code: def buildType(valtype, extra=[]):
          
          assert valtype[:1] == 'a', 'valtype must be an array'
          return Type(id="epics:nt/NTMultiChannel:1.0",
                      spec=[
                      ('value', valtype),
                      ('channelName', 'as'),
                      ('descriptor', 's'),
                      ('alarm', alarm),
                      ('timeStamp', timeStamp),
                      ('severity', 'ai'),
                      ('status', 'ai'),
                      ('message', 'as'),
                      ('secondsPastEpoch', 'al'),
                      ('nanoseconds', 'ai'),
                      ('userTag', 'ai'),
                      ('isConnected', 'a?'),
                      ] + extra)
docs: Build a Type
  
          :param str valtype: A type code to be used with the 'value' field.  Must be an array
          :param list extra: A list of tuples describing additional non-standard fields
          :returns: A :py:class:`Type`