Populating ring text from sub vi - How?

[F1_Fan]

I think I'm heading down the Rube Goldburg road and need some advice .

I have a front panel running some test equipment. The user 1st selects a test fixture and I populate the available test methods from reading a simple *.ini configuration file specific to the selected fixture. Where I'm having problems is when I populate the ring control using a property node I just can't figure out a clean way to populate the front panel from the vi. I'm just trying to pass the ring text to an identical ring control on the front panel; the user then selects the desired test method which I later load and run the test.

I'm sure it is something simple that I've forgotten but I can't figure it out without going all Goldburg.

-Chris

(Oh man the snippet function butchered my vi; here is a jpeg).

Message Edited by F1_Fan on 09-01-2009 09:39 PM

Message Edited by F1_Fan on 09-01-2009 09:40 PM

[Baji]

Take the reference of the Ring text inside the subvi and update the Values.

http://forums.ni.com/ni/board/message?board.id=170&thread.id=428582&view=by_date_ascending&page=1

Message Edited by Baji on 09-02-2009 08:45 AM

[Darin.K · Accepted solution]

If I understand you correctly you are looking to populate the Strings[] property of a Text Ring on the main VI from inside a subVI (I assume the code you showed was from the subVI).  In this case, I would use a Control Reference.  See the following example.  Hope this helps.

[F1_Fan]

Thanks for the help; that solved my problem is a nice clean way.

Learn something new everyday!

[Dennis_Knutson]

I don't see the point of these solutions that use a reference and updating the main's control there. All you have to do is pass the string array back to the main and write to the control's property node.

[Ben]

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Dennis Knutson wrote:
I don't see the point of these solutions that use a reference and updating the main's control there. All you have to do is pass the string array back to the main and write to the control's property node.

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When you are in a state of a State Machine that in turn is in a SM that is a SM....

Control references let me keep the GUI updated without having to return to the main.

Ben

[Dennis_Knutson]

Okay, that makes sense but do you think that is what the op is doing?

[Ben]

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Dennis Knutson wrote:

Okay, that makes sense but do you think that is what the op is doing?

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The words don't sound that way but the screen shot makes it look like he wants to do it in a sub-VI where they have the right idea but they are pointing at the wrong widget and want to poke at a callers ring control.

 

Ben

[F1_Fan]

It is part of a much larger multiloop QSM and my problem was indeed updating the control from inside a state inside a subVI.

The application is growing (as well my coding skills) so I'm trying to use good practices. I used the control ref technique but will be expanding it even further. Decided to put all the front panel controls into a cluster and type def the cluster. I can then easily update those controls (and add more) without large wire changes.

-Chris

[Ben]

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F1_Fan wrote:

It is part of a much larger multiloop QSM and my problem was indeed updating the control from inside a state inside a subVI.

The application is growing (as well my coding skills) so I'm trying to use good practices. I used the control ref technique but will be expanding it even further. Decided to put all the front panel controls into a cluster and type def the cluster. I can then easily update those controls (and add more) without large wire changes.

-Chris

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Good idea!

I put them in an Action Engine so I grapb wahtever I need where ever I need it.

Tip!

When initializing check for the vailidity of all of your refs.

 

 There were many times when I put every thing together but forgot to add the ref to the actual control. The check let me no at start-up time that I forgot something rather than trouble shooting "why am I getting an invalid ref error" and "where".

Ben