InstrumentationNewsletter The Worldwide Publication for Measurement and Automation l Second Quarter 2009
6 Eight Cost-Free Techniques to Improve Test Throughput
8 Embedded Industry Trend – Sensors Get Smart
10 New RIO IF Transceiver Module Brings FPGAs to RF Applications
Think Beyond the Box 11 Address Three Top Software A Software-Defined Engineering Challenges with Approach to RF Test LabVIEW Tools page 3 12 Customize Your Chip Characterization with NI FlexRIO and LabVIEW FPGA
14 Lunacy Challenge Incorporates CompactRIO at FIRST Championship
15 Did You Know LabVIEW Could Convert Your PC or SBC into a Real-Time System?
16 Special Focus: Virtual Instrumentation Helps Engineers Upgrade Infrastructure
24 How to Integrate Your Tools into the LabVIEW Environment
26 The Future of Instrument Control – The Software Is Still the Instrument
27 NI Labs Includes Pioneer Release of C Interface to LabVIEW FPGA
ni.com
2009-10802-104-101 Q2 INL.indd 1 4/24/09 2:55:51 PM CategoryInside NI
Innovating through Tough Times
What do Hewlett-Packard, FedEx, and CNN have in common? results and lower perceived risk. Whether it is a test system or a Believe it or not, each of these companies was founded during new product concept, ideas accompanied by a prototype are more difficult economic times. What about product innovations like nylon likely to receive funding. and the Apple iPod? They were also developed and released in weak economies. It turns out that these examples are not anomalies – Use the Network adversity can help spur innovation. It turns out that breakthrough innovation does not come out of the It is clear that innovation is the lifeblood of high-tech companies. blue. According to Andrew Hargadon, author of How Breakthroughs But I am not simply referring to the lightning bolt ideas that only Happen: The Surprising Truth About How Companies Innovate, happen in a research lab. I am talking about the ideas that all of us – innovation often creates value from the network it brings together. test engineers, design engineers, and researchers alike – apply to For instance, Hargadon argues that the success of the iPod is not only improving the processes and products that we work on every day. But due to its slick design, but rather how Apple assembled a network of how do you innovate in a time when resources are scarce and the hardware, software, and content in a way that its competitors still business world has collectively become risk-averse? The answer is have not matched. When resources are tight, there is another reason what I call “lean innovation.” to reach out to the network: with fewer resources, you need to find elements to reuse. Do More with Less While the temptation might be to act conservatively in 2009, In the past, you may have had a fully staffed design team with a I encourage you to embrace lean innovation. To do so, however, digital engineer, analog engineer, mechanical engineer, and software you will have to do more with less, prototype your idea quickly, developer. Now, it may be only you. To prototype a design or build a and maximize reuse through the network. test system, you need to apply your domain expertise across multiple engineering disciplines. Therefore, I expect to see more engineers An extended version of this article first appeared in the March 26, 2009, edition of Electronic Design. designing at a system level, using a technique called graphical system design. This approach abstracts the implementation details that have typically required more specialized skills. – Eric Starkloff [email protected] Eric Starkloff has been with National Instruments Prove It since 1997 and is the vice president of product It is going to be hard to get an idea financed in these conditions marketing for test. He holds a bachelor’s degree without first proving its impact. With graphical system design software, in electrical engineering from the University you can quickly develop a prototype of the system to show initial of Virginia.
Newsletter Instrumentation Volume 21, Number 2 Second Quarter 2009 Executive Editor John Graff Creative Manager Joe Silva Production Artists Pam Nalty, Fatos Shita Editor in Chief Jennifer Dawkins Art Director Adam Hampshire Photo Editors Nicole Kinbarovsky, Allie Verlander Managing Editor Andria Balman Project Manager Pamela Mapua Image Coordinator Kathy Brown Senior Editor Jenn Giles Designer Gerald Codina Production Specialists Judy Pinckard, Robert Burnette Associate Editors Jennifer King, Jontel Moran Illustrator Brent Burden Circulation Coordinator Molly Rand Contributing Editors Johanna Gilmore, Tiffany Wilder Print Production Art Manager Laura Thompson
Instrumentation Newsletter is published quarterly by National Instruments Corporation, 11500 N Mopac Expwy, Austin, TX 78759-3504 USA. ©2009 National Instruments. All rights reserved. ActiveMath, AutoCode, BioBench, BridgeVIEW, Citadel, CompactRIO, Crashbase, CVI, DAQCard, DAQ Designer, DAQPad, DAQ-STC, DASYLab, DIAdem, DIAdem CLIP, DIAdem-INSIGHT, DocumentIt!, Electronics Workbench, FieldPoint, Flex ADC, FlexDMM, FlexFrame, FlexMotion, HiQ, HS488, IMAQ, Instrumentation Newsletter, Instrupedia, LabVIEW, LabVIEW Player, Lookout, MANTIS, MATRIXx, Measure, Measurement Ready, Measurement Studio, MITE, Multisim, MXI, NAT4882, NAT7210, NAT9914, National Instruments, National Instruments Alliance Partner, NI, NI-488, ni.com, NI CompactDAQ, NI Developer Suite, NI FlexRIO, NI-Motion, NI Motion Assistant, NI SoftMotion, NI TestStand, NIWeek, RIDE, RTSI, SCXI, Sensors Plug&Play, SignalExpress, SystemBuild, The Software is the Instrument, The Virtual Instrumentation Company, TNT4882, TNT4882C, Turbo488, Ultiboard, VAB, VirtualBench, VXIpc, and Xmath are trademarks of National Instruments. The mark LabWindows is used under a license from Microsoft Corporation. Windows is a registered trademark of Microsoft Corporation in the United States and other countries. LEGO, the LEGO logo, MINDSTORMS, and WEDO are trademarks of the LEGO Group. Linux® is the registered trademark of Linus Torvalds in the U.S. and other countries. Other product and company names listed are trademarks or trade names of their respective companies. A National Instruments Alliance Partner is a business entity independent from National Instruments and has no agency, partnership, or joint-venture relationship with National Instruments.
2009-10802-104-101 Q2 INL.indd 2 4/24/09 2:55:53 PM CategoryCover
Think Beyond the Box – A Software-Defined Approach to RF Test The traditional engineering response to testing a new wireless standard often involves selecting a box instrument with the closest specifications. For automated test systems with multiple test requirements, this This approach worked when testing RF devices with common approach usually results in a different box for each measurement test requirements. In recent years, however, the efficiency of a box requirement in the system. When the test requirements are uniform instrument for automated RF testing has significantly diminished amidst and nonchanging, this method may be sufficient, but it becomes the constant changes in features in wireless devices. The production cumbersome, slow, and ultimately more expensive for testing today’s volume of wireless devices is also exceeding the typical test throughput complex RF devices, which often use multiple wireless standards. of traditional RF box instruments due to the slower processors and A software-defined approach is ideal for automating RF verification, data buses that are often generations older than current PC technology. validation, and production tests, while traditional RF box instruments A clear understanding of the traditional RF instrument makeup and continue to play an important role on the design bench. the challenges of working with fixed-measurement functionality and suboptimal I/O processing is helping engineers think beyond Inside the Instrument the box for their automated RF measurement needs. Today’s engineers must think beyond the box for their RF test needs. However, to think beyond the box, they first have to Software-Defined Approach know what is inside a typical RF box instrument. Inside each The transition to software-defined instrumentation for all types of approximately 38,000 cubic centimeters of sheet metal and automated measurement systems, including RF, is growing rapidly with plastic enclosure is a vendor-defined world of components that an expected deployment of 100,000 PXI-based systems by the end of constitute an RF box instrument; typically there is a power supply, 2009, including more than 600,000 software-defined instrument modules. processor, PC motherboard or backplane, embedded operating The open, user-defined software and modular PC-based hardware are system, measurement libraries, and a software display. The ideal for automated RF test applications because they provide the traditional appeal of a box instrument is the combination of highest-performance processors and data buses, flexible peripheral these matched components applied to a specific set of I/O, compact modular design, smart power distribution and monitoring, measurement requirements. and precise timing and synchronization throughout the system.
IEEE 802.11a/g EVM Measurement Times
700 667
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Measurement Time (ms) Measurement Time 200
100 53.4 12.5 8 0 General-Purpose VSA Specialized PXI Express PXI Express WLAN Box Vector Signal Analyzer Vector Signal Analyzer with AMD Turion 64 X2 with Intel Core 2 Duo Figure 1. Compare EVM measurement times of competitive instruments. (continued on page 4)
888 279 9833 ni.com 3
2009-10802-104-101 Q2 INL.indd 3 4/24/09 2:55:54 PM In other words, the software-defined approach to automated High-performance multicore processors used in PXI WLAN RF test uses similar types of components as a traditional RF box measurement systems based on NI LabVIEW software perform most instrument but applies them in a modular, user-defined architecture. IEEE 802.11a/b/g measurements five to 10 times faster than traditional This provides engineers with the highest-performance components, vector signal analyzers and specialized WLAN box instruments. user-programmable I/O and analysis, and a compact form factor with proven reliability in the most demanding RF test environments. Flexible Instrumentation – Broadcast Radio The end reward for engineers thinking beyond the box is an RF A second benefit of software-defined instrumentation is the flexibility test solution that is faster, more flexible, and equally accurate – to test multiple wireless standards with the same RF hardware. all at a fraction of the cost of stacking Today’s wireless devices are required traditional RF boxes within a system. to meet an increasing number of To further understand the benefits of standards. For example, the modern software-defined instrumentation for smart phone often supports a minimum RF, take a look at the following examples of six wireless standards such as that describe how the speed, flexibility, GSM/EDGE/WCDMA, Bluetooth, GPS, and accuracy of this approach yields and even WLAN. In addition, some significant improvements in meeting modern broadcast radio receivers today’s RF test needs. support 10 or more wireless standards including AM/FM, RDS/RDBS, Sirius, Measurement Speed – WLAN XM, DAB, IBOC, GPS, TMC over RDS, One of the core benefits of software- and even DARC. Thus, there is a clear defined PXI measurement systems need in wireless test for instrumentation is significantly faster measurement flexible enough to handle new times than traditional RF instruments. wireless standards as they emerge. While this advantage is compounded With software-defined when testing multiple wireless instrumentation, engineers can standards, engineers can also achieve create any broadcast radio signal significant speedup when testing within LabVIEW and download it into a single standard such as wireless the memory of a PXI RF vector signal local area network (WLAN). generator for immediate broadcast WLAN measurements such as error testing. For example, engineers from Figure 2. A single Averna URT can broadcast generation and RF vector magnitude (EVM) and spectrum mask record and playback of multiple broadcast radio standards. Averna, a Select National Instruments require a large amount of signal processing. Alliance Partner, offer the PXI-based Using multicore CPUs in PXI controllers, universal radio tester (URT) to test engineers can perform these measurements five to 10 times faster multiple radio standards using the same RF instrumentation. A with software-defined RF instrumentation such as the NI PXIe-5663 typical Averna URT system is shown in Figure 2. 6.6 GHz RF vector signal analyzer. Moreover, engineers using the In addition to generating radio broadcast standards, the Averna NI WLAN toolkits for LabVIEW can automatically upgrade their URT performs RF record and playback. This technology takes advantage measurement performance every time a faster PXI multicore controller of the high data rates of the PXI data buses and high-performance is released because the test libraries are designed for execution data storage and processing of LabVIEW software. By recording RF across multiple cores. In Figure 1, observe a comparison between signals and playing them back in the lab, engineers can validate how the WLAN measurement times for an EVM and power measurement receivers, such as an FM, DVB-T, or GPS receiver, operate in their of a 54 Mbps burst on various RF signal analyzers. final deployment environments.
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2009-10802-104-101 Q2 INL.indd 4 4/24/09 2:55:58 PM using new PXI instruments such as the NI PXIe-5663 6.6 GHz RF vector signal analyzer and NI PXIe-5673 RF vector signal generator. Both instruments use the latest 16-bit analog-to-digital and digital-to- analog converters and a low-phase noise synthesizer (-110 dBc/Hz at 1 GHz) over wide instantaneous bandwidths (50 MHz and 100 MHz, respectively) to achieve accurate measurements at a low price. As an example, consider the residual EVM performance of the NI PXIe-5663 and PXIe-5673 for a Fixed WiMAX signal at 3.5 GHz. Using the new NI Measurement Suite for Fixed WiMAX, engineers can visualize a constellation plot of a 16-QAM signal. This plot provides a visual representation of the Figure 3. A WiMAX constellation plot of a 16-QAM EVM measurement rivals significantly more modulation accuracy, with smaller dot sizes expensive RF instrumentation from other test vendors. indicating better RF performance. The EVM reported in Figure 3 is -46 dB (0.5 percent), Accurate Instrumentation – WiMAX a result that is 15 dB more than the minimum A final benefit of software-defined RF instrumentation is that engineers performance requirements of Fixed WiMAX devices. can achieve highly accurate measurements at a lower cost than With the increasing requirements for measurement speed, traditional instruments. With the emergence of new wireless standards flexibility, and accuracy, engineers must continue to think beyond such as WiMAX and 3rd Generation Partnership Project (3GPP) Long the box for innovative RF test solutions. Fortunately, modular, Term Evolution (LTE), many wireless devices must meet stricter RF software-defined instrumentation offers engineers new tools performance requirements than ever before. For example, the minimum to test the growing number of wireless standards. EVM requirement for an 802.11a/g (WLAN) transmitter is -25 dB for the 54 Mbps, 64-quadrature amplitude modulation (QAM) signal type. – Richard McDonell [email protected] Newer standards such as 3GPP LTE and WiMAX are subject to even Richard McDonell is a senior group manager for PXI and VXI higher RF performance requirements. By contrast, the minimum EVM at National Instruments. He holds a bachelor’s degree in requirement for an 802.16-2004 (Fixed WiMAX) device is -31 dB for a electrical engineering from Texas A&M University. similar 64-QAM signal type, requiring better RF performance. Today’s software-defined instrumentation helps engineers achieve – David Hall [email protected] world-class RF measurement performance at a lower cost than was David Hall is a product manager for RF and wireless previously possible. Three years ago, an RF vector signal generator communications hardware and software at National and analyzer that achieved EVM measurements of -45 dB for Fixed Instruments. He holds a bachelor’s degree in computer WiMAX and adjacent channel leakage ratio (ACLR) measurements engineering from Penn State University. of 65 dBc for WCDMA would have cost more than $100,000 USD from any vendor. Today, however, engineers can obtain this level To read a white paper on benchmarking your PXI RF test system, of accuracy for less than $65,000 USD (chassis and controller included) visit ni.com/info and enter nsi9201.
888 279 9833 ni.com 5
2009-10802-104-101 Q2 INL.indd 5 4/24/09 2:55:59 PM CategoryFeature
Eight Cost-Free Techniques to Improve Test Throughput Rather than focus on new test platforms that can lower the cost of test, you can improve test system performance without investing more capital into your equipment. Most tips and techniques to improve test throughput focus on new requires the most time and instrument resources to execute. After products and equipment that require you to make initial capital profiling the system, determine the percentage of the total test investments to achieve your desired results. However, this article time and instrument usage consumed by individual tests. With this summarizes eight cost-free software optimization techniques tested, information, you can make informed decisions such as adding implemented, and provided by test developers. While some tips instruments or considering parallel test techniques with shared specify the software used, all are generic enough to span any instruments. NI TestStand test management software includes a automated test system software. Resource Usage Profiler to address this need.1 The Resource Usage Profiler displays the use of instruments and other resources in real Quick Tips before Getting Started time, as shown in Figure 2. If you do not use NI TestStand, you can Before making any software changes, begin by benchmarking your timestamp the execution of your test code and then perform the system to pinpoint potential obstacles and time-intensive tests. necessary calculations. Benchmarking helps identify areas to improve test throughput. Also, at some point, test developers need to make trade-offs between execution speed and modularity. Understand your top-level objectives before you get started so you can make the right decisions when faced with a trade-off. To minimize anxiety due to the potential size and complexity of test software applications, scope your efforts by looking at your application from an architectural perspective. Figure 1 shows a simplified view of a common software architecture – test management, application development, and driver-level software – used as a foundation in this article.
Figure 2. Profiling test system resources increases throughput by helping you understand instrument usage and potential obstacles. Test Management Software
2. Decrease UUT Test Time with Parallelism – Even when testing Application Development Software a single unit under test (UUT), you may be able to test multiple portions of the unit in parallel to reduce test time. First, to test a
Driver-Level Software single UUT in parallel, you need to identify independent UUT components and profile your instrument usage. Then you can develop subsequences within your test management software to test the Figure 1. Three layers to focus on for test software optimization include test independent components. To truly operate in parallel, each test management, application development, and driver-level software. sequence must run in a new thread or execution.2 Test Management Software 1. Maximize Hardware Efficiency – You can reduce test time and Application Development Software increase throughput by profiling instrument usage and uptime. 3. Maximize Code Module Run Time – Identify ways to add parallel Resource profiling helps identify the critical test system path, which processing in your test code. For instance, separate higher-priority
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2009-10802-104-101 Q2 INL.indd 6 4/24/09 2:56:01 PM tasks such as test logic and I/O from lower-priority tasks such as such as 64-bit operating systems and multithreading, and add logging and user interface updates. Use parallel design techniques support for new hardware. Updating your drivers, regardless of the including pipelining, task parallelism, and data parallelism age of your hardware, adds compatibility with technologies that to maximize performance, as shown in Figure 3.3 Multicore upgrade system performance. When updating, try the new drivers processors significantly improve parallel test performance. If you with your code on a development machine to confirm compatibility.6 use NI LabVIEW as your application development environment (ADE), LabVIEW automatically identifies parallelism in the code 8. Reduce Bus Limitations with Instrument Drivers – In addition and distributes execution across multiple cores without changes to simplifying communication with traditional instruments, to the code. interchangeable virtual instrument (IVI) drivers offer advanced functionality to improve performance including state caching, 4. Improve Execution Speed with Optimized Compilers – Many multithreading, instrument simulation, and automatic range checking. ADEs provide multiple options for compilation. For instance, using State caching implements an engine that monitors the current state optimized compilers from Intel, Microsoft, and Borland regardless of the instrument to minimize the number of commands sent across of the development tool, you can create speed- and size-optimized the bus. Reducing unnecessary data transmissions can help improve release executables and DLLs. NI LabWindows™/CVI software offers test throughput.7 this compiler flexibility to improve execution speed and throughput.4 Make Forward-Looking Investments 5. Do More in Less Time by Disabling Debug – Debugging is a vital Each test system is unique, so be innovative as you look to improve aspect to test system development, but it substantially slows down your particular system. If software optimization is not an option, take test execution in production environments. For instance, disabling the time to learn about new testing techniques that can improve future subsequence tracing in test executive software improves execution test development such as software-defined instrumentation, parallel performance. While this option removes real-time step tracing, it processing, and wireless and protocol aware test.8 It is never too late to improves test throughput.2 And, be sure to remove breakpoints from learn something new, and it is never too early to prepare for the future. your deployed application. – Jared Aho [email protected] 6. Reduce Code Analysis Time with Jared Aho is the test software group Automated Tools – Automated test manager at National Instruments. He holds applications can result in large software a bachelor’s degree in electrical engineering projects that take countless hours to from the University of Michigan, Ann Arbor. review for performance improvement. Take advantage of tools that can help – Murali Ravindran [email protected] you by automatically analyzing code for Murali Ravindran is the instrument control design flaws and limitations. Spending a product manager at National Instruments. little time up front to learn about software He holds a master’s degree in electrical engineering tools can save you many engineering and an MBA in entrepreneurship frustrating hours in the long run.5 from The University of Oklahoma.
Driver-Level Software To read more in-depth articles about 7. Upgrade System Performance with these techniques and view the references New Drivers – Vendors periodically online, visit ni.com/info and enter nsi9202. Figure 3. Designing parallel tests with parallel loops release new device driver versions to and pipelined tasks improves system throughput provide bug fixes, support technologies by increasing execution speed.
1“NI TestStand 4.1 – Accelerating Parallel Test.” 2“Best Practices for Improving NI TestStand System Performance.” 3“Optimizing Automated Test Applications for Multicore Processors with NI LabVIEW.” 4“Creating Optimized Code.” 5“Software Engineering with LabVIEW.” 6“Upgrading to the Latest Version of LabVIEW.” 7“Improving Test Performance through Instrument Driver State Management.” 8“Innovation Drives Test Trends.”
The mark LabWindows is used under a license from Microsoft Corporation. Windows is a registered trademark of Microsoft Corporation in the United States and other countries. 888 279 9833 ni.com 7
2009-10802-104-101 Q2 INL.indd 7 4/24/09 3:48:58 PM CategoryFeature
Embedded Industry Trend – Sensors Get Smart Intake, compression, ignition, exhaust. If only the modern internal combustion engine was as simple as this four-stroke explanation. Today’s engines are complex control systems that use embedded and a circuit design suite, including layout tools, circuit models, sensors for critical path feedback loops and performance and emission and footprint files for deployment. optimization. Besides the motor, modern vehicles contain hundreds of sensors in every system of the car, from parking assistance to tire Taking Advantage of Embedded Sensors pressure monitoring. Consumer electronics is another area teaming Unfortunately, there is no standard digital sensor communication bus. with embedded sensors. Microelectromechanical system (MEMS) However, a survey of options reveals that Serial Peripheral Interface accelerometers, for instance, have completely changed the way you (SPI) and Inter-Integrated Circuit (I2C) buses cover most measurement interact with mobile phones and gaming systems and protect your types and sensor families. hard drives from data loss when dropped. Last year, accelerometers alone boasted more than $2.4 billion USD in sales. 1. Prototyping and Verifying on the Desktop – It is common to Pick your favorite phenomenon and there is probably a sensor connect an embedded sensor to a PC for algorithm engineering and for it, most likely an analog transducer. However, the current trend dynamic performance verification of a sensor. While NI provides in embedded sensor technology is to shrink the entire acquisition PC-based data acquisition (DAQ) devices for measuring common chain – consisting of the transducer, amplifier, analog-to-digital analog sensors, it may not be obvious how to integrate a digital converter (ADC), and a standard digital communication bus – embedded sensor into a measurement and control system on a down to one integrated circuit (IC). Although analog sensors will PC. Because most digital sensors communicate through serial continue to be prevalent, this new trend toward digital sensors communication protocols, use a device that translates those bus reduces cost, component count, and development time for integrating protocols to a standard PC bus, such as the NI USB-8451 SPI/I2C measurements into an embedded system. interface. This device includes a high-level device driver, making it National Instruments is making integration of digital sensors into easy to access both SPI and I2C devices. The USB-8451 abstracts embedded systems based on the NI reconfigurable I/O (RIO) platform away the physical bus layer, providing a simple read/write API, more efficient. Collaborating with silicon vendors, NI identifies key similar to instrument control buses such as GPIB and RS232/RS485. measurement categories, corresponding sensor ICs, prototyping Most embedded sensors then respond to commands to read and solutions, and digital communication intellectual property (IP) needs. write internal storage and configuration registers containing their NI now offers, and continues to expand, LabVIEW FPGA IP instrument latest digitized data. driver-like interfaces for digital sensors; higher-level sensor drivers for NI understands that most embedded sensors are provided at desktop PCs and real-time operating systems; prototyping solutions; the IC level – not with prototyping-ready packaging and cabling –
Sensor Types Sensor Vendors Applications
Accelerometers Analog Devices Mobile Devices Gyroscopes National Semiconductor Environmental Monitoring Temperature Texas Instruments Thermal Management Pressure Maxim Integrated Products Closed-Loop Control Humidity Microchip Technology Mobile Robotics
Figure 1. Many traditional sensor companies are supporting new versions of their existing sensor platforms with digital interfaces for embedded applications.
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2009-10802-104-101 Q2 INL.indd 8 4/24/09 2:56:04 PM Figure 2. The USB-8451 provides a simple LabVIEW interface to a wide range of SPI and I2C digital sensors, such as the TI TMP175 temperature IC used in thousands of refrigerated vending machines.
but the company is working with major digital sensor vendors to bus IP, NI has created high-level LabVIEW FPGA instrument driver offer easier prototyping connectivity with little or no soldering and a APIs for several specific sensor families and accompanying real-time path to volume system deployment with custom hardware design. and desktop FPGA interface examples. Finally, to integrate these chip-level embedded sensors, NI offers circuit design resources such 2. Deploying with NI Single-Board RIO – National Instruments is as specific Multisim symbols, Ultiboard footprints, and a reference also making integrating digital sensors with FPGA-based RIO products design for NI Single-Board RIO custom daughter cards. easier by providing LabVIEW FPGA IP for SPI and I2C, specific sensor drivers, and circuit design resources for NI Multisim and Ultiboard Discovering New Embedded Solutions software. You can download the low-level LabVIEW FPGA IP for SPI Embedded digital sensor technology has lowered the cost and and I2C communication from the LabVIEW FPGA IPNet (ni.com/ipnet). simplified the inclusion of measurement into an embedded system. Additionally, if you consider SPI and I2C to be as common to The proliferation of these new sensors is evident in everything from embedded sensors as GPIB is to instrument control, it makes sense to automobiles to handheld devices. National Instruments continues build higher-level, sensor-specific drivers similar to the NI instrument to provide efficient embedded solutions and is now simplifying the driver network (ni.com/idnet). On top of the low-level communication integration of this technology from prototype to deployment.
– Matt Spexarth [email protected] NI Single-Board RIO FPGA Matt Spexarth is a product manager for NI Single-Board RIO at National Instruments.
Digital Sensors He holds a bachelor’s degree in electrical engineering from Kansas State University. SDA Temperature I2C IP SCL – Rick Kuhlman [email protected] Rick Kuhlman is a product manager for LabVIEW FPGA MOSI Acceleration at National Instruments. He holds bachelor’s and MISO
CLK master’s degrees in electrical engineering, as well SPI IP CS 1 as an MBA, from the University of Tennessee. Humidity CS 2 To download the embedded sensor e-kit with FPGA IP, embedded sensor drivers, and circuit design tools, visit ni.com/info and enter nsi9203.
Figure 3. Connect to digital sensors with NI Single-Board RIO by downloading and integrating an SPI or I 2C communication core from LabVIEW FPGA IPNet.
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2009-10802-104-101 Q2 INL.indd 9 4/24/09 2:56:06 PM Product CategoryIn-Depth
New RIO IF Transceiver Module Brings FPGAs to RF Applications The NI PXIe-5641R is a dual-input, dual-output intermediate frequency (IF) transceiver targeted at applications such as radio-frequency identification (RFID) test, spectral monitoring, real-time spectrum analysis, RF dynamic test, and software-defined radio (SDR). It features two 14-bit, 100 MS/s analog-to-digital converters (ADCs) with built-in 20 MHz bandwidth digital downconverters (DDCs) and two 14-bit, 200 MS/s digital-to-analog converters (DACs) with built-in 20 MHz bandwidth digital upconverters (DUCs). This module also includes a Xilinx Virtex-5 SX95T field-programmable gate array (FPGA) that you can program using the NI LabVIEW FPGA Module.
This is the highest-performance programmable FPGA Figure 2. You can pair the NI PXIe-5641R with NI upconverters and downconverters that NI offers, with 640 multipliers, more than 14,000 to generate and analyze frequencies up to 2.7 GHz, and use asynchronous wires with the slices, and nearly 100,000 logic cells. With these LabVIEW FPGA Module to greatly simplify programming. features, the device can handle complex and high-speed signal processing, analysis, and modulation tasks. configures the module as two synchronous input and two synchronous The NI PXIe-5641R is the first integrated IF transceiver on the output channels and supports basic triggering. For more advanced PXI platform, and it works with user-programmable FPGA-based RF FPGA-defined applications, use LabVIEW FPGA and the NI-RIO driver applications when paired with the NI PXI-5600 downconverter and for high-speed communication between the graphical programming NI PXI-5610 upconverter at frequencies up to 2.7 GHz and instantaneous of both the host and FPGA. Next, the asynchronous timing wire, the bandwidths up to 20 MHz. Input and reconstruction filters on the latest addition to the LabVIEW FPGA Module, offers asynchronous NI PXIe-5641R provide more than 80 MHz of analog bandwidth, communication between signal acquisition, processing, and generation capable of interfacing with the 15 MHz IF output on the PXI-5600 blocks on the LabVIEW FPGA block diagram. Abstracting the first- and the 25 MHz IF input on the PXI-5610. With an NI PXIe-1065 chassis, in-first-out (FIFO)-based communication common in FPGA applications you can connect two upconverters and two significantly simplifies programming, downconverters to a single NI PXIe-5641R for so designers can focus on their synchronized acquisition and generation. algorithms rather than data In addition, with high-performance storage management. Finally, with the solutions such as the NI 8260 1 TB in-chassis LabVIEW FPGA RF Communication data storage module, you can continually Library in NI Labs (ni.com/labs), record time domain IF data while performing you can use examples for modulation, measurements and analysis in real time on demodulation, fractional resampling, the FPGA of the transceiver module. and channel coding in your communications application. Programming Your IF Transceiver Module There are three ways to program the To learn more about the new NI PXIe-5641R. First, to minimize the time NI PXIe-5641R and programming to first measurement, use the included with asynchronous wires, visit
precompiled FPGA personality along Figure 1. The NI PXIe-5641R IF transceiver module combines high- ni.com/info and enter nsi9204. with an easy-to-use API on the host. This performance ADCs and DACs with LabVIEW FPGA programming.
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2009-10802-104-101 Q2 INL.indd 10 4/24/09 2:56:17 PM CategoryProduct In-Depth
Address Three Top Software Engineering Challenges with LabVIEW Tools
Requirements Gathering Application Architecture Development Validation Deployment
NI Requirements Gateway LabVIEW Statechart Module LabVIEW Desktop Execution LabVIEW Unit Test LabVIEW Application Builder Object Orientation Trace Toolkit Framework Toolkit LabVIEW Real-Time Module NI TestStand LabVIEW VI Analyzer LabVIEW FPGA Module LabVIEW embedded modules
Software Validation Developer Suite Option
The software engineering process consists of multiple phases throughout the development life cycle.
As applications become more complex, software developers face a for anyone who has to prove that an application works as growing challenge of delivering high-quality code while meeting tight expected, which is more difficult than simply proving the development schedules. As a result, software engineers have adopted application runs – the application must work correctly. This regimented practices or “models” for the development life cycle to task requires documentation and test results that demonstrate ensure code quality and sustainability while maximizing efficiency. For the application behaves exactly the way it was designed – programmers using NI LabVIEW software, NI offers a variety of tools evidence that may be required by the customer or a quality that can improve and automate the development process, thereby assurance group, for example. Developers can integrate tools reducing development time and implementing more thorough testing such as the LabVIEW Unit Test Framework Toolkit and and code evaluation. NI Requirements Gateway to automate this process. The software engineering process consists of several phases including design, development, and validation. Skipping any mandated Identify the Source of Problems or Bugs – Identifying tasks such as requirements gathering or application architecture can the source and fixing the cause of unexpected or undesirable create unreliable results and increase the time required to find and fix 3 software behavior can be a tedious, time-consuming, and problems. When following this process, the time needed to write code expensive task for developers. Even code that is syntactically is often just a small part of the time and effort required. correct and functionally complete is often still contaminated with problems such as memory leaks or daemon tasks that Gather and Manage Requirements – Requirements are can impact performance or lead to incorrect behavior. These typically living documents that require changes and modifications oversights can be difficult to reproduce and even more difficult 1throughout the development life cycle. The earlier the changes in to locate, especially in large, complex applications. LabVIEW the process, the less risky they are. However, when it is necessary developers can take advantage of tools such as the LabVIEW to modify code or specifications, it is critical that developers have VI Analyzer and the LabVIEW Desktop Execution Trace Toolkit the tools to help them understand how these changes can impact for a combination of static and dynamic code analysis to screen other parts of the application. NI Requirements Gateway provides for problems and isolate their sources. automated traceability between requirements and implementation as well as tests. This includes the ability to generate traceability Graphical programming saves time and money by abstracting many matrices and documentation for large applications that prove of the most difficult tasks associated with software development. where and how requirements were covered. In many aspects, With the increasing amount of LabVIEW applications, NI has invested NI Requirements Gateway is the most sophisticated method to in software engineering tools to further improve productivity and reduce document LabVIEW code. time spent on development tasks other than actually writing code.
Validate Code and Perform Regression Testing To learn about other software engineering tools for LabVIEW, Requirements-based testing and validation is a well-recognized visit ni.com/info and enter nsi9205. 2 part of the software engineering process and standard practice
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2009-10802-104-101 Q2 INL.indd 11 4/24/09 2:56:19 PM Test TechniquesCategory
Customize Your Chip Characterization with NI FlexRIO and LabVIEW FPGA
Figure 1. The NI 6581 adapter module cabled to an ADC evaluation board provides a flexible method of FPGA-based characterization.
As new semiconductors continue to push the boundaries of speed The final and highest-performance option is to use the NI FlexRIO and performance, engineers have turned to field-programmable gate Adapter Module Development Kit (MDK) to build a custom NI FlexRIO arrays (FPGAs) to perform increasingly customized and complex adapter module with the particular ADC in need of characterization. characterization tests. NI FlexRIO provides a commercial off-the-shelf With this approach, you have the advantage of a custom design (COTS) option for FPGA-based tests with NI LabVIEW FPGA graphical optimized for characterization with the tightest integration between programming, a PXI FPGA module, and customizable front-end I/O. the FPGA and ADC. For example, analog-to-digital converters (ADCs) can require such a After you develop an interface, the next step is to transfer and solution due to their high-speed interfaces that deliver large amounts analyze the data. While vendor-provided ADC evaluation boards of data for real-time analysis. By offering a total interface bandwidth commonly have small onboard memory limitations and low data of 8.25 GB/s to the FPGA, which can be configured as 132 single-ended bandwidth between the ADC and host computer, NI FlexRIO offers lines at 400 Mb/s or 66 differential lines at 1 Gb/s, NI FlexRIO helps 128 MB of onboard DRAM and 1.6 GB/s of memory bandwidth. It also engineers connect to and characterize a wide variety of serial and features DMA streaming on the PXI bus at rates in excess of 100 MB/s parallel component interfaces. for acquiring large data sets for user-defined characterization.
Gaining Physical Connectivity to Test Components There are three ways to gain physical connectivity between NI FlexRIO and a component such as an ADC. For the shortest time to measurement and the simplest interface, future adapter modules from NI will incorporate the latest and most popular ADCs from leading manufacturers, providing the easiest path to custom evaluation. Another option is to use a high-speed digital I/O adapter module such as the NI 6581 to cable to an ADC evaluation board, which offers access to the digital data output lines of the ADC, as shown in Figure 1. This has the advantage of versatility with a single adapter module capable of connecting to a variety of semiconductor devices. Figure 2. Using the deep onboard memory of NI FlexRIO and LabVIEW FPGA programming, you can perform accurate ADC phase noise measurements at a 100 Hz offset from a 10 MHz carrier.
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2009-10802-104-101 Q2 INL.indd 12 4/24/09 2:56:45 PM Figure 3. This LabVIEW FPGA code can determine when the ADC output transitions more than a set threshold. Such events are flagged and recorded to determine the BER of the ADC.
Acquiring Close-In Phase Noise Measurements sparkle codes is to apply a stimulus to an ADC that changes at a rate One ADC measurement that requires significant waveform size in of less than one least-significant bit (LSB) per sample. If the output addition to hundreds or thousands of waveforms is close-in phase code varies by more than the expected sum of Gaussian quantization noise. You can perform this measurement by capturing a record of a and other sources of noise, this point is flagged as a sparkle code. single tone sinusoid near the full-scale range of the ADC. Then, convert You can determine the effective bit error rate (BER) of the ADC using the waveform data into the frequency domain, take an average of the FPGA to flag and accumulate these occurrences throughout several multiple frequency domain measurements for greater statistical hours or days. confidence, and calculate the close-in phase noise as the amplitude of To augment the custom test capabilities of NI FlexRIO, the PXI the signal at a small offset from the fundamental tone, usually specified platform offers a variety of standard instruments for characterizing at 100 Hz and 1, 10, and 100 kHz. One challenge in performing this test ADCs such as power supplies, digital multimeters, and arbitrary is that measuring small frequency offsets from the fundamental tone waveform generators that can be synchronized and triggered on the requires high frequency-domain resolution, and thus long acquisitions. PXI backplane to increase test accuracy. When programmed with For example, to measure the 100 Hz offset phase noise with 10 Hz LabVIEW and LabVIEW FPGA, these systems can automate the same frequency resolution, you must acquire 1/10 Hz (or 100 ms) of data. evaluation tests across multiple ADCs to help ensure measurement This equals 20 MB of data for a 16-bit 100 MS/s ADC – much more repeatability as well as development efficiency. than the amount of memory available on most evaluation boards. To accommodate this test, you can employ the deep memory and – Ryan Verret [email protected] high-throughput custom interface of NI FlexRIO. Ryan Verret is a product manager for NI signal generators and FPGA-enabled products for test applications at National Instruments. Calculating ADC Bit Error Rate He holds bachelor’s and master’s degrees in electrical engineering While you can accommodate some ADC tests with lots of memory from Rice University. and high-throughput data transfer to a host PC, others require quick data processing. Programming an NI FlexRIO FPGA module with – Travis White [email protected] LabVIEW FPGA provides an intuitive method to meet these Travis White is a product manager for modular instrumentation requirements. For example, the noise-induced instability of an ADC at National Instruments. He holds a bachelor’s degree in electrical can sometimes produce a large error in the output code, often referred engineering from Rice University. to as a “sparkle code.” Due to their sporadic nature and relative infrequency, characterizing the probability of sparkle codes in the To discuss additional measurement techniques with the NI FlexRIO output of an ADC is a time-consuming task that must be performed in community, visit ni.com/info and enter nsi9206. hardware and, most often, on an FPGA. A common method to test for
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2009-10802-104-101 Q2 INL.indd 13 4/24/09 2:56:45 PM NI in AcademiaCategory
Lunacy Challenge Incorporates CompactRIO at FIRST Championship The energy and excitement was overwhelming as 10,000 students and their robots converged on the Georgia Dome floor April 15–18. Students, mentors, and parents traveled from every U.S. state and more than 50 countries to participate in the 2009 FIRST (For Inspiration and Recognition of Science and Technology) Robotics Competition Championship. This year, the high school participants in the varsity-level competition built their 130 lb robots using the NI CompactRIO embedded controller as the “brain” for their robotic inventions. The challenge, called “Lunacy,” tasked students with maneuvering a robot pulling a trailer on a nearly frictionless playing surface. Teams implemented complex vision processing, traction control, fine motor control, A robot shoots soccer balls into a net during a previous FIRST competition. proportional integral derivative (PID) algorithms, and autonomous Students are tasked with solving real-world challenges through robotics. control that resulted in a variety of nimble robots with ingenious designs. Creative engineering and problem solving were on display as the teams’ ruggedness, and hot-swappable industrial I/O modules. Programs robots careened around the playing field. FIRST continues to inspire and such as FIRST offer students the opportunity to experience real-world motivate high school students to solve a difficult engineering problem engineering and a way to learn about math and science. National while displaying teamwork and professionalism. Instruments maintains that students are the innovators of tomorrow, The CompactRIO controller provided every team with powerful, and the company helps develop the necessary technology for effective, industry-standard technology based on the NI LabVIEW graphical hands-on learning efforts that engage and inspire students. system design platform. The hardware system includes a 2M gate Xilinx field-programmable gate array (FPGA), a Freescale PowerPC processor, To see a complete review of this year’s competition, including flexible and reprogrammable I/O, and a rugged form factor. The system videos and footage from the Georgia Dome, visit ni.com/info and combines an open, embedded architecture with small size, extreme enter nsi9207.
Get Introduced to NI Software with New Textbooks
Hands-On Introduction to LabVIEW Circuits for Scientists and Engineers Fawwaz Ulaby and Michel M. Maharbiz National Technology and Science Press John Essick Oxford University Press Circuits incorporates NI Multisim software and Hands-On Introduction to LabVIEW for Scientists provides a set of timeless principles, problem-solving and Engineers takes a learn-by-doing approach to techniques, and a foundation for subsequent studies. developing computer-based skills for daily experimental work. Ideal as a course This new text employs the same concise explanations that characterize the textbook or as a self-study supplement, the text explores practical programming senior author’s textbooks on electromagnetics, which have been adopted by solutions for interesting and relevant projects using NI LabVIEW software. more than 100 universities in the United States and by a comparable number At $29.95 USD, this is one of the most affordable LabVIEW books available. of international universities.
To learn more about this textbook, visit ni.com/info and To adopt this textbook for your course, visit ni.com/info enter nsi9208. and enter nsi9209.
14 Q2 2009
2009-10802-104-101 Q2 INL.indd 14 4/24/09 2:56:49 PM CategoryLabVIEW Everywhere
Did You Know LabVIEW Could Convert Your PC or SBC into a Real-Time System? Chances are you already own your application over Ethernet to LabVIEW Graphical Programming a PC that can serve as your next Create reliable, deterministic run with absolute reliability on applications using the same intuitive reliable deterministic test or graphical programming approach the real-time system. While
control system, and this PC is Seamless Migration your application runs, you can Migrate to PXI with minimal code most likely running a general- changes due to consistent driver APIs continue to interact with the front Development Machine Real-Time Target between NI PCI and PXI hardware purpose OS, such as a Microsoft panel and block diagram to debug + + ® Breadth of I/O Windows or Linux OS. These Use a wide variety of supported the application with controls, PCI-based measurement devices OSs provide an effective platform indicators, execution highlighting,
for developing and running your Multicore probes, and breakpoints. For Take advantage of multicore noncritical applications but fail performance with symmetrical deployment, you can configure multiprocessing (SMP) to meet the requirements for critical applications to run headless when applications, such as machine Value your real-time system is powered, Purchase low-cost hardware for control or extended duration tests. use as a LabVIEW Real-Time target and optionally take advantage Such OSs are also optimized to of the embedded Web server run a variety of applications Using the NI LabVIEW Real-Time Module, you can convert an existing PC or SBC to access your application from simultaneously, ensuring that all into a reliable, deterministic real-time system. any Web browser. applications receive some processing time. As a result, the system is unable to differentiate between Take Advantage of I/O Support high-priority tasks and lower ones, making it impossible to guarantee The LabVIEW Real-Time environment works with a wide variety of PCI a response time for your critical applications. In contrast, real-time I/O from National Instruments, so you can avoid the time and cost of OSs give you the ability to prioritize tasks so that the most critical task integrating I/O yourself. PCs normally offer at least three PCI slots for always takes control of the processor when needed, guaranteeing use with I/O boards, which is sufficient for many applications. LabVIEW reliable, predictable execution. for Windows applications that use PCI boards such as multifunction data Using the NI LabVIEW Real-Time Module, you can convert a acquisition, field-programmable gate array (FPGA)-based reconfigurable compatible PC or single-board computer (SBC) into dedicated hardware I/O, or high-accuracy modular instruments, can seamlessly migrate to a running a real-time OS. With a free utility from ni.com, you can quickly PC running LabVIEW Real-Time, as shown in the figure. verify system compatibility via a USB or floppy drive. Prototyping your next real-time system on a PC or SBC provides a flexible, low-cost option with the ability to work with hardware from Gain Efficiency Running Real-Time Applications multiple vendors. Finish your projects faster with intuitive graphical Within the LabVIEW Real-Time environment, you can develop development and a variety of I/O drivers from National Instruments. applications with the same intuitive graphical programming approach as you use for LabVIEW software on the desktop. At run time, send To validate your PC or SBC and download a free 30-day trial of LabVIEW Real-Time, visit ni.com/info and enter nsi9210.
Get the Inside Scoop with “The LabVIEW Dude”
Do you want to know what National Instruments developers are doing with LabVIEW, how they are doing it, and where LabVIEW is going next? Read Inside LabVIEW, the latest software blog written by John Pasquarette, NI vice president of software marketing – “The LabVIEW Dude” – for valuable insight on the current state and future of graphical programming.
To check out his blog, visit ni.com/info and enter nsi9211.
Linux® is the registered trademark of Linus Torvalds in the U.S. and other countries. 888 279 9833 ni.com 15
2009-10802-104-101 Q2 INL.indd 15 4/24/09 2:56:56 PM SpecialCategory Focus
Virtual Instrumentation Helps Engineers Upgrade Infrastructure To meet the transportation and energy needs of tomorrow, engineers must develop intelligent methods to efficiently test and monitor physical structures and energy grids. Throughout the world, National Instruments customers are using virtual instrumentation to develop smarter equipment that improves the safety and efficiency of infrastructures.
Structural Health Monitoring – Address Aging Infrastructure Smart Grids – Get More from the Same Lump of Coal Currently, one in four bridges in the United States is classified as According to the annual review by the U.S. Department of Energy, structurally deficient or functionally obsolete, and the total estimated the United States alone consumed more than 100 quadrillion British cost of needed repairs and upgrades for the nation’s infrastructure is thermal units (Btu) of energy in 2007. The majority of this kind of energy $2.2 trillion USD, according to a recent report by the American Society is consumed a significant distance away from the place of production, of Civil Engineers (ASCE). and the efficiency of the grid carrying the energy used for electric power Increasingly, structural and civil engineers are turning to sensors and can have a huge financial and environmental impact. By measuring and instrumentation technology to monitor actual stresses, movements, and monitoring transmission status along the grid, utility companies and dynamics, including sensing defects such as cracks and corrosion. Such municipalities can ensure a higher level of transmission efficiency, thereby structural health monitoring systems help engineers better understand saving massive amounts of energy, money, and environmental resources. the condition of large and complex structures, monitor their real-time Today, several NI customers are working on solutions for the energy operation, and better predict their performance and safety. problems of tomorrow. Practical, wide-scale deployment of structural health monitoring systems Texas A&M University researchers have developed distribution fault requires the convergence of modern instrumentation and communication anticipation technology to detect grid problems such as faulty switches, technologies, reliable and rugged mechanicals, and software for intelligent cables, or even vegetation intrusion based on electrical signatures, and are data processing and management. Structural engineers are implementing investigating the implementation of this technology on the CompactRIO such systems today, using NI CompactRIO, combined with NI LabVIEW platform. By distributing these instruments, engineers can, in theory, graphical programming and NI DIAdem data management software, in detect faults and precursors to faults. bridges, stadiums, dams, and other structures.
CompactRIO Provides the Ideal Hardware Platform
Engineers and scientists are using CompactRIO hardware as a low-cost reconfigurable control and acquisition system designed for both structural health monitoring and smart grid applications requiring high performance and reliability. This programmable automation controller (PAC), powered by field-programmable gate array (FPGA) technology, combines an open embedded architecture with hot-swappable industrial I/O modules and is ideal for harsh conditions.
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2009-10802-104-101 Q2 INL.indd 16 4/24/09 2:56:59 PM Virtual Instrumentation Applied with CompactRIO
Monitoring the Olympic Stadium in China NI customers have been monitoring some of the recently constructed megastructures in China, including the 2008 Summer Olympic venues in Beijing, the 104-story World Trade Center in Shanghai, and the 8,266 m cable-stayed bridge in Shantou. For these projects, CGM Engineering, a California-based company, used a solution featuring CompactRIO hardware and LabVIEW software. The objective of this instrumentation project was to develop a state-of-the-art solution to monitor structural health characteristics – including stability, reliability, and livability – in real time by using contemporary computing and communication technology.
To view more information on infrastructure technologies, visit ni.com/info and enter nsi9212.
‘‘We deployed an embedded monitoring system with unmatched competitive accuracy, price, and flexibility by using LabVIEW and CompactRIO as the computing platform.’’ – Chris McDonald, Vice President, CGM Engineering
Analyzing Power Quality For online monitoring and analysis of power quality, ELCOM, a company specializing in system-level solutions, has created a virtual instrument built on LabVIEW and NI dynamic signal analysis hardware. These nodes perform functions such as fast Fourier transform (FFT) analysis, energy monitoring, flicker analysis, and transient recording. The virtual instrumentation approach helped ELCOM to quickly develop and test its own algorithms as well as deploy on an easily expandable hardware platform.
To view more information on power grids, visit ni.com/info and enter nsi9213.
‘‘We continue to use the power and performance of PC technology and NI products to implement more time-demanding advanced signal processing algorithms.’’ – Petr Bilik, Manager, ELCOM
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2009-10802-104-101 Q2 INL.indd 17 4/24/09 2:57:08 PM Product CategoryIn-Depth
New Suite of Embedded I/O Modules for NI Single-Board RIO National Instruments recently released 15 I/O modules that expand so you can add measurement quality I/O to your application by the measurement communication capabilities of NI Single-Board RIO plugging any combination of the new modules directly into the embedded control and data acquisition (DAQ) devices. Combining the three I/O expansion ports on NI Single-Board RIO devices. The entire reconfigurable I/O (RIO) architecture – composed of an embedded 15 modules include three-channel, 300 V analog input; four-port real-time processor, reconfigurable field-programmable gate array RS485/RS422 four-channel, 24-bit bridge/strain; and four-channel, (FPGA), and analog and digital I/O – on a single 24-bit universal modules. printed circuit board (PCB), NI Single-Board RIO Because NI Single-Board RIO is devices are ideal for applications that require built on the same RIO architecture as flexibility, high performance, and reliability NI CompactRIO modular systems, you in a small form factor. You can integrate the can design and prototype your applications 15 new embedded NI C Series modules on CompactRIO and then deploy your with NI Single-Board RIO devices to add higher-volume production systems to advanced capabilities for applications such the lower-cost CompactRIO integrated as high-voltage power quality monitoring, system or NI Single-Board RIO devices. high-resolution voltage and current data logging, and strain monitoring. To view specifications for all the new New embedded C Series I/O modules provide advanced The new embedded C Series modules measurement and communication capabilities such as embedded C Series modules, visit are based on packaged C Series modules, high-voltage monitoring and RS485/RS422 communication. ni.com/info and enter nsi9214. Explore RF IP for LabVIEW FPGA on NI Labs The LabVIEW FPGA RF Communication Library 2.0 on NI Labs has a includes fractional resample, phase-shift keying (PSK) modulators and set of fixed-point field-programmable gate array (FPGA) intellectual demodulators; a Reed-Solomon encoder and decoder; a Viterbi decoder; property (IP) written in the NI LabVIEW FPGA to handle high data rates and utility blocks. The blocks complement the already rich set of RF IP and streaming applications in RF and communications. The library in the NI Modulation Toolkit for multicore host processors by adding support to implement key RF building blocks on an FPGA. Although you can use these blocks on any NI FPGA- based hardware, the most applicable hardware with I/O for implementing software-defined radio applications is the new NI PXIe-5641R IF transceiver, featuring two channels of intermediate frequency (IF) inputs and outputs with a user-programmable FPGA for processing. The Xilinx Virtex-5 SX95T FPGA on this hardware is specifically tailored for complex RF and DSP applications with 640 multipliers, 14,000 slices, and 100,000 logic cells.
To explore IP for LabVIEW FPGA in the RF and communications library and provide your feedback, These VIs show a complete receiver channel implemented in the FPGA. Filtering, timing, recovery, demodulation, and channel decoding take the downconverted I and Q data to a decoded received stream. visit ni.com/info and enter nsi9215.
18 Q2 2009
2009-10802-104-101 Q2 INL.indd 18 4/24/09 2:57:19 PM CategoryProduct In-Depth
Simulating a Wind Power System
One of the latest evolutions in wind power turbines is the use By using NI LabVIEW software and the LabVIEW Control Design of doubly fed induction generators (DFIGs), which are increasing and Simulation Module, researchers can implement a full wind system in popularity due to their ability to work on high-torque, simulator including the wind turbine, mechanical drive train, generator, variable speed conditions. Compared to power grid, and controller. The simulation fixed-speed wind turbines or permanent framework provides a suitable numerical magnet generator-based speed systems, simulation environment for a testing system DFIGs offer several benefits: the capability that would otherwise be too expensive to to work on different speeds, a smaller size build. It also offers the capability to analyze and lower cost compared to a permanent the interactions between hybrid mechanical- magnetic generator, and the power electrical systems, and it gives users the electronics ability to partially transfer power to model so they can improve their a section of the power generated. The models with high-fidelity effects such as simulation of these systems is important deep-bar induction generators and more to analyze the effect of a large wind farm complex drive-train models. on the grid, as in the case of Denmark, where the energy from wind is projected To explore key concepts and other control By using LabVIEW as the design environment, users can to be more than 25 percent of total easily move their software simulations to hardware-in-the-loop methods for wind turbine systems, visit energy use. (HIL) testing applications without having to generate code. ni.com/info and enter nsi9216.
Sound Quality Algorithms Optimize NVH Applications To better understand how sounds from design engineers. Example applications turbines, motors, and other mechanical of these algorithms in the automotive systems affect humans, engineers have noise, vibration, and harshness (NVH) been taking acoustical measurements for industry include designing an engine decades in industries such as automotive with a more pleasing sound or creating and aerodynamics. Until recently, the a door handle with a more soothing analysis performed on those measurements click. Sound quality algorithms are also has been quite simple – sound-pressure applicable in the production of consumer level, octave analysis, fast Fourier transform electronics. These algorithms offer (FFT), and basic weighting filters. While engineers the tools they need to design these algorithms reveal the decibel level a better sounding product, increasing New sound quality algorithms help engineers measure or frequency content of a signal, they do psychoacoustical, physical, and cognitive aspects. the chances of consumer adoption. not pinpoint several important phenomena These sound quality algorithms, that determine their desirability to the human ear. To move including ISO 532B Stationary Loudness, Time-Varying Loudness, Aures beyond simple noise-level measurements to practical environmental Roughness, Aures Sharpness, Aures Tonality, and Fluctuation Strength, noise measurements, acoustic engineers have developed sound quality are now available in the NI Sound and Vibration Measurement Suite. algorithms to better explain how the human ear perceives sound. These algorithms combine the psychoacoustical, physical, and To read more about each of these sound quality algorithms, visit cognitive aspects of sound to offer new performance metrics to ni.com/info and enter nsi9217.
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2009-10802-104-101 Q2 INL.indd 19 4/24/09 2:57:20 PM Product CategoryIn-Depth
New In-Chassis High-Speed Data Streaming Module for PXI Express Many test and measurement applications in the consumer electronics, and provides hard-disk and solid-state drive options. A PXI Express automotive, semiconductor, and telecommunication industries require system including this module with solid-state drives delivers a real-time data streaming to and from disk at high data rates. This is high-speed data streaming solution capable of withstanding high usually necessary for streaming data from either a small set of operational shock and vibration. This feature is crucial for applications high-speed data channels or a large set of that require in-field testing or off-air signal lower-speed data channels. In addition to recording. Previously, this functionality streaming data at high rates, many of these was available only with expensive, applications need a solution that is rugged, custom data recording systems. With portable, and compact in size. the NI 8260, NI now offers a low-cost To address these needs, National commercial off-the-shelf high-speed data Instruments now offers the NI 8260, an streaming solution for rugged, portable, in-chassis high-speed storage module for and compact systems. PXI Express systems with data streaming capabilities at 200 MB/s with up to 1 TB To view specifications and pricing information for the NI 8260, visit of total storage space. The NI 8260 holds The NI 8260 provides an in-chassis storage option for compact, up to four 2.5 in. serial ATA (SATA) drives portable high-speed data streaming applications. ni.com/info and enter nsi9218. NI AudioMASTER Adds S/PDIF Digital Audio Test Capabilities
NI AudioMASTER is a set of analog and digital audio solutions sampling frequencies from 22 to 192 kHz. For AC-3, it works with based on NI TestStand software for validation and production test. up to 5.1 channel configurations with five channels representing NI AudioMASTER 6.0 features S/PDIF capability using an NI 7813R right front, center, left front, right rear, and left rear, plus one low- R Series device and the new NI CB-2180 digital audio accessory. frequency effect (LFE) channel. The CB-2180 digital audio accessory You can use the software to analyze S/PDIF signals encoded in linear provides two inputs, each with a selectable BNC for coaxial or pulse code modulation (PCM) or AC-3. For linear PCM, it supports TOSLINK for optical connection. You can connect up to four CB-2180 two-channel formats with eight, 16, 20, or 24 bits per sample and accessories to an NI 7813R device for a total of eight S/PDIF inputs, which simplifies the fixture required for multidevice test. In addition, NI AudioMASTER 6.0 offers analog audio testing capability with NI 446x dynamic signal analysis devices, which provide 24-bit resolution and sample rates up to 204.8 kS/s. The software features measurements using single tone, multitone, amplitude sweep, frequency sweep, and step-response analysis. These combinations deliver ideal audio test solutions for devices ranging from set-top boxes and media players to headphones and loudspeakers.
To view specifications and pricing information for NI AudioMASTER offers solutions for analog and digital audio test. NI AudioMASTER 6.0, visit ni.com/info and enter nsi9219.
20 Q2 2009
2009-10802-104-101 Q2 INL.indd 20 4/29/09 2:50:01 PM CategoryProduct In-Depth
NI RF PXI Platform Expands with New GPS Simulation Toolkit The NI GPS Simulation Toolkit 1.5 for LabVIEW expands the Extended Simulation Time NI RF PXI platform to provide a high-performance solution for The GPS Simulation Toolkit gives you the ability to create waveforms global positioning system (GPS) receiver testing that exceeds the with up to 24 hours of non-repeating GPS satellite signals for capabilities of traditional box instruments. Take advantage of new extended reliability testing and superior control over signal impairments satellite simulation features including extended time duration of introduced during design verification tests. This allows for targeted and non-repeating GPS satellite signals and the ability to customize isolated troubleshooting to improve and verify your GPS receiver design. motion profiles for mobile receiver tests. Additionally, you can adjust individual satellite signal powers during signal generation for dynamic range and scenario-specific tests. Scenario-Specific Testing With the latest version of the toolkit, Repeatable and Isolated you have access to an easy-to-use GPS Receiver Test graphical API for validating and testing This toolkit is part of the NI RF GPS receivers. You can simulate C/A PXI platform for GPS simulation codes for up to 12 satellites in the and test, which also includes the L1 band. The toolkit also adds new NI PXIe-5672/73 vector signal generator, capabilities for generating custom NI 8260 in-chassis RAID hard drive, motion trajectories, to help you NI PXIe-8106 dual-core controller, simulate the signals that GPS receivers and NI PXIe-1062Q 8-slot chassis. capture on specific routes. With the ability to simulate these signals using Using the GPS Simulation Toolkit, you can create custom To view a two-minute demonstration software-defined instrumentation, you LabVIEW software to meet your application needs and incorporate video on the toolkit, visit ni.com/info real-time GPS receiver feedback into your test solution. can achieve customized and repeatable and enter nsi9220. tests featuring route-specific signals without performing expensive drive tests. NI Software Grant Funds Medical Device Development NI Issues Inaugural Corporate Citizenship Report Because small, entrepreneurial medical technology companies National Instruments reports its 2008 have developed many of national instruments 2008 Citizenship summary corporate citizenship performance and the medical technology states 2009 goals in the company’s advancements throughout the first citizenship report, available on past 20 years, NI has created ni.com/citizenship. The report outlines a grant program that will award up to $25,000 USD in software how NI maintains an innovative and training to as many as 40 selected start-up medical corporate culture, provides tools that device companies that are evaluating NI hardware, such as empower customers to improve the NI CompactRIO, as a component of their medical devices. world, works to reduce its environmental footprint, and helps improve local communities. To submit your application to the National Instruments Medical Device Grant Program, visit ni.com/info and To view the report online, visit ni.com/info and enter nsi9221. enter nsi9222.
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2009-10802-104-101 Q2 INL.indd 21 4/24/09 2:57:45 PM Product CategoryIn-Depth
Bring Classroom Theory to Life with NI ELVIS II+ and Plug-In Boards Connecting theory to real-world from NI ELVIS inside the applications in an engaging way has NI Multisim capture-and-simulation always been a challenge for educators. environment. This platform can With the NI Educational Laboratory Virtual also extend your lab beyond Instrumentation Suite (NI ELVIS) design measurements and circuits and prototyping platform, educators with NI ELVIS plug-in boards and worldwide are bringing theory to life courseware from third parties through hands-on, project-based learning. including Emona Instruments, National Instruments is extending the Freescale Semiconductor, and
NI ELVIS family, with NI ELVIS II+, which NI ELVIS II+ continues to provide a hands-on learning Quanser to teach telecommunications, features a 100 MS/s oscilloscope. The platform for students and includes a 100 MS/s oscilloscope. microcontrollers, and control design. 20 MHz optional filter, vertical offsets, Explore digital electronics with a and horizontal triggering on this new platform make it easier for new plug-in board from National Instruments, which takes advantage students to explore high-frequency components in the frequency of a Xilinx Spartan-3E field-programmable gate array (FPGA). domain, characterize circuits, and investigate rise times. NI ELVIS II+ continues to be an integral part of the NI electronics To take a guided tour of the NI ELVIS platform, visit ni.com/info education platform, combining simulation and measurements and enter nsi9223. New NI Digital Electronics FPGA Board Connects to NI ELVIS Educators can teach digital design concepts to all engineering the NI Educational Laboratory Virtual Instrumentation Suite (NI ELVIS) majors, from electrical engineering to biomedical engineering, design and prototyping platform. Thus, students can take advantage with the new NI Digital Electronics FPGA Board. Powered by of the comprehensive suite of 12 instruments to build real-world test NI LabVIEW and LabVIEW FPGA Module benches for testing their applications on software and programmable with Xilinx ISE the field-programmable gate array (FPGA). tools, the NI Digital Electronics FPGA Board Because users can program the board with the can be used to teach digital design concepts, LabVIEW and LabVIEW FPGA environments, ranging from basics, such as combinational even non-electrical engineering educators can and sequential circuits, to advanced concepts, take advantage of this board to teach digital such as designing an arithmetic logic unit design concepts with the intuitive, graphical and building test benches. For electrical system design paradigm of LabVIEW. The engineering classes involving VHDL/Verilog, board also comes with prewritten curriculum students can reuse the curriculum for use with both the Xilinx ISE tools and with the Xilinx ISE tools and target LabVIEW, and the labs include sections the NI Digital Electronics FPGA Board showing how to use NI ELVIS to build test to avoid doing any extra work. benches for the experiments. In addition to being programmable Users can program the NI Digital Electronics with Xilinx ISE tools, the NI Digital FPGA Board with the LabVIEW and To download sample experiments, visit Electronics FPGA Board connects to LabVIEW FPGA environments. ni.com/info and enter nsi9224.
22 Q2 2009
2009-10802-104-101 Q2 INL.indd 22 4/24/09 2:57:49 PM CategoryServices and Support
On-Demand Training Offers Free Self-Paced Learning Options Increase your NI hardware and software application development skills with the National Instruments on-demand training program. On-demand training is an ongoing series of self-paced e-learning modules that are exclusively available for free to software maintenance program members. These training modules cover a wide range of subjects including hardware and software features, application areas, and development best practices. Each on-demand training module lasts about 15 minutes with a written script of the instructor’s dialogue to help you follow along. Quiz questions are included in each module to test your retention of the material. In addition, most modules feature a demonstration and exercise to help you practice Take advantage of training without the travel expenses with National Instruments on-demand training. the concepts learned. National Instruments is expanding its on-demand training On-demand training is included with NI software maintenance library and has recently released more than 15 new training modules. programs, such as the Standard Service Program (SSP). Software One newly released module, titled “Importing External Code to LabVIEW maintenance programs also help you stay up-to-date on the latest FPGA Using CLIP,” gives an overview of Component-Level Intellectual technology through software updates and maintenance releases Property (CLIP) and teaches you how to incorporate the CLIP Node into and save time with direct access to technical support from NI your LabVIEW FPGA Project. Another recently released series of modules applications engineers. All customers automatically receive a is the NI TestStand Advanced Architecture Series, which includes two one-year SSP membership with the purchase of most NI application different modules covering the process module, granularity, and other software including NI Developer Suite. important factors in sequence structure in NI TestStand. An exercise is included to help you explore the results of customizing and overriding To view on-demand training modules, visit ni.com/info and a callback in NI TestStand. enter nsi9225.
NI Launches Series of Three New On-Demand On-Demand Modules Training Modules in the SRC A series consists of multiple related on-demand modules bundled View these new training modules in the Services together. View these series in the Services Resource Center:
Resource Center: ■■ NI TestStand Advanced Architecture Series
■■ Importing External Code to LabVIEW FPGA Using CLIP ■■ Understanding Motion Series
■■ Dynamic Signal Acquisition and Sensor Specifications ■■ IVI Drivers Series
■■ TestStand Expressions ■■ LabVIEW Control Design Basics Series
To access on-demand training for these and other courses, To access on-demand training for these and other courses, visit ni.com/info and enter nsi9226. visit ni.com/info and enter nsi9227.
888 279 9833 ni.com 23
2009-10802-104-101 Q2 INL.indd 23 4/24/09 2:58:13 PM Developer’sCategory View
How to Integrate Your Tools into the LabVIEW Environment As NI LabVIEW has expanded throughout the years, engineers have applied the software to new domains, leading many developers to create LabVIEW add-ons that plug into the LabVIEW platform. These add-ons range from custom steps in NI TestStand, to aerospace toolkits for LabVIEW, to field-programmable 1 Engage NI Application Process gate array (FPGA) intellectual property (IP) function blocks. Business Best Practices The add-ons are either sold from third parties or offered freely to other members in the LabVIEW community. To streamline the development of add-ons and help selected NI collaborators more effectively market their 5 Provide Feedback 2 Develop Your Product Feature Request Submission Technical Resources tools, National Instruments has created a process for Notification of Technical Issues Technical APIs from NI engaging the company and developing tools. If you have Product Certification such a tool or an idea for a tool that you would like to integrate with LabVIEW, keep in mind the following recommended processes.
Work with NI 4 Deliver Product 3 Market Your Product Before getting into the technical details, take a look at the Customer Experience Web Page following five steps for engaging NI in tool development. Install Process Data Sheet Download/Eval NIWeek Strategy
1. Engage NI – Whether you are a National Instruments Alliance Partner or working with NI for the first time, the Figure 1. Use this flowchart as a step-by-step process for involving NI on developing a tool. first step is to connect with NI and find resources to get your product development under way. (Read more details 3. Market Your Product – There are several ways to get the word under the “Take the Next Step” section of this article.) out about your new add-on. One way is through the LabVIEW Tools Network, which provides a marketplace to promote your products 2. Develop Your Product – From a technical perspective, this is to the LabVIEW community. Selected applicants whose tools the most critical step. To offer a seamless level of integration, meet certain requirements for code quality and documentation NI provides APIs you can use to plug into the environment. are identified under the Compatible with LabVIEW program on You can find more details on this step later in this article. this network.
A New Knight of NI
For the past decade, Christian Altenbach from UCLA has been programming with NI LabVIEW software. Already a member of the LabVIEW Champions program, Altenbach recently reached another milestone when he posted for the 10,000th time on the NI Discussion Forums, earning him the online status, “Knight of NI.”
To join Jeff Kodosky, the “Father of LabVIEW,” in congratulating and thanking Altenbach for his achievement, visit ni.com/info and enter nsi9229.
24 Q2 2009
2009-10802-104-101 Q2 INL.indd 24 4/29/09 2:52:32 PM Use Case No. 2: Build a Toolkit with a Collection of VIs A collection of VIs is perhaps the most common way for a collaborator to add value to the LabVIEW platform. For example, Connectivity many Alliance Partners have vertical expertise in domains such as automotive, industrial control, or RF/communications. With Toolkit VIs bundled into a sellable toolkit, these Alliance Partners can share expertise with a wide range of LabVIEW users who may LabVIEW Environment be outside their geographic regions. Examples of this type of integration include the following:
Software Services ■■ VI ■■ NI TestStand Custom Step
■■ FPGA IP ■■ Vision Builder Custom Step
Hardware Services ■■ Express VI ■■ DIAdem DataFinder Plug-In
Use Case No. 3: Customize the LabVIEW Experience This type of add-on directly modifies how the developer’s
Figure 2. There are many NI technologies for building an add-on. workflow looks when developing G code. This creates a more customized experience within the environment during code edit 4. Deliver Your Product – When using a LabVIEW tool, the customer time. NI is working to provide APIs that facilitate this type of add-on, experience should be a seamless integration, and NI is here including the following:
to help. Two important aspects include the install process and ■■ Project Provider ■■ Source Code Control
the download/evaluation process of a tool. ■■ LabVIEW Scripting (SCC) Plug-Ins
■■ Menus and Palettes 5. Provide Feedback to NI – Be sure to submit feature requests and notify NI of any technical issues you experienced while Take the Next Step developing your tool. If you have a toolkit idea or want to learn more, here are two easy ways to get started: Develop Your Tool Now that you have looked at the process for engaging NI, it is time to 1. Check out the LabVIEW add-on developer’s guide – Begin dive into the technical aspects of developing your tool – primarily, how to exploring technical resources to get you started and to read more use technologies in LabVIEW technical APIs from NI to build an add-on. in-depth information on the process.
Use Case No. 1: Connect LabVIEW to 2. Join the LabVIEW add-on developer network through the NI Another Stand-Alone Tool or Environment community – Connect with other LabVIEW users who build toolkits, Engineers who use LabVIEW oftentimes use other technical or business or post questions for LabVIEW R&D and NI applications engineers. tools as part of their daily jobs. For instance, the LabVIEW Report Generation Toolkit for Microsoft Office is an example of the connection – Jeff Meisel [email protected] between LabVIEW and Microsoft Office products. Similarly, LabVIEW Jeff Meisel is a product manager for LabVIEW add-on and SolidWorks software work together to bridge design and test. Most programs at National Instruments. He holds a bachelor’s of the functions required to implement such a connection are located degree in computer engineering from Kansas State University. within the LabVIEW palettes and include the following:
■■ Call Library Node, ■■ File I/O To join the LabVIEW add-on developer network through the
Code Interface Node ■■ TCP/IP NI community, visit ni.com/info and enter nsi9228.
■■ .NET ■■ Script Node
■■ Formula Node ■■ ActiveX/COM
888 279 9833 ni.com 25
2009-10802-104-101 Q2 INL.indd 25 4/24/09 2:58:21 PM InstrumentCategory Drivers
The Future of Instrument Control – The Software Is Still the Instrument The future of instrument control remains a hot topic in test and measurement. With so much investment tied up in test equipment and software, engineers and management teams alike are looking for reassurance that they have satisfied their testing needs for the present and the future. With this in mind, National Instruments is providing guidance on the future of instrument control. This article is a short excerpt of the complete, online article. Engineers are aware they may soon need to upgrade to Windows Vista or the impending release of Windows 7. The software development tool they choose will determine how their systems are affected. As the cross-platform Virtual Instrument Software Architecture (VISA) standard layer takes care of the hardware interaction and the low-level OS Figure 2. NI Spy is a powerful debugging tool that simplifies debugging hybrid systems. communication, these engineers should choose an application development environment (ADE) that seamlessly integrates with a Future Trends for Instrument Control Software regularly updated implementation of VISA. ■■ Less dependence on specific hardware – Software will continue
to abstract the hardware away from the test logic with user-defined
hardware abstraction layers building on the existing abstraction
provided by VISA, IVI, and plug-and-play instrument drivers.
■■ Continued importance of future-proof instrument drivers – A LabVIEW instrument driver created in 1995 still works today, unmodified, even when used with new bus technologies and within different OSs. The NI Instrument Driver Network (ni.com/idnet) houses more than 7,500 instrument drivers with hundreds more added each year by NI, third-party vendors, and end users.
■■ Debugging tools that simplify hybrid systems – Using a Figure 1. NI invests in preserving backward compatibility with future technologies, as shown with a LabVIEW instrument control demonstration running on a beta installation mix of equipment can yield cost-effective, high-performance of the upcoming Microsoft OS, Windows 7. test systems that are difficult to set up. Tools such as NI Measurement & Automation Explorer (MAX) and NI Spy NI develops NI-VISA alongside test-and-measurement-focused ADEs make debugging distributed, multivendor systems much easier. such as NI LabVIEW, LabWindows™/CVI, and Measurement Studio to ensure compatibility and ease of use for engineers, regardless of the No matter which new technologies emerge in the coming years, programming languages they choose. With planned annual releases, engineers can be sure that National Instruments will continue to these ADEs will support new OSs and technologies. Many application- provide the instrument control software necessary to take advantage centric or instrument-specific software tools have come and gone, but of technological advances while preserving the investment in existing LabVIEW and ANSI C remain popular choices among test engineers hardware and software. In the future, as in the past, one thing remains after more than 20 years of use. true – the software is the instrument.
To learn how NI software can help you control your instruments, visit ni.com/info and enter nsi9230.
The mark LabWindows is used under a license from Microsoft Corporation. 26 Q2 2009 Windows is a registered trademark of Microsoft Corporation in the United States and other countries.
2009-10802-104-101 Q2 INL.indd 26 4/24/09 2:58:23 PM CategoryWeb Connections
NI Labs Includes Pioneer Release of C Interface to LabVIEW FPGA
LabVIEW or C LabVIEW
Analog I/O
High-Speed PCI Bus Digital I/O + + Comm Protocols
Processor FPGA Custom I/O
C/C++ developers can now easily interface to NI FPGA-based hardware using the new C Interface to LabVIEW FPGA.
The pioneer release of C Interface to LabVIEW FPGA is available on NI Labs showcases the latest evolving technologies that are not NI Labs (ni.com/labs), the National Instruments virtual research lab. quite ready for release directly from the National Instruments R&D The C Interface to LabVIEW FPGA makes it easier for C/C++ developers department. The virtual research lab offers developers the chance to to take advantage of LabVIEW FPGA and NI reconfigurable I/O (RIO) download and work with cutting-edge tools and offer product feedback hardware, such as NI CompactRIO, NI FlexRIO, and NI R Series FPGA early in the design cycle. Previous NI Labs program graduates include I/O, for embedded control and acquisition applications. With the new the LabVIEW Adaptive Filter Toolkit and the Fixed-Point Math Library for C Interface to LabVIEW FPGA, developers can use NI LabVIEW graphical LabVIEW FPGA. Each NI Labs technology is bundled into a self-contained tools to program the field-programmable gate array (FPGA) within NI installer with documentation and examples. Developers can interact hardware and choose either LabVIEW or C/C++ tools to program the directly with the specific R&D team responsible for a pioneering processor within the system. This new LabVIEW FPGA feature offers technology through dedicated online forums. engineers and scientists with C expertise the ability to take advantage of FPGAs within their designs without the burden of learning hardware To download, evaluate, and discuss the pioneer C Interface to design while giving them the option to reuse their embedded C code. LabVIEW FPGA from NI Labs, visit ni.com/info and enter nsi9231. With the new C Interface to LabVIEW FPGA, engineers and scientists can program the real-time processor on NI FPGA-based hardware Top Five Ways to Stay Connected using C tools such as NI LabWindows™/CVI, Microsoft Visual Studio, or Wind River Workbench and interface to the LabVIEW FPGA code at ni.com/community running on the FPGA. Developers also can program the processor using the LabVIEW Real-Time Module, which includes tools for low-level 1. Download more than 1,000 example VIs. system debugging and precision execution timing for increased flexibility 2. Read NI LabVIEW software blogs written by NI R&D engineers. and functionality of deterministic real-time applications. The current pioneer release of the C Interface to LabVIEW FPGA 3. Join more than 50 online LabVIEW user groups. includes nearly all the same functionality as the LabVIEW host interface, 4. Find a new job in the LabVIEW Career Network. including the ability to read and write FPGA front panel controls, target-to-host and host-to-target DMA streaming, and IRQ assertion 5. Provide product feedback via polls and NI Labs. and acknowledgement. Periodic development updates to the C Interface to LabVIEW FPGA on NI Labs will be available on ni.com until this To find out more about staying connected, visit ni.com/info feature graduates into a released product. and enter nsi9232.
888 279 9833 ni.com 27
2009-10802-104-101 Q2 INL.indd 27 4/24/09 2:58:29 PM CaseCategory Studies
NASA Tests James Webb Telescope with LabVIEW FPGA
The Challenge The Solution Synchronizing the motion of a magnet moving more than 1 m/s Using the NI LabVIEW FPGA Module and an NI PXI-7813R with the opening and closing of tens of thousands of hair-sized reconfigurable I/O module to precisely and deterministically microelectromechanical system (MEMS) microshutters. pinpoint the position of the magnet and the proper outputs to control the MEMS microshutters in perfect synchronization.
The James Webb Space Telescope (JWST) is the next large telescope NASA will use for observing thousands of distant galaxies to research initial galaxy formations in the universe. To measure numerous faint objects, the instrument must simultaneously observe a large number of objects in previously unknown positions. To do this, NASA developed the microshutter array, a 171 by 365 matrix of 100 by 200 µm shutters that open under random access control and simultaneously target more than 100 faint objects. The microshutters must function reliably for up to 100,000 cycles on different shutter designs, and the control system needs to latch or release each of the 365 columns of the shutter array at the exact moment the magnet passes. In other words, consider each column of the shutter array as a 1 in. wide slat in a picket fence that is 30 ft long. The magnet is like a jet plane moving past the shutter at more than 700 mph only 3 ft away. To control the shutters, we have to communicate with the control electronics and custom high-voltage shift registers. The new system also needs to rapidly communicate and provide utilities to test and verify many operations of the support electronics. The system must be fail-safe and meet all of these requirements because the tests open and close the shutters 240 times per minute for days at a time. If the system loses synchronization, the shutters can quickly become damaged. To meet these requirements, NASA selected a A fully functional one-sixth scale model displays the JWST mirror in an optics test bed. PXI-7813R reconfigurable I/O module and the LabVIEW FPGA Module to perform shutter control, which saved hundreds of – Eric Lyness, Mink Hollow Systems, and man-hours and thousands of dollars over developing a custom David Rapchun and Knute Ray, NASA Goddard Space Flight Center chip. In addition to reducing costs, we can inexpensively modify the control algorithm to improve testing, explore shutter issues, To read about 10 essential technologies for high-performance and advance microshutter array development. motion control, visit ni.com/info and enter nsi9233.
28 Q2 2009
2009-10802-104-101 Q2 INL.indd 28 4/24/09 2:58:34 PM Case Studies
Optimizing Solar Panel Production
The Challenge The Solution Optimizing each stage of the solar panel production Using NI hardware and software to increase efficiency throughout and installation process from silicon purification to final the solar panel production process, from purifying silicon ore to installation and monitoring. manufacturing and testing the final product.
Sunlight is the most plentiful natural resource. Because the sun is not subject to the same supply limitations as fossil fuels and it is available nearly everywhere, it is being used as a free, clean source of renewable energy. Our engineers at Siliken Renewable Energy work to help harness this abundant resource and address escalating environmental and energy concerns. Siliken differs from other photovoltaic (PV) cell manufacturers because we handle all aspects of solar cell development from silicon purification to panel manufacturing and verification. NI products play an important role in our research and development to innovate and produce new technologies and to test every solar panel we produce. To purify the silicon for our PV cells, we use a novel purification process that is approximately 40 percent Siliken Renewable Energy is one of the world’s fastest-growing manufacturers of solar panels. cheaper than traditional methods. To further increase efficiency, we incorporated the NI PXI platform, the LabVIEW we were recognized for providing the best advertised-to-actual FPGA Module, and sound and vibration and vision software into our performance ratio for panel output. standard control equipment. With this highly integrated NI LabVIEW Additionally, we are researching other renewable energies, and PXI platform, we can conduct separate critical tasks during such as hydrogen fuel cells and wind power using CompactRIO and purification using a unified solution. NI CompactDAQ, because these platforms offer compelling operational After we put the PV cells in the panels, we use a PC-based advantages and shorter development times than other traditional system running LabVIEW and an NI PCI-6220 M Series data acquisition control and test tools. (DAQ) board to “close” the solar modules. We assemble the solar panels and perform I-V characterization tests to verify the power – Alberto Cortés and Ricardo Silla, output of every module to ensure each one produces the stated power. Siliken Renewable Energy Using NI CompactRIO, LabVIEW FPGA, and an NI PCI-6122 S Series multifunction DAQ board, we can perform these tests with greater To view a video of Siliken’s applications and learn more about accuracy and significantly increase our throughput. As a result, its development process, visit ni.com/info and enter nsi9234.
Connect to the Sweet Apps Blog
Do you want to see images and video of other interesting applications? Check out cool new projects and sweet applications the NI community is working on through the NI Sweet Apps Blog.
To access the blog, visit ni.com/info and enter nsi9235.
888 279 9833 ni.com 29
2009-10802-104-101 Q2 INL.indd 29 4/29/09 2:54:34 PM Product CategoryNetwork
LabVIEW Community Extends Support of New Protocols As engineers take NI LabVIEW software into new domains, a key Analog Protocols area of success for third parties creating LabVIEW toolkits is in the For RF and communications test applications, protocols make the development of intellectual property (IP) that adds new communication difference between being able to test the latest-generation designs protocols to LabVIEW. Engineers can apply their expertise in a vertical versus being left behind. ZigBee, WiMAX, and LTE are three industry or within an emerging technology area and provide that to such protocols. other LabVIEW developers. Digital Protocols For designs that use LabVIEW FPGA technology, engineers can easily Protocols implement digital protocols, such as I2C and SPI, on the fabric of the field-programmable gate array (FPGA) to twiddle the digital I/O pins Analog
ZigBee on the chip. WiMAX LTE Software Protocols One example of a software protocol is the Experimental Physics and Digital Industrial Control System (EPICS). EPICS is a software architecture for LabVIEW I2C SPI building distributed control systems to operate devices such as particle S/PDIF accelerators, telescopes, and other large experiments. For example, Cosylab developed an EPICS IO client for NI hardware platforms Software including CompactRIO and PXI. Ethernet Layer 01010101010101000100011110101010101 0 1 1 010101 Middleware .NET To view technical resources on developing protocol with LabVIEW or to deliver your protocol to the LabVIEW masses, visit ni.com/info and enter nsi9236.
Engineers can use a protocol to interface between two or more devices.
What Is a Protocol? A protocol is a software communication mechanism used to interface between two or more devices. A number of characteristics can be Five LabVIEW Add-Ons defined within a protocol: in the Spotlight ■■ Timing information
■■ Data characteristics 1. PDF Toolkit – Carya ■■ Deterministic versus nondeterministic behavior 2. CUDA Plug-In for Personal Supercomputing – NVIDIA LabVIEW includes many of the more common protocols, such as 3. UI Custom Controls Suite – National Instruments GPIB, serial, and USB, within the functions palettes. However, due to the vast breadth of protocols and complexity involved with each 4. Aerospace Toolkit – Advanced Technology Associates one, it is impossible to include all the protocols within the LabVIEW 5. Zbrain – Schmidt Engineering product. Luckily, third parties who specialize in different domains are filling in the gaps and providing these protocols to other LabVIEW To learn more about these and other LabVIEW add-ons, developers. This article focuses on three types of protocols: analog, visit ni.com/info and enter nsi9237. digital, and software.
30 Q2 2009
2009-10802-104-101 Q2 INL.indd 30 4/24/09 2:58:37 PM CategoryEvents
National Instruments RF and Communications Technology Forum The National Instruments RF and Communications Technology Forum trends driving today’s products and test requirements and discover is a free, half-day seminar led by industry experts in the RF, wireless, the latest strategies for RF test system development to minimize and communications fields. Learn about the costs and increase flexibility. Examples latest advances in RF with technical sessions of RF application areas covered that explore which tools engineers are using include RFID, WCDMA, WiMAX, to design, develop, and test emerging RF and ZigBee, IEEE 802.11, MIMO, and wireless communications products in the GPS. The forum runs through June rapidly growing and changing market. in 15 U.S. and Canadian cities. The forum includes a keynote discussing the industry trends driving new requirements To access more information on in wireless device design and test and the National Instruments RF and focuses on what these trends mean to Communications Technology Forum, Learn about the latest advances in RF with technical companies in this space. During the event, sessions and a keynote on new requirements in wireless visit ni.com/info and enter nsi9238. explore the wireless and communications device design and test. Attend the 2009 Virtual Automated Test Summit, Now Online Since 2004, National Instruments and other They will focus on the use of those leading test and measurement companies methods in five key application areas: have hosted the Automated Test Summit, aerospace and defense, RF and wireless, an online series of technical sessions audio and video, automotive, and focused on best practices in automated test. semiconductor test. Due to the growing demand for free View the 2009 Virtual Automated industry training on how to optimize the Test Summit live online on May 20 value and performance of automated test and get immediate access to all systems, at this year’s summit, more than presentations and technical resources. 15 test and measurement companies will present practical techniques to reduce the To view the agenda and log into View live keynotes and on-demand technical sessions, network cost of test by applying proven methods with fellow engineers, download technical resources, and discuss the event, visit ni.com/info and from the top trends in automated test. your application needs – all from your own desk. enter nsi9239.
NIWeek 2009 Early-Bird Registration Ends May 31
NIWeek 2009, the 15th annual worldwide graphical system design conference, is the ultimate event to receive in-depth technical training on NI product advancements and trends within the test, control, and design marketplace. The conference runs August 4–6, 2009, in Austin, Texas.
To secure early-bird registration and volume discount pricing, visit ni.com/info and enter nsi9240.
888 279 9833 ni.com 31
2009-10802-104-101 Q2 INL.indd 31 4/24/09 2:58:46 PM Address Service Requested
11500 N Mopac Expwy Austin, TX 78759-3504
Technology Outlook
Netbooks: Compact, Low-Cost Computing Since the introduction of laptops more than two decades ago, The new Atom processor provides respectable computing capabilities PC manufacturers have made great progress toward reducing for its low power; consumes less than 2.5 W, compared to the typical the size of computing devices by shrinking the standard laptop Intel Core Duo notebook processor requiring up to 30 W; and is tailored and introducing new platforms. However, many of the initial for casual computing needs such as Web browsing and word processing. attempts at ultramobile computing had either unusable Although not designed for processor-intensive computing such as battery life or crippling features such as underpowered 3D animation or video editing, netbooks can often meet the needs of processors and difficult-to-use interfaces, many data acquisition applications thus limiting their adoption. such as data logging, simple signal A new class of highly portable analysis, and portable measurements. computers dubbed as “netbooks” They can reduce the total cost of a overcome many of these shortcomings; measurement system and offer a small and at prices starting at less than and highly mobile form factor when $400 USD, they are the fastest- paired with a bus-powered USB data growing segment of the PC industry. acquisition device. Most netbooks offer an 8 to 10 in. widescreen, an Intel Atom x86 processor, To view performance benchmarks a Windows XP or Linux® OS, wireless and considerations for a netbook-
networking, and USB connectivity – Netbooks can lower the overall cost of a measurement system while based measurement system, visit all in one small package. delivering a highly mobile computing platform for virtual instrumentation. ni.com/info and enter nsi9241.
Newsletter Information and Resources Buy Online
■■ View recent newsletters in PDF format, newsletter archives, and other resources, or subscribe to the semimonthly NI e-mail newsletter, NI News, at ni.com/newsletter.
■■ For inquiries, subscription changes, requests for permission, or changes of address, e-mail the managing editor at [email protected]. ni.com/products 351201U-01 2009-10802-104-101-D
Linux® is the registered trademark of Linus Torvalds in the U.S. and other countries.
2009-10802-104-101 Q2 INL.indd 32 4/24/09 3:08:51 PM