Workshop 2: Introduction to LabVIEW

1. Learn the basics using Sample.VI

A sample LabVIEW program was created to demonstrate some of the basics of LabVIEW. You will work individually during this session so that you each can get a feel for how the software works.

The front panel and diagram for the program is shown at the right. The program performs three tasks using two inputs: x+y, x*y, and x^y. Through a guided hands-on exploration of the program, the following questions will be answered (in order):

• Run the program from the front panel. What does the program do?
• Open the diagram. What do you see? What do the different icons stand for?
• Open the help window (Ctrl-H), and point to one of the operators. What do you see?
• Activate the Lightbulb Mode, then run the program. What do you notice about the order of execution? (Note the importance of Sequence Structure)
• Let's add a "difference" function to the program. This will be the first exercise for adding an operator, indicator, and wiring them together.

2. Study loop structures using For.VI and While.VI

Two programs were made for demonstrating the difference between For and While Loops. The programs are simply loops, with a delay of 200ms in each. The For Loop will stop after user-specified number of repetitions, and the While Loop will stop when the user clicks on the STOP switch.

3. Make a new program

Learn how to make and debug programs through performing simple tasks. The following exercises will be shown step-by-step:

• Open a new program.
• Make an array, and specify the type by dragging a numeric control into the box.
• Make a numeric indicator on the front panel.
• Open the diagram, and draw a For Loop.
• On the diagram, place the array outside the loop, and the number inside. Wire the two together. What happens to the wiring? (discuss auto indexing)
• What do you think the program does? Run it using the Lightbulb Mode - were you right?
• Connect the numeric indicator with "i". What happens? (discuss broken wire and broken arrow)
• Click on the broken arrow - an error list should pop up. What is wrong with the program?
• Debug the program by removing bad wires and re-wiring. Run it again - does it work now?
• Other tips - using the right mouse button

You are now ready to create your own simple program.