June 2008
This file contains the following information about the LabVIEW 8.6 Statechart Module.
The LabVIEW 8.6 Statechart Module includes the following new features.
You can change the icon style of a Statechart Communication function on the block diagram. You can right-click a Statechart Communication function and select Icon Style»Custom Icon to display the function with the custom icon of the statechart diagram. You also can right-click a Statechart Communication function and select Icon Style»Configuration to display the function with a list of configuration information.
You can configure the Run Statechart function to display the name of the current active state. Right-click the Run Statechart function and select Configure from the shortcut menu to display the Configure dialog box. The Statechart Active States option specifies to display the name of the current active state.
You can configure the Run Statechart function to display current active states for diagrams. Right-click the Run Statechart function and select Configure from the shortcut menu to display the Configure dialog box. The Statechart Diagram Display option specifies to display current active states for diagrams. You can choose to display current active states for one diagram, N diagrams, or all diagrams.
You now can debug statecharts on real-time (RT) targets. Right-click a Run Statechart function and select Debug Statechart to debug a statechart on an RT target. This action is valid only when you have linked the Run Statechart function to a statechart. By default, statechart debugging on RT targets is disabled. You can enable statechart debugging on RT targets by using the Statechart Code Generation page. Enabling statechart debugging on RT targets might increase the code size of the statechart.
You can move the cursor over a state to view the state configuration in the Context Help window. The Context Help window displays the entry action, exit action, and static reactions of the state.
You can save a statechart for a previous version of LabVIEW. Select File»Save for Previous Version in the Project Explorer window to display the Save for Previous Version dialog box. Select the version of LabVIEW and save the statechart.
You can generate LabVIEW code for a statechart from the Project Explorer window. After you create or update a statechart, right-click the .lvsc file in the Project Explorer window and select Generate LabVIEW Code from the shortcut menu to generate LabVIEW code that corresponds to the statechart.
In the caller VI, right-click a Statechart Communication function and select View»Statechart to display the Project Explorer window that contains the .lvsc file. Right-click the Statechart Communication function and select View»Statechart Diagram to display the Statechart Editor window.
Deselecting all triggers enables a transition or static reaction to react to any triggers in the Triggers list and to any new triggers that you create. You can deselect all triggers by clicking the Deselect All Triggers button in the Triggers/Groups page of the Configure Transition dialog box or Configure State dialog box.
Refer to the labview\examples\Statechart\ directory for example VIs that demonstrate common tasks and concepts using the LabVIEW Statechart Module. You also can access these VIs by selecting Help»Find Examples and selecting Toolkits and Modules»Statechart in the NI Example Finder window.
You can install all of your LabVIEW products—including LabVIEW and the Statechart Module—using the LabVIEW 8.6 Platform DVDs. Refer to the LabVIEW DVD Installation Instructions or the LabVIEW Release Notes, which are available in your LabVIEW box, for information about the LabVIEW Platform DVDs.
Complete the following steps to install the Statechart Module from the LabVIEW 8.6 Statechart Module installation CD.
Note Some virus detection programs interfere with the installer. Disable any automatic virus detection programs before you install. After installation, check your computer for viruses and enable any virus detection programs you disabled.
The LabVIEW Statechart Module Help contains conceptual, how-to, and reference information about the Statechart Module. Complete the following steps to access this help file.
The following items are known issues in the LabVIEW 8.6 Statechart Module.
| ID | Known Issue |
|---|---|
| 91194 | Using LabVIEW Statecharts without the LabVIEW Statechart Module Installed The creation and usage of LabVIEW statecharts and VIs that call them requires the installation of the LabVIEW Statechart Module. If you create such statecharts and calling VIs and then try to open them in a LabVIEW installation without the Statechart Module present, you will encounter search dialogs and broken calling VIs. Workaround—Create and build a Source Distribution from a LabVIEW installation with the Statechart Module present. You can then use the output of this Source Distribution, instead of the original Statecharts and calling VIs, in a LabVIEW installation without the Statechart Module present. |
| 91443 | Statecharts with unsaved library items fail cross-context sync If you are working with a statechart that is located in certain symbolic paths, such as <vilib> or <userlib>, in multiple contexts at the same time, and you view a state as a subdiagram, LabVIEW might not find the subdiagram in some contexts. In this situation, LabVIEW might show search dialogs. Additionally, saving a statechart when the statechart cannot find a subdiagram might corrupt the statechart file on disk. Workaround—Either save the statechart in a non-symbolic directory, or save the statechart immediately after you view a state as a subdiagram. |
| 91500 | Statechart library file cannot do auto save LabVIEW does not save statechart .lvsc files automatically for recovery. Workaround—National Instruments recommends saving .lvsc files frequently as you work on them. |
| 91918 | Revert is not available on statecharts
Workaround—If you want to discard changes you have made to a statechart, close the statechart and all callers and do not save the changes, then reopen the statechart. |
| 92421 | Data display has stale data for internal trigger queue The statechart data display and custom data display update only after the statechart executes a transition action. Therefore, these tools might show the internal trigger queue as having a trigger that has been removed from the queue already. |
| 100185 | Replacing a block diagram constant when configuring a statechart state node or transition node may not delete the original block diagram constant Replacing a block diagram constant with the Select a VI option in the Configure State or Configure Transition dialog box may not delete original block diagram constant. Workaround—You can delete original block diagram constants manually. |
| 100729 | Unexpected searching may occur when saving Statechart Communication functions to a previous LabVIEW version You may see unexpected search dialogs when saving VIs with Statechart Communication functions to a previous LabVIEW version, but the operation will still complete successfully. |
| 101248 | Building a build specification may fail if it uses statecharts or their callers last saved in LabVIEW 8.5 Workaround—Save your statecharts and their callers in the current version of LabVIEW before attempting to build. |
| 104376 | Quick Drop does not work when configuring a Statechart state node or transition node The Quick Drop feature does not work in the Configure Transition and Configure State dialog boxes. |
The following items are the IDs and titles of a subset of issues fixed in the LabVIEW 8.6 Statechart Module. If you have a CAR ID, you can search this list to validate that the issue has been fixed. This is not an exhaustive list of issues fixed in the current version of the Statechart Module.
| Bug ID | Fixed Issue |
|---|---|
| 52190 | The edit triggers dialog should give feedback about non-valid groups so the user knows why the OK button is disabled. |
| 57043 | When a statechart pauses because of a breakpoint or custom data display, it should flash its debugging window like we do when we hit a traditional VI breakpoint. |
| 57207 | Wiring from the tip of a transition node is difficult. |
| 57685 | Statechart does not generate code correctly if Trigger name has dual byte characters. |
| 57692 | Save changes dialog for .lvsc file should show changes for all pieces of the statechart. |
| 57807 | State nodes sometimes cannot be resized to be as small as desired. |
| 57874 | Cannot correctly debug a statechart when its calling VI is running in two different application instances at the same time. |
| 57916 | Subdiagram still shows up in error list window even after deleting its state node. |
| 58375 | Statechart typedefs should not throw save changes dialog when closed unless statechart is leaving memory as a result of the operation. |
| 58379 | Cannot edit statechart typedefs while configuring a state or transition node. |
| 58426 | A new statechart on a non-desktop target should automatically have code generation settings appropriate for that target. |
| 58480 | Need to show pictorially the current active state of the Statechart. |
| 58664 | Context help for a statechart state node should show more information about the actions a state contains. |
| 63095 | Renaming a .lvsc file on disk does not work. |
| 63208 | Creating a constant from an input to a statechart guard or action VI places the constant off screen. |
| 63425 | Easy to confuse statechart editing and debugging windows. |
| 64013 | VI properties on statechart diagram should show .lvsc file properties. |
| 64382 | Slowness when generating code for a statechart with many guard and action VIs. |
| 65597 | Should be able to drop a statechart on a block diagram in all the ways you can drop a subVI on a block diagram. |
| 72668 | Execution highlighting in statechart debugging window could be clearer. |
| 94777 | After stepping out of subdiagram during statechart debugging, pause button on subdiagram does not stop execution. |
| 94781 | Can press execution step buttons while debugging statechart but not paused. |
| 94985 | Hang when replacing a string constant with an empty string in statechart state or transition configuration dialog. |
| 97915 | Send External Trigger node slowly leaks memory. |
| 103001 | Pause button highlighted on statechart debugging window does not always cause execution to be paused. |
| 103002 | Statechart debugging window should come to front and flash when statechart next runs if debugging window has pause button enabled. |
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