Instructions for the installation and use of a DAQ w/ Labview

If you are interested in using a DAQ in order to interface your sensor with your
computer I have enclosed some instructions and advice below.
1- Once you have selected a DAQ the initial installation is pretty simple. If it is an usb
connection than just connect your DAQ and windows should install the necessary
drivers. The drivers are necessary for your computer to communicate with your
DAQ.

2- Depending on which software you plan on using there may be additional software
necessary for the use of your device. I used labview so below ill illustrate the steps I
took to get things going.

My DAQ didnt readily work with Labview out of the box. The first step I took to
solve this issue was to search for any additional drivers which were needed for the
use of labview with my DAQ.

With your DAQ connected open Tool>Find Instrument Drivers


For the next step it will be necessary for you to be registered with NI.com (National
Instruments) It takes only a minute to register and grants you acces to lots of useful materials.

Labview will now scan for connections made to your computer and cross reference it with its
library of available drivers. My DAQ was not recognized and I therefor had to find another
avenue.



The users manual instructed me to go to the website in order to download some
necessary software.
Above you can see that they have solutions for all types of software as well as the universal
library. Since I was using lab view I followed the link to labview support

From the above screen I could see that there are three links that need to be downloaded.

1-Download MCC DAQ CD
2-Download ULx for NI LabVIEW Online Help File
3-Product Data Sheet - PDF printable

1- The MCC DAQ CD is a group of files that would be included in the original install cd
which I did not have
2- ULx online help file The Ulx for labview is included in the MCC DAQ CD , this is a help
file to support you in the use of it
3- The Data sheet for Ulx which describes in detail how it is used
ULx is a plug in for labview. What this means is that when installed correctly there will be
special dedicated VIs which must be used in order for the DAQ to communicate with Labview.

Above the pathway for accessing the ULx extensions is shown

I encountered an additional problem when after installing the ULx. Labview still did not want to
recognize the DAQ. So I called customer support and they said that since I was running Labview
2010 that I could download a beta version of ULx which can be found at this link.
ftp://ftp.mccdaq.com/downloads/Pre_Release/

Labview programming
Labveiw programming is graphical in that you use what they call VI (virtual instruments) which are
represented by blocks. You connect these blocks by virtual wires which crate a virtual circuit. VIs are
used to manipulate your signals in order to achieve your goals.
The best way to learn is to follow through the tutorials which you can find on the NI website
http://www.ni.com/gettingstarted/labviewbasics/

Once you know the basics you can at least understand how a program works and be able to follow
along the flow of a program. That being said you can search through a library of example programs
which are supplied by NI, by accessing Help>Find examples from Labview. Or in my case there are
additional examples available with the ULx help file I downloaded.

In the beginning this program may seem a bit intimidating, but it is truly simple once you learn the ins
and outs.

I hope this guide helped you along the process if you choose to use a DAQ or Labview. Other programs
will have similar avenues you must follow in order to get them to work with your hardware. If you have
any further questions you can contact me at lamarchej@wit.edu .

Good Luck,
Jim