Get Real About Teaching with
LabVIEW and myDAQ
STEM Education
 Science, Technology, Engineering and Math
Education
 Prepares students to pursue careers in
engineering, science or technology-related
fields
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Needs in STEM Education
• Integrate theory with hands-on, experiential
learning
• Collaborative, project-based learning
• Strong social relevance
• Design, creativity and innovation
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Where is the engineer of 2020?
In 4th Grade
10 year olds!
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Tech Savvy Generation
5 Years Old
Music with iPod
> 22 Years Old
Unmanned
Vehicles
8 Years Old
LEGO®
12 Years Old
Gaming
Consoles
18 Years Old
Segway Clone
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LabVIEW: K to Rocket Science!
CERN Large
Hadron Collider
“the most powerful
Instrument on earth”
LEGO® MINDSTORMS® NXT
“the smartest, coolest
toy of the year”
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What is LabVIEW?
Graphical programming language
& Data flow
• LabVIEW relies on graphical symbols rather
than textual language to describe
programming actions
• The principle of dataflow, in which functions
execute only after receiving the necessary
data, governs execution in a straightforward
manner
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Science
Math
Engineering
Technology
What is MyDAQ
•
•
•
General Purpose Data Acquisition Device
Multimeter, Oscillocope, Function Generator,
Spectrometer and much more
$200
=

$50-$200
+
$300-$10,000
+
$300-$5,000
+ much more
How does LabVIEW work?
•
LabVIEW programs are called:
 Virtual Instruments (VIs)
 because their appearance and operation
imitate actual instruments.
•
However, they are analogous to main programs,
functions and subroutines from popular language
like C, Fortran, Pascal, …
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LabVIEW Programs Are Called Virtual
Instruments (VIs)
Front Panel
• Controls = Inputs
• Indicators = Outputs
Block Diagram
• Accompanying “program”
for front panel
• Components “wired”
together
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LabVIEW Introduction
• Two “sets” for development
 Front Panel
 Block Diagram
• Wiring connections
• LabVIEW Conventions
• Running LabVIEW programs
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LabVIEW Front Panel
• All user interface goes
here!
• Used to display
Controls or Indicators
• Highly customizable
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LabVIEW Block Diagram
• Actual program
• Invisible to user
• Read left to right,
like a book
• Where the MAGIC
happens!
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Terminals
When you place a control
(or indicator) on the
FRONT PANEL
LabVIEW automatically
creates a corresponding
control (or indicator)
terminal on the BLOCK
DIAGRAM
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Control? or Indicator?
Controls = Inputs from the user = Source Terminals
Indicators = Outputs to the user = Destinations
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Manipulating Controls and Indicators
• Right click on an indicator to
 Change to control
 Change format or precision
• Right click on a control to
 Change to indicator
 Change mechanical action (whether to
latch open or closed, and what to use as
default…)
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Wiring Connections
• Wires transport data
through the block
diagram
• Wire color indicates
variable type
• A red “X” means
something is wrong!
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Wires
A LabVIEW VI is held together by wires connecting nodes
and terminals; they deliver data from one source terminal to
one or more destination terminals.
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Examples
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Creating a VI
Front Panel Window
Block Diagram Window
Control
Terminals
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Indicator
Terminals
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Example 1: Craps
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•
•
•
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From the functions – numeric panel
insert a pair of dice
From the Controls panel insert a
numeric digital indicator (on the front
panel)
Use the wiring tool to connect the
two (in the wiring diagram) and click
the “run” button repeatedly.
Numbers from 0.00 to 1.00 should be
displayed in the front panel
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Example 1: Craps (continued)
This wiring diagram simulates the rolling
of 2 dice and their addition to form a number
from 2 through 12.
• Delete the wire
• Add a multiplication node and a
numeric constant to allow
multiplication by 5
• Add an addition node and numeric
constant to allow addition of 1
• Add a mathematical “Round to
Nearest” node.
• Make a second copy of this structure
to represent a second die and wire
them together through an addition
node with an output to a numeric
constant
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MyDAQ
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•
MyDAQ - Designed for hands-on experimentation. NI MyDAQ combines
portability with a comprehensive set of features. NI MyDAQ allows for
real engineering and, when combined with NI LabView and Multisim,
gives students the power to prototype systems and analyze circuits in or
outside of the classroom.
•
NI MyDAQ hardware integrates with NI Labview graphical development
software, giving the students hands-on interaction with real analogue
circuits, sensor measurements, and signal processing. It bridges the gap
between theory and real-world practice by providing students with eight
Labview software-based instruments including a digital multimeter
(DMM), oscilloscope, function generator, bode analyzer, dynamic signal
analyzer, arbitrary waveform generator, digital reader and digital writer.
• NI MyDAQ is compact enough to fit in a student's pocket, and is powered
by a USB connection.
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Digital Multimeter (DMM)
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Measuring Resistance Across 1000Ω
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New 2009 FIRST Robotics Controller
NI CompactRIO, the industry’s most compact, powerful embedded controller powered by NI LabVIEW
Flexible Inputs & Outputs (I/O)
•More sensor choices
•More I/O lines
•Customizable I/O for
future years
Superior Performance
•32 bit real time processor
•802.11 Wireless Ethernet
•FPGA I/O control
Advanced Control
•Intelligent Robotics
Algorithms
•Real-Time Vision
Processing
Rugged design
•50G shock rating
•Easier connectivity
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Easy to Program
•Programmable in C and
LabVIEW, the world’s
leading graphical language
•Wireless debugging
•Laptop dashboard
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Build an Audio
Equalizer Using NI myDAQ and LabVIEW
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LabVIEW for LEGO® MINDSTORMS®
environment
You can sent your environment via the tools pull down
Before you start to program in LabVIEW, you first need
to create a robot project. With a robot project, you can
keep all the files relevant to your robot together.
Let’s Build a simple Program
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Curriculum Resources
Break down the walls of the traditional lab and lecture by giving your
students the ability to perform short lab experiments anywhere,
anytime.
http://www.ni.com/mydaq/curriculum.htm
http://zone.ni.com/devzone/cda/tut/p/id/11213
http://www.k12lab.com/
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Questions?