DSP Robotics Support

FlowStone has it's own separate real-time engine and DSP code section that is sample accurate up to 192Khz (5.2us)! You can't have graphics reacting more than 100hz on a PC! This is why all of these I/O boards exist! If you have speed issues with the graphics system, I would recommend looking at the re-draws as I have managed to optimise my projects by several orders of magnitude with the correct graphics optimisations. Also running the compiled EXE is much faster than the development environment. I'm sure they know what real-time means and FYI there is no such thing a real-time in any form of computer or electronics for that matter, there is always a latency be it 1ns or 1 second!

I completely missed this earlier... Not that I want to this degrade to an argument or anything, first of all, let it be very clear I think Flowstone is a great product and has a lot of possibility. I wouldn't be using it if I didn't. I don't disagree with what you are saying for the most part. You are correct that no system, is truly "real-time" - even analog isn't truly real-time, especially computer or micro-driven systems. In generic industrial terms, a real time operating system, such as that used for PLCs and so forth, it is important to have predictable behavior. A task in a RTOS should execute at a interval that is always the same - if this interval changes - then you get unpredictable behavior. Such as that in Flowstone timers for example. When Windows activities, such as graphics, or display functions, interferes with I/O, this can have a very detrimental effect of controlling hardware. This is what RTOS engines typically do, they control Windows itself as a task, to allow the I/O behavior to be very predictable and stable. This is NOT they way Flowstone is set up, regardless of what is stated as a main feature. I am simply making a comment, that when a system is stated as real-time, it is not expected that behavior is instantanteous, but that events are expected to behave predictably regardless of what fancy graphics or audio is happening in Windows. I'm sure I could state that better, but I probably lack the proper vocabulary on "real-time" engines, and "deterministic" behavior. I know what I expect to see from a "real-time" engine, but I also know what I don't want to see as well.

Enough off-topic stuff... I second the Kinect suggestion, especially since the SDK is out now.

LabJack U12 support.

Since you’ve already implemented the LJ U3, can the U12 be added too? Seems like most of the work is already done & and some tweaks is all it would take.

Thanks!

support direct work with LPT-port (write/read byte)

Or better still have an SDK!

Saitek Cyborg PX1000 controller

Support for Android Open Accessory has to be a big plus!

KNX former EIB would be nice. This is especially famous in building/homeautomation in Europe but also other countries too.

http://www.knx.org/

For the Phidgets 1063 stepper motor controller please add the feature to set the current position value at zero.

Post Jun 06, 2011 2:20 am, Phidgets Stepper 1063, mentions doing math to set a virtual zero position. This should be considered a work around. Setting current position to zero is a standard feature for all stepper motor controllers and should be considered a requirement. Please add this feature.

For me OPC and/or CANBus would be very useful.

I managed to talk to CAN bus (for OBDII) just using the FlowStone Com port Module!

.Net Gadgeteer hardware support..

http://www.netmf.com/gadgeteer/what-is-gadgeteer.aspx