Installed by the ISSC. License dongle provided by SOLO for use on non-university devices. | Elio Sjak-Shie | RST (Iris Spruit) | ISSC | RST (Iris Spruit) | |
| AcqKnowledge | AcqKnowledge Admin | Software for recording and analyzing physiological signals (such as ECG). | 5.0.81 with NIBP100E license | App | No | Full | On Request | On Request | No | No | Active | Paid software. Installed only by SOLO. Can only be used with a license dongle, provided by SOLO. | Elio Sjak-Shie | RST (Iris Spruit) | ISSC | RST (Iris Spruit) | |
| ActiView | ActiView Admin | Software for recording EEG data. | 9.0.2 | App | No | Full | Yes | No | No | On Request | Active | Free software. | Elio Sjak-Shie | RST/LST (Iris Spruit/Evert Dekker) | ISSC | RST/LST (Iris Spruit/Evert Dekker) | |
| Anaconda | - | Package and environment manager used for creating and using custom Python environments. | 2022.10 | App | No | Full | Yes | Yes | No | On Request | Active | Free software. | Elio Sjak-Shie | RST (Elio Sjak-Shie) | ISSC | RST (Elio Sjak-Shie) | |
| ATLAS.ti | - | Software for analyzing qualitative data. | latest available (currently installed is 22) | App | No | None | No | Yes | No | No | Active | Paid software. Installed by the ISSC. License provided by ISSC. | ? | ? | ISSC | ? | |
| ArborXR | - | ? | Service | No | Full | No | No | No | Yes | Active | |||||||
| BrainVision Analyzer | - | Software for analyzing EEG data. | latest available (currently installed is 2.2.0) | App | No | Minimal | No | Yes | No | No | Active | Paid software. Installed by the ISSC. | ? | ? | ISSC | Henk van Steenbergen | |
| DEP-Tool | - | Platform for managing Ethics, Datamanagement and Privacy Form. | n.a. | Service | No | Full | N/A | N/A | N/A | N/A | Active | Owned by Leiden, support and development by Emerald IT | Arie in 't Veld | RST (Kerwin Olfers) | External | RST (Kerwin Olfers) | |
| E-prime | E-Prime Admin | Software suite used for building and administering computer tasks. | 3.0.80 | App | No | Minimal | No | No | Yes | No | Limited | ? | ? | ? | ? | ? | |
| E-Prime | E-Prime Admin | Software suite used for building and administering computer tasks. | 3.0.3.219 | App | No | Full | Yes | Yes | No | No | Active | Paid software. Installed by the ISSC. License via VPN or dongle provided by SOLO. | Elio Sjak-Shie | RST (Iris Spruit) | ISSC | RST (Iris Spruit) | |
| E-Prime | E-Prime Admin | Software suite used for building and administering computer tasks. | 2.0.10.356 | App | No | Minimal | On Request | On Request | Yes | No | Active | Paid software. Installed by the ISSC. License via dongle provided by SOLO. | Elio Sjak-Shie | RST (Iris Spruit) | ISSC | RST (Iris Spruit) | |
| ELAN | ELAN Admin | Software for analyzing behavioral (video) data. | 6.4 | App | No | Full | No | Yes | No | No | Active | Free. Installed by the ISSC or zip downloaded by user. | Elio Sjak-Shie | RST (Iris Spruit) | n.a. | RST (Iris Spruit) | |
| Git | - | Command-line tool for version control. | latest available (currently installed is 2.18) | Service | No | None | Yes | Yes | No | Yes | Active | Free | |||||
| GitHub Desktop | GUI tool for version control. | Latest | App | No | Full | No | No | No | Yes | Active | Free | ||||||
| Gorilla | Gorilla Admin | Online service used for building and hosting online tasks. | ? | Service | Yes | Minimal | N/A | N/A | N/A | N/A | Active | Paid license for FSW, FGW students & staff | Elio Sjak-Shie | RST (Kerwin Olfers) | External | RST (Kerwin Olfers) | |
| Insta360 Studio | - | Edit spherical (180-360*) videos | Latest | App | No | Minimal | No | No | No | Yes | Active | Free. Installation requires camera serial number for verification. | |||||
| JATOS | JATOS Admin | Online service used for hosting online tasks. | 3.9.7 | Service | Yes | Full | N/A | N/A | N/A | N/A | Active | Self-hosted, free for Leiden students & staff | Elio Sjak-Shie | RST (Kerwin Olfers) | ISSC | RST (Kerwin Olfers) | |
| JetBrains Rider | - | IDE for C# development. Works well with Unity. | Latest | App | No | Full | No | No | No | Yes | Active | Free educational license through GitHub Education. | |||||
| MATLAB | - | Programming and computing software. | 2022b | App | No | Full | On Request | Yes | No | No | Active | Paid software. Installed by the ISSC. Licence provided by the ISSC or via Mathworks.com. | Elio Sjak-Shie | RST (Elio Sjak-Shie) | ISSC | RST (Elio Sjak-Shie) | |
| MATLAB | - | Programming and computing software. | 2012B | App | No | Minimal | No | No | Yes | No | Limited | ? | ? | ? | ? | ? | |
| MATLAB Runtime | - | Required for running MATLAB applications (such as the PhysioData Toolbox). | R2023b | App | No | Minimal | No | Yes | No | No | Active | Free. Installed by the ISSC on managed PCs. Required for PhysioData Toolbox v0.7.0 | Elio Sjak-Shie | RST (Elio Sjak-Shie) | ISSC | RST (Elio Sjak-Shie) | |
| MATLAB Runtime | - | Required for running MATLAB applications (such as the PhysioData Toolbox). | R2022b | App | No | Minimal | No | Yes | No | No | Active | Free. Installed by the ISSC on managed PCs. | Elio Sjak-Shie | RST (Elio Sjak-Shie) | ISSC | RST (Elio Sjak-Shie) | |
| MATLAB Runtime | - | Required for running MATLAB applications (such as the PhysioData Toolbox). | R2020b (v9.9) | App | No | Minimal | No | Yes | No | No | Active | Free. Installed by the ISSC on managed PCs. Required for PhysioData Toolbox v0.6.3. | Elio Sjak-Shie | RST (Elio Sjak-Shie) | ISSC | RST (Elio Sjak-Shie) | |
| MATLAB Runtime | - | Required for running MATLAB applications (such as the PhysioData Toolbox). | R2018b (v9.5) | App | No | Minimal | No | Yes | No | No | Active | Free. Installed by the ISSC on managed PCs. Required for legacy versions of the PhysioDat a Toolbox. | Elio Sjak-Shie | RST (Elio Sjak-Shie) | ISSC | RST (Elio Sjak-Shie) | |
| Meta Horizon Link | - | Cast directly from Quest HMD to PC. | Latest | App | No | Full | No | No | No | Yes | Active | Free | |||||
| Meta Quest Developer Hub | - | Developer tools for interacting with Quest HMDs. | Latest | App | No | Full | No | No | No | Yes | Active | Free | |||||
| Neuro BS Presentation | - | Software for building and administering computer tasks. | ? | App | No | None | No | No | Yes | No | Limited | License managed by Mischa de Rover | ? | ? | ? | ? | |
| OpenSesame | Software for building and administering computer tasks. | 3.3.14 and python 3.7 | App | Yes | Full | No | No | No | No | Archived | Free | Elio Sjak-Shie | RST (Iris Spruit) | ISSC | RST (Iris Spruit) | ||
| OpenSesame | OpenSesame Admin | Software for building and administering computer tasks. | 3.3.12 | App | No | Minimal | No | No | Yes | No | Limited | ? | ? | ? | ? | ? | |
| OpenSesame | OpenSesame Admin | Software for building and administering computer tasks. | 4.0.24 and python 3.11.4 | App | Yes | Full | Yes | Yes | No | On Request | Active | Free | Elio Sjak-Shie | RST (Iris Spruit) | ISSC | RST (Iris Spruit) | |
| oTree | - | Python-based framework for creating interactive experiments. | ? | Service | Yes | None | No | No | No | No | Active | ? | ? | ? | Erik de Kwaadsteniet | ||
| Pavlovia | Pavlovia Admin | Web service for hosting online tasks. | ? | Service | Yes | Full | N/A | N/A | N/A | N/A | Active | Paid license for FSW/FGW students & staff | Elio Sjak-Shie | RST (Kerwin Olfers) | External | RST (Kerwin Olfers) | |
| PhysioData Toolbox | - | Software for analyzing physiological data (such as ECG). | 0.7.0 | App | No | Full | No | Runnable | No | On Request | Active | Free. A MATLAB Component Runtime is required to run. | Elio Sjak-Shie | Elio Sjak-Shie | Elio Sjak-Shie | Elio Sjak-Shie | |
| PsychoPy | - | Software for building and administering computer tasks. | 2024.1.5 | App | Yes | Full | Yes | Yes | No | On Request | Active | Free | Elio Sjak-Shie | RST (Elio Sjak-Shie) | ISSC | RST (Elio Sjak-Shie) | |
| PsychoPy | - | Software for building and administering computer tasks. | 2022.2.4 | App | Yes | Full | No | No | Yes | No | Limited | ? | ? | ? | ? | ? | |
| PsychToolbox | PsychToolbox Admin | MATLAB Toolbox used for building and administering computer tasks. | 3 | App | No | Full | On Request | On Request | No | On Request | Active | Paid license required for versions 3.0.20 and later. Currently no license available. | Elio Sjak-Shie | RST (Elio Sjak-Shie) | ISSC | RST (Elio Sjak-Shie) | |
| Python | - | Programming and computing software. | 3.11 | App | No | Full | Yes | Yes | No | On Request | Active | Free | ? | ? | ISSC | FSW: RST (Elio Sjak-Shie) | |
| Qualtrics | - | Online service for building and administering questionnaires. | ? | Service | Yes | Full | N/A | N/A | N/A | N/A | Active | Paid license for all university staff and students. Login with ULCN. | Library | Library | External | FSW: RST (Kerwin Olfers) | |
| R* | - | Programming and computing software. | latest available (currently installed is 4.3.0) | App | No | Minimal | No | Yes | No | On Request | Active | Free | ? | ? | ISSC | ? | |
| Shinyapps.io | Shiny Admin | Service for deploying Shiny applications. | ? | Service | Yes | None | N/A | N/A | N/A | N/A | Active | Limited shared license on request | ? | ? | External | Juan Claramunt | |
| SideQuest | - | Side-load packages unto Android-based devices (e.g. Quest HMD). | v0.10.42 | App | No | Full | No | No | No | Yes | Active | Free | |||||
| SONA | - | Online service for advertising studies and awarding participant credits. | ? | Service | Yes | Full | N/A | N/A | N/A | N/A | Active | Paid license, available for students & staff. | ? | ? | External | ? | |
| SPSS | - | Software used for statistical data analysis. | ? | App | No | None | No | No | No | No | Active | Paid software. Installed by the ISSC. License provided by ISSC. | ? | ? | ISSC | ? | |
| Stereokit | - | SDK for developing XR/MR applications. | Latest | App | No | Minimal | No | No | No | Yes | Active | Free | |||||
| TES RoomBooking | SSH Booking Admin | Online service for lab booking. | ? | Service | Yes | Minimal | N/A | N/A | N/A | N/A | Active | Paid license, accounts managed by SOLO | ? | Kerwin Olfers | External | Kerwin Olfers | |
| The Observer XT | The Observer XT Admin | Software for analyzing behavioral (video) data. | 16 | App | No | Full | No | No | No | No | Active | Installed by the ISSC. Requires license provided by SOLO (currently no licenses). | Elio Sjak-Shie | RST (Iris Spruit) | ISSC | RST (Iris Spruit) | |
| Tobii Pro Eye Tracker Manager | Tobii Admin | Software for setting up a Tobii eye tracker. | 2.6.1 | App | No | Full | Yes | Yes | No | No | Active | Free. Installed by ISSC. | Elio Sjak-Shie | RST (Iris Spruit) | ISSC | RST (Iris Spruit) | |
| Tobii Pro Lab | Tobii Admin | Software for administering eye tracking tasks and analyzing eye tracker data. | 24.21 | App | No | Full | Yes | Yes | No | No | Active | Installed by the ISSC. Requires license provided by SOLO. | Elio Sjak-Shie | RST (Iris Spruit) | ISSC | RST (Iris Spruit) | |
| Tobii Pro Studio | Tobii Admin | Software for administering eye tracking tasks and analyzing eye tracker data. | 3.4.8 | App | No | Minimal | No | No | No | No | Archived | This software is EOL. Licenses cannot be activated. | n.a. | n.a. | n.a. | RST (Iris Spruit) | |
| Unity 3D | - | Game engine for 2D / 3D / XR applications and games. | 2021.3.x (LTS) | App | No | Full | No | No | No | Yes | Active | Free | |||||
| Unity 3D | - | Game engine for 2D / 3D / XR applications and games. | 2022.3.x (LTS) | App | No | Full | No | No | No | Yes | Active | Free | |||||
| Unity 3D | - | Game engine for 2D / 3D / XR applications and games. | 6.3.x (LTS) | App | No | Full | No | No | No | Yes | Active | Free | |||||
| Unity Version Control | - | Version control for Unity. | Latest | Service | No | Full | No | No | No | Yes | Active | Free for educational and personal use. | |||||
| Visual Studio Code | - | IDE for development. | Latest | App | No | Full | On Request | On Request | No | Yes | Active | Free | |||||
| VU-DAMS | - | Software for analyzing physiological data collected with VU-AMS hardware. | 4.3/4.6 | App | No | Minimal | On Request | On Request | No | No | Active | Free | Elio Sjak-Shie | RST (Iris Spruit) | ISSC | RST (Iris Spruit) |
Availability, support and advice
AcqKnowledge is available for researchers at FSW Leiden and comes preinstalled on all lab computers (see the Lab PC Software List to check which version). The software can be installed on work computers through the Software Center. AcqKnowledge will also work on university laptops outside of the FSW building.
SOLO supports AcqKnowledge, although the research support team does not have experience with all its features. AcqKnowledge is mainly used for recording physiological data with BIOPAC hardware. For physiological data preprocessing/analysis, check out the PhysioData Toolbox, which provides a user-friendly interface for batch processing physiological data files.
Markers
To analyze physiological data obtained with Biopac, markers that signal the onset of certain events need to be sent from the stimulus presentation pc to the Biopac. In order to process these markers, a marker channel needs to be created in AcqKnowledge, see Marker channel for instructions on how to add such a marker channel. See for more information on sending markers the pages Sending Markers in E-Prime and Sending Markers in OpenSesame and the Markers and Events page for more information on markers in general.
Tips & Tricks
Getting Help
Watch this AcqKnowledge webinar for AcqKnowledge tips and tricks. Other useful BIOPAC webinars are available on the Biopac webinar webite, which is highly recommended to check out. Additionally, the Help menu in AcqKnowledge offers quick access to manuals and tutorials.
Preferences and View
Use the gear wheel in the AcqKnowledge toolbar to access the AcqKnowledge preferences. When you are not sure about the settings, leave them at their default, which works well for most studies.
Right clicking anywhere on the graph reveals a useful menu for editing the view of the graph windows. Options include:
- Autoscale single waveform and Autoscale waveforms
- Show all data
- Split view
- Channels (for hiding and showing channels)

Clicking on the axis on the right side of the graph reveals more options for viewing and scaling the graph windows, including:
- Scaling options
- Showing textual values on the graph (useful for marker and heart rate channels)
Network Data Transfer
When using Network Data Transfer it needs to be enabled in the AcqKnowledge Preferences, in the Networking section. Use the gear wheel to access the AcqKnowledge Preferences.
Note that Network Data Transfer needs to be enabled for each user! It cannot be saved in a template.

Linked Acquisition
Linked Acquisition allows you to record signals from multiple BIOPAC devices on one PC. Linked Acquisition can be set-up from the MP150/160 menu > Set Up Linked Acquisitions (becomes available when devices are attached to the PC, not available in picture below). Different synchronization methods are available and the data can be merged at the end of the recording when required. See this video for more information: Linked Acquisitions in AcqKnowledge.
Resources
- BIOPAC website
- BIOPAC webinars
- BIOPAC instruction videos
- (latest version can also be downloaded here)
- BIOPAC manuals