Lesson 4

Implementing a VI

TOPICS
A. Front Panel Design G. Iterative Data Transfer
B. LabVIEW Data Types H. Plotting Data
C. Documenting Code I. Case Structures
D. While Loops
E. For Loops
F. Timing a VI

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A. Front Panel Design

• Inputs and outputs lead to front panel design

• Retrieve the inputs by the following methods:
− Acquiring from a device
− Reading directly from a file
− Manipulating controls
• Output data by the following methods:
− Displaying with indicators
− Logging to a file
− Outputting to a device

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A. Front Panel Design – Labels/Captions

• Labels – short descriptions

• Captions – long descriptions
• Captions do not appear on block diagram

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A. Front Panel Design – Color Tips

Start with a gray scheme

• Select one or two shades of gray
• Add highlight colors sparingly for important settings—on
plots, abort buttons, and the slider thumbs

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A. Front Panel Design – Spacing

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A. Front Panel Design – Text & Fonts
Bad Example

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A. Front Panel Design – Tab Controls
Use tab controls to
overlap front panel
controls and indicators
in a smaller area

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A. Front Panel Design – Decorations
• Use decorations to visually
group or separate objects on
a front panel with boxes, lines,
or arrows
• These objects are for
decoration only

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B. LabVIEW Data Types – Terminals

Terminals visually communicate information about the data

type represented

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B. LabVIEW Data Types – Numerics

• The numeric data type represents

numbers of various types
• To change the representation
of a numeric, right-click the
control, indicator, or constant,
and select Representation
from the shortcut menu

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B. LabVIEW Data Types – Boolean

• Behavior of Boolean controls is specified by the mechanical

action
• In LabVIEW, the Boolean
data type is represented
with the color green

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Mechanical Action of Booleans

Use the Mechanical Action of Booleans VI located in the NI

Example Finder to learn about the different switch and latch
actions.

DEMONSTRATION
B. Data Types – String

• A sequence of displayable or non-displayable

ASCII characters
• On the front panel, strings appear as tables,
text entry boxes, and labels
• Change the display type from the short-cut
menu: Normal, ‘\’ Codes, Password and Hex
• Edit and manipulate strings with the String functions on the
block diagram
• In LabVIEW, the string data type is represented with the
color pink

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B. Data Types – Enum

An enum
represents a
pair of values,
a string and a
numeric, where the
enum can be one
of a defined list of
values

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B. Data Types – Enum

• Enum: enumerated
control, constant, or
indicator
• Enums are useful because it is easier
to manipulate numbers than strings
on the block diagram

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B. Data Types – Dynamic

• Stores the information generated or acquired by an Express

VI
• Non-Express VIs do not accept the dynamic data type
− To use a built-in VI or function to analyze or process the
dynamic data type, you must convert the data type
− Numeric, waveform, or Boolean data indicators or inputs
automatically convert the dynamic data type when wired
• In LabVIEW, the dynamic data type is represented with the
color dark blue

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C. Documenting Code – Front Panels

• Tip Strips
• Descriptions
• VI Properties
• Good Design

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C. Documenting Code – Naming

Giving controls and indicators logical and descriptive names

adds usability to front panels

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C. Documenting Code – Block Diagram

• Use block diagram comments to:

− Describe algorithms
− Explain the data contents of wires
• Use the Labeling tool or place a
free label from the Functions
palette

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Configuring Your LabVIEW Environment

• Options Dialog Box

− Controls/Functions Palettes page
• Select Load palettes during launch to make Search Palettes
immediately usable after launch
• Set Palette to Category (Icons and Text)
− Block Diagram page
• Uncheck Place front panel terminals as icons to place control
and indicator terminals in a compact format
• Configure Block Diagram Cleanup to customize your block
diagram

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Configuring Your LabVIEW Environment

• Functions Palette
− Tack the Functions palette and select View»Change Visible
Categories then click Select All
• Controls Palette
− Tack the Controls palette and select View»Change Visible
Categories then click Select All

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Exercise 4-1
Determine Warnings VI

Create and document a VI.

GOAL
Exercise 4-1
Determine Warnings VI

• What happens if the Max. Temp value is lower than the Min.
Temp value?

DISCUSSION
D. While Loops

Repeat (code);
Until Condition met;
End;

LabVIEW While Loop Flowchart Pseudo Code

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D. While Loops

• Iteration terminal: returns number of times loop has

executed; zero indexed
• Conditional terminal: defines when the loop stops

Iteration Terminal Conditional Terminal

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D. While Loops – Tunnels

• Tunnels transfer data into and out of structures

• The tunnel adopts the color of the data type wired to the
tunnel
• Data pass out of a loop after the loop terminates
• When a tunnel
passes data into
a loop, the loop
executes only
after data arrive
at the tunnel

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D. While Loops - Error Checking and Error
Handling
Use an error cluster in a While Loop to stop the While Loop if
an error occurs

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Exercise 4-2
Auto Match VI

Use a While Loop and an iteration terminal and pass data

through a tunnel.
GOAL
Exercise 4-2
Auto Match VI

• How many times is the # of iterations indicator updated?

Why?

DISCUSSION
E. For Loops

N=100;
i=0;
Until i=N:
Repeat (code;i=i+1);
End;

LabVIEW For Loop Flowchart Pseudo Code

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E. For Loops

• Create a For Loop the same way you create a While Loop
• If you need to replace an existing While Loop with a For
Loop, right-click the border of the While Loop, and select
Replace with For Loop from the shortcut menu
• The value in the count terminal (an input terminal)
indicates how many times to repeat the subdiagram

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E. For Loops – Conditional Terminal

You can add a conditional terminal to configure a For Loop to

stop when a Boolean condition or an error occurs

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E. For Loops – Conditional Terminal

For Loops configured for a conditional exit have:

Red glyph next to the count terminal
Conditional terminal in the lower right corner

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E. For Loop/While Loop Comparison
For Loop
• Executes a set number of times unless
a conditional terminal is added
• Can execute zero times
• Tunnels automatically output an array
of data
While Loop
• Stops executing only if the value at the
conditional terminal meets the
condition
• Must execute at least once
• Tunnels automatically output the last
value
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E. For Loops – Numeric Conversion

• The number of iterations a For Loop executes must be specified in

nonnegative integers
• If you wire a double-precision, floating-point numeric value to the
count terminal, LabVIEW converts the larger numeric value to a 32-bit
signed integer

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E. For Loops – Numeric Conversion

• Normally, when you wire different representation types to the

inputs of a function, the function returns an output in the larger
or wider format
Coercion Dot
• LabVIEW chooses the
representation that
uses more bits
• However, the For Loop
count terminal always
coerces to a 32-bit signed
integer

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E. For Loops – Numeric Conversion

• Avoid coercion for better performance

− Choose matching data type
− Programmatically convert to the matching data type

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Exercise 4-3
Concept: While Loops versus For Loops

Understand when to use a While Loop and when to use a For

Loop.
GOAL
F. Timing a VI

Why do you need timing in a VI?

• Control the frequency at which a loop executes
• Provide the processor with time to complete other tasks,
such as processing the user interface

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F. Timing a VI – Wait Functions

• A wait function inside a loop allows the VI to sleep for a set

amount of time
• Allows the processor to address other tasks during the wait
time
• Uses the operating system millisecond clock

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F. Timing a VI – Elapsed Time Express VI

• Determines how much time elapses after some point in your

VI
• Keep track of time while the VI continues to execute
• Does not provide the processor with
time to complete other tasks

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Wait Chart VI

Compare and contrast using a Wait function and the Elapsed

Time Express VI for software timing.

DEMONSTRATION
G. Iterative Data Transfer

• When programming with loops, you often need to know the

values of data from previous iterations of the loop
• Shift registers transfer values from one loop iteration to the
next

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G. Iterative Data Transfer – Shift Registers

• Right-click the border and select Add Shift Register from

the shortcut menu
• Right shift register stores data on completion of an iteration
• Left shift register provides stored data at beginning of the
next iteration

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G. Iterative Data Transfer – Initializing
Run once VI finishes Run again

Block Diagram 1st run 2nd run

Initialized
Shift Output = 5 Output = 5
Register

Not
Initialized Output = 4 Output = 8
Shift
Register

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G. Iterative Data Transfer –
Stacked Shift Registers
• Stacked shift registers remember values from multiple
previous iterations and carry those values to the next
iterations
• Right-click the left shift register and select Add Element
from the shortcut menu

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Exercise 4-4
Average Temperature VI

Use a For Loop and shift registers to average data.

GOAL
Exercise 4-4
Average Temperature VI

• You calculated the average of the last 3 temperature

readings. How would you modify the VI to calculate the
average of the last 5 temperature readings?

DISCUSSION
H. Plotting Data – Waveform Chart

• Special type of numeric indicator that displays one or more

plots of data, typically acquired at a constant rate
• Displays single or multiple plots

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H. Plotting Data – Chart Update Modes

• Right-click the chart and select Advanced»Update Mode

from the shortcut menu
• Strip chart is the default update mode
• Scope chart and Sweep chart modes display plots
significantly faster than the strip chart mode

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H. Plotting Data

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H. Plotting Data – Waveform Graphs

Use the Context Help window to determine how to wire multi-

plot data to Waveform Graphs and XY Graphs

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Exercise 4-5
Temperature Multiplot VI

Plot multiple data sets on a single waveform chart and

customize the chart view.
GOAL
Exercise 4-5
Temperature Multiplot VI

• For this exercise, is it better to use a chart or a graph?

DISCUSSION
I. Case Structures
• Have two or more subdiagrams or cases
• Execute and displays only one case at a time
• An input value determines which subdiagram to execute
• Similar to case statements or if...then...else
statements in text-based programming languages

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I. Case Structures

• Case Selector Label: contains the name of the current case

and decrement and increment buttons on each side

• Selector Terminal: Wire an input value, or selector, to

determine which case executes

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I. Case Structures – Default Case
• You can specify a default case
for the Case structure
− If you specified cases for 1, 2,
and 3, but you get an input of
4, the Case structure executes
the default case
• Right-click the Case structure
border to add, duplicate,
remove, or rearrange cases
and to select a default case

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I. Case Structures – Input & Output Tunnels

You can create multiple input and output tunnels

• Inputs are available to all cases if needed
• You must define each output tunnel for each case

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I. Case Structures – Use Default if Unwired

Default values are: Data Type Default Value

Numeric 0

Boolean FALSE

String Empty

Avoid using the Use Default If Unwired option on Case

structure tunnels
• Adds a level of complexity to your code
• Complicates debugging your code

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I. Case Structures – Boolean

Boolean input creates two cases: True and False

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I. Case Structures – Integer

• Add a case for each integer as necessary

• Integers without a defined case use the default case

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I. Case Structures – String

• Add a case for each string as necessary

• Strings without a defined case use the default case

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I. Case Structures – Enum
• Gives users a list of items from which to select
• The case selector displays a case for each item in the
enumerated type control

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I. Case Structures - Error Checking and Error
Handling
Use Case Structures inside VIs to execute the code if there
is no error and skip the code if there is an error

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Exercise 4-6
Determine Warnings VI

Modify a VI to use a Case structure to make a software

decision.
GOAL
Exercise 4-6
Determine Warnings VI

• What happens if all the values are 10? How could you fix
this?

DISCUSSION
Summary—Quiz

1. Which identifies the control or indicator on the block

diagram?
a) Caption
b) Location
c) Label
d) Value

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Summary—Quiz Answer

1. Which identifies the control or indicator on the block

diagram?
a) Caption
b) Location
c) Label
d) Value

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Summary—Quiz

2. Which structure must run at least one time?

a) While Loop
b) For Loop

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Summary—Quiz Answer

2. Which structure must run at least one time?

a) While Loop
b) For Loop

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Summary—Quiz

3. Which is only available on the block diagram?

a) Control
b) Constant
c) Indicator
d) Connector Pane

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Summary—Quiz Answer

3. Which is only available on the block diagram?

a) Control
b) Constant
c) Indicator
d) Connector Pane

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Summary—Quiz

4. Which mechanical action causes a Boolean in the False state to

change to True when you click it and stay True until you release
it and LabVIEW has read the value?
a) Switch Until Released
b) Switch When Released
c) Latch Until Released
d) Latch When Released

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Summary—Quiz Answer

4. Which mechanical action causes a Boolean in the False state to

change to True when you click it and stay True until you release
it and LabVIEW has read the value?
a) Switch Until Released
b) Switch When Released
c) Latch Until Released
d) Latch When Released

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