Data Communication Methods in LabVIEW

LabVIEW contains many data communication methods, each suited for a certain use case. To ensure you implement the correct data communication method for your application, refer to the overview presented in this topic. For detailed information about a particular data communication method, click the title of the data communication method you want to learn more about.

Data Communication Type: Dataflow Elements Buffer Interfaces Variable Interfaces
Use Case: Sending data between most block diagram objects. Sending data between locations when it is important to avoid overwriting or losing any value. Storing a readily-accessible value in memory where the latest value is of primary interest. Use carefully to avoid race conditions.
Examples: Passing data from a VI output to a VI input. Acquiring a waveform; sending a message or command; streaming an image. Monitoring the current temperature; monitoring the system state.
Categories:

��Wire

��Shift register

��Feedback Node

��Channel Wire

Intra-Target or PC

��Queue

��RT FIFO

��User events

��Asynchronous Message Communication (AMC) Reference Library



Networked

��Network streams

��TCP

��Simple TCP Messaging (STM) Reference Library



Intra-FPGA

��Target-scoped FIFO

��VI-defined FIFO

��DRAM



FPGA to/from Host

��DMA FIFO



FPGA to FPGA

��Peer-to-Peer (P2P) FIFO

Intra-Target or PC

��Local variable

��Global variable

��Functional global variable (FGV)

��Single-process shared variable

��Data value reference

��Current Value Table (CVT)



Networked

��Network-published shared variable

��Programmatic Shared Variable API

��Web services

��UDP



Intra-FPGA

��Global variable

��Memory item

��Register item



FPGA to/from Host

��Read/Write Control

��NI Scan Engine and Variables

��User-defined I/O variable


Dataflow Elements

To take advantage of the dataflow programming environment in LabVIEW, you should use wires, shift registers, feedback nodes, and channel wires as the primary data communication methods in your application.

Method Attributes
Wire
  • Primary data transfer between block diagram objects
Shift register
  • Primary data transfer between loop iterations
Feedback Node
  • Primary data transfer between iterations of code (does not require a loop)
Channel Wire
  • Primary data transfer for asynchronous communication between parallel sections of code


Buffer Interfaces

Use buffer interfaces when you must send data from one location to another and you do not want to overwrite or lose any value. A buffer interface is often represented as a FIFO (first-in, first-out) single or multi-element buffer where one or more writers add data onto one end of the buffer and a reader retrieves data from the other end.

Intra-Target or PC

Method Attributes
Queue
  • Flexible sizing and access options
  • Non-deterministic
RT FIFO (Real-Time Module)
  • Deterministic
  • Polling mode (default) handles read/write wait times deterministically, but creates high CPU overhead
  • Blocking mode optimizes CPU utilization during read/write wait times, but does not handle the operations deterministically
  • Less flexible than queues because of fixed size and limited access options
User events
Asynchronous Messaging Communication (AMC) Library

(Available at ni.com)
  • Message communication within a process and between processes
  • Greater ease of use compared to queues when designing a messaging framework
  • Includes the Queued Message Handler (QMH) template

    Note: This is community content subject to the Sample Code License Terms available at ni.com/samplecodelicense


Networked

Method Attributes
Network streams
  • 1:1 communication
  • Simpler to implement than TCP
  • Automatically handle disconnections and reconnections
  • Unidirectional
  • Available only for Windows and Real-Time systems
TCP
  • Broad functionality for applications that require network communication to devices without network streams support
  • Low-level protocol introduces implementation complexity
Simple TCP Messaging (STM) Reference Library

(Available at ni.com)
  • Message wrapper around low-level TCP functions
  • Used to implement 1:N, single server to multiple client communication

    Note: This is community content subject to the Sample Code License Terms available at ni.com/samplecodelicense


Intra-FPGA

Method Attributes
Target-scoped FIFO (FPGA Module)
VI-defined FIFO (FPGA Module)
  • Implementation options specify the type of storage the FIFO uses: Flip-flops, Look-Up Table, or Block Memory
  • Avoids resource conflicts in reentrant subVIs by replicating the resource for each instance
  • Facilitates reusing code for VIs in multiple projects
  • Not viewable or customizable from the Project Explorer window
DRAM (FPGA Module)
  • Interface with dynamic random access memory (DRAM) using a memory item or CLIP interface
  • Provides a large amount of buffered memory space compared to Target-scoped and VI-defined FIFOs
  • Nondeterministic access latency
  • Not available on all targets


FPGA to/from Host

Method Attributes
DMA FIFO (FPGA Module)


FPGA to FPGA

Method Attributes
Peer-to-Peer (P2P) FIFO (FPGA Module)


Variable Interfaces

Use variable interfaces when you must store a value in memory that readers and writers can access with minimal or no flow control. Note that you should use variables in cases where the latest value is of primary interest and it is acceptable to overwrite previous values. Use carefully to avoid race conditions.

Intra-Target or PC

Method Attributes
Local variable
  • Stores data accessible from a single VI
Global variable
  • Stores data accessible from multiple VIs in the same LabVIEW application instance
Functional global variable (FGV)
  • VI that uses uninitialized shift registers to store global data
  • Capable of implementing simple global variables, as well as more complex data structures, such as stacks or queue buffers
  • Helps prevent race conditions by defining specific operations that calling code can perform on the variable
Single-process shared variable
Data value reference
  • Stores large data sets
  • Helps manage memory and avoid data copies
Current Value Table (CVT)

(Available at ni.com)
  • Common data repository for variables in applications with separate components
  • Uses less computing resources than shared variables by centralizing I/O operations

    Note: This is community content subject to the Sample Code License Terms available at ni.com/samplecodelicense


Networked

Method Attributes
Network-published shared variable
  • Deterministic option available
  • Ideal for monitoring values
  • Stores values in a network data server (Shared Variable Engine)
  • Built-in connection manager for 1:N and N:1 network configurations
Programmatic Shared Variable API
  • Improves design scalability by providing dynamic access to variables instead of static node-based binding
  • Access multiple variables with a single variable API function
  • Access network-published I/O variables
Web services
  • Network data communication using standard HTTP protocols
  • Stream standard MIME data types, such as text, images, and videos
  • Build and deploy web services using LabVIEW VIs
UDP
  • Supports single-cast (1:1) and multicast (1:N) for low-level communication among processes on devices
  • Higher performance than TCP in applications that do not require lossless data transfer
  • Low-level protocol introduces implementation complexity
  • Does not guarantee clients receive data


Intra-FPGA

Method Attributes
Global variable
  • Stores data accessible from multiple VIs in the same LabVIEW application instance
Memory item (FPGA Module)
  • Capable of storing values as multiple data points
  • Implementation options specify the type of storage the memory item uses: Block Memory, Look-Up Table, or DRAM
  • Target-scoped (configured in the project) and VI-defined (configured in a VI for reentrant use) options
Register item (FPGA Module)
  • Capable of posting a status every clock cycle
  • Target-scoped (configured in the project) and VI-defined (configured in a VI for reentrant use) options
  • Consume fewer FPGA resources than FIFOs


FPGA to/from Host

Method Attributes
Read/Write Control (FPGA Module)
  • Reads or writes to a control or indicator in the top-level FPGA VI on the FPGA target.
NI Scan Engine and Variables

(FPGA Module + NI Scan Engine support on your target)
  • Simple, periodic communication of FPGA I/O data to/from an RT host
  • Reduces code required to transfer I/O data between an FPGA target and RT host
User-defined I/O variable (FPGA Module)
  • Send user-defined data when using the Scan Engine in Hybrid mode
  • Data transfer between an FPGA VI and LabVIEW RT host VI
  • Transfer custom FPGA-processed I/O data