Asynchronous preemptive edit time semantic analysis of a graphical program

• US 8,429,627 B2
• Filed: 10/12/2009
• Issued: 04/23/2013
• Est. Priority Date: 10/12/2009
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: National Instruments Corporation (Emerson Electric Company)
• Original Assignee: National Instruments Corporation (Emerson Electric Company)
• Inventors: Jedlicka, David C., Kodosky, Jeffrey L., Richardson, Gregory C., Stanhope, John D.
• Primary Examiner(s): Tsai, Henry
• Assistant Examiner(s): Shyu, Jing-Yih
• Application Number:
  US12/577,284
• Publication Number:
  US 20110088019A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,289 Days
• Field of Search: None
• US Class Current: 717/143
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 8/33 Intelligent editors

Abstract

System and method for analyzing a graphical program. A graphical program is displayed on a display. A semantic edit operation is performed on the graphical program in response to user input. The semantic edit operation is performed by a first process. Semantic analysis of the graphical program is performed by a second process in response to performing the semantic edit operation, where the second process is asynchronous with respect to the first process. Results from the semantic analysis of the graphical program are displayed in response to completion of the semantic analysis. If during the semantic analysis, another semantic edit operation is performed on the graphical program, the semantic analysis may be preemptively terminated and re-initiated. Displaying results from the semantic analysis of the graphical program may then include displaying results from the re-initiated semantic analysis of the graphical program in response to completion of the re-initiated semantic analysis.

Claims

1. A non-transitory computer readable memory medium that stores program instructions for analyzing a graphical program, wherein the program instructions are executable by a processor to:

display the graphical program on a display, wherein the graphical program comprises a plurality of interconnected nodes that visually indicate functionality of the graphical program;

perform a semantic edit operation on the graphical program in response to user input, wherein the semantic edit operation is performed by a first process;

perform semantic analysis of the graphical program in response to said performing the semantic edit operation, wherein the semantic analysis is performed by a second process, and wherein the second process is asynchronous with respect to the first process;

display results from the semantic analysis of the graphical program in response to completion of the semantic analysis; and

perform one or more times;

during said performing the semantic analysis, perform another semantic edit operation on the graphical program in response to next user input, wherein the other semantic edit operation is performed by the first process; and

in response to said performing the other semantic edit operation, preemptively terminate and re-initiate performing the semantic analysis with respect to the graphical program in the second process;

wherein to display results from the semantic analysis of the graphical program in response to completion of the semantic analysis, the program instructions are executable to;

display results from the re-initiated semantic analysis of the graphical program in response to completion of the re-initiated semantic analysis.

2. The non-transitory computer readable memory medium of claim 1, wherein the other semantic edit operations are limited to semantic edit operations that would invalidate results from semantic analysis currently being performed.

3. The non-transitory computer readable memory medium of claim 1, wherein said re-initiating performing the semantic analysis with respect to the graphical program in the second process comprises:

re-initiating performing semantic analysis on at least a specified portion of the graphical program in which the other semantic edit operation was performed.

4. The non-transitory computer readable memory medium of claim 1, wherein said performing semantic analysis of the graphical program comprises:

performing semantic analysis on a specified portion of the graphical program in which the semantic edit operation was performed.

5. The computer readable memory medium of claim 1, wherein the program instructions are further executable to perform:

performing one or more further semantic edit operations on the graphical program in response to further user input, wherein the one or more further semantic edit operations are performed by the first process;

wherein the one or more further semantic edit operations would not invalidate results from semantic analysis currently being performed; and

wherein the one or more further semantic edit operations do not cause preemptive termination and re-initiation of said performing the semantic analysis with respect to the graphical program in the second process.

6. The non-transitory computer readable memory medium of claim 1, wherein the semantic edit operation comprises one or more of:

adding a graphical program node to the graphical program;

removing a graphical program node from the graphical program;

adding a connection to the graphical program;

removing a connection from the graphical program;

changing a connection in the graphical program;

or

changing configuration of a graphical program node.

7. The non-transitory computer readable memory medium of claim 1, wherein the semantic analysis comprises one or more of:

type propagation;

type checking;

argument checking;

or

object binding.

8. The non-transitory computer readable memory medium of claim 1, wherein the results of the semantic analysis comprises one or more of:

one or more errors;

one or more warnings;

one or more data type assignments to node inputs and outputs;

one or more configuration changes to nodes;

or

one or more semantic notations indicating areas of concern in the program.

9. The non-transitory computer readable memory medium of claim 8, wherein at least one of the one or more errors, the one or more warnings, the one or more data type assignments, the one or more configuration changes, or the one or more semantic notations is represented graphically in the graphical program.

10. The non-transitory computer readable memory medium of claim 1, wherein the first process and the second process are implemented via one or more of:

respective execution threads;

or

respective processors or processing cores.

11. The non-transitory computer readable memory medium of claim 1, wherein the semantic edit operation is performed by an editor executing in the first process, and wherein the semantic analysis is performed in the second process in parallel with the editor executing in the first process.

12. The non-transitory computer readable memory medium of claim 1, wherein said performing the semantic analysis of the graphical program comprises:

making a copy of the graphical program; and

performing semantic analysis on the copy of the graphical program.

13. The non-transitory computer readable memory medium of claim 1, wherein said performing semantic analysis of the graphical program comprises:

making an alternate representation of the graphical program; and

performing semantic analysis on the alternate representation of the graphical program.

14. The non-transitory computer readable memory medium of claim 1, wherein the graphical program comprises a graphical data flow program.

15. The non-transitory computer readable memory medium of claim 1, wherein the graphical program is configured to perform one or more of:

an industrial automation function;

a process control function;

a test and measurement function.

16. A computer-implemented method for analyzing a graphical program, comprising:

utilizing a computer to perform;

displaying the graphical program on a display, wherein the graphical program comprises a plurality of interconnected nodes that visually indicate functionality of the graphical program;

performing a semantic edit operation on the graphical program in response to user input, wherein the semantic edit operation is performed by a first process;

performing semantic analysis of the graphical program in response to said performing the semantic edit operation, wherein the semantic analysis is performed by a second process, and wherein the second process is asynchronous with respect to the first process; and

performing one or more times;

during said performing the semantic analysis, performing another semantic edit operation on the graphical program in response to next user input, wherein the other semantic edit operation is performed by the first process; and

in response to said performing the other semantic edit operation, preemptively terminating and re-initiating performing the semantic analysis with respect to the graphical program in the second process;

wherein said displaying results from the semantic analysis of the graphical program comprises;

displaying results from the re-initiated semantic analysis of the graphical program in response to completion of the re-initiated semantic analysis.

17. The computer-implemented method of claim 16, wherein the semantic edit operations are performed by an editor executing in the first process, and wherein the semantic analysis is performed in the second process in parallel with the editor executing in the first process.

18. The computer-implemented method of claim 16, wherein said performing semantic analysis of the graphical program comprises:

making an alternate representation of the graphical program; and

performing semantic analysis on the alternate representation of the graphical program.

19. The computer-implemented method of claim 16, wherein the graphical program comprises a graphical data flow program.