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Can LabVIEW be used to activate devices using relays?

Good Morning,
 
I've heard that LabVIEW can be used to activate a relay to open and close valves based on feedback.  I was wondering if anyone knew about this and whether this could be used to activate a program to run machinery.
 
Tim M.
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Message 1 of 15
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LabVIEW is just software, but given the right hardware it can be used to control anything you want. 😄
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Message 2 of 15
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Just like Altenbach said...  given the right hardware..
 
For instance, I've used LV to actuate miniature telecom relays using the parallel port.
Now, as far as controlling valves, you will need some sort of hardware interface.  LV can be used to send control signals.
 
Ray
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Exactly what kind of control signals can LabVIEW send out?  Is it C, C++, or some other kind of language?  Or is the control message sent in a different form?  (If you can't tell I'm pretty new to LabVIEW.)
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LabVIEW by itself, just like C++, or any other programming language, does not send out any control signals. You need a piece of hardware that does this. You can write to the pc's register that controls the parallel port and tell a data bit to go high and then the parallel port changes the voltage level on that pin. You can issue a software command to a pci board that generates the voltages necessary to turn a relay on or off. You can issue commands over the serial port that is connected to some piece of hardware that in turn interprets the commands it receives to turn a relay on or off. LabVIEW ships with hundreds of examples that demonstrate some of the hardware that can be controlled. Open the Example Finder and select the Hardware Input and Output topic.
Message 5 of 15
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Thanks Dennis,

You forgot using using DAQ / Digital IO cards, in the PC, which can send voltage levels to relays which can actuate a higher voltage which in turn opens or closes another relay, valve, etc...  😉

The combinations are almost infinite.  And Labview is certainly a preferred tool to accomplish this.  😄

Ray

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I know that my device can be activated with a relay.  Now, if I want to have LabVIEW activate this relay, what kind of equipment would I need?  I've seen some of the example VIs and noticed that there were quite a few that have to do with digital pulse generation.  Would I use one of these or would I use a PXI card and something similar to the example switch VIs?  By the by, my intent is to activate the program via the relay when the Run button is pressed is LabVIEW so that the data collection and device program begin at the same time.  Thanks in advance!
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Message 7 of 15
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Hi Dude
 in a nutshell -please provide more information !!!
What type of relay are you intending to use ?
Voltage level ?
Isolation ? Fail Safe ?
What happens if the relay system  fails does the plant explode ???
What about redunacy ?( backup)
Monitor  system so that fail to provide status signal results in shut down mode.
The list of questions can cover sheets !!
By identifying  your specification and essential requirements,more salient answers can be provided.

xseadog
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Hi timin,

Just like seadog was explaining, the more details you provide, the better assistance we can provide.

Before you explore the world of PXI (very nice world), you should consider what you have and what is the budget.

Can you provide a bit of background.  Who knows, maybe sub-contracting the design and implementation is a possibility, or are you the one hired to implement this?  There are thousands of possibilities.

The nice thing about Labvuiew is that it can assist in implementing a solution much faster than other software development approaches (languages, etc).

Apart from controlling a relay, what would the control software be expected to do?  I read something about gathering data, for instance...

Ray

Message 9 of 15
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And, you cannot activate a program by opening and closing a relaySmiley Wink. You have to have a program running that will detect the relay state and then that program can start another section of itself or start up another separate program.
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