dSPACE FAQ 027

Transferring Data from Host PC to dSPACE Board FAQ Version: 2 / 2010-12-29 Page 1

FAQ 027

Transferring Data from Host PC to dSPACE Board

Keywords

data transfer, PC, dSPACE system

Question

I need to transfer some data from my PC to the program running on my dSPACE system. The real-time program must not be interrupted by the data transfer. What methods can I use?

Answer

There are basically three different ways of transferring parameters from the host PC to the real-time application running on the dSPACE board.

ControlDesk

If the transfer parameter is not time-critical and there is not much data to transfer, ControlDesk is the easiest solution. When ControlDesk is in Animation mode, parameters can be entered by using various sorts of input controls. The slider control, for example, allows data transfer from and to the real-time program using the PC mouse. With a numeric input, parameters can be entered via keyboard. ControlDesk also provides the Parameter Editor, with which sets of parameters can be written from a parameter (PAR) file to the real-time application. ControlDesk Automation can be used to automate ControlDesk via Python scripts. For example, it provides several Python modules for accessing MATLAB

MAT files and automatically writing data to the real-time application.

MLIB

If you need to transfer more than just a couple of values, MLIB might prove useful. MLIB, the MATLAB-dSPACE Interface Library, allows access to the real-time program from the MATLAB workspace. MLIB functions can be called from the MATLAB Command Window or MATLAB M files. MLIB functions are suited to modify parameters online, but also allow you to send sequences of test data to real-time applications. For further Information please refer to the dSPACE HelpDesk at Experiment and Test > Interface Libraries > MLIB/MTRACE MATLAB-dSPACE Interface Libraries

CLIB

A third possibility is CLIB. CLIB provides C libraries for communication between the PC and the real-time processor. This set of C functions allows you to write your own programs for the host PC. CLIB gives access to various processor control functions and to the processor memory, i.e., you can write parameters directly to the memory of the real-time target. An additional C compiler is required for CLIB. For further Information please refer to the dSPACE HelpDesk at Experiment and Test > Interface Libraries > CLIB C Interface Library

dSPACE FAQ 027

Transferring Data from Host PC to dSPACE Board FAQ Version: 2 / 2010-12-29 Page 2

How to Contact dSPACE Support

dSPACE GmbH Rathenaustr. 26 D-33102 Paderborn Germany

++49 5251 1638-941

mailto:support@dspace.de http://www.dspace.com/support

dSPACE recommends that you use the support request form on the internet to contact dSPACE support. It is available under

http://www.dspace.com/goto?supportrequest

Software Updates and Patches

dSPACE strongly recommends that you download and install the most recent patches for your current dSPACE installation. Visit http://www.dspace.com/goto?patches for software updates and patches.

FAQ

FAQ documents are available under http://www.dspace.com/goto?faq.

Important Notice

This document contains proprietary information that is protected by copyright. All rights are reserved. Neither the documentation nor software may be copied, photocopied, reproduced, translated, or reduced to any electronic medium or machine-readable form, in whole or in part, without the prior written consent of dSPACE GmbH.

Copyright 2010 by:

dSPACE GmbH Rathenaustr. 26 D-33102 Paderborn Germany

This publication and the contents hereof are subject to change without notice.

For a list of registered trademarks of dSPACE products refer to http://www.dspace.com/goto?Trademarks

FAQ 027Transferring Data from Host PC to dSPACE BoardKeywordsQuestionAnswerControlDeskMLIBCLIB