Aind.Ni.DigitalOutput.Configuration 1.2.0

aind-ni-digitaloutput-configuration

A Bonsai library for configuring NI-DAQmx Digital Output Channels externally from workflows.

Overview

This package provides a node for exposing NI-DAQmx Digital Output Channel configuration properties that can be set externally from workflows, instead of only through the Bonsai UI. This enables programmatic configuration and better workflow automation for digital output tasks.

Version 1.2.0 includes new property mapping capabilities to fix "Expression must be writeable" errors and compatibility fixes for CI/CD builds with published Bonsai.DAQmx NuGet packages.

Installation

To install the aind-ni-digitaloutput-configuration package:

1. Open Bonsai
2. Click on the "Tools" menu and select "Manage Packages"
3. Click on "Settings" and add the NuGet package source where this package is hosted
4. Search for "Aind.Ni.DigitalOutput.Configuration" and install

Prerequisites

• Windows Operating System - Bonsai and NI-DAQmx are Windows-only
• NI-DAQmx Runtime - Install the National Instruments DAQmx drivers
• Bonsai - Version 2.9.0 or later

Key Components

• DigitalOutputConfigurationSource: Generates a configuration object for Digital Output Channels that can be used with other DAQmx nodes
• DigitalOutputConfig: Configuration object containing channel setup parameters
• DigitalLineGrouping: Enum specifying how to group digital lines into virtual channels

Example

See the examples directory for sample workflows:

• DigitalOutputExample.bonsai - Basic digital output configuration

Usage

Method 1: Property Mapping (Recommended for DigitalOutput.Channels)

When you need to configure the Channels property of a DigitalOutput node directly:

1. Add a ConfigureDigitalOutputChannels node to your workflow
2. Configure the properties:
   • ChannelName: Name for the virtual channel
   • Lines: Physical lines to use (e.g., "Dev1/port0/line0:7")
   • Grouping: How to group the lines
3. Connect the output directly to the Channels property of a DigitalOutput node
4. This approach avoids the "Expression must be writeable" error

Method 2: Configuration Source (For general configuration)

When you need to generate configuration data for custom processing:

1. Add a DigitalOutputConfigurationSource node to your Bonsai workflow
2. Configure the properties as needed:
   • ChannelName: Name for the virtual channel
   • Lines: Physical lines to use (e.g., "Dev1/port0/line0:7")
   • Grouping: How to group the lines
3. Connect the output to custom nodes that process DigitalOutputConfig objects

Method 3: External Configuration Class

For advanced scenarios requiring custom property mapping:

1. Use the DigitalOutputChannelConfig class in your custom combinators
2. This class provides implicit conversion to DigitalOutputChannelConfiguration
3. Suitable for building reusable configuration components

Configuration

ConfigureDigitalOutputChannels Properties (Recommended for Property Mapping)

• ChannelName: The name to assign to the local created virtual channel. If not specified, the physical channel name will be used.
• Lines: The names of the digital lines or ports used to create the local virtual channel (e.g., "Dev1/port0", "Dev1/port0/line0:7").
• Grouping: Specifies how to group digital lines into one or more virtual channels:
  • OneChannelForEachLine: Create one virtual channel for each line
  • OneChannelForAllLines: Create one virtual channel for all lines

DigitalOutputConfigurationSource Properties (For Configuration Data Generation)

• ChannelName: The name to assign to the local created virtual channel. If not specified, the physical channel name will be used.
• Lines: The names of the digital lines or ports used to create the local virtual channel (e.g., "Dev1/port0", "Dev1/port0/line0:7").
• Grouping: Specifies how to group digital lines into one or more virtual channels:
  • OneChannelForEachLine: Create one virtual channel for each line
  • OneChannelForAllLines: Create one virtual channel for all lines

Output

ConfigureDigitalOutputChannels Output

This node produces DigitalOutputChannelConfiguration objects that can be directly connected to the Channels property of DigitalOutput nodes. This is the recommended approach for property mapping scenarios.

DigitalOutputConfigurationSource Output

This node produces DigitalOutputConfig objects that contain:

• ChannelName: The configured channel name
• Lines: The configured physical lines
• Grouping: The configured line grouping

This configuration object can be consumed by custom nodes or used to programmatically configure digital output channels.

Deployment

This package is automatically deployed to NuGet.org via a GitHub Actions workflow when a new tag is created on the main branch.

To trigger a deployment:

1. Ensure the Version property in src/Aind.Ni.DigitalOutput.Configuration/Aind.Ni.DigitalOutput.Configuration.csproj is updated to the desired new version.
2. Commit and push any changes to the main branch.
3. Manually trigger the "Tag and Publish" workflow in the Actions tab of the GitHub repository.
   • Set the "Publish to NuGet" input to true.
   • The workflow will:
     • Read the version from the .csproj file.
     • Create a new Git tag in the format v<version>.
     • Build the project.
     • Pack the NuGet package.
     • Push the package to NuGet.org using the NUGET_API_KEY repository secret.

License

This project is licensed under the MIT License - see the LICENSE file for details.