National Instruments Corporation

Jeffrey J Kellam

Brian Keith Odom

Rafael Castro

Kyle R Bryson

Joseph E Peck

Johann G Scholtz

Michelle C Denny

Evan W Cone

Improved process control systems may include shared safety control and process control components/elements, facilitating the sharing of sensors, actuators, and input/output (I/O) interface circuitry between the safety functionality of the system and the general operational (i.e. normal) functionality of the system. Components and/or circuitry corresponding to safety operations of the system may be designed to permit inputs to be monitored during normal operations at all times as there is typically no safety risk associated with monitoring. The components and/or circuitry corresponding (or dedicated) to the safety operations of the system may operate to prevent normal operational control of various designated outputs/actuators when there is a need to activate safety functions. When there is no need to activate safety functions, these same components and/or circuitry may allow normal operational control of the designated outputs/actuators. The safety portion or segment of the system may have priority control over the outputs/actuators, and may permit normal functionality and signal propagation to the actuators/outputs when it is safe to do so.

Control of safety input/output by non-safety system during safe times

System and method for controlling cartridges to perform industrial operation(s). The system may include cartridge controllers coupled to the cartridges, timing and data routing logic coupled to the cartridge controllers, and controlling software coupled to the timing and data routing logic. Each of the cartridge controllers may be operable to detect and establish communications with a respective cartridge based on information retrieved from the cartridge, and adapt input/output signals of the respective cartridge according to instructions specified by the timing and data routing logic. The timing and data routing logic may be operable to synthesize data stream(s) from the adapted input/output signals, wherein each of the data stream(s) includes a respective subset of the adapted input/output signals received from a corresponding subset of the cartridges, and transmit the data stream(s) to the controlling software. The synthesized data stream(s) may appear as corresponding device(s) to the controlling software.

Generating a data stream from cartridge controllers using a plurality of measurement cartridges

Adapting a plurality of measurement cartridges using cartridge controllers

A display node in a graphical program may be used to automatically transfer an image from an embedded device lacking display capabilities to another device having a display. A method for displaying an image involves creating a graphical program on a display in response to user input and executing the graphical program on a first embedded system. The graphical program may include a first node for acquiring an image and a second node for displaying the image. If the first embedded system is coupled to a second system having a display device, executing the graphical program involves the second node transferring the image to the second system and directing the second system to display the image on the display device of the second system. If the first embedded system is not coupled to a second system having a display device, the second node may perform no display operation during execution.

Graphical program node for displaying acquired images

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Cedar Park, TX, United States of America

Jeffrey J Kellam