LabVIEW 2010 and NI RIO – More Connected Than Ever

[jboone]

For today’s embedded designers, even the most capable engineering tools sometimes fall short.

Increasingly complex devices and pressure to reduce time to market  mean that code reuse and sharing across teams is critical. As the number  of Internet-connected embedded devices grows, the design software that  engineers use must aid in providing connectivity for monitoring and  configuring those devices from anywhere in the world, at any time. To  meet these challenges, engineering tools need to not only have a central  focus on rapid development of error-free code but also provide access  to a broad ecosystem of intellectual property (IP), drivers,  complementary tools, and more. In other words, it is all about  connections.

Since the inception of NI LabVIEW software, National Instruments has been working to create an open  platform capable of integrating existing code and IP, communicating via  the Web, and interfacing with a wide array of hardware targets and I/O.  New features in LabVIEW 2010 expand on these areas to provide more  connectivity options than ever before.

Implementing fixed-point algorithms on a field-programmable gate array (FPGA) can be challenging and time-consuming, especially when you need  to perform multiple design iterations. Therefore, reuse of existing IP  should be a central focus. In the past, LabVIEW has made it possible to  integrate HDL code using the HDL Interface Node and Component-Level IP  (CLIP) Nodes; in the LabVIEW 2010 FPGA Module, you can also seamlessly  integrate standard Xilinx CORE Generator IP libraries via the IP  Integration Node to complete your complex designs in less time.

For example, digital signal processing (DSP) projects can take  advantage of libraries such as the popular multiply-accumulator (MAC),  finite impulse response (FIR) filter, fast Fourier transform (FFT), and  even audio and video processing cores. There are hundreds of cores  available, and many of the IP cores are highly customizable to match  your application requirements. Ultimately, with the addition of the IP  Integration Node in LabVIEW 2010, you can reuse more code, use common  algorithms across platforms, and connect to a growing source of IP so  you can focus on the original code that differentiates your application.

Figure 1. With the new IP Integration  Node in the LabVIEW 2010 FPGA Module, you can take advantage of Xilinx  CORE Generator libraries and reduce your development time.

Configure and Monitor Embedded Hardware Targets from Your Web Browser

As engineering teams work together globally, it is important that a  wide variety of individuals in different locations can access and change  settings on embedded hardware targets. With LabVIEW 2010, you can now  monitor and configure a wide variety of NI hardware devices, including  NI CompactRIO, NI Single-Board RIO, PXI, and wireless sensor network (WSN) gateways, from any computer with a supported Web browser and with  zero installation required. National Instruments is committed to making  interaction with your networked control and monitoring systems as  straightforward and intuitive as configuring a common network router.

Once you download the Web interface components to your network  device, you can access it by IP address. In addition, any host computer  on the same network can automatically detect it. Depending on the device  and its capabilities, different options – including file browsing,  network configuration, console output, and more – are available. With  LabVIEW 2010, you, your colleagues, and even your customers have better  visibility into deployed embedded systems. That means being able to  connect no matter where you are located or which applications you have  installed.

Figure 2. With LabVIEW 2010 Web  monitoring and configuration, you can view or update network settings,  transfer files, and see console output on embedded hardware targets.

Acquire More Data in Less Time with New C Series I/O Modules and Ethernet Expansion

More than 100 third-party and NI C Series modules have been designed  for measuring or generating a wide variety of signals, or communicating  with your bus of choice. Several options have been added for accessing C Series I/O from PCI FPGA devices, USB, wireless, and more. With the release of LabVIEW 2010, you can now take  simultaneous C Series analog measurements at higher speeds than ever  before. You can access your C Series modules from more places with a new  reconfigurable Ethernet expansion chassis.

The new NI 9222 and NI 9223 analog input modules offer 16-bit  measurement of four channels at 500 kS/s and 1 MS/s, respectively. And,  these new modules feature simultaneous ADCs, so the per-channel sample  rate does not decrease when taking measurements on multiple channels. To  access remote C Series I/O, you can also use the new NI 9148 Ethernet  expansion chassis, which contains a reconfigurable onboard FPGA. By  connecting one or more NI 9148 expansion chassis with a host system over  a standard Ethernet network, you can perform custom high-speed signal  processing on the FPGA while executing your control or monitoring  applications from one central location. With LabVIEW 2010, you can  connect to more I/O from more places than previously possible, so you  can be confident that a configuration exists to meet your application  requirements.

Figure 3. Combine LabVIEW 2010 with  new C Series I/O modules and expansion options to build flexible,  scalable embedded systems in less time.

With increased access to existing IP, Web-based access to embedded  devices, and additional I/O and expansion options, LabVIEW 2010 is the  most connected version NI has ever created. So, when you purchase  LabVIEW, you are gaining access to much more than a programming  environment – you are connecting to a growing network of code libraries,  tools, and I/O that reduces time to market and helps you stay  competitive.

– Casey Weltzin 

Casey Weltzin is a product manager for LabVIEW Real-Time at  National Instruments. He holds a bachelor’s degree in electrical  engineering from the University of Wisconsin-Madison.