Cycle Test Stand using CompactDAQ and LabVIEW

Ambiant_Test_Stand_Main_FP

Overview

Cycle Test Stand using CompactDAQ and LabVIEW. A manufacture of home water purifiers needed custom LabVIEW software to cycle test their product. The cycle test controlled water flow and electrical power via relays to the units under test. The current draw of each unit was monitored and saved to file. The user needed the ability to test groups of units independently of each other. The program was going to be used in different locations all over the world and needed to be understood by non-native English speakers.

Solution

We developed a custom LabVIEW program that controlled the relays and measured the current using NI CompactDAQ hardware. A CompactDAQ system has a chassis that is connected to a PC through USB or Ethernet, and then populated with one or more conditioned I/O modules that provide direct sensor connectivity.

CompactDAQ

Example of CompactDAQ hardware

We architected the software so groups of units could be tested independently of each other. A group consisted of 5 units. Power, and water flow control relays were controlled for each group. The electrical current draw for each unit was monitored. The user could create, edit, start testing, and stop testing each group. This allowed the customer to run different tests on groups of units instead of testing all the units at the same time.

Amway block diagram

Block Diagram of System

The program utilized icons to communicate functionally in a graphical way. This allowed the program to be easily used by non-native English speakers.

Features

Main UI

The main user interface provided a global view of all the tests that were running. From the main screen the user could see the status of the current test, and manage each group of tests.

Test Editor

The test editor allowed the user to edit test parameters. The user could load a previously saved test setup file. Each group of parameters were organized so the user could select the group they wanted to edit. This made the dialog easier to use because the user could focus on just the group of parameters they wanted to edit.

Test UI FP

Test Editor Dialog

Test Editor - Protocols

The protocol defined the cycle for each test group. The protocol contained the dwell time which was how long each step was executed and the state for the flow and power relays during that step. The protocol was saved as a text file that could be edited in Excel or Notepad by the engineer. A drop down list of the available protocol files was provided so the user could select what protocol they wanted for the test.

Test UI FP Protocol

Test Editor - Protocols

Test Editor - Cycles

The cycles parameters allowed the user to set how many cycles to run. A cycle was defined as one protocol.

Test Editor - Cycles

Test Editor - Groups

The groups parameters allowed the user to select what group of units were assigned to the test. Multiple groups could be run for each test. The available groups were set up by the engineer.

Test Editor - Groups

Advanced Settings

The settings dialog allowed the engineer to set up the hardware for the test stand. The settings dialog was password protected to prevent the operators from accessing the dialog. The image below shows how the engineer set up the hardware settings for a group to be tested. Icons were not used in this section because it was assumed an engineer would be doing the setup.

Advanced Settings Dialog

Graph Dialog

Graph dialog allowed the user to select a group of units and plot the data collected for each unit in the group. The user could also save a screen shot of the graph to file.

Graph_Dialog_FP

Graph Dialog

Manual Dialog

The manual dialog allowed the user to control valves and relays for each group.

Manual_Dialog_FP

Manual Dialog

Result

The Cycle Test Stand using CompactDAQ and LabVIEW allowed the customer to easily manage the testing they needed to do. We deployed a LabVIEW executable so the software could be run on multiple station around the world. No additional licensing from NI is needed for deployed executables.

The user interfaced used icons to communicate to the user what each parameter was doing. This was important because the software was being used in multiple locations around the world that had non English speakers. The users found the software intuitive to operate which lower training costs and increased test accuracy.

The ability to independently test each group of units allowed the customer to maximize their test station. They could run a variety of tests with different cycle counts and different protocols. This made the system very flexible and able to accommodate changing test requirements.

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