LabVIEW Interface for chipKITTM

Getting Started Installing Software and Connecting Hardware

Overview
This document will explain how to install the required software to interface with a chipKITTM Uno32TM device from NI LabVIEW Graphical System Design software.

Procedure

1. Install NI LabVIEW 2012. This is your development environment where you will write your computer
program to communicate with the chipKIT device.

If you do not own a copy of LabVIEW, you can purchase a non-commercial, student license from an online distributor such as Studica. A free, 45-day evaluation of LabVIEW is available at ni.com/trylabview (requires the creation of a ni.com user profile to extend the 7-day evaluation to 45-days).

2. Install NI-VISA device driver. This is a library of functions that enable LabVIEW to send and receive
commands for various communication protocols such as RS-232 and 488.2.

The NI-VISA device drivers are free for use and can be downloaded from ni.com/drivers.

Getting Started with the LabVIEW Interface for chipKITTM

3. Install the MP IDE. This is the integrated development environment that is used to load firmware onto the
chipKIT MicroChip processor.

This is a free tool and made available for download on GitHub.

4. Install JKIs VI Package Manager. JKI is an alliance partner and integrator of NI solutions that developed
an application to easily install and update add-ons and toolkits to LabVIEW. This will allow you to install the LabVIEW Interface for Arduino add-on, which is built into a package that will install the functions, examples, and help files automatically.

This is a free tool and made available for download on JKIs website.

5. Install LabVIEW Interface for chipKIT. This interface is an API (set of functions) that allows LabVIEW to
communicate with the chipKIT device in particular.

This is a free tool available for download on the LabVIEW Interface for chipKIT community.

Getting Started with the LabVIEW Interface for chipKITTM

6. Connect chipKIT to Computer. You will need a USB A Male to Mini-B 5-pin Male cable to accomplish this.
You can purchase one online here or from a local electronics store.

7. Assign driver to chipKIT device. Your operating system should detect the device once it is connected, but
will most likely fail to assign the driver. If are using Windows, you can locate the device in Device Manager and choose to update the device driver. If you allow Windows to search online, it should locate the driver and install it properly. Alternatively, you can download the latest Virtual COM Port (VCP) driver from here.

8. Deploy the LabVIEW Interface for chipKIT (LIFCK) firmware to the chipKIT device. Included with the
LIFCK is firmware that will configure the device to receive commands from the host computer.

Getting Started with the LabVIEW Interface for chipKITTM

To deploy the firmware, you will need to launch the MP IDE. Once launched, open the firmware that ships with the LIFCK by selecting File Open and navigating to C:\Program Files\National Instruments\LabVIEW 2012\vi.lib\LabVIEW Interface for ChipKit\Firmware\ChipKit\ and select the folder for your device (i.e uc32). This path could change slightly depending on the version of LabVIEW that you have installed and your operating system. Once opened, you now need to specify your board type by selecting Tools Board chipKIT uC32. Then specify the COM port of your device by selecting Tools Serial Port COM X where X represents the number that your computer assigned. Now you are ready to deploy the firmware. Select File Upload to I/O Board or just click on the Upload button to accomplish this. It should take about 30 seconds to complete.

9. You are now ready to interface with your chipKIT device using LabVIEW to process the data and design a
cool user interface. Run the Blink (Digital Write).vi example to test that your board is functioning properly. Open LabVIEW and navigate to Help Find Examples, then select the Search tab and search for chipKIT. You should see several examples available, but start with Blink (Digital Write).vi.

Next Steps
Complete the Getting Started Blink LED tutorial to learn how the LIFCK API works in LabVIEW.

Getting Started with the LabVIEW Interface for chipKITTM