NI USB-6009 and 2009 season

[psh]

Has anyone gotten their NI USB-6009 to work with this years NI software? I installed fresh LabView software on a different laptop this year but it does not appear to include software (out of the box) to work with that NI device. I grabbed a copy of the NI-DAXmq Base software, from the NI site, and that appears to have taken care of recognizing the USB device.

I am not all to keen on installing the software that came with the USB-6009 with the new LabView software since it might cause compatibility problems.

Any ideas?

Thanks,

>Per

[Russ Beavis]

I'd be surprised if you can't connect your USB-6009 to your development PC and create an application for your PC (NOT your cRIO) that uses the module. You should connect to the device to your development PC and see if it shows up under Measurement & Automation Explorer. If it does, there's a good chance that the LabVIEW FRC software will have DAQ VIs for use by the Dashboard PC.

The cRIO will definitely not support the USB-6009. There's no USB Host port on the cRIO and, to the best of my knowledge, the USB Host ports on other cRIOs only support USB drives.

You MIGHT be able to develop a custom Dashboard app that uses the USB-6009 and you might even be able to connect it to I/O on the Driver Station. I can't recall whether Section 8 Robot Rules prohibits connections between the Dashboard PC and the DS via such an intermediary device. Might be a good Q&A question.

Russ

[Russ Beavis]

I wouldn't install the software that came with the USB-6009. As you've surmised, there is a chance of corruption that would be annoying to correct.

However, as I described above, I believe that the LabVIEW FRC installation already includes drivers for the USB-6009. You shouldn't be able to hurt anything by simply plugging it in and seeing if MAX (Measurement & Automation Explorer) finds it.

Russ

[psh]

Thanks for responding. No I did not expect to connect it to the cRIO. We've used that device in the past, connected to a laptop, to let some of the students develop an idea of how some of our sensors behave (without needing a complete robot).

No, the base LabView package for cRIO does not appear to include enough software to recognize the USB device. After I added DAQmx, it was able to recognize it. However, I do not know how to use it (short of installing additional NI software that does not appear to be included in the 2009 FRC kit). Any ideas of the steps I should take to use this device, connected to a laptop?

Thanks,

>Per

[BLAQmx]

However, I do not know how to use it (short of installing additional NI software that does not appear to be included in the 2009 FRC kit). Any ideas of the steps I should take to use this device, connected to a laptop?

Getting Started with NI-DAQmx: Main Page

[psh]

Hmm.. that link leads to a lot more more information than I am ready to sift through for an answer in order to get this working, including pointers to three day classes. I think I'll put this device back on the shelf and return to VxWorks software instead.

Thanks,

>Per

[rwood359]

I downloaded and installed DAQmx version 8.7.2 with FRC LV at the suggestion of NI tech support. FRC LV still works fine and I was able to use the 6009 test panel to capture analog traces of the encoder outputs.
You can find DAQmx here:
http://joule.ni.com/nidu/cds/view/p/id/1087/lang/en
it's a no cost add-on.
The test panels are easy to configure and use - I got it up and running in an hour or so. I guess it depends on what you are trying to do with the 6009.

[Phalanx]

I've download installed and used NI-DAQ 8.7.2f1 and NI-VISA 4.4.1 with the FRC version of Labview. It works fine and I've used it to explore the Accelerometer in this year's KOP. I've also used it show the wave form when turning a pot.

Everything seems to work fine.