Boeing Selects National Instruments LabVIEW for Missile System Test, Saves 30 Percent.AUSTIN, Texas -- NI Alliance Partner Radical Systems Creates PXI-Based Data Acquisition System for Complex Aerospace Testing National Instruments National Instruments, or NI (NASDAQ: NATI), is an American company with over 4,000 employees and direct operations in 41 countries founded in 1976 by Dr. James Truchard, Bill Nowlin and Jeff Kodosky. (Nasdaq:NATI NATI National Association of Teen Institutes NATI Newfoundland Association of Technical Industries ) today announced that Boeing (NYSE NYSE See: New York Stock Exchange :BA) selected an NI LabVIEW- and PXI-based solution for acquisition of vehicle launch environments on the ground-based midcourse defense Ground-Based Midcourse Defense (GMD) is a component of the national missile defense strategy of the United States administered by the U.S. Missile Defense Agency. Previously known as National Missile Defense (NMD), the name was changed in 2002 to differentiate it from other missile system vehicle flight test program. For this system, Boeing required an advanced data acquisition solution that could acquire and analyze simultaneous high-speed inputs and display them in real time on a remote computer located in the launch control bunker. National Instruments Alliance Partner Radical Systems Inc. used LabVIEW graphical development software and PXI (PCI EXtensions for Instrumentation) A peripheral bus specialized for data acquisition and real time control systems. Introduced in 1997, PXI uses the CompactPCI 3U and 6U form factors and adds trigger lines, a local bus and other functions suited for measurement embedded hardware to create a parallel data acquisition system to maintain the data throughput and required precision. They remotely accessed the embedded PXI controller throughout the test via an Ethernet interface to control and observe the data prior to, during and after test completion. "With the flexibility of LabVIEW and modular design In the context of systems engineering, modular design — or "modularity in design" — is an approach aiming to subdivide a system into smaller parts (modules) that can be independently created and then used in different systems to drive multiple functionalities. of PXI, we optimized code reuse and created the initial prototype in fewer than 45 days," said James L. Slemp, director of engineering at Radical Systems. "The final version of this system showed a cost savings greater than 30 percent compared to the predecessor and performed its function more intuitively and with greater versatility." The system collects data in a continuous-acquisition mode for a total of 168 channels. It features 24 high-speed input channels for strain gages and/or bridge-type transducers with simultaneous sample-and-hold capabilities, 16 high-speed input channels for accelerometer accelerometer Instrument that measures acceleration. Because it is difficult to measure acceleration directly, the device measures the force exerted by restraints placed on a reference mass to hold its position fixed in an accelerating body. and/or acoustic transducers with simultaneous sample-and-hold capabilities and 48 isolated digital inputs and outputs for discrete I/O (Input/Output) The transfer of data between the CPU and a peripheral device. Every transfer is an output from one device and an input to another. See PC input/output. I/O - Input/Output control and synchronization. Boeing used this system to remotely acquire, analyze and view complex data sets including acoustic, strain, pressure, vibration, temperature and heat flux inputs of its ground-based missile defense system Noun 1. missile defense system - naval weaponry providing a defense system missile defence system naval weaponry - weaponry for warships . About PXI PCI (1) (Payment Card Industry) See PCI DSS. (2) (Peripheral Component Interconnect) The most widely used I/O bus (peripheral bus). eXtensions for Instrumentation (PXI) is an open specification governed by the PXI Systems Alliance (www.pxisa.org) that defines a rugged, CompactPCI-based platform optimized for test, measurement and control. PXI products are compatible with the CompactPCI industrial computer standard that is supported by more than 60 member companies and more than 1,000 products. PXI offers additional features such as environmental specifications, standardized software and built-in timing and synchronization. About National Instruments National Instruments (www.ni.com) is a technology pioneer and leader in virtual instrumentation -- a revolutionary concept that has changed the way engineers and scientists in industry, government and academia approach measurement and automation. Leveraging the PC and its related technologies, virtual instrumentation increases productivity and lowers costs through easy-to-integrate software, such as the NI LabVIEW graphical development environment, and modular hardware, such as PXI modules for data acquisition, instrument control and machine vision. Headquartered in Austin, Texas, NI has more than 3,400 employees and direct operations in approximately 40 countries. In 2004, the company sold products to more than 25,000 companies in 90 countries. For the past six years, FORTUNE magazine named NI one of the 100 best companies to work for in America. Readers may obtain investment information from the company's investor relations Investor relations The process by which the corporation communicates with its investors. department by calling 512-683-5090, by sending e-mail to nati@ni.com or by visiting www.ni.com/nati. LabVIEW, National Instruments, NI, and ni.com are trademarks of National Instruments. Other product and company names listed are trademarks or trade names of their respective companies. A National Instruments Alliance Partner is a business entity independent from NI and has no agency, partnership, or joint-venture relationship with NI. |
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