MICAS-X Demo Manual
Contents
1. When the Limited Demo version of MICAS X is installed it includes an example configuration file that allows it to be run immediately This section of the program leads you through the steps which re create this same configuration Follow this guide to create a copy of the configuration then run MICAS X to see how the functionality you configured works Once you understand the concepts reviewed in this process you can create your own configurations for operating MICAS X with your own system This document is written from the perspective of someone using the compiled executable program of the Limited Demo version of MICAS X If you are using the compiled full version of MICAS X the process described here will be nearly identical If you have the LabVIEW source code version of MICAS X and are operating within the LabVIEW environment you must first open the MICAS X lvproj project file and find the Configuration Editor in the Utilities folder and the MICAS X vi within the project These are opened by double clicking on them in the project To run one of these programs the user must hit the run arrow in the upper left corner of the window 2014 David Thomson Original Code Consulting dthomson originalcode com Introduction MICAS X is designed to be an highly flexible highly extensible data acquisition and control framework It contains a large amount of functionality that is needed for many instrument control situations but is designed in2. a way that is geared toward adding custom functionality as well The core of MICAS X is support for slow data sometimes called housekeeping data which typically is acquired at 1 Hz For some applications all the instrument data may fit within this model and MICAS X can be configured to handle nearly the entire system with out of the box functionality For other systems this housekeeping data is used to monitor the health of the system set up various modes of operation trigger alarms on certain conditions etc The housekeeping data in MICAS X is acquired by any number of Driver modules Many Drivers are already created including modules for acquiring and controlling analog and digital input and outputs of National Instruments Daq devices Drivers for reading serial or network data from streaming instruments and Drivers for creating manually entered values for creating timer channels and for creating channels whose value is calculated from other channels by text formulas or by LabVIEW code Other Drivers can be quickly created for interfacing to nearly any instrument or device Other modules in MICAS X act on the Drivers data Triggers and Alarms continuously monitor user defined channels and execute a user defined action whenever a condition is met Sequences can be created to step through various instrument modes based on timing or channel conditions Data logging can be configured to write any combination of channels to any num
3. the top of the MICAS X screen that is always visible regardless of which tab of MICAS X the operator is viewing Additionally this Trigger has been configured to open a notification window when it occurs though the use of the Alert Command 2014 David Thomson Original Code Consulting dthomson originalcode com Next select the Control Tab Click the Show Graph button so that it is checked set both the left and right axes to Auto Scale select All under the Left List and Right List drop down menus then Chamber Temp SP C on the Left Channel and Process Temp C on the Right Channel and change the History Length to 10 minutes Additionally add Chamber Temp SP C to the Controllers list and add Scan Temp to the Sequences Finally add Temp Warning under Triggers Save these parameters ai CAS 2 s Read Fie being edited 4 C OCC MICAS X Support MICAS X Demo Configuration ini Markas startup Fie SaveAs MI Configuration Editor Start up File C OCC MICAS X Support MICAS X Demo Configuration ini Read Start up File j New version 1 3 0 Reset to Defaults Revet J Save Faime Control Tab Name Parad Controllers Delete Insert Switches Controller Off Value On Value Initial Position Delete Insert Channel List i r rom Oe 4 Modules Ti Chamber Temp SP C Al J MICAS Aj n Acquisition Channel Lists the Controls tab File Writer Delete
4. there should be an existing configuration file named MICAS X Example Configuration which will be identical to the configuration file you will create by following these instructions After the file is named click the Mark as Start up File in order to tell the MICAS S program that this is the configuration file to use the next time the main MICAS X program is run Although the new configuration file has been initialized in the configuration editor it does not exist on disk until some parameters have been saved In the MICAS configuration screen click the Acquire on Startup button to un check it then click it again to check it Making this change to the parameters will cause the Save button to become enabled Click on the Save button to save the new configuration file gt k Read File being edited 4 C OCC MICAS X Support MICAS X Demo Configuration ini Mark as Start up File J MI T Configuration Editor Start up File C OCC MICAS X Support MICAS X Demo Configuration ini Read Start up File Figure 1 Creating the demo configuration file and marking it as the Start up File 2014 David Thomson Original Code Consulting dthomson originalcode com Next go to the Acquisition tab to select the Driver which will be used Double click on each the Manual and Equations Drivers from the Available Drivers list on the right hand side of the window to add them to the list of Drivers configured
5. top Name field Triple click on the Chamber Temp SP C option in the Channels list to highlight it press CTRL C to copy it then click in the Equation box and press CTRL V to paste it there After the channel name that you just copied in add 273 15 without the quotes Create a second equation titled Process Temp C and enter Chamber Temp SP C 10 as the equation The syntax of these equations can be tested on the right hand side of the window in the Test Equation box To do this triple click and copy the desired equation then paste it into the Test Equation box Adjust the Channel Value and if the equation is working correctly it will display the appropriate answer in the Result box If there is an error NaN will appear in place of the correct number in the Result box Note that an equation can include more than one existing channel in its definition but when equations are tested in this way the Channel Value is used for any and all Channels that are present in the equation Save these parameters e z File being edited 4 C OCC MICAS X Support MICAS X Dem Confi ition ini Mark as Start up File Save As Q MICAS Configuration Editor S34 aire o Configuraton ni Markas Startup Fle _saveas _ te Start up File C OCC MICAS X Support MICAS X Demo Configuration ini Read Start up File j New Version 1 3 0 omponeni a Reset to Defaults Revert Save Drivers E
6. All ft Axis Right Axis Auto Scale Graph Background Auto Scale H Manual Scale E Manual Scale Sequences Delete Insert Triggers Delete Insert i Right List i y f 3 0 scan Temp A J 0 Hrer Warning A y J ai 5 i Right Channel J Chamber Temp SP C 3 Process Temp C Left Points History Length Right Points O Points O Points Figure 7 Configuring the Control tab to display relevant parameters The Control Tab configuration screen determines how the first tab of the MICAS X program appears This tab of MICAS X is very dynamic and adjusts to show any number of Controller channels Triggers Sequences or Switches as well as an optional two channel time series graph For many simple applications this tab can act as the main interface to the entire system For other applications this tab may have a select subset of all the controls and information needed for the system In those cases additional Display modules and Instrument modules will be used to support the necessary user interfaces 2014 David Thomson Original Code Consulting dthomson originalcode com Finally configure a text file for the data to be written to Click on the File Writer module and switch the Delimiter from Comma to Period back to Comma This causes the File definition to be populated Next delete the default value that was created in the Suffix box then save these parameters This creates a f
7. MICAS X Configuration Editor The Configuration Editor can be run as a stand alone executable program or can be called from the Utilities menu when running MICAS X When MICAS X starts it loads a configuration file specified by the user The configuration file determines which additional components are loaded Any number of Drivers can be configured to be loaded Drivers interact with hardware to acquire or set channel values MICAS X Drivers exist to support the National Instruments Daq Devices as well as a wide range of other hardware MICAS X will also load any number of Displays and Instruments Displays provide a user interface that is customized to a particular situation or experiment Instruments can include a Display but are intended for adding more complex functionality to MICAS X that cannot be supported by the Driver model In the following example you will create a MICAS X configuration that implements two Drivers The Drivers used do not interact with hardware but create virtual channels based on user input and calculations thus the example can be run without the need of any specific external hardware You will also configure a Sequence and a Trigger in MICAS X as well as some of the built in display features 2014 David Thomson Original Code Consulting dthomson originalcode com You can then run MICAS X using the newly created configuration and see how the various features are implemented MICAS X Example Program
8. RE to save all your changes in one Component Editor before dicking to select another component Figure 2 Manual and Equation Drivers have been added to the list of Drivers to be used 2014 David Thomson Original Code Consulting dthomson originalcode com Now go to the Drivers section under the Components menu and select the Manual driver in the Drivers list on the left side of the screen In the Manual Controllers section insert Chamber Temp SP C in the first slot short for Chamber Temperature Set Point Sample Flow LPM in the second and Scan Counter in the third Change the initial value of the Chamber Temp SP C from 0 to 105 Save the parameters The screen should look like that shown in Figure 3 a p File being edited C OCC MICAS X Support MICAS X Demo Configuration ini Mark as Start up File _ Save As Q MICAS Configuration Editor a o Conpraionii E E te 5 Start up File 4 C OCC MICAS X Support MICAS X Demo Configuration ini Read Start up File New Version 1 3 0 omponeni Modules Reset to Defaults Revert Save Instruments Drivers Displays Drivers 4 Equations Manual Controllers Delete Insert Initial Value A fi y J 0 Chamber Temp SP C a a Fos Manual Controllers can be used as program variables K memory for user entered information inputs to Equations Sampie Flow LPM i to or Calculations or inputs to other MICAS features They K are similar to Globals but
9. a MICAS X Demo Manual This manual is a guide to getting started with MICAS X It is written with the assumption that you are using the Limited Demo version of MICAS X but most of the steps are identical for the full version as well Installation will be different for the full version as well as some minor changes to the program name and functionality Note that the Limited Demo version only works for 20 minutes after which most functionality will stop It is important to safely shut down any instrumentation you may be using with the Limited Demo version before the 20 minute time limit expires Also the Limited Demo version is available only as an executable whereas the full version can be obtained either as an executable or as LabVIEW source code Getting Started with MICAS X Refer to the MICAS X Installation Manual for information on installing MICAS X on your computer This manual is included with your MICAS X installation program in the C OCC MICAS X Support Documentation directory or can be obtained from the Original Code Consulting website at the following location http www originalcode com MICASX_Resources html For a more complete overview of MICAS X software see the MICAS X User Manual available in the same locations as the Installation Manual Only a short overview will be given here MICAS X exe is the main program that controls the MICAS X system The behavior of this program can be extensively customized through the
10. ber of data files Errors and events are logged and presented in an intuitive and consistent manner Time series graphs are available with flexible time history selection and built in buffering of the data In addition other modules can be added to extend the functionality of MICAS X by adding powerful Display modules and custom Instrument modules The example configuration created and used in this document is intended to show many of the functions of MICAS X without requiring connection to any physical hardware To do this Manual channels are created for which the user can define the value Simple Triggers and Sequences are also created to show how MICAS X can be automated merely though configuration options without having to alter or create any source code Specifically this example creates a demonstration in which a temperature setpoint is ramped and an Alarm alerts the operator when a specific process variable temperature is exceeded Creating the File To begin creating the example configuration file for MICAS X run the MICAS X Configuration Editor When this is run it will first ask you to select an existing configuration file Click on the Cancel button of the file dialog window Then click the New button in the upper right hand part of the window In the File Name field 2014 David Thomson Original Code Consulting dthomson originalcode com name the new file MICAS X Demo Configuration when prompted Note that
11. can be used directly within Scan Counter T 0 the source code of Calculations whereas Manual Controllers are only Controller Channels within MICAS 0 Also Globals are limited to a maximum of 10 whereas there is no limit to how many Manual Controller Channels the user can implement 4 s00 Be SURE to save all your changes in one Component Editor before c dicking to select E another component Figure 3 Configuring Manual channels for the Manual Driver The user settable manual channel Chamber Temp SP C is configured the same way as many such set point channels would be in MICAS X The user will be able to adjust this value at any time to define what the temperature setpoint for the system should be However the MICAS X program can also change the value of this channel if the setpoint is to be controlled programmatically The Sample Flow LPM channel is intended to simulate a measured channel With a real physical system this channel might be read with the NIDaqAD Driver which can read analog voltages from NI Daq devices Scan Counter is a channel that will be used programmatically by a sequence to control how the sequence works 2014 David Thomson Original Code Consulting dthomson originalcode com After finishing the Manual Driver move to the Equations Driver in the list on the left side of the screen Create the equation Chamber Temp K by entering that text in the
12. ile that uses the Channel List All The example configuration should now be ready to run File being edited C OCCV MICAS Configuration Editor ae Start up File 4 C OCOI Components Instruments Drivers Displays Modules MICAS Al Acquisition Channel List Control Tab Sequences Triggers Channels Channel List J All Start a New FileEvery Acq Loop y Jo Re SURF to save Figure 8 Define a text file to save the data in Note that MICAS X always save all the Driver channel data to a tdms data file Although the operator can make use of this comprehensive data file it is often easier to write specific sub sets of the data to text files which can be easily imported in to many analysis programs The File Writer configuration allows the user to define any number of these data logging files Although your demonstration configuration is now ready to use there are many more features in MICAS X that were not covered in this example Refer to the MICAS X User Manual for more information on all the features and functions included in the program 2014 David Thomson Original Code Consulting dthomson originalcode com Next run MICAS X It will load the configuration file you just created Once the program is running press the sequence button labeled Press to Scan The temperature graph should ramp up and when the Process Temperature exceeds 100 the alarm will go off and a dialog box will appear de
13. information or questions about MICAS X 2014 David Thomson Original Code Consulting dthomson originalcode com
14. nitialize Counter Command Set Condition True Target Scan Counter Value 0 2 Increment Temp Command Incr Condition True Target Chamber Temp SP C Wait 1 Second Command Wait Value Condition True Value 1 4 Increment Counter Command Incr Condition True Target Scan Counter Loop Command Goto Condition lt Condition Channel Scan Counter Threshold 10 Target Increment Temp 6 Stop Seq Command StopSeq Condition True Target Scan Temp Edit the Off Label to say Press to Scan and the On Label to say Scanning Save these parameters MICAS Configuration Editor Components Instruments Drivers Displays Modules MICAS Aj Acquisition Channel Lists File Writer Control Tab Sequences Triggers Channels Be SURE to save all your changes in one Component Editor before dicking to select another component Figure 5 Create the Scan Temp sequence File being edited 4 C OCC MICAS X Support MICAS X Demo Configuration ini Start up File 4 C OCC MICAS X Support MICAS X Demo Configuration ini Sequences The Sequences Module can be used with or without the Sequences Driver or the Sequences Display The Sequences Module configuration is shown here The Sequences Module defines all the Sequences available in MICAS The Sequences Display provides tab in MICAS that shows all the Sequences as well as their current running state If the Seq
15. quations Delete Insert F i J J Name Chamber Temp K Equation ml 3 All Chamber Temp SP C 273 Channels Test Equation 4 F pm El Chamber Temp SP C 10 Name fProcess Temp C Equation frime sec E Temp SP C 10 Name C T Channel Value Result J 3 Test Equation Error EE z Figure 4 Defining two new Equation channels based on calculations involving existing channels 2014 David Thomson Original Code Consulting dthomson originalcode com The Chamber Temp K is a simple demonstration of how to use the Equations Driver to rescale channels Often an instrument will produce data in units that are not the same as the units you wish to present to the operator This type of equation channel can be used to present the user with more intuitive information Process Temp C is intended to simulate a measured channel With a real hardware based system this type of channel would be acquired with a Driver that is designed to talk to the specific hardware being used 2014 David Thomson Original Code Consulting dthomson originalcode com Next click on the Modules entry in the Components list then the Sequences entry in the lower list Create a Sequence called Scan Temp by clicking on the top Insert button next to the Sequences list and then editing the Sequence Name Add the following steps and modify them as directed 1 I
16. riggers Module can be used with or without the Triggers go Jo Driver The Triggers Module configuration is shown here The Triggers Module defines all Triggers and Alarms F T Source T Source Ch If the Triggers Driver is included in the MICAS configuration it creates two additional sets of channels Each Trigger will have a channel that logs the state of the trigger 0 False 1 Warning Note that when the condition is used a positive non zero Hysteresis creates 2 True 3 Alarm In addition each Trigger will have a channel an In Range condition E g for a Threshold of 10 a condition of anda that controls the Trigger Threshold This channel will have the Hysteresis of 2 any values between 8 and 12 will yield a True result name TrigThr xxxx where xxxx is the name of the Trigger Similarly for a lt gt not equals condition a positive non zero Hysteresis creates These Threshold channels are output channels that can be changed an Out Of Range condition For both these cases the limits are inclusive of while MICAS is running to alter how the Triggers work the values of the Threshold plus or minus the Hysteresis The NaN conditions Notes do not use the Theshold or Hysteresis parameters Figure 6 Define an Alarm for the Chamber Temp channel The Temp Warning trigger has been defined as an Alarm Alarms are a special form of triggers designed to catch the operator s attention since there is an Alarm indicator at
17. tailing why the trigger occurred After the dialog is dismissed and the sequence finishes the user can manually reset the set point to 105 in the upper left hand corner of the window File Utilities Help C reuring C Recording Alarm Status E 8 13 2014 10 54 26 c Control MICAS X Controllers SetPoints Sequences Triggers Channels Values Chamber Te SP C f Saas JTme sec CS e a SS _ p E Sec Since Midnight 39266 2 10 54 23 Acquire fi acam Disk Space Ge 33 6912 Manual Controllers Time 139265 5 JchamberTemp sP C a sample ow PM fo Scan counter e JEquationsTime 392565 5 Chamber Tempo 387 us G Left Channel J 10 minutes 7 Right Channel 104 JProcessTemp C Jos y Chamber Temp SP C 4H po wh y Process Temp C 114 Pa 104 Figure 9 MICAS X running using the configuration file created in this example The Scan Temp sequence is running an the temperature has risen above the alarm limit Although the largest part of the time spent on this example was in the Configuration Editor keep in mind that configuration is mostly a one time effort whereas most of the time using MICAS X will be done within the MICAS X program itself This example has demonstrated the basic concepts necessary for creating and using a MICAS X configuration Refer to the MICAS X User Manual for more information on these and other MICAS X features and contact Original Code Consulting support originalcode com for more
18. tializes the Scan Counter channel The second step increments the temperature setpoint Following steps include waiting for 1 second at each temperature value incrementing the counter and looping around to increment the temperature again if the sequence has not finished Next click on the Triggers module Click on the top Insert button to create a new trigger then click on the new Trigger in the Triggers list to select it Rename the trigger as Temp Warning Change the Condition Channel to Process Temp C the Condition to gt and the Thresh setting to 100 Change the Alarm Trigger parameter to Alarm Under False to True set the FT Command to Alert Save these parameters SEx 8 Read Fie being edited C OCC MICAS X Support MICAS X Demo Configuration ini Mark as Start up File _ Save As MICAS Configuration Editor Start up File C OCC MICAS X Support MICAS X Demo Configuration ini Read Startup rie L REWL version 1 3 0 Instruments Drivers Displays Temp Warning Trigger Name E Alarm Min Time Modules 4 Log A MICAS al a Don t Log Trigger J 0 Acquisition Channel Lists File Writer Control Tab Condition Channel Condition Thresh Hysteresis 9 Process Temp C 3 gt 9 100 3 0 Sequences a Constants False to True True to False Globals Channels FT Command A Command Rename Chan 3 Alert 3 Cyde Time ms FT Target TF Target g 1000 la FT Value TF Value The T
19. to be used by MICAS X Note that the Drivers that appear in the Available Drivers may be different than those shown in the figure below since many Drivers are available and the Drivers present in each installation will depend on the specific needs of that system Press the Save button to save these settings Note that the Save button must be pressed any time changes are made before moving to another configuration screen or the changes will be lost MICAS Configuration Editor E meea B File being edited C OCC MICAS X Support MICAS X Demo Configuration ini Mark as Startup File _ Save As mos Configuration Editor ese Start up File C OCC WMICAS X Support MICAS X Demo Configuration ini Read Startup File New version 1 3 0 i Oe E Instruments Drivers Displays Modules AcqLoop Delete Available Drivers Chamber Lighting MICAS Acquisition Channel Lists File Writer Control Tab E Sequences Triggers Channels an Driver to add it to the list of Dake Drivers being used Bes Tae Prefixes should be short and contain no They allow MICAS to differentiate between multiple instances of the same module If a module is only used once within MICAS it does not need a Prefix Mark a loop as Device Timed if the Dri i to that streams its data at a rate determined by the device rather than responding to data requests from MICAS X xq Typically only one Driver should be assigned to a Device Timed loop Be SU
20. uences Driver is induded in the MICAS configuration it creates two extra sets of channels Each Sequence will have a SeqStep channel that will record the step number that the Sequence is currently on And each Sequence will have a SeqState channel that can be set to a 1or a 0 to turn the Sequence on or off Minimum Seq Time ms Jo Insert Delete Steps Al 5 9 Initialize Counter 9 Increment Temp 9 9 Wait 1 Second 9 9 Increment Counter E2 Loop 9 Stop Seq 3 9 3 9 3 9 3 9 1398 Label Command Initialize Counter J Set A Increment Temp Jno Wait 1 Second 3 Wait Value Increment Counter J Incr Loop 3 Goto Stop Seq J StopSeq Exit Step Startup Sequence Reset to Defaults Revert J save__ Insert Delete Sequence Name Notes j 5 o Scan Temp a 33 z Off Label 9 9 Press to Scan 9 9 os On Label 9 9 Scannin ig 3 9 H 3 9 xj oo aas e Log Each Step No Exit Step Don t Log Condition Condition Channel Threshold Target Value 3 True 3 Scan Counter J 0 J True 2 Chamber Temp SP C lt 30 3 True 3 1 p True J Scan Counter 0 9 lt J Scan Counter Jue Mark as Start up File_ Save As j Pa Read Start up File New version 1 3 0 jo Shutdown Sequence 6 _ Increment Temp J Scan Temp 2014 David Thomson Original Code Consulting dthomson originalcode com The Sequence you created demonstrates how MICAS X can be programmed to operate an experiment The first step ini
Download Pdf Manuals
Related Search