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 Using OOP in Measurement Systems

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 Common Problem: Software becomes difficult to
maintain over time

Initial investment in
software architecture,
training and processes

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 Why OOP is an Answer
When you want to build scalable, extensible systems.

Translation: OOP concepts, when used correctly, decrease

the risk and effort required to add functionality to an
existing system. They do this, in part, by:
- Minimizing the scope of changes that have to be
introduced to an existing system to add new functionality
- Restricting access to data to methods that have explicitly
been permitted access
- Making it possible to add and load new behaviors
dynamically that implement existing interfaces
- Enable reuse and extension of pre-existing functionality

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 The journey to OOP starts sooner than you think

Configure Acquire Measure

Conceptually, many LabVIEW applications start with a simple,

synchronous set of operations (many times all on a single diagram)

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 Configure Acquire Measure

Start Task Read Samples Stop Task

Savvy programmers will often use SubVIs to wrap API calls to things
like device drivers or loading configuration from a file

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 Graph
Task Samples

DAQ Task

Clock Raw Data

Configure Acquire Measure

These SubVIs typically expect certain inputs to do their jobs many

times these inputs are the output of previous operations, or a single
input is shared by multiple VIs in this sequence

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 Measurement System

Graph
Task Samples

DAQ Task

Clock Raw Data

Configure Acquire Measure

As the application becomes more sophisticated, its common to want

to iterate on certain tasks within a loop..

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Measurement System

Graph
I/O Samples

DAQ Task

Clock Raw Data

Configure Acquire Measure

or perhaps the entire system

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 Measurement System

Configure Event Case

Task

Clock
Configure

Eventually, automation requires that we be able to programmatically

control the order of operations and/or restart the system, which
requires a state-machine-like pattern that passes data between states

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 Measurement System

Acquire Event Case

Samples

Raw Data

Acquire

The scope of data these operations has access to can be seen by

examining the shift registers in a loop

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 Measurement System

Measure Event Case

Graph

Measure

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 Measurement System
I/O
Cloc Event Case
k
Samples

Raw Data

Task

As the functionality grows, so too does the scope of data. Eventually it

becomes helpful to contain all of this data in a cluster, giving us a very
clearly defined data-scope for this process

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 Measurement System
I/O
Cloc Event Case
k
Samples

Raw Data I/O Task

Cloc
Task k

Configure

The methods within this state machine retrieve the information they
need from the cluster and update values as necessary

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 Measurement System
I/O
Cloc Event Case
k
Samples

Raw Data

Task
Configure

Unbundling and bundling data can be encapsulated by the VI, giving

the user a clean, simple top-level interface (the type definition)

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 This simple illustration shows how these three operations we started
with now just act upon the data within the cluster

I/O
Cloc
k
Samples Graph
Raw Data

Task

Configure Acquire Measure

These VIs are explicitly coupled to this data

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 A class is basically a cluster

I/O
Cloc
k Measurement
Samples

Raw Data
= Class

Task

Measurement
A class contains data, plus
Data
methods (VIs) that are allowed
to act upon and modify the data.

VIs that do not belong to the class

cannot act upon the data

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 Measurement

Graph

Configure Acquire Measure

The object wire can be passed into any VI that has the class on the
connector pane, but only VIs that belong to the class can directly
bundle and/or unbundle the data

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 Class Data Cluster
I/O Class constant
Cloc
k
Samples

Raw Data

Task

Methods that can act upon

the classs data cluster

Appearance in Project
Configure Acquire Measure

These VIs are now owned by the class. They are

transported as a cohesive library of code

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 Demonstration
Creating a New Class

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 Measurement System
I/O
Cloc Event Case
k
Samples

Raw Data

Task
Configure

Returning to our basic system, this implementation using a clsuter

effectively becomes

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 Measurement System

Case

Measurement Configure

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 Measurement System

Case

Measurement Configure

What if you want a different definition of how these methods should act?
In this example, consider the different ways in which a measurement might be implemented

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 Inheritance Allows Descendant Classes to Modify, Extend and
Add Functionality of a Parent

Measurement

Temp Strain

Finite measurement of a Applies stimuli before

single channel acquiring value

These are children of the measurement class

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 Demonstration
Define inheritance and view the class hierarchy diagram

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 Measurement System

Case

Measurement Configure

What if you want a different definition of how these methods should act?
In this example, consider the different ways in which a measurement might be implemented

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 Acquire is Dynamically Dispatched
Measurement System

Case

Temp
Acquire

Start Task Read Samples Stop Task

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 Acquire is Dynamically Dispatched

Measurement System

Case

Strain
Acquire

Start AO Task Stimulate

Output

Start AI Task Sweep Inputs

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 Understanding Dynamic Dispatch

Strain

Temp Acquire

610
2

Resistance

Strain.lvclass: Temp.lvclass: Resistance.lvclass:

Acquire.vi Acquire.vi Acquire.vi

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 Demonstration
Illustrate dynamic dispatch

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 Graph

Configure Acquire Measure

Q: Isnt this the same thing as using case structures inside these VIs ?

I/O
Cloc
k
Samples

Raw Data
? ? ? Graph
Task

Configure Acquire Measure

Measurement Type

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 A: Its conceptually similar, but there are extremely
important differences(NO)

To understand the difference, first consider the impact of

introducing a new measurement in the non-OOP example.

3. We probably have to add new elements to

this data cluster

I/O
Cloc 2. We have to modify all of these VIs
k
Samples

Raw
Data ? ? ? Graph
Task

Configure Acquire Measure

Measurement Type

1. We have to add a new type to the enum

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 I/O2

DIO
As the scope of the data cluster expands, we are
passing data into large segments of code inside
Trigger
the cases that should not have access to it. Our
I/O data is not protected
Clock

Samples

Raw
Data ? ? ? Graph
Task

Configure Acquire Measure

Measurement Type

Introducing a new measurements requires

changes within the VIs, as well as the calling code
(sometimes referred to as a framework). This
makes code very costly to maintain and brittle

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 Sibling Classes Have Unique Data Scope
Task Data that every measurement
I/O
needs to have
Samples

Measurement

Thermocouple
Bridge Type

excitation

Strain Temp

Data unique to these specific measurements, plus

exposed data of parent measurement

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 One of the biggest differences: this new
I/O2
functionality has to be added at edit time.
DIO
What if you want to load a new measurement into
Trigger
your calling system at run-time?
I/O

Clock

Samples

Raw
Data ? ? ? Graph
Task

Configure Acquire Measure

Measurement Type

Yes, you can dynamically load the VIs called by these VIs, but you have to
have pre-defined the data they have access to. The data in the cluster wire
cannot be changed at run-time, as the connector pane must match exactly.

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 At edit-time, LabVIEW shows us the wire of the
parent class we have said will be passed along
this wire (in this example: Measurement.lvclass)

Graph

Configure Acquire Measure

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 We may pass any child of this class down this wire
at run-time. Dynamically dispatched methods will
execute the copy belonging to the run-time
instance.

?
Graph

Configure Acquire Measure

LabVIEW can load a new child at run-time. The class will bring its methods and
its data cluster into memory when loaded. This makes it possible to add
functionality without modifying calling code. The code to load a child class is
referred to as a Factory.

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 The Basics of an Object Factory

A
B Objects Loaded Into Memory
C Generic Measurement
Parent

Location on Disk Children

A B C
Where Measurements
Classes are Stored

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 Group Exercise
About that Graph output what if my measurements output different data types?

Strain

Graph

Configure Acquire Measure

Temp

Configure Acquire
X
Measure
Boolean

Dynamically dispatched VIs must have the same connector pane. You cannot have a
different data type output on Measure. So how do we solve this problem?

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 Q: How can an instance of the measure method return
information that is appropriate and specific to the measurement
class it belongs to?
Consider the following requirements:

We have to pass different data-types at-run

time out of the measure method
? We always know a specific measurement will
return a certain type of data
We need to be able to display that data to a
Measure user in an appropriate format
We need to pass the data back to a framework
that implements a pre-defined interface for
operations like dispaly, save, etc

Is a variant a valid solution?

We can pass any data-type on a variant wire
How do we know how to display the data on a variant wire to a user?
If we pass the variant to our calling code, how will it know how to save it to
disk or display it to the user?

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 Use a Class Hierarchy
Measurement Result
Defines methods all results
should be able to define, such
as Save, or Display

Strain Result Temp Result Resistance Result

Each has a unique private data cluster to store the result of a measurement and
defines how that data is stored or displayed using dynamically dispatched methods
that override the interface defined by the parent Measurement Result

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 General Best-Practice: Dont Use Variants
Variants are typically used when different types of data
have to travel down a single wire. Anytime you feel the
need to do this, consider replacing the wire that would be a
variant with a class hierarchy.

Why? Classes still enforce strict data-types at edit-time,

thereby ensuring no run-time errors. Variants to not, and
therefore increase the likelihood of run-time errors.

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 All measurements will need to use hardware.

Measurement Class

Configure Acquire Measure

But Id like to..

run the same measurement class on different
machines, which have different hardware
continue development on a machine with no access
to hardware
be able to add a new device of a certain type without
modifying the measurement

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A measurement is defined assuming certain
classes of devices are available, but without
knowing exactly which instrument.

In this example, this measurement strategy uses a DMM. It

Temp assumes an instance of a DMM implements a pre-defined
interface, without knowledge of how that interface is implemented

Configure Acquire Measure

DMM
Class

Configure Autozero Read

Current
Source

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 DMM
Class

Agilent PXI-4070 Simulated

34401a DMM

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 Other measurements may require different classes of hardware, or perhaps multiple
devices (ie: stimulus/response measurements), but we cant change the connector pane
of methods we want to override (like Acquire.vi).

Measurement
Class
Configure Acquire Measure

The objects passed along this wire must all

be children of the same parent class
?

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Measurement
All measurements use an array of hardware
Class

Configure Acquire Measure

But different classes of hardware would

definitely not implement the same interface

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 Sample Hardware Class Hierarchy

Hardware

Power Supply DMM Scope Generator

PXI-4110 Simulated Simulated 34401a PXI 4070 Simulated PXIe-5185 Simulated

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Measurement
Class Methods can cast hardware objects to specific children at edit-
time using the to more specific primitive

Configure Acquire Measure

DMM

SCOPE
The dark blue wire can be passed into the
interfaces for the specific device classes

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 Demonstration
Use these concepts in a real system

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 Summary of Most Important Concepts
Always be thinking about data scope keep it cohesive
and small
Classes create define data scope and a set of functions that are
allowed access to data
Consider using a class hierarchy to replace a massive
data structure
Dynamic dispatch allows child classes to override a parents method
and reuse others
Dynamic dispatch occurs at run-time, whereas polymorphism occurs
at edit-time
Use parent classes to define the interfaces children
should implement
If you find yourself using a lot of variants, consider a class hierarchy
And finally, classes are not as big of a leap as you might think we
hope you agree after this presentation!
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