MATLAB/Octave - Industrial Digital Out 4 Bricklet 2.0

This is the description of the MATLAB/Octave API bindings for the Industrial Digital Out 4 Bricklet 2.0. General information and technical specifications for the Industrial Digital Out 4 Bricklet 2.0 are summarized in its hardware description.

An installation guide for the MATLAB/Octave API bindings is part of their general description.

Examples

The example code below is Public Domain (CC0 1.0).

Simple (MATLAB)

Download (matlab_example_simple.m)

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function matlab_example_simple()
    import com.tinkerforge.IPConnection;
    import com.tinkerforge.BrickletIndustrialDigitalOut4V2;

    HOST = 'localhost';
    PORT = 4223;
    UID = 'XYZ'; % Change XYZ to the UID of your Industrial Digital Out 4 Bricklet 2.0

    ipcon = IPConnection(); % Create IP connection
    ido4 = handle(BrickletIndustrialDigitalOut4V2(UID, ipcon), 'CallbackProperties'); % Create device object

    ipcon.connect(HOST, PORT); % Connect to brickd
    % Don't use device before ipcon is connected

    % Set channels alternating high/low 10 times with 100 ms delay
    for i = 0:9
        pause(0.1);
        ido4.setValue([true false false false]);
        pause(0.1);
        ido4.setValue([false true false false]);
        pause(0.1);
        ido4.setValue([false false true false]);
        pause(0.1);
        ido4.setValue([false false false true]);
    end

    input('Press key to exit\n', 's');
    ipcon.disconnect();
end

Simple (Octave)

Download (octave_example_simple.m)

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function octave_example_simple()
    more off;

    HOST = "localhost";
    PORT = 4223;
    UID = "XYZ"; % Change XYZ to the UID of your Industrial Digital Out 4 Bricklet 2.0

    ipcon = javaObject("com.tinkerforge.IPConnection"); % Create IP connection
    ido4 = javaObject("com.tinkerforge.BrickletIndustrialDigitalOut4V2", UID, ipcon); % Create device object

    ipcon.connect(HOST, PORT); % Connect to brickd
    % Don't use device before ipcon is connected

    % Set channels alternating high/low 10 times with 100 ms delay
    for i = 0:9
        pause(0.1);
        ido4.setValue([true false false false]);
        pause(0.1);
        ido4.setValue([false true false false]);
        pause(0.1);
        ido4.setValue([false false true false]);
        pause(0.1);
        ido4.setValue([false false false true]);
    end

    input("Press key to exit\n", "s");
    ipcon.disconnect();
end

API

Generally, every method of the MATLAB bindings that returns a value can throw a TimeoutException. This exception gets thrown if the device did not respond. If a cable based connection is used, it is unlikely that this exception gets thrown (assuming nobody unplugs the device). However, if a wireless connection is used, timeouts will occur if the distance to the device gets too big.

Beside the TimeoutException there is also a NotConnectedException that is thrown if a method needs to communicate with the device while the IP Connection is not connected.

Since the MATLAB bindings are based on Java and Java does not support multiple return values and return by reference is not possible for primitive types, we use small classes that only consist of member variables. The member variables of the returned objects are described in the corresponding method descriptions.

The package for all Brick/Bricklet bindings and the IP Connection is com.tinkerforge.*

All methods listed below are thread-safe.

Basic Functions

class BrickletIndustrialDigitalOut4V2(String uid, IPConnection ipcon)
Parameters:
  • uid – Type: String
  • ipcon – Type: IPConnection
Returns:
  • industrialDigitalOut4V2 – Type: BrickletIndustrialDigitalOut4V2

Creates an object with the unique device ID uid.

In MATLAB:

import com.tinkerforge.BrickletIndustrialDigitalOut4V2;

industrialDigitalOut4V2 = BrickletIndustrialDigitalOut4V2('YOUR_DEVICE_UID', ipcon);

In Octave:

industrialDigitalOut4V2 = java_new("com.tinkerforge.BrickletIndustrialDigitalOut4V2", "YOUR_DEVICE_UID", ipcon);

This object can then be used after the IP Connection is connected.

void BrickletIndustrialDigitalOut4V2.setValue(boolean[] value)
Parameters:
  • value – Type: boolean[], Length: 4

Sets the output value of all four channels. A value of true or false outputs logic 1 or logic 0 respectively on the corresponding channel.

Use setSelectedValue() to change only one output channel state.

All running monoflop timers and PWMs will be aborted if this function is called.

For example: (True, True, False, False) will turn the channels 0-1 high and the channels 2-3 low.

boolean[] BrickletIndustrialDigitalOut4V2.getValue()
Returns:
  • value – Type: boolean[], Length: 4

Returns the logic levels that are currently output on the channels.

void BrickletIndustrialDigitalOut4V2.setSelectedValue(int channel, boolean value)
Parameters:
  • channel – Type: int, Range: [0 to 3]
  • value – Type: boolean

Sets the output value of a specific channel without affecting the other channels.

A running monoflop timer or PWM for the specified channel will be aborted if this function is called.

void BrickletIndustrialDigitalOut4V2.setChannelLEDConfig(int channel, int config)
Parameters:
  • channel – Type: int, Range: [0 to 3]
  • config – Type: int, Range: See constants, Default: 3

Each channel has a corresponding LED. You can turn the LED off, on or show a heartbeat. You can also set the LED to "Channel Status". In this mode the LED is on if the channel is high and off otherwise.

By default all channel LEDs are configured as "Channel Status".

The following constants are available for this function:

For config:

  • BrickletIndustrialDigitalOut4V2.CHANNEL_LED_CONFIG_OFF = 0
  • BrickletIndustrialDigitalOut4V2.CHANNEL_LED_CONFIG_ON = 1
  • BrickletIndustrialDigitalOut4V2.CHANNEL_LED_CONFIG_SHOW_HEARTBEAT = 2
  • BrickletIndustrialDigitalOut4V2.CHANNEL_LED_CONFIG_SHOW_CHANNEL_STATUS = 3
int BrickletIndustrialDigitalOut4V2.getChannelLEDConfig(int channel)
Parameters:
  • channel – Type: int, Range: [0 to 3]
Returns:
  • config – Type: int, Range: See constants, Default: 3

Returns the channel LED configuration as set by setChannelLEDConfig()

The following constants are available for this function:

For config:

  • BrickletIndustrialDigitalOut4V2.CHANNEL_LED_CONFIG_OFF = 0
  • BrickletIndustrialDigitalOut4V2.CHANNEL_LED_CONFIG_ON = 1
  • BrickletIndustrialDigitalOut4V2.CHANNEL_LED_CONFIG_SHOW_HEARTBEAT = 2
  • BrickletIndustrialDigitalOut4V2.CHANNEL_LED_CONFIG_SHOW_CHANNEL_STATUS = 3

Advanced Functions

void BrickletIndustrialDigitalOut4V2.setMonoflop(int channel, boolean value, long time)
Parameters:
  • channel – Type: int, Range: [0 to 3]
  • value – Type: boolean
  • time – Type: long, Unit: 1 ms, Range: [0 to 232 - 1]

The first parameter is the desired state of the channel (true means output high and false means output low). The second parameter indicates the time that the channel should hold the state.

If this function is called with the parameters (true, 1500): The channel will turn on and in 1.5s it will turn off again.

A PWM for the selected channel will be aborted if this function is called.

A monoflop can be used as a failsafe mechanism. For example: Lets assume you have a RS485 bus and a IO-4 Bricklet is connected to one of the slave stacks. You can now call this function every second, with a time parameter of two seconds. The channel will be high all the time. If now the RS485 connection is lost, the channel will turn low in at most two seconds.

BrickletIndustrialDigitalOut4V2.Monoflop BrickletIndustrialDigitalOut4V2.getMonoflop(int channel)
Parameters:
  • channel – Type: int, Range: [0 to 3]
Return Object:
  • value – Type: boolean
  • time – Type: long, Unit: 1 ms, Range: [0 to 232 - 1]
  • timeRemaining – Type: long, Unit: 1 ms, Range: [0 to 232 - 1]

Returns (for the given channel) the current value and the time as set by setMonoflop() as well as the remaining time until the value flips.

If the timer is not running currently, the remaining time will be returned as 0.

void BrickletIndustrialDigitalOut4V2.setPWMConfiguration(int channel, long frequency, int dutyCycle)
Parameters:
  • channel – Type: int, Range: [0 to 3]
  • frequency – Type: long, Unit: 1/10 Hz, Range: [0 to 232 - 1], Default: 0
  • dutyCycle – Type: int, Unit: 1/100 %, Range: [0 to 10000], Default: 0

Activates a PWM for the given channel.

To turn the PWM off again, you can set the frequency to 0 or any other function that changes a value of the channel (e.g. setSelectedValue()).

The optocoupler of the Industrial Digital Out 4 Bricklet 2.0 has a rise time and fall time of 11.5us (each) at 24V. So the maximum useful frequency value is about 400000 (40kHz).

A running monoflop timer for the given channel will be aborted if this function is called.

BrickletIndustrialDigitalOut4V2.PWMConfiguration BrickletIndustrialDigitalOut4V2.getPWMConfiguration(int channel)
Parameters:
  • channel – Type: int, Range: [0 to 3]
Return Object:
  • frequency – Type: long, Unit: 1/10 Hz, Range: [0 to 232 - 1], Default: 0
  • dutyCycle – Type: int, Unit: 1/100 %, Range: [0 to 10000], Default: 0

Returns the PWM configuration as set by setPWMConfiguration().

BrickletIndustrialDigitalOut4V2.SPITFPErrorCount BrickletIndustrialDigitalOut4V2.getSPITFPErrorCount()
Return Object:
  • errorCountAckChecksum – Type: long, Range: [0 to 232 - 1]
  • errorCountMessageChecksum – Type: long, Range: [0 to 232 - 1]
  • errorCountFrame – Type: long, Range: [0 to 232 - 1]
  • errorCountOverflow – Type: long, Range: [0 to 232 - 1]

Returns the error count for the communication between Brick and Bricklet.

The errors are divided into

  • ACK checksum errors,
  • message checksum errors,
  • framing errors and
  • overflow errors.

The errors counts are for errors that occur on the Bricklet side. All Bricks have a similar function that returns the errors on the Brick side.

void BrickletIndustrialDigitalOut4V2.setStatusLEDConfig(int config)
Parameters:
  • config – Type: int, Range: See constants, Default: 3

Sets the status LED configuration. By default the LED shows communication traffic between Brick and Bricklet, it flickers once for every 10 received data packets.

You can also turn the LED permanently on/off or show a heartbeat.

If the Bricklet is in bootloader mode, the LED is will show heartbeat by default.

The following constants are available for this function:

For config:

  • BrickletIndustrialDigitalOut4V2.STATUS_LED_CONFIG_OFF = 0
  • BrickletIndustrialDigitalOut4V2.STATUS_LED_CONFIG_ON = 1
  • BrickletIndustrialDigitalOut4V2.STATUS_LED_CONFIG_SHOW_HEARTBEAT = 2
  • BrickletIndustrialDigitalOut4V2.STATUS_LED_CONFIG_SHOW_STATUS = 3
int BrickletIndustrialDigitalOut4V2.getStatusLEDConfig()
Returns:
  • config – Type: int, Range: See constants, Default: 3

Returns the configuration as set by setStatusLEDConfig()

The following constants are available for this function:

For config:

  • BrickletIndustrialDigitalOut4V2.STATUS_LED_CONFIG_OFF = 0
  • BrickletIndustrialDigitalOut4V2.STATUS_LED_CONFIG_ON = 1
  • BrickletIndustrialDigitalOut4V2.STATUS_LED_CONFIG_SHOW_HEARTBEAT = 2
  • BrickletIndustrialDigitalOut4V2.STATUS_LED_CONFIG_SHOW_STATUS = 3
int BrickletIndustrialDigitalOut4V2.getChipTemperature()
Returns:
  • temperature – Type: int, Unit: 1 °C, Range: [-215 to 215 - 1]

Returns the temperature as measured inside the microcontroller. The value returned is not the ambient temperature!

The temperature is only proportional to the real temperature and it has bad accuracy. Practically it is only useful as an indicator for temperature changes.

void BrickletIndustrialDigitalOut4V2.reset()

Calling this function will reset the Bricklet. All configurations will be lost.

After a reset you have to create new device objects, calling functions on the existing ones will result in undefined behavior!

BrickletIndustrialDigitalOut4V2.Identity BrickletIndustrialDigitalOut4V2.getIdentity()
Return Object:
  • uid – Type: String, Length: up to 8
  • connectedUid – Type: String, Length: up to 8
  • position – Type: char, Range: ['a' to 'h', 'z']
  • hardwareVersion – Type: short[], Length: 3
    • 1: major – Type: short, Range: [0 to 255]
    • 2: minor – Type: short, Range: [0 to 255]
    • 3: revision – Type: short, Range: [0 to 255]
  • firmwareVersion – Type: short[], Length: 3
    • 1: major – Type: short, Range: [0 to 255]
    • 2: minor – Type: short, Range: [0 to 255]
    • 3: revision – Type: short, Range: [0 to 255]
  • deviceIdentifier – Type: int, Range: [0 to 216 - 1]

Returns the UID, the UID where the Bricklet is connected to, the position, the hardware and firmware version as well as the device identifier.

The position can be 'a', 'b', 'c', 'd', 'e', 'f', 'g' or 'h' (Bricklet Port). A Bricklet connected to an Isolator Bricklet is always at position 'z'.

The device identifier numbers can be found here. There is also a constant for the device identifier of this Bricklet.

Callbacks

Callbacks can be registered to receive time critical or recurring data from the device. The registration is done with "set" function of MATLAB. The parameters consist of the IP Connection object, the callback name and the callback function. For example, it looks like this in MATLAB:

function my_callback(e)
    fprintf('Parameter: %s\n', e.param);
end

set(device, 'ExampleCallback', @(h, e) my_callback(e));

Due to a difference in the Octave Java support the "set" function cannot be used in Octave. The registration is done with "add*Callback" functions of the device object. It looks like this in Octave:

function my_callback(e)
    fprintf("Parameter: %s\n", e.param);
end

device.addExampleCallback(@my_callback);

It is possible to add several callbacks and to remove them with the corresponding "remove*Callback" function.

The parameters of the callback are passed to the callback function as fields of the structure e, which is derived from the java.util.EventObject class. The available callback names with corresponding structure fields are described below.

Note

Using callbacks for recurring events is always preferred compared to using getters. It will use less USB bandwidth and the latency will be a lot better, since there is no round trip time.

callback BrickletIndustrialDigitalOut4V2.MonoflopDoneCallback
Event Object:
  • channel – Type: int, Range: [0 to 3]
  • value – Type: boolean

This callback is triggered whenever a monoflop timer reaches 0. The parameters contain the channel and the current value of the channel (the value after the monoflop).

In MATLAB the set() function can be used to register a callback function to this callback.

In Octave a callback function can be added to this callback using the addMonoflopDoneCallback() function. An added callback function can be removed with the removeMonoflopDoneCallback() function.

Virtual Functions

Virtual functions don't communicate with the device itself, but operate only on the API bindings device object. They can be called without the corresponding IP Connection object being connected.

short[] BrickletIndustrialDigitalOut4V2.getAPIVersion()
Return Object:
  • apiVersion – Type: short[], Length: 3
    • 1: major – Type: short, Range: [0 to 255]
    • 2: minor – Type: short, Range: [0 to 255]
    • 3: revision – Type: short, Range: [0 to 255]

Returns the version of the API definition implemented by this API bindings. This is neither the release version of this API bindings nor does it tell you anything about the represented Brick or Bricklet.

boolean BrickletIndustrialDigitalOut4V2.getResponseExpected(byte functionId)
Parameters:
  • functionId – Type: byte, Range: See constants
Returns:
  • responseExpected – Type: boolean

Returns the response expected flag for the function specified by the function ID parameter. It is true if the function is expected to send a response, false otherwise.

For getter functions this is enabled by default and cannot be disabled, because those functions will always send a response. For callback configuration functions it is enabled by default too, but can be disabled by setResponseExpected(). For setter functions it is disabled by default and can be enabled.

Enabling the response expected flag for a setter function allows to detect timeouts and other error conditions calls of this setter as well. The device will then send a response for this purpose. If this flag is disabled for a setter function then no response is sent and errors are silently ignored, because they cannot be detected.

The following constants are available for this function:

For functionId:

  • BrickletIndustrialDigitalOut4V2.FUNCTION_SET_VALUE = 1
  • BrickletIndustrialDigitalOut4V2.FUNCTION_SET_SELECTED_VALUE = 3
  • BrickletIndustrialDigitalOut4V2.FUNCTION_SET_MONOFLOP = 4
  • BrickletIndustrialDigitalOut4V2.FUNCTION_SET_CHANNEL_LED_CONFIG = 7
  • BrickletIndustrialDigitalOut4V2.FUNCTION_SET_PWM_CONFIGURATION = 9
  • BrickletIndustrialDigitalOut4V2.FUNCTION_SET_WRITE_FIRMWARE_POINTER = 237
  • BrickletIndustrialDigitalOut4V2.FUNCTION_SET_STATUS_LED_CONFIG = 239
  • BrickletIndustrialDigitalOut4V2.FUNCTION_RESET = 243
  • BrickletIndustrialDigitalOut4V2.FUNCTION_WRITE_UID = 248
void BrickletIndustrialDigitalOut4V2.setResponseExpected(byte functionId, boolean responseExpected)
Parameters:
  • functionId – Type: byte, Range: See constants
  • responseExpected – Type: boolean

Changes the response expected flag of the function specified by the function ID parameter. This flag can only be changed for setter (default value: false) and callback configuration functions (default value: true). For getter functions it is always enabled.

Enabling the response expected flag for a setter function allows to detect timeouts and other error conditions calls of this setter as well. The device will then send a response for this purpose. If this flag is disabled for a setter function then no response is sent and errors are silently ignored, because they cannot be detected.

The following constants are available for this function:

For functionId:

  • BrickletIndustrialDigitalOut4V2.FUNCTION_SET_VALUE = 1
  • BrickletIndustrialDigitalOut4V2.FUNCTION_SET_SELECTED_VALUE = 3
  • BrickletIndustrialDigitalOut4V2.FUNCTION_SET_MONOFLOP = 4
  • BrickletIndustrialDigitalOut4V2.FUNCTION_SET_CHANNEL_LED_CONFIG = 7
  • BrickletIndustrialDigitalOut4V2.FUNCTION_SET_PWM_CONFIGURATION = 9
  • BrickletIndustrialDigitalOut4V2.FUNCTION_SET_WRITE_FIRMWARE_POINTER = 237
  • BrickletIndustrialDigitalOut4V2.FUNCTION_SET_STATUS_LED_CONFIG = 239
  • BrickletIndustrialDigitalOut4V2.FUNCTION_RESET = 243
  • BrickletIndustrialDigitalOut4V2.FUNCTION_WRITE_UID = 248
void BrickletIndustrialDigitalOut4V2.setResponseExpectedAll(boolean responseExpected)
Parameters:
  • responseExpected – Type: boolean

Changes the response expected flag for all setter and callback configuration functions of this device at once.

Internal Functions

Internal functions are used for maintenance tasks such as flashing a new firmware of changing the UID of a Bricklet. These task should be performed using Brick Viewer instead of using the internal functions directly.

int BrickletIndustrialDigitalOut4V2.setBootloaderMode(int mode)
Parameters:
  • mode – Type: int, Range: See constants
Returns:
  • status – Type: int, Range: See constants

Sets the bootloader mode and returns the status after the requested mode change was instigated.

You can change from bootloader mode to firmware mode and vice versa. A change from bootloader mode to firmware mode will only take place if the entry function, device identifier and CRC are present and correct.

This function is used by Brick Viewer during flashing. It should not be necessary to call it in a normal user program.

The following constants are available for this function:

For mode:

  • BrickletIndustrialDigitalOut4V2.BOOTLOADER_MODE_BOOTLOADER = 0
  • BrickletIndustrialDigitalOut4V2.BOOTLOADER_MODE_FIRMWARE = 1
  • BrickletIndustrialDigitalOut4V2.BOOTLOADER_MODE_BOOTLOADER_WAIT_FOR_REBOOT = 2
  • BrickletIndustrialDigitalOut4V2.BOOTLOADER_MODE_FIRMWARE_WAIT_FOR_REBOOT = 3
  • BrickletIndustrialDigitalOut4V2.BOOTLOADER_MODE_FIRMWARE_WAIT_FOR_ERASE_AND_REBOOT = 4

For status:

  • BrickletIndustrialDigitalOut4V2.BOOTLOADER_STATUS_OK = 0
  • BrickletIndustrialDigitalOut4V2.BOOTLOADER_STATUS_INVALID_MODE = 1
  • BrickletIndustrialDigitalOut4V2.BOOTLOADER_STATUS_NO_CHANGE = 2
  • BrickletIndustrialDigitalOut4V2.BOOTLOADER_STATUS_ENTRY_FUNCTION_NOT_PRESENT = 3
  • BrickletIndustrialDigitalOut4V2.BOOTLOADER_STATUS_DEVICE_IDENTIFIER_INCORRECT = 4
  • BrickletIndustrialDigitalOut4V2.BOOTLOADER_STATUS_CRC_MISMATCH = 5
int BrickletIndustrialDigitalOut4V2.getBootloaderMode()
Returns:
  • mode – Type: int, Range: See constants

Returns the current bootloader mode, see setBootloaderMode().

The following constants are available for this function:

For mode:

  • BrickletIndustrialDigitalOut4V2.BOOTLOADER_MODE_BOOTLOADER = 0
  • BrickletIndustrialDigitalOut4V2.BOOTLOADER_MODE_FIRMWARE = 1
  • BrickletIndustrialDigitalOut4V2.BOOTLOADER_MODE_BOOTLOADER_WAIT_FOR_REBOOT = 2
  • BrickletIndustrialDigitalOut4V2.BOOTLOADER_MODE_FIRMWARE_WAIT_FOR_REBOOT = 3
  • BrickletIndustrialDigitalOut4V2.BOOTLOADER_MODE_FIRMWARE_WAIT_FOR_ERASE_AND_REBOOT = 4
void BrickletIndustrialDigitalOut4V2.setWriteFirmwarePointer(long pointer)
Parameters:
  • pointer – Type: long, Unit: 1 B, Range: [0 to 232 - 1]

Sets the firmware pointer for writeFirmware(). The pointer has to be increased by chunks of size 64. The data is written to flash every 4 chunks (which equals to one page of size 256).

This function is used by Brick Viewer during flashing. It should not be necessary to call it in a normal user program.

int BrickletIndustrialDigitalOut4V2.writeFirmware(int[] data)
Parameters:
  • data – Type: int[], Length: 64, Range: [0 to 255]
Returns:
  • status – Type: int, Range: [0 to 255]

Writes 64 Bytes of firmware at the position as written by setWriteFirmwarePointer() before. The firmware is written to flash every 4 chunks.

You can only write firmware in bootloader mode.

This function is used by Brick Viewer during flashing. It should not be necessary to call it in a normal user program.

void BrickletIndustrialDigitalOut4V2.writeUID(long uid)
Parameters:
  • uid – Type: long, Range: [0 to 232 - 1]

Writes a new UID into flash. If you want to set a new UID you have to decode the Base58 encoded UID string into an integer first.

We recommend that you use Brick Viewer to change the UID.

long BrickletIndustrialDigitalOut4V2.readUID()
Returns:
  • uid – Type: long, Range: [0 to 232 - 1]

Returns the current UID as an integer. Encode as Base58 to get the usual string version.

Constants

int BrickletIndustrialDigitalOut4V2.DEVICE_IDENTIFIER

This constant is used to identify a Industrial Digital Out 4 Bricklet 2.0.

The getIdentity() function and the IPConnection.EnumerateCallback callback of the IP Connection have a deviceIdentifier parameter to specify the Brick's or Bricklet's type.

String BrickletIndustrialDigitalOut4V2.DEVICE_DISPLAY_NAME

This constant represents the human readable name of a Industrial Digital Out 4 Bricklet 2.0.