NI Vision Acquisition Software 21.0 Readme

July 2021

This file contains installation instructions and compatibility information for NI Vision Acquisition Software.

You can find more release information on ni.com.

If you plan to use LabVIEW NXG, refer to LabVIEW NXG Support and Considerations.

Overview

System Requirements

Supported Operating Systems

Application Software Support

Vision Standards Support

Installation Instructions

Configuring NI-IMAQ

Configuring NI-IMAQdx

Product Security and Critical Updates

New Features

Accessing the Help and Examples

LabVIEW NXG Support and Considerations

Automating the Installation of NI Products

Using NI Software with Microsoft Windows 10

Legal Information

Overview

NI Vision Acquisition Software (VAS) allows you to acquire, display, and save images; control digital I/O on NI image acquisition devices; and configure your driver software and hardware.

For information about licensing NI Vision software, visit ni.com/info and enter the Info Code LicenseVision. Refer to the NI Vision website at ni.com/vision for the latest information about NI Vision Acquisition Software.

NI Vision Acquisition Software includes the following drivers:

  • NI-IMAQ is driver software for Camera Link cameras.
  • NI-IMAQdx is driver software for the following device types:
    • Camera Link cameras in Windows using supported frame grabbers:
      • PCIe-1427
      • PCIe-1433
      • PCIe-1437
      • PXIe-1435
    • ISC-178x smart cameras
    • GigE Vision-compliant cameras
    • USB3 Vision-compliant cameras
    • DirectShow-compatible cameras (Windows), UVC-compliant webcams (Linux RT)
  • NI-IMAQ I/O Driver Software that helps you program reconfigurable frame grabbers with LabVIEW FPGA and helps you program DIO without LabVIEW FPGA for Compact Vision Systems, Industrial Controllers, and other PCIe-based devices using the Vision RIO API.
    • Reconfigurable Frame Grabbers (requires LabVIEW FPGA):
      • PCIe-1473
      • PCIe-1477
      • NI 1483 FlexRIO Adapter Module
    • Devices supporting the Vision RIO API:
      • CVS-1458
      • CVS-1458RT
      • CVS-1459
      • CVS-1459RT
      • IC-3120
      • IC-3121
      • IC-3171
      • IC-3172
      • IC-3173
      • PCIe-8237
      • PXIe-8246
    • Note: LabVIEW FPGA can optionally be used to reconfigure the FPGA on Vision RIO devices, but only DIO functions are available for external connections.
  • Note: New versions of Vision Acquisition Software no longer support the following hardware:
    • NI 17xx and NI 177x Smart Cameras
    • NI EVS-1463, -1463RT, -1464, and -1464RT Embedded Vision Systems
    • NI CVS-1454, -1455, -1456, and -1457RT Compact Vision Systems
    • Analog cameras
    • Parallel digital cameras
    • Basler and Axis IP cameras
  • Note: New versions of Vision Acquisition Software no longer support the following real-time operating systems:
    • VxWorks
    • Phar Lap ETS (with the exception of NI 1483 modules, and GigE Vision-compliant cameras on PXI systems via the NI-IMAQdx driver)

Additional Driver Software

Some hardware requires driver software in addition to Vision Acquisition Software drivers. Refer to the NI website at ni.com/drivers for information about these drivers.

  • The NI PCIe-1473R and NI PCIe-1473R-LX110 require NI FlexRIO software to access the DRAM resources in a LabVIEW FPGA project.
  • The NI 1483 FlexRIO Adapter Module requires NI FlexRIO software.
  • The IC-312x and IC-317x industrial controllers require NI Industrial Controller Device Drivers to access FPGA resources and to discover remote real-time targets in NI Meaurement & Automation Explorer (MAX).

System Requirements

NI Vision Acquisition Software has the following requirements:

Processor Pentium 4 1 GHz or equivalent
Memory 512 MB RAM
Display 1,024 × 768 resolution video adapter with a 16-bit display

Supported Operating Systems

NI Vision Acquisition Software 21.0 supports the following operating systems:

  • Windows 10
  • Windows 10 IoT Enterprise LTSB 2016 (64-bit)
  • Windows Server 2019
  • Windows Server 2016

Note  NI Vision Acquisition Software no longer supports Windows Vista/XP/7/8.x, Windows Server 2003/2008/2012, or any 32-bit Windows operating system. NI Vision Acquisition Software 21.0 will not install or run on an unsupported OS. You cannot deploy or distribute applications that use NI Vision Acquisition Software 21.0 to an unsupported OS. Additionally, after installing NI Vision Acquisition Software 21.0, you cannot use any installers built on this computer with any version of LabVIEW, LabWindows™/CVI™, NI TestStand™, or Measurement Studio on an unsupported OS.

For more information about the changes to our OS support, visit https://www.ni.com/r/win32bitsupport.

Application Software Support

The following table lists the NI application software versions, including service packs, supported by NI Vision Acquisition Software. The installer specifically allows side-by-side installations of NI Vision Acquisition Software for each of the supported versions of LabVIEW, enabling you to use NI Vision Acquisition Software with multiple versions of LabVIEW. NI recommends that you install LabVIEW, LabVIEW Real-Time, and any other supported development environment before installing NI Vision Acquisition Software.

NI Application Software Versions Supported by NI Vision Acquisition Software
NI LabVIEW 2018, 2019, 2020, 2021
NI LabVIEW Real-Time Module 20181, 2019, 2020, 2021
NI LabVIEW FPGA Module 2018, 2019, 2020, 2021
NI LabVIEW NXG 5.1
NI LabWindows™/CVI™2 2017, 2019, 2020
NI Vision Development Module 7.1 or later
NI Vision Builder for Automated Inspection 2.5 or later

1 Vision Acquisition Software 21.0 and later will not install to Linux RT targets running LabVIEW Real-Time 2018.

2 NI-IMAQ I/O is not supported in NI LabWindows™/CVI™.

NI Vision Acquisition Software .NET Support

NI Vision Acquisition Software February 2014 was the last version to release updated support for the .NET Framework 2.0, .NET Framework 3.5, and .NET language integration into Visual Studio 2005 and Visual Studio 2008. Visual Studio 2010 and later are not supported.

Development and runtime support for .NET driver features are no longer included as of NI Vision Acquisition Software 19.0 and later.

Vision Standards Support

The following table lists the machine vision and imaging standards supported by NI Vision Acquisition Software.

Machine Vision or Imaging Standard Version Supported by NI Vision Acquisition Software
Camera Link® 2.1
GenICam™ 3.3
GigE Vision® 2.0 (select features)
USB3 Vision® 1.0.1

Installation Instructions

Download the NI Vision Acquisition Software installer from ni.com/downloads. NI software includes NI Package Manager to handle the installation. Refer to the NI Package Manager Manual for more information about installing, removing, and upgrading NI software using NI Package Manager.

Notes

  • If Windows Update is enabled, the installation process might hang if Windows Update interferes with the installation of Microsoft Visual C++ 2015 Run-Time. Visit ni.com/r/exjq43 for more information and steps to resolve this issue.
  • If you purchased this product with an NI Software Suite or NI Product Bundle, use the installation media that shipped with your purchase to install this product.
  • Use the serial number that is included with your software to activate NI Vision Acquisition Software. For more information on NI Vision Acquisition Software activation, refer to NI Software Activation.

Configuring NI-IMAQ

Complete the following steps to install an image acquisition device and configure NI-IMAQ.

Note: You must install NI-IMAQ before installing your image acquisition device.

Caution: Power off and unplug the computer before installing your hardware. Wait for any motherboard LEDs to power off before proceeding, since some computers remain powered for some time after being unplugged.

  1. Install your image acquisition device, and connect the camera. Refer to the device documentation for specific hardware installation instructions.
  2. Run NI MAX.
    1. Double-click the NI MAX icon on the desktop. You can use NI MAX to modify camera properties. Once you have saved these properties, they become the default settings for all NI-IMAQ applications.
    2. Expand Devices and Interfaces to display a list of the image acquisition devices installed on your computer.
  3. Select a camera file, and acquire an image.
    1. Click the plus sign next to the image acquisition device to expand the menu tree and list the available channels or ports. Right-click the channel or port to display a list of available cameras.
    2. Select the appropriate camera type from the list. Camera type selection varies according to the image acquisition device installed.
    3. To change the camera settings, modify the parameters at the bottom of the image viewer panel.
    4. You can acquire an image in the following ways:
      • Use the Snap button to acquire and display a single image with the image acquisition device.
      • Use the Grab button to acquire images continuously. A grab allows you to focus the camera.

Tip: For a complete list of supported cameras, right-click the channel or port, select Camera, and click Search ni.com.

Note: Refer to the right side of the MAX user interface, which displays context-sensitive help, for information about configuring image acquisition devices with NI MAX.

Configuring a Remote PXI/Compact PCIe Image Acquisition Device

Beginning with Vision Acquisition Software 19.0, NI-IMAQ Real-Time is not included for installation. However, you can still interact with remote real-time targets that have been set up using previous versions of NI-IMAQ and are running currently supported versions of LabVIEW Real-Time.

Note: Install NI-IMAQ and the LabVIEW Real-Time Module on the remote system before you install and configure the image acquisition device. Follow the steps in the NI MAX help window to install software.

Tip: Configuring remote image acquisition devices is similar to configuring local image acquisition devices, except that the procedure for working with camera files is different. Refer to the Measurement & Automation Explorer Help for NI-IMAQ for information about working with camera files on remote image acquisition devices.

  1. Launch NI MAX.
  2. In the Configuration tree, expand Remote Systems.
  3. Expand the appropriate system.
  4. Expand Devices and Interfaces.
  5. Expand NI-IMAQ Devices.
  6. Expand the device you want to configure.

Refer to the Measurement & Automation Explorer Help for NI-IMAQ for information about configuring specific NI image acquisition devices. You can access this help file from the NI MAX Help menu by selecting Help»Help Topics»NI Vision»NI-IMAQ.

Configuring NI-IMAQdx

Complete the following steps to configure NI-IMAQdx.

If you are using a USB webcam or other DirectShow-compatible camera, ensure that the camera driver is installed and functioning. For specific information about drivers and camera compatibility, consult your camera manufacturer documentation.

Instructions for configuring an USB3 Vision, GigE Vision, or IP camera are included in the Measurement & Automation Explorer Help for NI-IMAQdx. You can access this help file from the MAX Help menu by selecting Help»Help Topics»NI Vision»NI-IMAQdx.

Installing the High Performance GigE Vision Driver

If you have an Intel Pro/1000 Series gigabit Ethernet Network Interface Card (NIC), it is recommended that you install the High Performance GigE Vision Driver. This will ensure optimized performance and minimal configuration. To associate your hardware with the high performance driver, complete the following steps.

  1. Install the NIC.
  2. Right-click the NIC in the Device Manager, and select Update Driver.
  3. Choose Browse my computer for driver software.
  4. Browse to the driver location. The newest driver version is installed to <National Instruments>\NI-IMAQdx\Staging\NI GigE Vision.
  5. Click Next.
  6. Click Close.

Installing the Universal GigE Vision Driver

NI-IMAQdx will work with any standard gigabit Ethernet NIC. To use NI-IMAQdx with a standard gigabit Ethernet NIC, complete the following steps.

  1. Install the NIC and any related drivers. Refer to the NIC device documentation for installation instructions.
  2. Enable jumbo frames (frame packet size is greater than 1,500 bytes) on your NIC.
    1. Right-click the NIC in the Device Manager, and select Properties.
    2. Click the Advanced tab, and Jumbo Frames will appear in the Property list if supported by your NIC.
    3. Select the largest frame size available and click OK.

    Note: The procedure for enabling jumbo frames on your NIC may vary by manufacturer. Refer to the NIC device documentation for more information about enabling jumbo frames.

  3. Disable the Windows Firewall or any additional third party firewalls on the port. Windows Firewall can be disabled on individual ports from the Advanced tab of the Windows Firewall applet.

Configuring NI-IMAQdx for Windows

Complete the following steps to configure NI-IMAQdx for Windows.

  1. Connect the camera.
  2. Run NI MAX.
    1. Double-click the NI MAX icon on your desktop. You can use NI MAX to modify camera attributes. After you have saved these attributes, they become the default settings for all NI-IMAQdx or NI Vision applications.
    2. Expand Devices and Interfaces»NI-IMAQdx in the configuration tree to display a list of the cameras installed on your computer.
    3. For USB3 Vision cameras, NI-IMAQdx may not be associated with the camera if a third-party driver is installed. If this is the case, change the associated driver by right-clicking the camera and selecting Driver»NI-IMAQdx.
    4. Select the camera from the list. You then can view or modify the camera attributes on the Camera Attributes tab located below the image viewer.

Tip: Click the Show Help button to display the help window on the right side of the image viewer. Move your mouse over the properties to view context-sensitive help in the bottom half of the help window.

Configuring NI-IMAQdx for the LabVIEW Real-Time Module

If you are using a Windows development machine, the LabVIEW Real-Time Module, and an RT target, complete the following steps to install and configure NI-IMAQdx.

  1. Install NI-IMAQdx software on your Windows development machine.
  2. Ensure that your RT target is connected to the same subnet as the Windows development machine.
  3. Run NI MAX.
    1. Double-click the NI MAX icon on your desktop.
    2. Expand the Remote Systems list in the configuration tree.
    3. Select your RT target in the list.
    4. Configure your network settings. Refer to the Remote Systems Help in NI MAX (Help»Help Topics»Remote Systems) for instructions about configuring network settings.
  4. Install NI-IMAQdx on the Real-Time target, using one of the following options:
    1. Click the Software item below the RT target in the configuration tree.
    2. Click Add/Remove Software on the NI MAX toolbar to launch the LabVIEW Real-Time Software Wizard.
    3. Follow the instructions in the LabVIEW Real-Time Software Wizard to install NI-IMAQdx support for the RT target. It will reboot after installation is complete.
  5. Connect your camera to your remote system.
  6. Press <F5> to refresh the NI MAX configuration tree. Your camera should be listed in the Remote Systems list.

    Tip: Press <F5> to refresh the configuration tree whenever you connect a new device to an RT target.

  7. Expand Devices and Interfaces»NI-IMAQdx in the configuration tree to display a list of the cameras installed on your computer.
  8. Select the camera from the list. You then can view or modify the camera attributes from the Camera Attributes panel located below the image viewer.

Product Security and Critical Updates

Visit ni.com/security to view and subscribe to receive security notifications about NI products. For information about critical updates from NI, refer to Available Critical and Security Updates for NI Software.

New Features

This release of NI Vision Acquisition Software includes the following new features:

NI-IMAQ 21.0

  • Added support for LabVIEW 2021

NI-IMAQdx 21.0

  • Added support for LabVIEW 2021
  • Added support for GenICam™ 3.3

NI-IMAQ I/O 21.0

  • Added support for LabVIEW 2021

Accessing the Help and Examples

Documentation and examples are installed onto your hard drive with NI Vision Acquisition Software. To view the documentation, select Start»National Instruments»Vision»Documentation and then select the driver documentation. Some application-specific documents are installed to the application help folder, as listed in the following sections.

Refer to the NI Product Manuals Library at ni.com/manuals for the most recent versions of product documentation.

NI Vision Acquisition Software Documentation for NI MAX

  • You can access the Measurement & Automation Explorer Help for NI-IMAQ and the Measurement & Automation Explorer Help for NI-IMAQdx from the NI MAX Help menu by selecting Help»Help Topics»NI Vision. These documents are installed to <National Instruments>\MAX\Help.

NI Vision Acquisition Software Documentation for LabVIEW

  • You can access the NI-IMAQ VI Reference Help, NI-IMAQdx VI Reference Help, and NI Vision-RIO VI Reference Help from the LabVIEW Help menu.
  • NI Example Finder—Illustrates common applications you can create with NI Vision Acquisition Software. In LabVIEW, select Help»Find Examples. Click the Help button in the NI Example Finder to display the NI Example Finder Help. Vision Acquisition Software examples for LabVIEW are installed to <LabVIEW>\examples\Vision Acquisition, where <LabVIEW> is the location LabVIEW is installed. The examples for NI 1483 are installed to <labview>\examples\FlexRIO\IO Modules\NI 1483.

NI Vision Acquisition Software Documentation for LabWindows/CVI

  • NI-IMAQ Function Reference Help—Contains reference information about NI-IMAQ functions for LabWindows/CVI.
  • NI-IMAQdx Function Reference Help—Contains reference information about NI-IMAQdx functions for LabWindows/CVI.
  • Function panel help within LabWindows/CVI—Allows you to right-click within each function to access help for that function, control, function class, and function library. The niimaq.fp, NIIMAQdx.fp, and imaqio.fp function panels are installed to <National Instruments>\CVI\Bin.
  • Example programs are installed to
    • <Users>\Public\Documents\National Instruments\CVI\samples

NI Vision Acquisition Software for Eclipse and other Text-based Development Environments

  • Getting Started with C/C++ Development Tools for NI Linux Real-Time, Eclipse Edition with the NI Vision Development Module and NI-IMAQdx—Describes how to use the C/C++ Development Tools for NI Linux Real-Time, Eclipse Edition to develop an example C application using the NI Vision Development Module API and/or NI-IMAQdx, and deploy it on a Linux remote target. This tutorial outlines the basic steps required to build and deploy an example application. This document is installed to <National Instruments>\Vision\Help.
  • To view text-based example programs, select Start»All Programs»National Instruments»Vision»Examples, and then select the driver you want to see examples for. You can also navigate to <Users>\Public\Public Documents\National Instruments.

LabVIEW NXG Support and Considerations

The following sections detail considerations for using LabVIEW NXG 5.1 with NI Vision Acquisition Software 21.0.

LabVIEW NXG Operating Systems and System Requirements

Software support for LabVIEW NXG differs in the following ways:

  • System requirements—Only 64-bit (x64) processors are supported.
  • Operating system—Only 64-bit operating systems are supported. Refer to the Supported Operating Systems section for more information.

For information about NI Vision Acquisition Support support in LabVIEW NXG, visit ni.com/info and enter the Info Code VisionNXGGuide.

In LabVIEW NXG, NI-IMAQdx supports only the following:

  • Camera Link cameras used with supported frame grabbers
  • GigE Vision-compliant cameras
  • USB3 Vision-compliant cameras
  • DirectShow-compatible cameras

For advanced camera configuration or renaming support, use NI MAX.

Installing NI-IMAQdx for LabVIEW NXG

LabVIEW NXG is installed using NI Package Manager. Complete the following steps to install NI-IMAQdx for LabVIEW NXG.

  1. Visit ni.com/info and enter the Info Code NXGDownload to access the LabVIEW NXG download page.
  2. Click Download LabVIEW NXG.
  3. NI Package Manager installs, then automatically opens an installation window.
  4. Select LabVIEW NXG 5.1 and NI-IMAQdx 21.0.
  5. Complete the installer instructions to download LabVIEW NXG and NI-IMAQdx support for LabVIEW NXG.

Automating the Installation of NI Products

You can automate the installation of most NI products using command-line arguments to suppress some or all of the installer user interface and dialog boxes.

If the NI product you are installing uses Microsoft .NET 4.6.2, the .NET installer may run before any NI software installs and may require a reboot before the installation of NI software begins. To avoid a .NET reboot, install .NET 4.6.2 separately before you install NI software.

For more information about automating the installation of NI products, refer to Automating an Installer in the NI Package Manager manual.

Using NI Software with Microsoft Windows 10

Microsoft Windows 10 is the latest version of the Windows operating system and features significant changes compared to previous versions. Windows 10 introduces several new capabilities and also combines features from both Windows 7 and Windows 8. For more information about NI support for Windows 10, refer to NI Product Compatibility for Microsoft Windows 10.

Legal Information

Copyright

© 2021 National Instruments Corporation. All rights reserved.

Under the copyright laws, this publication may not be reproduced or transmitted in any form, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, storing in an information retrieval system, or translating, in whole or in part, without the prior written consent of National Instruments Corporation.

NI respects the intellectual property of others, and we ask our users to do the same. NI software is protected by copyright and other intellectual property laws. Where NI software may be used to reproduce software or other materials belonging to others, you may use NI software only to reproduce materials that you may reproduce in accordance with the terms of any applicable license or other legal restriction.

End-User License Agreements and Third-Party Legal Notices

You can find end-user license agreements (EULAs) and third-party legal notices in the following locations after installation:

  • Notices are located in the <National Instruments>\_Legal Information and <National Instruments> directories.
  • EULAs are located in the <National Instruments>\Shared\MDF\Legal\license directory.
  • Review <National Instruments>\_Legal Information.txt for information on including legal information in installers built with NI products.

U.S. Government Restricted Rights

If you are an agency, department, or other entity of the United States Government ("Government"), the use, duplication, reproduction, release, modification, disclosure or transfer of the technical data included in this manual is governed by the Restricted Rights provisions under Federal Acquisition Regulation 52.227-14 for civilian agencies and Defense Federal Acquisition Regulation Supplement Section 252.227-7014 and 252.227-7015 for military agencies.

IVI Foundation Copyright Notice

Content from the IVI specifications reproduced with permission from the IVI Foundation.

The IVI Foundation and its member companies make no warranty of any kind with regard to this material, including, but not limited to, the implied warranties of merchantability and fitness for a particular purpose. The IVI Foundation and its member companies shall not be liable for errors contained herein or for incidental or consequential damages in connection with the furnishing, performance, or use of this material.

Trademarks

Refer to the NI Trademarks and Logo Guidelines at ni.com/trademarks for information on NI trademarks. Other product and company names mentioned herein are trademarks or trade names of their respective companies.

Patents

For patents covering the NI products/technology, refer to the appropriate location: Help»Patents in your software, the patents.txt file on your media, or the NI Patent Notice at ni.com/patents.

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