LabVIEW is an impressive development environment that caters to the novice, the expert, and those that fall somewhere in between. But that does not mean that novices are going to be able to develop expert applications using LabVIEW. Continue Reading →
On April 17, 2018, Our Founder & CEO, Richard Brueggman, along with Cindy Starr-Stewart, Automation Systems Engineer, attended the ISA Tech EXPO. This is the longest running Automation Expo in all of New York, it is also the only one in the western half of the State. The Expo has been growing with double digit percentages for the past 5 years, and this year was even better due to the new location by the downtown waterfront.
The International Society of Automation (ISA) sets the standard for those who apply engineering and technology to improve the management, safety, and cybersecurity of modern automation and control systems used across industry and critical infrastructure. For engineers, technicians, and management engaged in industrial automation, ISA is the trusted provider of standards-based foundational technical resources, driving the advancement of individual careers and the overall profession. The Expo brings the right people together to create the technologies of the future and share best practices with the next generation of automation professionals.
The most rewarding part of the Expo was getting the opportunity to talk with attendees that visited our booth, and share our knowledge and experience on how we solve scientific & automation engineering problems through laboratory automation, embedded product design & development, manufacturing automation & test automation. And this was the first industry event we attended after becoming a Gold Tier Partner with Parsec Corporation. So, the attendees were very interested in how we help manufacturing operations run more effectively, using real-time data powered by TrakSYSTM.
We are looking forward to next years Tech Expo!
Some people (like Guru) balk at certifications. They act as if they are meaningless wall decorations, or a ploy to get a promotion. The fact is certifications are a great way to quickly demonstrate skills that cannot be readily seen.
Data Science Automation (DSA) designed a system for one of our customers that pivoted a custom head to a precise position on a frequent basis. The entire system had 600 sec to accomplish one task. The DSA pivoter was part of a larger system.
My first introduction to LabVIEW was from an early adopter of the graphical language in the condensed matter physics lab at the University of Pittsburgh. This person had taught himself LabVIEW, and insisted that those who worked for him gain first-hand experience in using a graphical language to increase productivity.
Believe it or not, there are many people, as well as companies, that would argue whether best practices are beneficial or should even be followed. While I can respect other points-of-view on the subject, in my opinion following certified best practices needs to be the foundation of any processes and procedures.
Queued State Machine, Queued Message handler, Master/Slave, Producer Consumer, Channeled State Machine … (the list goes on) are design patterns often used to develop applications in LabVIEW. They each have their own features and no single design pattern is correct for every situation and application. Choosing the appropriate design pattern or creating a customized variation is key to developing a robust application that will meet the requirements and grow as the application grows over the years.
Have you ever viewed a LabVIEW VI Hierarchy and become frustrated with not being able to locate a VI you needed to open?
Do you have large applications composed of similar modules but fear jumping, with both feet, into the learning curve of LVOOP?
Did you ever try to duplicate a sub-VI at the start of a new set of functions and find yourself deep in a nest of cross-linked VIs, or save a VI only to realize that the most suitable name has already been used?
Then using LabVIEW Libraries may be useful to you (see Figure 1)!
Welcome to the world of G-Wizdom, where we offer a wise and whimsical perspective on Graphical System Design and Automation Engineering.
The culture of Automation Engineering is a world unto itself — complex, multi-disciplinary and quirky. Don’t be surprised if, here, within the domain of G-Wizdom, you recognize personalities, scenarios and perspectives you encounter on the job every day.
Visit us frequently, or subscribe to this site, for periodic light-hearted and insightful comic strip releases, including expert testimony on best practices that are certain to improve your efficiency, quality and understanding in Graphical System Design and Automation Engineering.
NIWeek offers amazing opportunities. It is easy to think “I already use LabVIEW and NI Hardware, so why should I go to a trade show?” But, taking the trip to Austin is always worth it. There is a completely different level of learning available, on brand new products as well as improved hardware and software techniques. The show goes beyond LabVIEW training classes, or the technical information available online, and gives you real world examples of how users like you are using NI tools to make themselves more efficient at their jobs.