Real-Time Windows Target

Input/Output Driver Support

The Real-Time Windows Target uses standard and inexpensive I/O boards for PC compatible computers. When running your models in real time, the Real-Time Windows Target captures the sampled data from one or more input channels, uses the data as inputs to your block diagram model, immediately processes the data, and sends it back to the outside world through an output channel on your I/O board.

I/O boards -- The Real-Time Windows Target supports a wide range of I/O boards. The list of supported I/O boards includes ISA, PCI, and PCMCIA boards. This includes analog-to-digital (A/D), digital-to-analog (D/A), digital inputs, digital outputs, and encoder inputs. In total, over 200 I/O boards are currently supported.

For a list of supported boards, see Supported I/O Boards.

Note    Some of the functions on a board may not be supported by the Real-Time Windows Target. Check the MathWorks Web site for an updated list of supported boards and functions at http://www.mathworks.com/products/rtwt/ioboards.shtml.

I/O driver block library -- The Real-Time Windows Target provides a custom Simulink block library. The I/O driver block library contains universal drivers for supported I/O boards. These universal blocks are configured to operate with the library of supported drivers. This allows easy location of driver blocks and easy configuration of I/O boards.

You drag-and-drop a universal I/O driver block from the I/O library the same way as you would from a standard Simulink block library. And you connect
an I/O driver block to your model just as you would connect any standard Simulink block.

You create a real-time application in the same way as you create any other Simulink model by using standard blocks and C-code S-functions. You can add input and output devices to your Simulink model by

• Using the I/O driver blocks from the rtwinlib library provided with the Real-Time Windows Target. This library contains the blocks: Analog Input, Analog Output, Digital Input, and Digital Output.
• Using I/O driver blocks from the DOSLIB library provided with Real-Time Workshop.Use these drivers, for Keithley Metrabyte's DAS-1600 board, as a starting point to create you own custom drivers.

The Real-Time Windows Target provides driver blocks for more than 200 I/O boards. These driver blocks connect the physical world to your real-time application:

• Sensors and actuators are connected to I/O boards
• I/O boards convert voltages to numerical values and numerical values to voltages
• Numerical values are read from or written to I/O boards by the I/O drivers

Writing your own custom I/O drivers -- If you need to write your own drivers, you can use the DOS Target drivers provided with Real-Time Workshop as a starting point. See Custom I/O Driver Blocks.

PC Compatible Computer

Software Environment