Connecting LabVIEW^® and EPICS

Introduction

Up-to-know we know about those existing solutions
(you are free to add more and document it, you might have to register before and become a member of EpicsUserGroup)

• LabVIEW^® DIM Interface ⇔ EPICS - DIM Interface
• LabVIEW^® Shared Memory Interface to EPICS IOC by SNS
• LabVIEW^® ActiveX CA by Kay Uwe Kasimir, ORNL
• LabVIEW^® Data Logging and Supervisory Control Module, NI
• LabVIEW^® native EPICS implementation by SNS
• LabVIEW^® CA lab Channel Access implementation by BESSY
• ...

Tech-Talk Threads:

• December 2015: https://epics-controls.org/tech-talk/2015/msg01994.php
• Sep 2013: https://epics-controls.org/tech-talk/2013/msg01967.php
  • especially: https://epics-controls.org/tech-talk/2013/msg01973.php

Details

LabVIEW^® DIM Interface ⇔ EPICS - DIM Interface

The underlying idea is to use the DIM Protokoll as the common protocol both sides understand. Thus LabVIEW and EPICS instances act as DIM service/command server and service/command clients to communicate with each other.

• LabVIEW^® DIM Interface
• EPICS - DIM Interface

LabVIEW^® Shared Memory Interface to EPICS IOC by SNS

• sources: LabVIEW^® Shared Memory Interface to EPICS IOC tar ball
• web links:
  • Homepage of LabVIEW^® Shared Memory Interface to EPICS IOC (SNS)
  • Download
  • “You should first install EPICS Shared Memory Ver 3.14.7 followed by Beta 2 Install of SNS Template (labVIEW 7). Please keep in mind this is distributed as beta software and that you use it at your own risk.This will install the CA Client as well as the EPICS Shared MemoryIOC.”
    • Make sure to install this software pieces to drive C: .
    • Make sure to use a decimal point , not decimal comma.
• A Shared Memory Interface between LabVIEW and EPICS (Local Copy)

LabVIEW^® ActiveX CA by Kay Uwe Kasimir, ORNL

• sources: LabVIEW^® ActiveX CA tar ball
• web link: http://ics-web1.sns.ornl.gov/~kasemir/axca/index.html
• Integrating LabVIEW into a distributed computing environment

CA Lab

CA Lab is a user-friendly, lightweight and high performance interface between LabVIEW™ and EPICS . This project uses proven EPICS BASE libraries (V3.14.12), a CA Lab -library and 3 polymorphic VIs to access EPICS variables. Reading and writing of EPICS variables is very simple now. Also user events with EPICS variables can be implemented easily. EPICS time stamp, status, severity and optional PV fields (properties) are bound to resulting value. You avoid inconsistent data sets. It's easy to create an executable of your VI because it doesn't depend on any external service.

Refer to http://www-csr.bessy.de/control/SoftDist/CA_Lab/ for details.

LabVIEW^® Data Logging and Supervisory Control Module, NI

• Version: LabVIEW^® 8.5 and higher
• The module included in the Institue Campus License of GSI.
• web link: LabVIEW^® Data Logging and Supervisory Control Module.
• LabVIEW^® Help: The LabVIEW Datalogging and Supervisory Control (DSC) Module acts as an EPICS client. With the DSC Module, you can monitor and update process variables that an IOC publishes using the CA network protocol. You can create an EPICS Client I/O server to read process variables from and write process variables directly to an IOC.
  • Start LabVIEW
  • Create new Project
  • Create new Library
  • Create new I/O Server -> EPICS Client
    • Add Records and Fields
  • Create new shared Variables
    • Bind to source.
    • Other settings

Pure LabVIEW Implementation of EPICS Communication Protocol by SNS

⇒ Links section

Links

• Presentation on EPICS collaboration meeting 2010/BNL
  • Various EPICS / LabVIEW Interfaces (files Slides ppt file ) Alexander Jhukov (ORNL) (local copy)
• Presentation NIWeek 2012
  • Pure LabVIEW Implementation of EPICS Communication Protocol

    Abstract

    Experimental Physics and Industrial Controls Systems (EPICS) is a de facto standard for particle accelerator controls systems. There are several implementations of interfaces between EPICS and LabVIEW. Explore how researchers at the Spallation Neutron Source developed a cross-platform library that enables LabVIEW to talk to EPICS, and can be run anywhere LabVIEW runs. The library demonstrates effective multithreaded use of raw network connectivity VIs.

    • (local copy)

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-- PeterZumbruch - 22 Dec 2015