Top 10 Reasons to Use NI LabVIEW for Controlling Instruments

NI LabVIEW, a graphical development environment designed specifically for engineers and scientists, is easier to learn, use, and debug than general-purpose programming languages. In LabVIEW, you develop instrument control applications using drag-and-drop graphical icons instead of writing lines of text. An intuitive flowchart representation displays your code in a manner that is easy to develop, maintain, and understand.

The Instrument Driver Network (IDNet) community has thousands of free LabVIEW instrument drivers for virtually any instrument. Consistent driver APIs eliminate the need for you to learn low-level instrument commands specific to each instrument. The LabVIEW Instrument Driver Finder further helps you install new drivers in seconds directly from your development environment.

Harness the power of your multicore computer using the highly optimized LabVIEW parallelizing compiler. By automatically running your code in multiple threads, you can run more complex algorithms and crunch through large data sets faster than with traditional sequential programming.

LabVIEW includes thousands of advanced analysis functions created specifically for engineers and scientists, all with detailed help files and documentation. With these powerful tools, you can perform advanced signal processing, filtering, frequency analysis, probability and statistics, curve fitting, interpolation, digital signal processing, and more. You also can extend LabVIEW with processing for applications including sound and vibration, machine vision, RF/communications, and transient/short-time duration signal analysis. For additional flexibility, you can integrate LabVIEW with algorithms developed in third-party software.

With powerful LabVIEW file I/O capabilities, you can choose between file formats optimized for high-speed streaming, compact size, or interoperability with other popular applications such as Microsoft Excel. You also can use LabVIEW to store data directly into a database or automate report creation and send the results directly to a printer, network location, or e-mail recipient.

LabVIEW helps you quickly create a graphical user interface using hundreds of drag-and-drop controls, graphs, and indicators for scientific and engineering applications. You can customize the position, size, alignment, scale, and color of these built-in controls in seconds from a right-click menu. Import custom images or design your own controls to add the finishing touch to commonly used applications.

With the LabVIEW Application Builder, you can create stand-alone applications for programs that need to be deployed on a large number of systems. Distribute professional copies of software as end-use applications or provide developers with shared libraries for use in other development environments. LabVIEW makes it easy to create installers that bundle all the drivers and required run-time engines with your executables.

Every certified instrument driver includes ready-to-run examples written specifically for that instrument. Simply select your hardware from autopopulated drop-down menus and click run. With so many examples, you never have to start developing your applications from scratch.

When you use LabVIEW, you learn more than just how to develop an instrument control application. You gain proficiency in a framework that provides easy migration paths to innovative technologies such as real-time and embedded devices. For example, you can use the same graphical language you worked with in your measurement application to target a field-programmable gate array (FPGA). Learning LabVIEW graphical programming instantly enhances your technical resume and increases your industry value.

Because millions of users have successfully adopted LabVIEW for a wide range of applications, you lower your risk by tapping into an extensive technical support network. In addition to gaining access to world-class phone support and discussion forums, you can find a wealth of example programs, white papers, and KnowledgeBase articles online. You can take advantage of an extensive network of LabVIEW user groups, product partners, and select integrators around the world.