Webpage data dashboard

[KD5PFF]

I have an .exe vi that speaks to a production line PC through DDE and displays in real time several production related pieces of information. The program works great and I have been using it (and tweaking it) for years. As my plant and company grow and modernize we now want to be able to view the data remotely.  

I am struggling to find a way to connect to that PC and VI via a web browser to see that data. I don't need control over the VI, just the view and the data can be delayed by as much as 5 minutes or so. 

I understand that I can do this by installing the RTE on a PC and then use the built in webpage tool in LabVIEW, however the problem with that method is that it requires a computer to view the webpage. 

In this application there are TVs all throughout the factory that are capable of viewing a webpage and I need to be able to display the production line data on those TVs. I can put a small PC up there and go through that but it seems like a terribly inefficient method considering LabVIEW is so powerful. 

Does anyone have a method for building a simple webserver in LabVIEW that can allow a simple browser to connect to it?

 Thanks in advance.

Alex

[billko]

Hopefully this link can get you started?

[KD5PFF]

I don't appear to be able to add a new web service the way the article describes. 

Furthermore, I am not sure if that would allow me to format the data inside of the browser in such a way that it would be easily displayed on a large format TV. 

[Blokk]

So you have a PC where you can see live data? Just buy these cheap chromecasts from google, plug them in your TVs, and cast a window or the entire PC desktop to the TVs. Additional benefit: you can cast any content to these TVs, there is even an SDK to develope for Chromecast. 

You can do the same with other brands too, there are just so many casting devices which only require a hdmi input on the TV. Many of these "sticks" come with full featured Android, so you could even use NI  LabVIEW data dashboard!

[KD5PFF]

The data is displayed in a small program that runs behind the main production line control system HMI. Unfortunatly it isn't as easy as you described. We can't minimize the main control and I don't want it displayed on a monitor, way to busy. 

What I have done in the past is use raspberry pies running a python script that spoke to those line control computers and extrated the data and displayed the information. This worked great but we are changing many of our systems out and direct webpages would be a better option. 

There are many ways to skin this cat, I apprecite the alternatives, however I just need to make labview display a webpage with data on it. It seems like it should be simple considering I can do it with a $5 ESP8266 running arduino code!!! 

[Blokk]

have you checked this option? http://www.ni.com/uibuilder/

[KD5PFF]

I have seen that. I was hoping to avoid a $1500 initial cost followed by $1000 yearly subscriptions. 

That's worse than Allen Bradley prices! 

I'm good with the initial software cost, but not reoccurring license fees.  

The trouble with a production environment is that I will write the program make it work then not touch it for a year until we think of a necessary tweak.  By that time my license is expired.... 

[Ben]

If you can get your IT people to set up a generic web-server (Apache? not my area of expertise) LV will let you save a VI FP as HTML.

Ben