Three Levels of Data-Logging Software from National Instruments

Three Levels of Data-Logging Software from
National Instruments
Overview
One of the most common data acquisition applications is simply logging acquired data to disk or a database for futureanalysis. Most National Instruments data acquisition (DAQ) devices are shipped with FREE data-logging software.Depending on your data-logging application requirements, you may need additional functionality. This articleintroduces the three levels of data-logging software for use with National Instruments DAQ devices - NI LabVIEWSignalExpress, NI LabVIEW SignalExpress LE and NI LabVIEW.
Figure 1. Choose from three levels of data-logging software.
NI LabVIEW SignalExpress
With LabVIEW SignalExpress you can quickly configure data-logging applications interactively. Built with datalogging in mind, LabVIEW SignalExpress provides a broad set of features for completing common data-logging tasks,including basic data analysis, alarming, customizable graphs and displays to present your data.
LabVIEWT, National InstrumentsT, and ni.comT are trademarks of National Instruments Corporation. Product and company names mentioned herein are trademarks or trade names of theirrespective companies. For patents covering National Instruments products, refer to the appropriate location: Help»patents in your software, the patents.txt file on your CD, or ni.com/patents.© Copyright 2006 National Instruments Corporation. All rights reserved. Document Version 19NI LabVIEW SignalExpress automatically detects National Instruments USB DAQ devices and immediately launches adata-logging application based on the measurements being made. By combining NI DAQ devices with LabVIEWSignal Express you can make your measurements in a couple of mouse clicks.
Channel View
For quick setup and configuration, LabVIEW SignalExpress has a Channel View you can use to simultaneouslyconfigure multiple channels for logging. The Channel View allows you to configure a multi-channel data logger makingvarious types of measurements all with a few clicks of the mouse.
Data View
The Data View of LabVIEW SignalExpress is the main window for presenting the acquired data and analysis. You havethe option of customizing the Data View by adding graphs, charts, thermometers, meters, gauges, and LEDs. You cancreate your display in the Data View while the application is running by dragging the data from the applicable step intothe Data View.
2 www.ni.comFigure 2. Quickly configure data-logging applications without programming in LabVIEW SignalExpress.
Recording Options, Alarms and Events
You can log data to disk by clicking the record button in LabVIEW SignalExpress. By storing multiple logs you canload data later to perform off-line analysis. In addition, with the Recording Options tab you can specify alarms anddynamic events. By setting alarm conditions in your LabVIEW SignalExpress project you can be notified whenthresholds have been passed, tests have been failed, or other specific events have occurred during acquisition runs. Inaddition, you can react to specific events by setting digital lines and analog levels. You can quickly scan through datalogs using the historical data viewer to locate signals and alarms that may have occurred during the acquisition.
Signal Processing and Data Analysis
Many simple data loggers can do nothing more than acquire a basic signal. With LabVIEW SignalExpress you canperform basic data analysis to determine max, min, averages, and means; run and set masks and limits to dictatethresholds within your acquired data; apply lowpass, highpass, and other filtering techniques to your signals to get rid ofunwanted aliasing and noise. You can perform analysis on your data as it is being acquired or analyze data previouslylogged to disk.
3 www.ni.comFigure 3. With LabVIEW SignalExpress, you can customize your user interface with 8 different indicators.
Data Import, Export, and Streaming
LabVIEW SignalExpress simplifies many common data logging tasks, including exporting your data. You can export tocommon Windows applications such as Microsoft Excel by right-clicking on your data, or dragging and dropping yourdata from LabVIEW SignalExpress into Excel. LabVIEW SignalExpress automatically formats the data and appliescolumn headers and supports streaming of your acquired data in the TDMS (Technical Data Management Streaming)format. The TDMS forma... [download for more]