Coding Challenge for 9/18/18 User Group

[SteveVetter]

We purposely left the coding challenge a bit vague / open-ended this time to encourage a wide variety of solutions.  But I thought I would define it a bit better here.

1.  Pick something that your Recipe Editor is going to describe.  It could be a mixture of gases, temperature profiles, a set of speeds, voltage levels, oscillator settings, etc., or even a mixture of things.  If you have a project you are currently working on that could potentially use such a tool, this is your chance to see if it would be a good addition to your project.  Otherwise, use your imagination.

2.  Create an interface that allows for textual entry of the recipe (Ten minutes at 170 degrees, 10 Khz -> 20 Khz over 10 mS, 7 days at 0.001 meters per second, . . . ).  Display the recipe as a graph or chart.  The recipe has to include at least two variables that are being controlled.

3.  Extra credit:  Again, use your imagination, but here are a few ideas to start your creative juices:

- Some sort of initialization (start recipe at 8 AM, preheat oven, etc.)

- What to do at the completion of the recipe (send email, shut down, keep going at the last prescribed values, etc.)

- Repeat cycles

- Methods of entry other than textual

- More flexibility in the variables being controlled

- Save / Load / Import / Export of recipes

Happy Coding!

Steve

[User002]

Attached is the code I demonstrated at the user group showing how to program the coding challenge in object oriented programming (GOOP or LVOOP).  Also, here is a link to answer FAQ you may have about OOP design.

LabVIEW Object-Oriented Programming FAQ

One item I would like to point out from the link ^ that can't be emphasized enough is;

LabVIEW has automatic data mutation so the user can retrieve old data even if the class has been edited. C++ does not, requiring the user to track version changes and write mutation code for data.

[Will_S.]

Although he wasn't able to come to the meeting, Jeff Bohrer sent in a submission for the coding challenge. Please find it attached if you'd like to take a look.

[JÞB]

Kudos.. that is some exceptional code that shows OOD without OOP.  A nice way to help bridge the skill gap when an lvclass is to "Computer Sciency" for the target audience. 

Stop by the Ecolab center in Eaton and watch the dish washing machine display on the tour if you are curious about what you would do with code like that....