|
We are looking for a smart and talented
system integrator with great LabVIEW and client skills to join our Buffalo-based
group. If you want to work with one of the best SI teams in the industry,
see
http://www.viewpointusa.com/careers.php#engineer
for details. Viewpoint was pleased to have been
asked by National Instruments to present two sessions at the recent
Cleveland NITS on using LabVIEW Real-Time (RT), VeriStand, and LabVIEW
FPGA for applications needing deterministic and reliable behavior for
critical control and measurement. The first presentation was titled “Making
the Move to LabVIEW Real-Time and LabVIEW FPGA Programming” and
reviewed RT capabilities and where RT should be applied. We also covered
LV FPGA (Field Programmable Gate Array), which enables hard (i.e., it
never fails) real-time behavior since the FPGA implements the LV code
in hardware. A major theme of the talk was that the development approaches
for LV RT and LV FPGA are quite different than LV under Windows. The
slide set can be downloaded here. The second presentation was titled “Hardware in the Loop and Real-Time Testing Techniques” and covered using VeriStand to integrate models and control algorithms for testing both the product and the product’s controller. Testing the product involves using an actual product controller or a version simulated in a model run in VeriStand. This mode is called Model in the Loop (MIL). Testing the product’s controller involves simulating the product via another model run in VeriStand. This mode is called Hardware in the Loop (HIL). VeriStand can accommodate models developed in LabVIEW, Simulink, MatrixX and other platforms. The slide set can be downloaded here. Viewpoint has extensive experience and credentials from NI in these development tools and techniques. There is no reason to try this alone if you are new the tools and environments. Contact us soon so we can help you with your project *before* you start. Cool VideoOK … so last month, we went to space with the video from NASA’s Dawn spacecraft around the Vesta asteroid. This month, we present some down-to-earth moving equipment doing a bit of gymnastics by putting a backhoe into a dump truck without a ramp! http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uwNICke69fg Last month I said that it’s amazing what humans can accomplish. I guess that’s true in space and on Earth. Thanks for reading!
Jim Campbell |
 Part 1: CLD-based LabVIEW Application Design Considerations
|
|
Last month kicked off a series covering preparation for becoming a Certified LabVIEW Associate Developer (CLAD) and Certified LabVIEW Developer (CLD), with emphasis on the CLD. The idea for this series came about since Viewpoint presents these topics at various LabVIEW User Group Meetings (LV UGMs). NI creates the CLD exams to demonstrate competency in application development using best practices, so knowing these practices (fluently!) is important in passing those exams. Even if you don’t want to take the CLD exam, these best practices are good to know even for everyday use. We will build an app as we go and files will be available for download. The test is not easy. Do not be cavalier. This series can help. Read on... |
|
The Entertainment System |
|
New York City was the launch pad for the Nintendo Entertainment System just in time for the holiday season on October 18, 1985. Even though it would not reach 100,000 sales that year, it gave retailers enough hope that this “toy” could replace the video game “fad” of the early 1980s. In 1983, the North American video game crash had bankrupted several technology companies and scared retailers. The primary cause of this crash was oversaturation of the market with low-quality games, resulting in the loss of consumer confidence. Market leader Atari eventually ended up burying 20 semi-trailer truckloads of unsold copies of its games and systems in a landfill in New Mexico. Nintendo redesigned the NES to conceal its “Game Paks” inside, and it came with a Robotic Operating Buddy and a Zapper. Even with these new features, Nintendo still had to guarantee to buy back any unsold consoles from retailers. While not an overwhelming success, the NES survived long enough to release its flag ship title, Super Mario Bros. By the end of 1986, Nintendo of America was a national brand and became the top selling console of the third generation of video game systems. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/History_of_the_Nintendo_Entertainment_System |
|
|
