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Chapter 3
Hardware and Software Configuration
©
National Instruments Corporation
3-19
Note
FieldPoint CVI Interface Compatibility Modes—The FieldPoint software ships
with object (
.obj
) files to support the different compiler compatibility modes that
LabWindows/CVI supports (Microsoft Visual C/C++, Borland, Watcom, and Symantec).
When the FieldPoint software is installed, the
.obj
file corresponding to the configured
compatibility mode is installed.
FieldPoint OPC Server and the FP-20
xx
The FieldPoint OPC server conforms to the OPC Data Access 2.0 standard.
OPC (OLE for Process Control) is an industry-standard device interface
specification that provides interoperability between field devices such as
FieldPoint and application software packages. The FieldPoint OPC server,
like the other FieldPoint interfaces, imports the I/O Items that you
configured in FieldPoint Explorer and makes them available as OPC Items
to any
OPC client
. Therefore, if two computers are networked together, it
is possible for an OPC client on one computer to access FieldPoint
hardware connected to the OPC server on another computer.
OPC clients differ in the features they offer and their presentation of the
OPC interface. However, the basic steps involved are similar for most OPC
clients.
Follow these steps to use the FieldPoint OPC server:
1.
Launch your OPC client.
2.
Open the FieldPoint OPC server,
National
Instruments.OPCFieldPoint
, from the OPC client.
This server was registered with Windows when you installed the
FieldPoint software. OPC clients should be able to show you a list
of available registered servers, but you might have to type this name
in yourself. The OPC client might automatically connect to the server
when you select it, but if you are given the option to explicitly connect
to the FieldPoint OPC server, you should do so.
3.
Create a group.
Groups are a collection of I/O Items. Some OPC clients might not give
you the option of creating groups, or they might be created for you.
4.
Select the I/O Items, which you configured in FieldPoint Explorer, that
you want to read or write as a part of this group.
Many OPC clients can use the Browse Address Space feature of
the FieldPoint OPC server to show you a list of all of the I/O Items
you configured in FieldPoint Explorer. However, if the OPC client you
are using does not support this feature, you might need to type the Item
IDs of the I/O Items directly. The naming convention of the FieldPoint