How do I generate a compiled app with a user interface running real-time?

[JasonWB]

Hi everyone,

I've developed a simple application that uses a PXI chassis to run.  It toggles some discretes and does some simple things, but it doesn't really have any "real-time" requirements.  We're just using the PXI chassis because we have it and we need the discrete I/O.

My question is this - how can I convert this application to a compiled real-time app and yet maintain the front panel on the local PC.  LabView appears to simply do this for me.  I am connected to the real-time target via ethernet.  When I compiled the program, it puts it in the target's startup directory, but how do I run the front panel from the local PC?

Thanks,

Jason

[tst]

This works on FieldPoint. You may need to make some changes to adapt to PXI.

After you build your EXE, you need to move it to your PC (in MAX, right click the target under Remote Targerts and select File Transfer) and place it in c:\ni-rt\startup. Then, after the RT target boots, use LV to connect to it. If the EXE is up-to-date, it should connect to its FP.

I also know some RT targets are supposed to have a web server which should allow remote-front-panel connections. You may want to look this up.

[JasonWB]

Hi,

Thanks for the reply, but the I am not quite sure if this will work.  The idea is that we do NOT want to put LabView on the local user's PC - we wish to have a compiled application for both the PXI target AND the local machine.  You see, we don't wish to have to purchase LV for each test machine in production.  I'm sure this is possible, I'm just not quite sure how to do it.  References to a VI or something like that might be the answer.  I kind of thought that I might have to write two separate apps - one running on the PXI chassis and one on the PC that communicates with it and retrieves data.  I just thought there might be a more automatic way to do this.

Thanks,

Jason

[preston_johnson]

Have you tried the web server of LabVIEW RT?  This exports the panel to a web page and can be operated from the browser - no LabVIEW needed to be installed on the viewing machine. 

[JasonWB]

No, I haven't - that may be what I am looking for.  I have heard of it, but don't know how to use it.  I will see what doc I can find - thanks!

Jason

[JasonWB]

Well, I looked around and there's some pretty good stuff.  But I am stuck with having LabView running on the local machine and can't seem to connect to the compiled application.  If I do an "Exit without closing RT vi's" that still doesn't do it.  Is there something I am missing?

Thanks,

Jason

[SnarrVIEW]

Hi Jason,

Below are some links that should get you started with deploying an application onto your real-time target and then controlling it from a PC that does not have the LabVIEW Development environment:

http://digital.ni.com/public.nsf/websearch/C90410C685CFF89786256C24005AC027?OpenDocument

Launching code on the RT target:

http://zone.ni.com/devzone/conceptd.nsf/webmain/7D7CFAFF379531B086256AC70058812B?opendocument&node=1...

Deploying and launching a real-time app:

http://zone.ni.com/devzone/conceptd.nsf/webmain/9ac4955881bd7b4d86256d0b0061dd1c

Application Builder and RT PXI controller:

http://zone.ni.com/devzone/conceptd.nsf/webmain/81b6674f3556599b862568cf005d26c6

RT good programming practices (use RT communication wizard for easy implementation):

http://zone.ni.com/devzone/devzoneweb.nsf/Opendoc?openagent&E4C4DCD9C00295A186256B5100665BF5

RT Communication Wizard:

http://zone.ni.com/devzone/conceptd.nsf/webmain/a6f17ee4adcab99686256d5e0053e210

I would suggest going through these tutorials and documents, they should provide you with what you need to get started.  Please don't hesitate to ask any questions that you have a long the way.

[JasonWB]

Hey, these were great links - thanks!  It appears as if part of the answer to my question is that I need to use the RT Communication Wizard, which was one of the links.  I figured that I would have to split the application into two pieces, but apparently, it is actually three pieces and the Wizard does that.  It also appears that I will have to compile both VIs into executables because we won't have LabView on the host computer, although the RT environment will of course be on the PXI chassis.  That seems, so far, to be the 2nd half of the answer.

So, it also appears that using the web server may not be the way to go for now.  It seems as if we make tradeoffs: using the comm wizard is a bit more involved and you have to explicitly specify which controls and indicators you wish to view on the host computer, but you get increased speed.  It seems that using a web server simply creates a duplicate of the applications front panel, but is much slower.  Does that seem like an accurate evaluation?

I would be interested to see if the web server idea might be an option as well.  Can an application be compiled, loaded onto a RT target and accessed via the web server?  I'm not sure this will be the final solution, but I'd like to know what ALL of the options are,

Thanks,

Jason

[SnarrVIEW]

Hi Jason,

Your evaluation is accurate, there is going to be more overhead with using the remote front panels.  If programmed correctly then the data acquired/generated will be accurate, but depending on how complicated your front panel is it might appear to be slow or have a time lag.  Here are some documents that should get you started with using remote front panels in RT:

Developing Remote Front Panels:
http://zone.ni.com/devzone/conceptd.nsf/webmain/E789515B9976253786256B1F007E039B

Remote Front Panels for RT:
http://digital.ni.com/public.nsf/3efedde4322fef19862567740067f3cc/a4915e8e1271951086256b22005c2cab

Regards, 

[JasonWB]

Hey, these have been a lot of help.  I seem to inch close to what I need to do every time!  Where I am now is I can't compile the app to run on the PXI chassis and then pull it up.  Every time I shut down LabView on the laptop PC (networked to the PXI RT controller), the application stops.  Step 7 of this:

http://zone.ni.com/devzone/devzoneweb.nsf/Opendoc?openagent&E4C4DCD9C00295A186256B5100665BF5

seems to be the stumbling point.

Thanks,

Jason