Agilent VEE

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

VEE is a visual programming and dataflow programming language and development environment from Agilent Technologies. It is optimized to use with data acquisition devices like digital voltmeters and oscilloscopes, and source devices like arbitrary waveform generators and power supplies. VEE originally stood for Visual Engineering Environment; it has since been officially renamed to just "VEE".

VEE programs are written by wiring together objects that represent data sources, transforms, and sinks, shown here in a simple program:

Image:SimpleVeeProgram.png

In this program, the two Function Generators are data sources. Waveform data flows from their output terminals when the program executes. The "A+B" object is a data transform object. It transforms the incoming data by adding the two waveforms, and then outputs the resulting waveform on its output terminal. From there, the data flows to the Waveform display which is a data sink i.e. it doesn't propagate the data any further and only displays it.

The VEE language is characterized by very shallow learning curve, high productivity, short development cycle and wide instrumentation connectivity and general purpose algorithmic prototyping.

For the High Level Language programmer, Agilent VEEPro is an open environment. A native object can import VEE libraries and even remote VEE libraries. VEE remoting is based on industry-standard OSF RPC. ActiveX controls are drag and drop; and Automation libraries are used with a built-in VBS-like scripting language. Full support for Microsoft's .NET Framework Class Library is included. VEEPro can also import your own Assemblies, and with .NET COM Interop capability it can take advantage of the full range of third-party components available.

For the Low Level Language programmer, Agilent VEEPro is also an open environment. The same native object can import Compiled Function Libraries (DLLs). Compiled functions are integrated into the VEE Visual Programming paradigm seamlessly. In short, nearly anything Windows can do VEE can do. VEEPro is distributed with header files for its Data Container API and Remoting API so you can build extensions without guessing as to data type or wire format.

Agilent VEEPro is supported through the Agilent Developer Network, the VEE Reflector mailing list and several dedicated web sites world-wide.

[edit] See also

In other languages