Hardware Reference
In-Depth Information
Figure 10.1
A screen display generated by a program created using Visual
Basic. The display shows a running fermentation process with fully interactive
controls
own applications (particularly if starting from scratch); however, in some cases,
this may be the only effective solution to a particular problem.
With modern Visual programming languages (e.g. Visual Basic) it is emi-
nently possible to produce attractive and meaningful graphical displays that
show the inputs and outputs of a control or instrumentation system. Figure 10.1
shows a typical example of a screen display showing a graphical representa-
tion of a fermentation process. The window background was produced using
Microsoft Visio and then imported into Visual Basic. The various controls were
then placed at appropriate points within the schematic diagram. The controls
and displays are fully interactive and the user is able to use the screen display
to monitor the process.
Programming language extensions
Most modern high-level language interpreters and compilers provide a wide
range of facilities suitable for those wishing to develop commercial and sci-
entific applications. Unfortunately, the facilities offered by a programming
language may be somewhat lacking when the software is to be used in con-
junction with data acquisition,
control hardware,
or in an instrumentation
