Installation

Important Note: This software package runs exclusively on Windows 64 bits (version 7 and up).

Installation requires a number of steps, some of which may not be necessary if you have the corresponding software already installed, or do not need to be repeated for subsequent updates:

  • LabVIEW 2021 SP1 Full Development System Installation

  • Vision Development Module 2021 Installation

  • JKI VI Package Manager Installation

  • Open G Toolkit Installation

  • HDF5 LabVIEW Binding Installation

  • Opal Kelly Front Panel SDK

  • Repository installation

These different steps are detailed below.

LabVIEW Full Development System Installation

A valid license for LabVIEW 2021 SP1 64 bit is needed to run this software (while later versions might be compatible, they have not been tested). The installer itself can be found at: https://www.ni.com/en-us/support/downloads/software-products/download.labview.html.

Please make sure you select the correct version (2021 SP1 Professional) AND 64 bit. No additional toolkit (except for the Vision Development Module and JKI VI Package Manager, see below) is needed.

Vision Development Module Installation

A valid license for the Vision Development Module 2021 is needed to run this s oftware (while later versions might be compatible, they have not been tested). The installer itself can be found at: https://www.ni.com/en-us/support/downloads/software-products/download.vision-development-module.html#367068, in case you have not selected it as one of the optional addons during LabVIEW installation.

Please make sure you select the correct version (2021 SP1, Full). The module install both 32 and 64 bit versions.

JKI VI Package Manager Installation

The JKI VI Package Manager (VIPM) simplifies the installation of the two subsequent packages and is free. It is offered as one of the optional addons during LabVIEW installation. If you omitted to select it at the time (or have LabVIEW already installed), its installer can be found here: https://www.vipm.io/download/. The version doesn’t really matter and will probably be posterior to 2021 by the time your read these lines.

Open G Toolkit Installation

  • Run JKI VIPM. The first time on, repositories are scanned and packages downloaded, which may take some time.

  • Once this is done, type ‘Open G Toolkit’ in the Search Box. This should result in a single item showing up in the package list. Select and install it (accept all defaults in subsequent dialogs). Installation of the Toolkit will launch LabVIEW and require some lengthy download and compilation. Please let this process come to completion.

Keep VIPM and LabVIEW open as they will be needed for the next step.

HDF5 LabVIEW Binding Installation

HDF5 support is provided by the wrapper developed by Martijn Jasperse and available at http://h5labview.sourceforge.net/.

Opal Kelly FrontPanel SDK

To communicate with SwissSPAD 2’s FPGA, the software needs a development toolkit provided by Opal Kelly. While the SDK is free, you will need to register to be able to download and install it.

Navigate to https://pins.opalkelly.com/users/sign_up to register.

Once you have registered and logged in, navigate to https://pins.opalkelly.com/downloads to find the download link.

The FrontPanel SDK installer will show up only if you are registered and logged in and should appear as “FrontPanelUSB-Win-x64-x.y.z.exe” were x.y.z is the version. SwissSPAD Live has been tested with version 5.2.3, but should work with later versions too.

Download the installer and install the SDK (default settings).

To verify that the installation proceeded correctly, connect SwissSPADx’s USB 3 cable to the computer and power up the FPGA (there is no need to power up SwissSPAD x itself for this test). Find the FrontPanel application (Start Menu >> Opal Kelly >> FrontPanel) and run it. It should show a connected board. Quit the application.

Repository Installation

The source repository is located at:

https://github.com/smXplorer/SwissSPAD-Live

You can either clone the repository (so that you are informed of any updates and easily can try them out), fork it (if you plan on modifying it) or simply download the entire repository and expand it in the folder of your choice.

Warning 1: It is possible that the two DLL’s normally present in the Opal Kelly >> C# Wrapper folder are missing. In that case, download them individually from the repository and save them in the C# Wrapper folder.

Warning 2: By default, the DLL’s may end up in a “locked” state, which will prevent their usage by SwissSPAD Live. Before running LabVIEW and SwissSPAD Live , make sure they are “unlocked”. To do so, navigate to the C# Wrapper folder with Windows Explorer and right-click on the dll files, choosing “Properties”. As explained in this article, the DLL’s are probably “locked” and will need to be unlocked.

Opening SwissSPAD Live.lvproj

SwissSPAD Live can be accessed by either opening the LabVIEW Project (.lvproj file) from LabVIEW or by double-clicking the file itself in Windows Explorer. The latter option might result in the project being opened by the wrong LabVIEW version, if several are installed on the PC.

In the project explorer, double-click SwissSPAD Live.vi to open it. Run the VI.

For further information on how to use the software, check the User Guide.