National Instruments Corporation

Chris Cifra

Kevin L Schultz

Robert E Dye

Nicolas F Vazquez

Greg McKaskle

Christophe Caltagirone

Roger Zhang

Jeff Kellam

Jeff Correll

A system and method for automatically (i.e., programmatically) generating a computer program based on program information, such as a prototype, wherein the program includes a graphical user interface (GUI) for specifying input values to or viewing output values from the program. The prototype may comprise a series of functional operations. One or more input and/or output parameters may be associated with each functional operation. In response to a user's request for a program implementing the prototype to be automatically generated, a list of parameters associated with the operations included in the prototype may be displayed. The user may select from the displayed list the input parameters which are desired to be interactively changeable. In response, the program may be generated such that the program has a graphical user interface including a user interface control associated with each selected input parameter.

Automatic generation of programs with GUI controls for interactively setting or viewing values

A system and method for creating a graphical program, wherein the graphical program is operable to invoke execution of textual code. The user selects a code node for inclusion in the graphical program, wherein the code node is displayed on the screen. The user then selects or enters textual code that is comprised in or displayed in the code node. The textual code may be code from a text-based language, such as Perl, Mathematica, or Java, etc., or may be a script from a scripting language. The user may manually enter the textual code into the code node, or import the textual code from a file. The textual code comprised in the code node is user viewable and editable. During execution of the graphical program, the code node is operable to invoke execution of the textual code comprised in the code node. The textual code is preferably executed by an instance of a server program. During execution of the graphical program, the graphical programming system provides the textual code to the server program, as well as any input data received by the code node. The server program then executes the textual code, using any input data received by the code node, and produces an output which is provided back to the graphical program. The present invention thus enables a user of a graphical programming system to more easily incorporate, view, edit and debug textual based code from within the graphical programming system.

Code node for a graphical programming system which invokes execution of textual code

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Cedar Park, TX, United States of America

Chris Cifra