Touchscreen and LabView

[Eugen Graf]

Hello!

My question may sound funny for someone, but I can't understand if I can use a touchscreen as a mouse in LabVIEW? The same events, the same driver?

If yes, than why I shoulb buy a NI touchpanel module and pay licenses for applications?

Thank you

[AnalogKid2DigitalMan]

Eugen:

About 7 years ago I used an Elo Touchscreen for use in a LabVIEW application I wrote. It connected to a serial port, had to install a driver, and calibrate the screen. It worked just like a mouse but no right click feature, and operators could still use the mouse as a standby. It was not practical to program in LabVIEW though.

By now they probabbly have USB interfaces and some more features to emulate mice with more features, I presume.

Not familiar with NI Touchpanels, paying for a liscense does seem a bit odd.

-AK2DM

[Eugen Graf]

Thank you AK2DM for your answer.

It seems I don't need the NI Touchpanel Module to track user inputs? But why NI sells them? Did anybody bought this module? Why?

My issue is a CarPC project. So I can buy a common Touchscreen and work with them?

Regards, Eugen

[LAVA 1.0 Content]

QUOTE (Eugen Graf @ Sep 26 2008, 03:40 PM)

My question may sound funny for someone, but I can't understand if I can use a touchscreen as a mouse in LabVIEW? The same events, the same driver?

If yes, than why I shoulb buy a NI touchpanel module and pay licenses for applications?

I'm not sure if you are talking about a touchscreen attached to a normal PC (or a TouchPanel PC running Windows XP/Vista) or a Touch Panel running Windows CE. The NI Touch Panel computers and LV Touch Panel Module are targetted at the Industrial HMI market and use Windows CE as the OS on the Touch Panel. They are not designed to be a touch screen for a PC used as a LV development system. In fact the LV development environment does not run on the Windows CE-based Touch Panel computers.

In regards to Windows CE Touch Panel computers, if you chose to deploy an application built with the LabVIEW Touch Panel Module to a non-NI Touch Panel computer, you need to purchase a separate LV Touch Panel Deployment license. The NI Touch Panel computers already includes this license in the price. In addition in either case you also pay a license for the OS running on the touch panel.

By chosing the NI Touch Panel computer you will hopefully have a better deployment experience and better support from a single vendor if something is not working as expected. I don't know how much support a third party supplier will be able to give you if your LV application is not working. In addition NI may not be able to resolve issues that are caused by the third party HW or their OS.

QUOTE (Eugen Graf @ Sep 26 2008, 04:59 PM)

It seems I don't need the NI Touchpanel Module to track user inputs? But why NI sells them? Did anybody bought this module? Why?

My issue is a CarPC project. So I can buy a common Touchscreen and work with them?

The NI Touch Panel Module is required to build LV applications which will be deployed to touch panel computers running Windows CE. In a Touch Panel the computer is built into the screen and there is no separate PC.

If you are connecting a touch screen to a PC (desktop, PXI, laptop, etc.) you do not need any additional LV module as the application will be running on Windows XP/Vista as before.

[Eugen Graf]

Thank you Christian.

Now I know what NI touchpanel module is and I am sure now what I will do.

[LAVA 1.0 Content]

QUOTE (Eugen Graf @ Sep 26 2008, 05:20 PM)

Thank you Christian.

Now I know what NI touchpanel module is and I am sure now what I will do.

Of course you could go with a Windows XP-based Panel PC with touch screen.

http://sine.ni.com/nips/cds/view/p/lang/en/nid/204134