June 2015
This file contains important information about National Instruments Vision Acquisition Software, including installation instructions, new features, fixed issues, and known issues.
Overview
System Requirements
NI Application Software Support
New Features
Updates and Improvements
Installation Instructions
Configuring NI-IMAQ
Configuring NI-IMAQdx
Automating the Installation of NI Products
Known Issues
Documentation and Examples
How to Use NI Software with Microsoft Windows 8
NI Software Support for Microsoft Windows Vista, Windows XP, and Windows Server 2003
Legal Information
NI Vision Acquisition Software allows you to acquire, display, and save images; control digital I/O on National Instruments image acquisition devices; and configure your driver software and hardware.
NI Vision Acquisition Software includes the following drivers:
Refer to the NI Vision website at ni.com/vision for the latest information about NI Vision Acquisition Software.
The development computer must meet the following requirements to run NI Vision Acquisition Software:
| Processor | Pentium 4 1 GHz or equivalent | |
| Memory | 512 MB RAM | |
| Display | 1,024 × 768 resolution video adapter with a 16-bit display | |
| Minimum Recommended Free Hard Disk Space | NI Vision Acquisition Software | 3.5 GB |
| NI-IMAQ | 1.5 GB | |
| NI-IMAQdx | 1.5 GB | |
| NI-IMAQ I/O | 2.5 GB | |
| Operating System |
| |
The following table lists the NI application software versions, including service packs, supported by the NI Vision Acquisition Software. The installer specifically allows side-by-side installations of NI Vision Acquisition Software for each of the supported versions of LabVIEW, enabling you to use the NI Vision Acquisition Software with multiple versions of LabVIEW. National Instruments recommends that you install LabVIEW, LabVIEW Real-Time, and any other supported development environment before installing NI Vision Acquisition Software.
| NI Application Software | Versions Supported by NI Vision Acquisition Software |
|---|---|
| NI LabVIEW | 2012, 2013, 2014, 2015 |
| NI LabVIEW Real-Time Module | 2012, 2013, 2014, 2015 |
| NI LabVIEW FPGA Module | 2012, 2013, 2014, 2015 |
| NI LabWindows™/CVI™ | 2010, 2012, 2013, 2015 |
| NI Vision Development Module | 7.1 or later |
| NI Vision Builder for Automated Inspection | 2.5 or later |
NI Vision Acquisition Software February 2014 was the last version to release updated support for the .NET Framework 2.0, .NET Framework 3.5, and .NET language integration into Visual Studio 2005 and Visual Studio 2008. Visual Studio 2010 and later are not supported.
New versions of NI Vision Acquisition Software will not provide new .NET feature support or development. It is recommended that you begin new development in other supported development environments.
NI Vision Acquisition Software February 2013 was the last version of NI Vision Acquisition Software to provide support for the NI 1454, 1455, and 1456 Compact Vision Systems. NI Vision Acquisition Software February 2012 was the last version of NI Vision Acquisition Software to provide support for the NI 1762 and 1764 Smart Cameras. New software features of NI Vision Acquisition Software will not work on these devices.
This release of NI Vision Acquisition Software includes the following new features.
NI-IMAQ 15.0
NI-IMAQdx 15.0
NI-IMAQ I/O 15.0
The following list describes issues in previous versions of NI Vision Acquisition Software that are fixed in this release. 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 NI Vision Acquisition Software.
| ID | Fixed Issue |
|---|---|
| 410920 | The NIIMAQdx.h header file does not properly specify the calling convention for the GCC compiler when compiling for Windows. |
| 492589, 520774, 520779, 521799 | Various crash and stability issues with NI Vision Acquisition Software in MAX. |
| 508394 | The PXIe-1435 is not listed in the supported device list for NI-IMAQ examples in NI Example Finder. |
| 515572 | Unplugging a USB3 Vision device from an an NI Linux Real-Time target occassionally crashes the system. |
| 516218 | The "DeviceCode" Conditional Disable Symbol is not being added to NI Compact Vision Systems, Embedded Vision Systems, or Smart Cameras. |
| 520012 | Calling the IMAQdx Close Camera VI on an invalid camera session takes 5 seconds to complete. |
| 521633 | NI-IMAQdx delays up to 2 seconds when exiting MAX during device discovery. |
| 524295 | Reading a USB3 Vision camera family name on an NI Linux Real-Time target sometimes returns bad data. |
| 524086 | Some NI-IMAQdx devices were reporting an "Attribute not supported by camera" error when opening the camera session due to missing support for some of the Representation types in the the device XML file. |
| 525470 | Acquiring an 8-bit Bayer image from certain FireWire cameras crashes the application. |
| 526572 | No cameras are visible under Devices and Interfaces in MAX on Embedded Vision Systems and NI 177x Smart Cameras when software is installed via Recommended Software Sets with the default selections. |
| 527182 | NI 1483 examples cannot deploy to real-time targets due to subpanels on the VI front panel. |
| 528720 | Acquiring from a GigE Vision camera in Listener Mode causes a crash on embedded targets running the NI Linux Real-Time operating system when GenICam Events are enabled on the camera. |
| 526569 | The 16-bit controls on the Acquisition Attributes tab for NI-IMAQdx cameras in MAX are not active when using a multibyte Bayer pixel format. |
Complete the following steps to install NI Vision Acquisition Software:
Note: You must have administrator access to install NI Vision Acquisition Software.
NI-IMAQ and NI-IMAQdx integrate with NI Measurement & Automation Explorer (MAX), the National Instruments utility for configuring and testing your measurement and automation system. The NI MAX icon appears on your desktop after you install NI Vision Acquisition Software.
If you purchased this product with an NI Software Suite or NI Product Bundle, use the installation media that shipped with your purchase to install this product.
Complete the following steps to install an image acquisition device and configure NI-IMAQ:
Note: You must install NI-IMAQ before installing your image acquisition device.
Caution: Power off and unplug the computer before installing your hardware. Wait for any motherboard LEDs to power off before proceeding, since some computers remain powered for some time after being unplugged.
Tip: For a complete list of supported cameras, right-click the channel or port, select Camera, and click Search ni.com.
Note: Refer to the right side of the MAX user interface, which displays context-sensitive help, for information about configuring image acquisition devices with NI MAX.
Use NI MAX to install NI-IMAQ for LabVIEW Real-Time from the host machine onto the target system. The NI-IMAQ for LabVIEW Real-Time components enable the remote device to acquire and analyze images as directed by the host machine.
Note: Install NI-IMAQ and the LabVIEW Real-Time Module on the remote system before you install and configure the image acquisition device. Follow the steps in the NI MAX help window to install software.
Tip: Configuring remote image acquisition devices is similar to configuring local image acquisition devices, except that the procedure for working with camera files is different. Refer to the Measurement & Automation Explorer Help for NI-IMAQ for information about working with camera files on remote image acquisition devices.
Refer to the Measurement & Automation Explorer Help for NI-IMAQ for information about configuring specific NI image acquisition devices. You can access this help file from the NI MAX Help menu by selecting Help»Help Topics»NI Vision»NI-IMAQ.
Complete the following steps to configure NI-IMAQdx.
If you are using a USB camera, ensure that the camera is compatible with DirectShow, and that the camera driver is installed and functioning. For specific information about drivers and camera compatibility, consult your camera manufacturer documentation.
Instructions for configuring an IEEE 1394 or GigE Vision camera are included in the Measurement & Automation Explorer Help for NI-IMAQdx. You can access this help file from the MAX Help menu by selecting Help»Help Topics»NI Vision»NI-IMAQdx.
If you have an Intel Pro/1000 Series gigabit Ethernet Network Interface Card (NIC), it is recommended that you install the High Performance GigE Vision Driver. This will ensure optimized performance and minimal configuration. To associate your hardware with the high performance driver, complete the following steps.
Windows 8.1/8/7/Vista/Server 2012/Server 2008
Windows XP and Windows Server 2003
NI-IMAQdx will work with any standard gigabit Ethernet NIC. To use NI-IMAQdx with a standard gigabit Ethernet NIC, complete the following steps:
Note: The procedure for enabling jumbo frames on your NIC may vary by manufacturer. Refer to the NIC device documentation for more information about enabling jumbo frames.
If you plan to use multiple ports with NI-IMAQdx, complete the following steps:
Note: If you are not using the High Performance Driver, you will be unable to use jumbo frames on bridged devices.
Complete the following steps to configure NI-IMAQdx for Windows:
Tip: Click the Show Help button to display the help window on the right side of the image viewer. Move your mouse over the properties to view context-sensitive help in the bottom half of the help window.
If you are using a Windows development machine, the LabVIEW Real-Time Module, and an RT target, complete the following steps to install and configure NI-IMAQdx:
Tip: Press <F5> to refresh the configuration tree whenever you connect a new device to an RT target.
You can automate the installation of most NI products using command-line arguments to suppress some or all of the installer user interface and dialog boxes. However, starting with the August 2012 releases (products using NI Installers version 3.1 or later), you may need to perform additional steps before or during a silent installation of NI software.
If the NI product you are installing uses Microsoft .NET 4.0, the .NET installer may run before any NI software installs and may require a reboot before the installation of NI software begins. To avoid a .NET reboot, install .NET 4.0 separately before you install NI software.
For more information, refer to the following KnowledgeBase articles:
Documentation and examples are installed onto your hard drive with NI Vision Acquisition Software. To view the documentation, select Start»All Programs»National Instruments»Vision»Documentation and then select the driver documentation. You can also navigate to <Users>\Public\Public Documents\National Instruments. Some application-specific documents are installed to the application help folder, as listed in the following sections.
Refer to the National Instruments Product Manuals Library at ni.com/manuals for the most recent versions of product documentation.
When you install National Instruments software on Microsoft Windows 8.x, you will notice a few additional tiles on the Start screen, including shortcuts to NI application software products such as NI LabVIEW, Measurement & Automation Explorer (MAX), and the new NI Launcher.
NI Launcher helps you find and launch installed NI products. It provides you with a method of finding NI products similar to the Start menu in previous versions of Microsoft Windows. To use NI Launcher, click the NI Launcher tile on the Start screen. NI Launcher launches the desktop and opens a menu containing a list of NI products. Click any NI product to launch it.
| Note NI MAX does not appear as a desktop shortcut when installed on Microsoft Windows 8.x. You can launch NI MAX either from the Start screen or from within NI Launcher. |
For convenience, you can pin your most-used NI applications, such as MAX, to either the Start screen or the Taskbar on the desktop, as necessary:
| Current Application | Icon Location | Pin to Action |
| Windows 8.x Desktop | Desktop Taskbar | Right-click application and select Pin to Taskbar |
| Windows 8.x Desktop | Start screen | Right-click application and select Pin to Start |
| Windows 8.x Start screen | Desktop Taskbar | Right-click application and select Pin to taskbar from the menu bar on the bottom of the screen |
If you want to find a particular application or related files, such as documentation files, from the Start screen, you can access all installed files from the Apps view. To get to the Apps view, right-click anywhere on the Start screen and select All apps (Windows 8) or click the down arrow on the bottom left of the screen (Windows 8.1).
For more information about NI support for Windows 8.x, visit ni.com/windows8.
NI Vision Acquisition Software will drop support for Microsoft Windows Vista, Windows XP, and Windows Server 2003 as of July 1, 2016. Versions of NI Vision Acquisition Software that ship after July 1, 2016 will not install or run on Windows Vista, Windows XP, or Windows Server 2003. For detailed information about NI application software product life cycles, visit ni.com/info and enter one of the following Info Codes:
| Product | Info Code |
| NI LabVIEW | lifecycle |
| NI LabWindows™/CVI™ | cvi_lifecycle |
| NI Measurement Studio | mstudiolifecycle |
| NI TestStand | tslcp |
| NI DIAdem | ddlcp |
| NI SignalExpress | selcp |
| NI VeriStand | nivslifecycle |
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End-User License Agreements and Third-Party Legal Notices
You can find end-user license agreements (EULAs) and third-party legal notices in the following locations after installation:
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Patents
For patents covering the National Instruments products/technology, refer to the appropriate location: Help»Patents in your software, the patents.txt file on your media, or the National Instruments Patent Notice at ni.com/patents.
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