EtherCAT Reference and Procedures

You can read and write some properties of an EtherCAT master/slave, or a C Series module, at run time using Property Nodes. Or you can call some procedures using Invoke Nodes in an RT VI.

To use this programming technique, you need to follow these common steps:

1. Use the Set Mode VI to set the scan engine to Configuration mode.
2. Use the Refresh Modules VI to discover modules on the target.

   Caution  If the scan engine is in Active mode, LabVIEW will report an error.

3. Add an EtherCAT master/slave reference or a C Series module reference to the RT VI.
4. Use Property Nodes to read or write some properties of an EtherCAT master/slave reference (or a C Series module reference). Or use Invoke Nodes to call some procedures of an EtherCAT slave reference.
5. Use the Open Variable Connection VI to open a shared variable using the output reference from the Property Node/Invoke Node.
6. After finish all the configurations, use the Set Mode VI to set the scan engine to Active mode.
7. Use the Close Variable Connection VI to disconnect the shared variable after you finish all related operations. Refer to the LabVIEW Help for more information about how to use the shared variable.