What’s in the kit?
The Physical Computing Kit comes with:
We selected the WF32 because of its extensive onboard capabilities. It has a WiFi module that lets you communicate with a world of wireless devices, a Micro SD card slot for reading & storing large amounts of data, and a USB 2.0 controller for power, configuration, and your own USB applications. But that’s just the beginning, because you’ll also have access to the WF32’s 43 available I/O pins. Connect whatever sensors, displays, controls, peripherals, etc. you like and LabVIEW Home will be able to use them.
With just the chipKIT WF32, you’ll have a WiFi module, a Micro SD card slot, USB 2.0,
a potentiometer, and 4 LEDs all at your disposal.
Experiment without breadboarding
Suppose you wanted to measure ambient light with a photocell, then turn another light on when the sensor reading drops below a certain threshold. (Commonly known as a ‘dusk-to-dawn’ circuit.) With LabVIEW Home, there’s no need to wire up sensors, potentiometers, resistors, etc. on a breadboard. LabVIEW Home becomes the breadboard, allowing you to create a block diagram graphically.
In other words, you don’t need to learn physical circuits in order to create useful experiments & projects.
You’ll also be able to quickly create your own graphical user interfaces. Does your project need switches, buttons, dials, numeric displays, or more? You’ll be able to choose from hundreds of controls, graphs, and 3D visualization tools, then simply drag-and-drop them into place.
Now, imagine you want to expand your design. For instance, maybe you want to add a high / low temperature range or a digital temperature display. On a breadboard, it would mean adding parts, rewiring, testing, etc. In LabVIEW, experimentation like this is much, much more efficient.
Need help getting started?
You’ll find a growing collection of tutorials and examples at LabVIEW MakerHub, including:
- A tutorial series for users new to LabVIEW and its interface
- A tutorial series specifically for the Physical Computing Kit
These tutorials can walk you through an introduction to the LabVIEW interface, programming examples, setting up your WF32 for connection, connecting to I/O, datalogging, and WiFi connectivity.
Note: This software is licensed for personal, non-commercial, non-industrial, non-academic purposes. Applications may be distributed only for non-commercial, non-industrial, non-academic purposes.